The purpose of this study is to understand how professional staff within United States higher education institutions impact student success. Institutions of higher education within the US are typically composed of two main types of employees, academic faculty and professional staff, the latter of which have historically served in non-academic roles. While the impact of faculty on student success is present within the literature, there is a gap in the understanding of how professional staff impact student success. This study utilized a sequential exploratory mixed methods survey design to examine how professional staff view their impacts on student success within their institutions. It was found professional staff do believe they impact student success within their normal job duties. This finding resulted in fourteen impact statements, organized within a new conceptual model suggesting professional staff impact student success across all areas of their institutions including the academic system, social system, and the third space, an area blurring the line between the two aforementioned traditional higher education systems. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]