Lorett Swank is a Licensed Professional Counselor with a PhD in Educational Leadership & Research with a concentration in Higher Education Administration from Louisiana State University, a Master’s degree in Counseling from Southeastern Louisiana University, and a Bachelor’s of Arts in Psychology from Louisiana State University. She also earned an Education Specialist (EdS) Certificate in Educational Leadership from Louisiana State University. 

Swank has over 18 years of experience in higher education with her most recent role serving as the Chief Student Success Officer (CSSO) and Director of the Center for Student Excellence at Southeastern Louisiana University leading a team of 27 professionals managing three areas of support for students: Freshman Success, Academic and Career Exploration (ACE) Coaching, and the Tinsley Learning Center. Prior to serving as the CSSO, she was an academic advisor and faculty member for 12 years.

As CSSO she was responsible for academic advising/coaching for over 3,000 first-year students across 60+ undergraduate degrees, faculty and curriculum development for Southeastern (SE) 101: Freshman Success, and Southeastern (SE) 102: Academic Coaching, developing and implemented the Academic and Career Exploration (ACE) Coaching program for students no longer served by first-year advisors and those in transition with 30+ hours, and overseeing the Tinsley Learning Center (TLC) providing over 1,000 sessions of peer tutoring, and/or supplemental instruction each semester. 

During her time as CSSO she received national recognition from the National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in Transition with the Outstanding First-Year Student Advocate Award (2019) and increased first to second year retention to 72% which was the highest in Southeastern's history.