CortneyJo Sandidge (CJ), serves as the associate vice provost and leads the first-year experience team for the division of student success. She works closely with First-Year Programs, New Student Orientation, the newly created UT Success Academy, and Academic, Living, and Learning Community Initiatives in collaboration with UT Housing. She is responsible for ensuring incoming first-year and transfer student scholars have a successful first year and experience. CJ has worked in higher education for 18 years. She started her career at the University of Missouri-Columbia where she was able to support student success through financial services, such as aid assistance, student loan management (responsible borrowing, repayment, and forgiveness), and financial wellness and planning. She later worked at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, where she was the founding director of Husker Hub, Nebraska’s one-stop office for financial and registration services.