About our Staff

Amy Swank is the Director of Parent, Family and New Student Connections and has been involved in higher education for more than a decade. She recognizes the level of involvement parents/family members seek and expect in the university lives of their students. By providing appropriate avenues to stay connected to the university, and addressing questions and concerns related to their student’s needs, she has been able to forge positive and lasting relationships with the parents and families she serves.

Growing up in a small rural farming community in Eastern Washington and being the first in her family to attend college has always meant that she understood the importance that anyone wanting to purse the opportunity to have a college degree should have that opportunity. Amy has become an advocate for students and families on college campuses from the recruitment stage all the way through to the moment they are handed the coveted diploma.

Amy has made lasting impacts in the field of higher education and specifically Parent and Family programs. She has received the Outstanding Publication for Family Members Award (NODA, 2014), Outstanding Parent/Family Professional, AHEPPP (2015), Best Institutional Initiative, 21st birthday program, AHEPPP, (2016), Innovative Program for Parent and Family Speak, NODA Region 1 (2016), Innovative Program for Parent and Family Speak, NODA National (2017), JASPA Ignatian Medal for Outstanding Achievement in Jesuit Student Affairs work (2018) and her writing has been featured in the NASPA Journal, Alaska Airline Magazine, MSN Education Online Journal, and NASPA/AHEPPP Blog. Even spending a little time with Amy, one will find it easy to identify her knowledge of Parent/Family and student success trends, literature, and services.
 
She has spent the last five years  serving on the board of director for AHEPPP – Family Engagement in Higher Education and currently serves as President.