Aaron Hamilton
Director
OneStop Student Services
When I was a high school senior in 1997, I met Wichita State’s newest admissions representative at a Topeka college fair who made a lasting impression on me. Despite meeting hundreds of students and parents that fall, he somehow remembered my name, high school and intended major, and carved out several minutes to take a personal interest in me. More so, he made me feel special and wanted, treating me like a young adult with educational and professional goals rather than someone who was going to be another number in a crowded freshmen class. It’s not hyperbole to say Aaron Hamilton played a major role in not just me choosing to be a Shocker, but facilitating recruitment, enrollment and retention for thousands more through his service over more than two decades in multiple offices at Wichita State.
After his stint helping to recruit some of the largest WSU freshmen classes at the time, Aaron moved on to work for the City of Wichita in 2001. We’d often joke that it was his university sabbatical but the civic engagement he did was meaningful, working to improve the lives of everyday citizens while giving him greater perspective on both the challenges and successes of the 60,000 Wichitans who lived in his assigned district. In time, though, he realized he missed working with students and – to use his phrasing - the “extraordinary people” he had worked with in higher education.
Accordingly, he returned to serve his alma mater in 2003 eventually working his way up to become associate director of admissions after multiple promotions and enhancements in responsibilities. His time in admissions encompassed all functions of the office from processing and data to recruitment to management of a large staff who had the weight of the university’s enrollment on their backs. He also became the office’s strategic thinker, reviewing national trends in professional journals and conferences, deep-diving into data and pushing the office’s leadership team to think about the future of our work. He simultaneously grew his presence and stature in professional organizations, presenting regularly at state and national conferences, lobbying for higher education causes in Washington D.C., and even becoming the president of KACRAO, Kansas’ professional admissions/registrar organization.
Aaron’s approach as a collaborator in higher education and on campus were instrumental in him being named the director of OneStop Student Services in 2021. He had soared as an admissions professional, fueling so many of his admissions colleagues to reach their greatest potential but it was time for him to take on the opportunity of being a director of a team that provides critical first-year services to new students and year-round support to all Shockers. His role has grown to not only work closely with the Office of Admissions, but also work very directly with academic advisors, the Office of Student Success and multiple vendors delivering high-impact service geared toward student success. He also serves as the building coordinator for the Shocker Success Center, a $17 million investment in the middle of campus that unites nearly 20 departments under one roof to create more opportunities for referrals and collaborations.
Aaron has served the university in all the traditional ways you’d imagine for a career surpassing 25 years of service, ranging from membership on dozens of committees to being engaged with strategic university initiatives to even cheering on the Shockers athletics teams. Perhaps what stands out most about him, though, is his witty, personable, often self-deprecating, and charming approach to his role. Colleagues around campus see Aaron as someone who is approachable, who cares deeply about the university and our students, and is simply fun to work with. Aaron lights up a room with smiles, quips, funny anecdotes and his patented chin-scratching pondering of ideas. He makes the work we do feel human, impactful and enjoyable.
I commend my tremendous friend and colleague, Aaron Hamilton, on his 25 years of service. While he’d be the first to point out that the university has given him everything he has from meeting his wife, Ronda, while in college to making some of his best friends through his fraternity to now having his children – Lauren and Sam – being enrolled as Shockers, I think we should all be grateful Aaron has chosen to dedicate his career to our 330-acre campus. He’s given Wichita State a deeper sense of community and pride through his loyalty and service, and he’s been a vital player in the university’s many recent successes in recruitment, enrollment and retention.
Bobby Gandu
Associate Vice Provost for Strategic Enrollment Initiatives