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Who We Are

Student Affairs  is a diverse division responsible for providing a broad range of services and support to undergraduate and graduate students.  Comprising more than 25 offices and centers across Stanford's campus,  we  offer a variety of transformative experiences through leadership development, residential programs, public service,  career  exploration  and cultural and community engagement. The vice provost for student affairs oversees six associate vice provosts (AVPs). Those AVP units are: 

Our Mission

To educate students to make meaningful contributions as citizens of a complex world

Our Vision

Stanford students embody our community’s standards of respect, resilience, individual leadership and collective responsibility.

Who We Are

A collaborative and inclusive team of experts who create opportunities for transformative experiences within and beyond the classroom.

How We Work

We support, sustain, and engage students in programs that cultivate good habits of mind, ethical behavior, empathy and intellectual curiosity.

Our Story: What We Do

  • Enhance the Academic Enterprise 

Student Affairs advances student development and learning by encouraging students to embrace rigor, examination and exploration in all aspects of their lives.  We challenge students to take risks, engage in ethical and effective public service, and apply imagination, creativity and leadership to advance their understanding of themselves and the world. 

  • Promote Inclusion and Equity 

Student Affairs cultivates ethical leaders, influencers and critical thinkers, promoting students to become responsible and engaged citizens who positively impact their communities. Through sustained reflection about the world’s complexity and their role in it, we encourage students to increase their understanding and practice of inclusion, to contribute to a more just world and to develop cultural competency and empathy for others.

  • Foster Community Engagement

As students explore their identities, we provide opportunities for meaningful connections and relationships that foster individual growth and nurture our vibrant campus community.

  • Empower Students to Thrive

Student Affairs enables students to thrive by promoting student health and well-being. We work with students to take ownership of healthy habits that increase their resilience, strength and adaptability.    

What We Will Do Next…

    • Develop dynamic strategies for understanding and responding to groups of students in ways that are as robust as our responses to individual students.
    • Retain, recruit and hire a staff that reflects the talent and diversity of our student population and values inclusion, intellectual agility and a commitment to personal and professional growth.
    • Develop an effective internal and external communications strategy that conveys transparency, fosters trust and proactively tells stories about the positive impact of Student Affairs programs on students’ lives.
    • Identify and optimize the resources within Student Affairs to ensure that our people, systems and processes perform at the highest level.
    • Serve as good stewards of our resources by evaluating our work to ensure that it reflects effective and innovative approaches to the intellectual, social and emotional growth of our students. 
    • Develop sustained relationships with the Office of Development and with the Alumni Association to explore opportunities for our alumni and partners to continue to advance student learning.
    • Develop deep and lasting relationships with faculty that create rich learning opportunities for our students.