Record named executive director of UMS TRANSFORMS Student Success and Retention Initiatives

A University of Maine wildlife faculty member will oversee the continued development and implementation of various programs that will help students throughout Maine’s public universities excel during and after their college careers.

Sydne Record, associate professor of land conservation, has been named executive director of UMS TRANSFORMS Student Success and Retention, effective Jan. 1. She succeeds Brian Olson, professor of ornithology who served in the role for three years. 

UMS TRANSFORMS is a multifaceted initiative from the University of Maine System that was launched by a $320 million investment from the Harold Alfond Foundation in Maine’s public universities. The Student Success and Retention component of UMS TRANSFORMS that Record will manage includes Research Learning Experiences, courses that allow first and second year students to engage in research and other forms of hands-on learning at the start of their college careers; Gateways to Success, which offers various support and early intervention services; and Pathways to Careers, which offers funding, training and coordination support for internships.

“We are thrilled to have Sydne join our team and help lead our UMS TRANSFORMS Student Success and Retention initiative,” said John Volin, UMaine executive vice president of academic affairs and provost and lead on the initiative’s Student Success and Retention offerings with co-lead University of Maine at Fort Kent President Deborah Hedeen. “I’m confident she will build on the tremendous work Brian accomplished, helping even more students thrive during and beyond their undergraduate careers.”  

Record has been with UMaine’s Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Conservation Biology since 2022. She also currently chairs the National Science Foundation’s National Ecological Observatory Network’s Advisory Board. 

Before coming to UMaine, Record served as the associate provost and associate professor of quantitative ecology at Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania and as co-director of the Harvard Forest Summer Research Program in Ecology. She earned her Ph.D. in plant biology from the University of Massachusetts Amherst. 

Record’s research focuses on understanding what processes result in the distribution of species and determining drivers of genetic, trait and species diversity across large landscapes. She explores the link between ecological theory and site-scale empirical data with collation of large data sets on regional and global ecological patterns using quantitative methods. 

“UMS Transforms presents an exciting opportunity to reshape our approach to workforce development and education in the University of Maine System,” Record said. “I am honored and excited to work with UMS students, faculty, administration, staff, alums and the people of Maine to coordinate this effort with a focus on student retention and success.”