Dr. Shawn Ryan, Ed.D.
Dr. Shawn Ryan has lead Orientation and Transition Programs at Chico State since 2019. Prior to joining Chico State in 2019, he worked at Sacramento State Orientation for 7 years. He’s worked in a variety of offices in higher education, including admissions, academic advising, housing, and orientation. Throughout his daily work, he applies Academic Capital Theory to the student transition, which concentrates on identifying and easing concerns about costs, expanding students’ networks, bridging trust between the student and university, providing timely information, and enhancing each student’s academic capital. Shawn began his higher education journey at the community college in Oklahoma and received his Doctorate of Education from Arizona State University with a concentration in leadership and innovation. Shawn was born and raised in Boston and joined the U.S. Air Force after high school. He was an aviator for 4 years on active duty and served on 4 deployments. He also served as an United State Peace Corps English Teacher in a small village the Republic of Moldova for two years. Shawn speaks Romanian and is always working on improving his Spanish speaking abilities. He is also a lecturer in the Department of Social Science and enjoys spending time with family, hiking, reading, running, watching the stars, and dreaming of a greater tomorrow.