“It’s Always About the Students:” Tammy Ewin, CU Denver’s New Vice Chancellor for Marketing and Communications, Shares Her Priorities

Tammy Ewin knows from experience the power of a story. A first-generation college student, she defied odds by not only attending college but also completing her bachelor’s and master’s degrees. Since then, she has embarked on a more than three-decade-long career in strategic communications and marketing. Ewin brings that experience and perspective to her role as CU Denver’s new vice chancellor for marketing and communications. 

Ewin has held positions across many sectors, including higher education, public relations agency, nonprofit, government, and health care. Prior to CU Denver, she served as the vice president, chief communication and marketing officer at the University of Akron, where she led a team responsible for the university’s brand, marketing, executive communications, internal communications, digital platforms, crisis response, and media strategy—which align with the areas she now oversees on CU Denver’s University Communications team.  

We sat down with Ewin to learn about her background, her education and career inspiration, and her vision for marketing and communications at CU Denver. 

What do you love most about working in higher education, and what drew you to CU Denver? 

For me, it’s always about the students. It’s being able to tell that student story, how they’ve overcome adversity, what inspires them, and how best to share their successes. I was a first-generation, Pell-eligible college student. That’s how I gravitated toward the role here, because it’s important to me to tell the stories of success for first-generation students—and all students.  

Growing up, I had people say that [I wouldn’t go to college], given that my parents were very blue collar and none of my siblings had gone to college. My mom took care of six kids; my dad went to work as a truck driver every day. I was determined to go to college and succeed. That’s really what I love about higher education: the opportunity to learn and grow and start a career that you may not have thought was possible. Now I am fortunate that my career involves being able to work with students, to tell their stories, and to help represent them as they share in the experience I had many years ago. 

As we look back on our first five years working toward CU Denver’s Strategic Plan, what are you most excited about in the direction CU Denver is headed? 

I’m very much looking forward to having Chancellor Christensen share his vision for what the Strategic Plan will look like during the next five years. I’m excited to be a part of the leadership team entrusted with moving the institution forward and helping to address issues that we’re facing. I am also excited about promoting CU Denver’s value proposition of being a university that makes education work for all and emphasizes our public service mission. I’m here to roll up my sleeves and get to work.   

How does marketing fit into that? 

The role that the University Communications team plays is critical to promoting CU Denver and attracting students to our campus. We spend significant time differentiating our university and promoting our distinctive features—including being a dynamic public, urban research institution in the heart of a great city that is focused on student success. Another important aspect of what we need to do is bring to life our “Meet Your Moment” brand—helping it to resonate with prospective students, our CU Denver community, and beyond. I think we’re making great strides through things like our website redesign with student testimonials, great photography, and stories of faculty research and instruction that are making a difference. Not everyone is necessarily going to be able to visit campus to decide whether they want to enroll here. So, having a top-notch website that helps prospective students see and hear what it’s like to be a student here, to me, is critical. I’m looking forward to seeing how we can better tell our stories and get students excited about being a student at CU Denver.  

CU Denver aims to make education work for all, but there are a lot of factors and challenges that are global and personal to students. How can University Communications help students and CU Denver meet the moment we’re in? 

To me, part of it is about trying to get our arms around the challenges in higher education that are happening right now. The chancellor mentioned in a recent Lynx Link, a Gallup poll of 42% of Americans having confidence in higher education. So how do we rise above that? How do we counter that and share accomplishments, outcomes, and stories that say, “You know what? Higher education is valuable and does offer a high return on investment.”  

What can we do to help elevate the reputation of higher education in general and, more specifically and importantly, the reputation of CU Denver in that process? We have the faculty expertise and the student engagement and success stories that make our case—and I’m looking forward to working with our campus partners to reinforce how we can help students meet their moment.

When you’re not working, what do you like to do? 

My family and I like to be outside, and we enjoy hiking and boating. I’m from Pittsburgh, so it is sort of an unwritten law that you have to like professional sports. I’m a huge NFL fan. Steelers, of course. I’m a big Penguins hockey fan, too, so we’re already looking forward to next March when the team plays here in Denver. And we consider ourselves foodies. We have a teenager who really likes to try new restaurants, so we are open to dining recommendations locally.  

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received? 

It was from my mom. She developed breast cancer the summer after I graduated high school, and I thought about not going away to college as my intention was to go to the University of Dayton. She was so excited about my plans and the potential for my future that I told myself, “I can’t let her down. There’s no way.” As I struggled with my decision, I had a conversation with her, and she said, “Life is too short to spend a minute more than absolutely necessary unhappy. Do what you need to do to be happy. You can do this.” And while the thought of going away to school and being apart from her didn’t make me happy, I was determined to go and graduate to live up to my promise. It was one of the best decisions I ever made. And while she did not see me graduate, she was with me in spirit every step of the way as I earned my bachelor’s and then my master’s degree … and it was all because of her.