Ohio University’s Sue Fletcher retiring June 30

Sue Fletcher, curriculum coordinator for the Office of First-Year and Student Transitions (FYrST), will retire June 30 after serving the University since 2015. 

In her time at OHIO, Fletcher has served in various capacities including as an e-Campus academic adviser, as the assistant director for academic skills instruction in the Academic Achievement Center (AAC), as an adjunct English instructor, and a workshop instructor for the Voinovich Academy for Excellence in Public Service. 

“It has been a privilege working alongside Sue,” said Wendy Merb-Brown, assistant dean of Operations and First-Year and Student Transitions in University College. “Her expertise in academic assistance skills has been invaluable in helping students be successful at Ohio University.” 

Fletcher earned a bachelor’s degree in communication studies from OHIO and a master’s degree in interpersonal communication from Arizona State University. She’s now a doctoral candidate in OHIO’s Department of English. 

“In all my work responsibilities, I have had rewarding experiences serving alongside many outstanding OHIO supervisors and colleagues who are all committed to innovative ways to encourage student success, especially for our first-year students,” Fletcher said.   

“Sue has educated not only our students, but also hundreds of instructors regarding resources and teaching methods to address the needs of our newest Bobcats. And her commitment to continuous improvement and learning will be greatly missed in University College, particularly in the FYrST Office,” Merb-Brown said.

Fletcher said some of her most rewarding experiences at OHIO involved several study away programs through the Global Opportunities Office (OGO). In partnership with colleagues Dr. Tiffany Arnold, Adam Lankford, and Lisa Flowers-Clements, she accompanied groups of students, some who are veterans or currently serving, to Washington D.C for the November Veterans’ Day Observances at Arlington National Cemetery and other memorial sites. In May 2023, she and Dr. Talinn Phillips completed Rhetorics of Remembering, an OGO study away program from Germany and the Czech Republic to sites of Holocaust and World War II remembrance.   

“These transformative experiences for students are unmatched in their rewards for me as a lifelong educator,” Fletcher said. “My hope is to see continued support for these programs, especially providing for more students to have the resources they need to participate.” 

Fletcher will be trading her role as administrator to graduate student as she will be working on her dissertation. She also plans to travel and says she’s looking forward to “returning to beloved places such as Australia and Ireland, and also to many yet unexplored places in the United States and abroad.”