Olsen Pueblitz Begins Work as Director of UW Office of Engagement and Outreach

The University of Wyoming has restarted its Office of Engagement and Outreach (OEO) under the leadership of a director of community engagement with 20 years of experience in building collaborations between the university and partners.

Erin Olsen Pueblitz assumed the new position in September, taking the reins of an office started by Professor Jean Garrison in 2019.

“I’m grateful for all of the work Dr. Garrison did in this role previously. Her leadership and the contributions of so many campus and community partners have been incredible,” Olsen Pueblitz says. “I’m excited to continue our collective efforts toward expanding our support for community-engaged scholarship, teaching, service-learning and partnership development.”

OEO provides institutional leadership to assist UW’s divisions in shaping, supporting and pursuing the university’s goals for advancing community engagement and relationships with its partners. OEO seeks to create an environment of engaged education and scholarship, working to build collaboration between UW and its constituents to address complex economic and social challenges and opportunities facing UW and Wyoming.

“I’m looking forward to further expanding the mission of OEO through student opportunities, faculty and staff development, scholarship, teaching and service and working closely with our mutually beneficial partnerships in our local and statewide communities,” Olsen Pueblitz says.

Olsen Pueblitz’s two decades at UW include work in offices and efforts, including Admissions; transfer student recruitment; the University Counseling Center; the Service, Leadership and Community Engagement office (SLCE); and Multicultural Affairs. She worked in Human Resources overseeing campus inclusivity initiatives before starting in the OEO director role.

While overseeing SLCE, Olsen Pueblitz worked closely with many local agencies and nonprofit organizations to develop mutually beneficial relationships that were reciprocal in their design.

“We worked hard to address the goals and needs of our community partners while creating opportunities for students to be partners in those outcomes,” Olsen Pueblitz says.

She has developed strong relationships across the state and is dedicated to contributing to the public good. Community engagement and service-learning are areas in which Olsen Pueblitz has extensive experience. This also includes leading numerous statewide and global service-learning experiences for UW students in locations including Germany, Guatemala, Poland and Puerto Rico. Each experience had a specific focus that students were able to study and learn through direct experience and critical reflection.

Originally from Gillette, Olsen Pueblitz has a passion for programs and services that make meaningful contributions to the local community and the state.

“Laramie is such a special community, and I feel lucky to live here and work with so many great community partners,” she says, adding that she will work to align community engagement to the university’s land-grant mission and to create meaningful contributions for individuals, communities and the institution.

Olsen Pueblitz earned her bachelor’s degree (2003) from Northern State University in international business. She went on to receive both a master’s degree (2011) in counselor education and then a doctoral degree (2019) in higher education administration from UW. 

This fall, OEO is offering a community-engaged faculty institute with the support of numerous campus partners. More information on the institute is forthcoming.

To contact Olsen Pueblitz, call (307) 766-4129 or email olsenek@uwyo.edu.