Guided Services
As part of the Student Experience Project (SEP), the Guided Services effort focuses on helping students connect with the right people and resources at the right time so they can stay on track and get the support they need.
In the past, students had to navigate a mix of different offices, advisors and support services on their own. The new model simplifies that process by making it easier to find help, no matter where a student starts.
To do this, a team within the J. Willard Marriott Library, already a central hub for students, will bring together general student support services into one clear, student-focused place. This new service will:
- Help students get what they need, when they need it: By organizing campus support into a more connected system, students can find accurate answers quickly and get directed to the right people without delays or confusion.
- Make support more accessible to every student: Not all students come to the U with the same knowledge of how to navigate a university. This model is designed to remove that barrier to success and make sure help is easy to find and use.
- Be easy to access and understand: Students won’t need to know the names of specific offices or who does what. They just need to know that help is available, and someone is ready to guide them.
Staff will serve as a first stop for general student questions and support. Help will be available in person at key spots across campus and online through live chat, phone and virtual meetings.
Beyond answering immediate questions, the team will stay connected with students throughout their time at the U, including checking in, following up and helping them connect with specialized support as their needs evolve.
Timeline
2024–25 Academic Year: Building on the findings of the National Institute for Student Success (NISS) report, a steering committee was formed to take a deeper look at the student experience. Data was collected through focus groups and interviews with students, faculty, staff and campus leaders, and analyzed alongside institutional student data to identify key challenges.
Summer 2025: A cross-functional leadership team was charged with translating findings into priority areas for action, with the ultimate decision to develop an integrated support model.
Fall 2025: The project team began drafting the initial operational design and staffing model for the new student-centered navigation office.
February 2026: The project team is fully assembled, and design and staffing plans are under active review.
March–April 2026: Staff training efforts expand within the library. During this time, the team will also finalize the design framework and begin developing a comprehensive marketing and communications plan.
May 2026: The team will formalize connections with key campus partners.
June–July 2026: A soft launch phase begins, during which the team will test systems, refine workflows and continue evaluation efforts to support continuous improvement.
August 2026: The university formally launches the new support model, accompanied by a campus promotion effort.
Team Members
Our work to advance student access to support services is guided by a leadership team and advisory group that bring together perspectives from Academic Affairs, the Division of Student Affairs, the Marriott Library and other key areas. This cross-functional approach ensures the integrated support model is student-centered and complements existing campus resources.
Project Team
- Mitzi Montoya –Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs, Provost (Executive Sponsor)
- Sarah Shreeves – Alice Sheets Marriott Dean of Libraries (Project Lead)
- Allison Allred – Access and Operations Manager
- Scott Bigler – Associate Director Information & Operations
- Amanda Crittenden – Assistant Head, User Experience and Web Development
- Ian Godfrey – Assistant Dean, Access, Information, & Building Services
- Melanie Hawks – Assistant Dean for Organizational Development
- Angela Wilkins – Student Computing Services and Knowledge Commons Manager
- Audrey Iffert-Saleem – Special Advisor, Strategic Initiatives
Advisory Group
The Guided Services Advisory Group will provide ongoing input on how the new student support service is designed and delivered. The group will help ensure support is student-centered, equitable and well-coordinated with other campus services by advising on service models, referral protocols, training needs and continuous improvement efforts. The group is currently being formed, and a list of members will be shared here soon.
Purpose and Goals
-
The current system includes many student-centered services, but they’re often disconnected. Students are expected to figure out which office to go to or which person to ask. This leads to frustration or confusion, uneven support and missed opportunities to intervene early when students face challenges. The integrated support model is designed to simplify this experience so students can access help easily, regardless of their background or familiarity with university systems.
-
The changes address three key challenges:
- Fragmentation: Too many disconnected services can overwhelm students.
- Equity gaps: Some students struggle more to navigate systems that assume prior knowledge.
- Missed connections: Without a coordinated system, students may fall through the cracks or miss out on helpful resources or opportunities.
The new model aims to create a more seamless, proactive and equitable student support system.
-
Students will spend less time figuring out where to go for help and more time getting the support they need. The new service will be designed to make finding resources intuitive, accessible and responsive to all students regardless of where they are in their academic journey. By reducing confusion and making support easier to access, this model helps students stay on track toward their academic and career goals, advancing broader university priorities around retention, graduation and successful transition into the workforce.
-
Yes. This change builds directly on findings from the National Institute for Student Success (NISS) report, as well as interviews and focus groups with students, faculty, staff and campus leaders. Many students shared that they felt lost or overwhelmed when trying to find support. This redesign responds to what we heard and is meant to better meet students where they are.
Staffing and Organizational Changes
-
The library is one of the most visited, trusted and accessible places on campus, both in person and online. It already plays a key role in campus wayfinding, helping students navigate complex systems and information. Locating the new service within the library team builds on that strength, expanding its role as a hub for guidance and connection. This new service will extend the library’s ethos of access and support, offering students a clear starting point for getting help, whether they’re feeling overwhelmed and need to talk to someone, having trouble logging into campus systems, trying to adjust their course schedule or just feeling unsure where to start. Staff will guide them to the right resources and follow up to ensure their needs are met.
-
No. While the new service will be provided by staff affiliated with the Marriott Library organizationally, support services will be available at multiple locations across campus. We’re still working through which sites make the most sense, but the goal is to meet students where they are, whether that’s in high-traffic campus buildings, online or through on-demand virtual support. The Guided Services team will also collaborate closely with advisors, faculty and other staff to ensure students can access help in the ways that work best for them.
-
Specialized offices such as Financial Aid, Academic Advising and Counseling Services will continue to operate independently and remain essential to the student experience. The goal of the new service is not to replace these offices, but to improve how students connect with them. This new service will serve as a central navigation hub that helps students understand what support is available, where to go and how to get connected quickly.
-
As part of this project, we conducted a landscape assessment through interviews with leadership teams across academic units. These conversations helped us understand the support structures already in place and identify opportunities to partner more effectively without duplicating existing efforts. This new service is not meant to replace support staff or services in colleges and departments. Instead, Guided Services staff will work in partnership with those teams to clarify referral pathways and ensure students get where they need to go more seamlessly.
Academic unit input continues to shape the design, and Guided Services staff will collaborate with colleges and schools to provide consistent training, aligned approaches to resource navigation and stronger connections between central and local services. This work will remain ongoing as the new service develops.
-
The service will be provided by the Marriott Library staff. The Marriott Library reports to the Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs.
-
The official name for the new service is still being finalized. As plans continue to develop, the name will be selected to reflect its mission of helping students easily find and access the support and resources they need.
-
The service is currently in development. More details about its official launch, locations and the resources it will provide will be shared as implementation progresses. A soft launch is planned for May 2026.
For questions, contact EVPAA@utah.edu or complete the feedback form below.
Name and email are not required fields if you would like to provide anonymous feedback.