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Colleen Peterson , associate vice president for Enrollment Management , will retire on July 15 after 35 years of service to RIT. Peterson has led and supported transformational initiatives, including the implementation of enterprise student systems, the advancement of enrollment systems and analytics, and RIT’s expansion into new national recruiting markets. She also played a lead role in the formation of the Performing Arts Scholarship and ArtEx programs, expanding opportunities for creatively talented students and strengthening the intersection of the arts and technology at the university. “I arrived as a freshman in 1987, and as my family likes to say, ‘We took Colleen to college and she never left,’” said Peterson. “Somewhere along the way, student became staff member in Development (now Advancement), then admissions counselor, assistant director, associate director, director, assistant vice president, interim vice president and, ultimately, associate vice president. Before I knew it, nearly 40 years had gone by.” Throughout your years at RIT, you've seen the university grow and change. In your opinion, what are some of the notable ways that RIT has changed? When I arrived on campus, approximately 70 percent of our students came from New York state. Today, RIT attracts students from across the country and around the world. That shift alone speaks volumes about the institution's growth and reputation. Aside from the physical transformation of RIT, I've also watched the university become far more sophisticated in how it serves students. Today’s students and families are more informed, more diverse in their backgrounds and expectations, and often navigate much more complicated financial and personal decisions than they did when I started my career. What impresses me most is that RIT has managed to grow dramatically without losing what makes it special. Students still come here because they want an education that leads somewhere, and RIT still has a culture of people willing to roll up their sleeves, solve problems, and try something new. Higher education continues to evolve. How has your role changed as a result? Enrollment management has always been a data-informed profession, but as technology and analytics capabilities have advanced, the work has become more sophisticated in how we use data to guide strategy and decision-making. Today, we can identify trends faster, model outcomes more effectively, personalize communications at scale, and make much more informed decisions across recruitment, financial aid, and student engagement. But I’ve also learned that students don't make decisions in spreadsheets. They make decisions based on hopes, fears, relationships, finances, and sometimes things we can’t fully predict. The institutions that do this well use data to inform decisions but never lose sight of the human side of the process. ‌ CREDIT Colleen Peterson has a deep connection to the university. She is an alumna of RIT’s College of Business and College of Continuing Education and is part of a multi-generational family legacy of RIT graduates. Pictured, from left to right, are Peterson’s children, Jack Peterson ’23 (packaging science) and Mackenzie Peterson ’22 (BS/MS physician assistant); Colleen Peterson; niece Ansleigh Myers, who graduated from RIT’s physician assistant program in May; dad Jack Finnery ’70; sister Ellen Myers ’98; and husband Kevin Peterson ’96 ’03. “RIT has been woven into our family's story for decades, and that's something I’ll always treasure,” said Peterson. What are one or two things that you'll always remember about your time at RIT? What I’ll remember most are the people. I've had the privilege of working with incredibly talented and dedicated colleagues across the university over the past 35 years. Many of those professional relationships became lasting friendships. I’ll also always remember the students and families. Enrollment work is unique because you're often interacting with people during major life moments filled with excitement, stress, hope, and uncertainty. Being able to help students find their path and watch them succeed has been incredibly rewarding. There are countless other memories that make me smile. Recruitment travel adventures, orientation programs, application reading marathons, celebrating record classes, and more than a few late nights spent preparing for major system conversions, go-lives, and enrollment milestones. If you've ever participated in a major cutover weekend, you know there is usually a moment around 2 a.m., where everyone is tired (or you hear snoring on the line), wondering whether things will work, and surviving on coffee and determination. Somehow those become the stories you laugh about years later. And finally, a “thank you” to everyone who put up with my antics, practical jokes, and occasional attempts to keep things interesting over the years. You all know who you are. What are your plans as you head into retirement? What's on your wish list? Retirement feels a little surreal. After all, I arrived on campus in 1987 and never really left. I expect I'll stay engaged professionally in some capacity because I genuinely enjoy the work and the people. Higher education has been such a significant part of my life that I can't imagine stepping away from it entirely. Beyond that, I look forward to spending more time with family and friends, traveling, golfing, enjoying summers in Rochester, and having the freedom to say "yes" to opportunities that don't fit neatly into an Outlook calendar. Mostly, I’m looking forward to discovering what life looks like when I don’t measure the year by application deadlines, FAFSA releases, deposit day, census, and budget season. After nearly 35 years, that may take some getting used to. Well, I guess I finally proved my family wrong. After nearly 40 years, I am finally leaving college.