YaleNews

Dean of Student Affairs Camille Lizarríbar will leave her position at the end of the spring semester for a posting at Tufts University, according to a campus-wide email from Yale College Dean Marvin Chun sent last Friday.

Lizarríbar — who was appointed in 2015 — has accepted a position as dean of Student Affairs and Chief Student Affairs Officer for the Schools of Arts and Sciences and Engineering at Tufts. Chun said he will appoint a search committee in February to find Lizarribar’s successor.

“I will miss so much about Yale, this has been my family’s home for ten years,” Lizarríbar wrote in an email to the News. “Our lives have been intertwined with Yale College and with New Haven in more ways than I can describe … In many ways it will be like it is for seniors after they graduate: you may move on, but a piece of your heart is always here and with the people you love.”

Before she was dean of Student Affairs, Lizarríbar served for six years as the residential college dean of Ezra Stiles. She also taught several courses, including in the Literature and the History and Political Thought sections of the Directed Studies Program. According to Chun, teaching is “at the heart of [her] work, in all the roles she has played.”

In his Friday email, Chun praised Lizarribar’s work in planning the Bulldog Bash party that began last year. He added that she had “crucial roles in overhauling administrative systems” — such as introducing mixed-gender housing and inclusive language for Yale College.

“Over these past ten years, students have appreciated her as an advocate and ally, always there to support them with equal parts of toughness and warmth, and just as often with her famous brownies and flan,” Chun wrote in the announcement of her departure. “In working side by side with her, I have appreciated her as one of my most esteemed executive colleagues. She is also a good friend, and I will miss her, just as her colleagues and students surely will.”

Chun wrote in the announcement that, at the end of the academic year, Lizarríbar will assume her role at Tufts. There she will be charged with maintaining “the overall vision and effectiveness of the curriculum in the Schools of Arts & Sciences and Engineering.” He added that she will develop and be responsible for various programs and departments at Tufts, including student life and engagement, student health and counseling services, career services and communications.

Lizarríbar will depart Yale for a “huge promotion at an excellent institution,” Chun wrote in an email to the News. According to Chun, “Yale does not have a comparable position available.” The search for her replacement will begin shortly, Chun said, as he is “eager to hire someone” who will assume the position at the beginning of July.

“I’m really looking forward to joining the community at Tufts and getting to know everyone, especially the students,” Lizarríbar wrote. “And I’m excited about being part of a wonderful team of colleagues that are doing incredible work to enhance the student life experience. I think it will be challenging and inspiring work, and I feel grateful to be a part of it.”

Lizarríbar earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Comparative Literature and French Language and Literature from Brandeis University, a doctorate in Comparative Literature from Harvard University and a law degree from Harvard Law School. She speaks four languages: Spanish, English, French and Italian.

Alayna Lee | alayna.lee@yale.edu