.Beth McCuskey
Vice Provost for Student Life
Beth McCuskey serves as vice provost for Student Life, where she oversees a portfolio of places, programs and services that are intentionally linked to the academic enterprise to deliver a comprehensive residential learning experience.
McCuskey’s focuses in Student Life feature well-being, including developing and deploying the Steps to Leaps framework; leadership development, including establishing the Roger C. Stewart Leadership and Professional Development Department; arts and culture, including fundraising for Marc and Sharon Hagle Hall — the new home for Purdue Bands & Orchestras; supporting robust programming for parents and families; and building ties between alumni and students, such as the innovative Executive in Residence program to bring alumni into residence halls to foster the concept of Purdue for Life.
Purdue is home to one of the largest and most impactful housing and dining systems in the country. McCuskey’s key initiatives in this area include building sustainable capacity to support enrollment growth and connecting living and dining on campus with the personal and intellectual development of students.
McCuskey began her career in student housing and dining at West Virginia University and held a variety of roles focused on financial and facility operations. Afterward, she joined the University of Wyoming as housing director and later assumed responsibility for dining services and the Wyoming Union. At Wyoming, she also coordinated student learning assessments in the Division of Student Affairs and co-directed UW’s first-year student orientation program.
McCuskey joined Purdue in 2010 as the associate vice president for housing and food services, overseeing student-facing auxiliary units and developing strategies to leverage these organizations to support student success more directly. Under her leadership, Purdue developed the capacity to build learning models that have evolved into multiple award-winning residentially based communities and programs. Coined “academicizing,” this approach was embedded in all aspects of the division, including student employment, video and event production, and hotel operations. In 2014, Housing and Food Services was merged with the Student Affairs division to expand this philosophy, and McCuskey was promoted to vice provost for Student Life.
McCuskey holds a bachelor’s degree in economics, master’s degrees in both higher education administration and industrial and labor relations, and a doctorate in higher education administration — all from West Virginia University. She has an academic appointment in the Purdue Polytechnic Institute, serving as clinical professor in the Department of Technology Leadership and Innovation. She served as both president and foundation board chair for the Association of College and University Housing Officers-International (ACUHO-I), has published several articles and book chapters, and co-edited a book, “Foundations: Strategies for the Future of Collegiate Housing,” published by ACUHO-I. Her next co-edited book, “The Oxford Handbook of Well-being in Higher Education,” will be published by Oxford University Press in 2026. McCuskey was also featured as a guest on Purdue’s official podcast, “This Is Purdue.”
In Student Life, McCuskey is committed to helping students discover the transformative power of their Purdue home.