Staying humble while lifting up others is a trademark of great leaders and people.

Joe Russell really doesn’t like to talk too much about himself. He’d much rather focus on the work being done to create safe and supportive resources for students at the University of Vermont. “That includes collaboratively supporting students who may be struggling or going through really difficult circumstances,” said Russell, adding that such support – made possible through campuswide coordination – is vital to the university’s commitment to student success.

That commitment has been Russell’s focus for nearly two decades. First hired as Director of Resident Life in 2005, his favorite moments working at UVM all seem to circle back to helping students succeed.

“When you meet them when they were going through one of their low points or most difficult moments, and then see them graduate or thrive, or just really doing well on their own, those are my favorite moments,” said Russell.

Assistant Dean of Students since 2017, Russell has remained deeply committed to finding innovative ways to engage and support students, academically and personally, through collaborative on-campus and community-based partnerships. Much of the work focuses on mental health.

“Even before COVID, student challenges, concerns, or distress was on the rise,” Russell said, “and certainly after COVID we’ve seen an increase in mental health concerns and an increase in students who are struggling or need additional supports.”

Eliminating the stigma that exists around mental health has been a priority for Russell.

Part of the solution has been the integration of an innovative approach to immediate care via an on-campus care team consisting of two full-time staff who reside on campus and serve as outreach coordinators able to offer immediate interventions to students experiencing a crisis, or need help accessing the resources they need. Russell is quick to point out, while care teams are nothing new on university campuses, UVM’s approach in building a 24/7 care team on campus is indeed a model for others to follow. 

“This work doesn’t happen in isolation, and it’s super effective,” he said.

Russell’s humble attitude and dedication to student success is palpable. There is little doubt that his calm and open approach to meeting students where they are is one of the many reasons Russell was selected as one of 12 President’s Our Common Ground Staff Award winners in 2023.

In an interesting twist, Russell had just helped nominate a colleague in another unit for the award without knowing he too was being put forward.

“I received two separate emails – one about the colleague I had helped nominate and another that I almost deleted,” recalled Russell of the two announcements about Our Common Ground Staff Awardees.  “I assumed that there were duplicate emails because they were back-to-back in my inbox with the same subject line.” He clicked on the email anyway. “I was like, wait, what happened? It was unexpected,” continued Russel, who would just as soon avoid the limelight despite being pleased about receiving the honor.

“Our Common Ground is universal and ubiquitous, which is helpful, but for me the ones I think show up a lot in my work on a day-to-day basis are integrity and justice,” Russell said. “I feel there should be no stigma in access, so to speak, and so the work becomes a social justice issue.”

Eliminating barriers and opening access for folks who too often feel like there is a lack of access to crisis resources, services, or supports is what gives Russell joy. The implementation of the on-campus care team is a big part of his work to date.

Other important moments have occurred too, but Russell keeps an eye to what the future brings. “What we have done [so far], brings on to our campus and into our campus life a mental health component that I am very excited about, to see where that goes and then continues to grow and develop into,” he said.

Although Russell would rather not take too much credit for many of the student-focused accomplishments he’s been a part of at UVM, there is no denying he has been a catalyst for positive change.