Adrienne Gillespie Andrews was selected as the first ever Chief Diversity Officer at Weber State University in May 2015.  She previously served in a split appointment as the Director of the Center for Diversity and Unity and as the Special Assistant to the President for Diversity. She has worked in the field of diversity and inclusion for more than a decade and is excited to develop new opportunities for community building in this role.  Adrienne began working at WSU in February 2005 and has held other positions throughout Student Affairs and regularly taught in the Political Science Department and Women and Gender Studies Program.

Andrews earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science with minors in Ethnic Studies and Spanish in 1993 from the University of Utah (U of U). While there, she studied abroad in Cuernavaca, Mexico in addition to completing an internship at the United States Supreme Court. Adrienne received numerous scholarships and awards for her academic performance and leadership abilities. She next attended the University of Denver, College of Law as a Chancellor’s Scholar, leaving in 1995 and returning to the U of U where she completed a second Bachelor of Arts in Women’s Studies in 1996. Her first master’s degree was completed at Minnesota State University, Mankato (MSUM) in Women’s Studies in 1997. She completed a master’s degree in Political Science at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey in 2001.  Her most recent academic accomplishment is a post graduate degree in Conflict Resolution & Mediation, received with honors from the U of U in 2006.

Andrews has worked in a variety of government, higher education and non-profit capacities including as the Director of the Center for Youth Policy and Programs for the State of New Jersey; Staff Associate in the New Jersey Department of State; Political Science Instructor at Rutger’s; Women’s Studies Instructor at MSUM; graduate associate and research associate at the Eagleton Institute of Politics and Center for American                                                                                                      Woman and Politics; among other positions.

A native Utahan, Andrews was raised in Davis County and has a long history of advocacy in social justice and inclusion work with a special capacity for community building, making her an excellent fit for this exciting position.  Andrews currently serves as a member of the Utah Governor’s Martin Luther King, Jr. Human Rights Commission and  has previously served on the Boards of  Catholic Community Services of Northern Utah and for the American Red Cross of Northern Utah where she chaired the Celebration of Heroes fundraiser. 

Andrews has received numerous honors while at Weber State University most recently the Crystal Crest Friend of Student Award in 2014.  Andrews was selected as a Community Involvement Center Faculty Fellow for Service Learning in the 2011-12 cohort. She also received the 2009 Utah Campus Compact Civically Engaged Staff Award and has received the the Woman of Wit Award for Faculty and the Quality Service Star Award.  

Andrews is married to Albert “Chip” Andrews.  Whenever possible, she loves to travel, knit, quilt, read, write and laugh.