The College has hired Kelly Cleary as its first dean for career and professional advising. Cleary, who will become director of the new Center for Career and Professional Advising (CCPA), comes to Haverford from The University of Pennsylvania, where she has led the Career Services unit for students in the College of Arts & Sciences at the university's centralized career center since 2007.

“Our redesigned and revitalized career planning effort needs an experienced and innovative leader,” says Dean of the College Martha Denney.“Kelly has built, improved, expanded and redefined career planning activity at several colleges and universities, and we're delighted that she'll be sharing her expertise with Haverford students and alumni.”

Cleary was chosen after a nationwide search by a committee that included students, faculty, staff and alumni. Prior to joining Penn Career Services, she was director of Career Services at Stetson University, a small liberal arts college in Florida. She has also worked as a trainer for the U.S. State Department's Irish Peace Process Cultural & Training Program in Belfast, Northern Ireland and Washington, D.C.; as a career counselor at the University of Iowa; and as an advisor for student-athletes at George Washington University. She has a B.A. in English from Wake Forest University, an M.A. in Community Counseling from George Washington University, and is currently enrolled in the Ed.D. in Higher Education program at Penn, working on a dissertation about the long-term influence of interning abroad on career development.

Cleary's mandate centers on operationalizing and implementing a departmental redesign that calls for greater integration of career planning with core academic advising.  Students will engage in career planning exercises sophomore year, with post-collegiate ambitions and opportunities considered alongside major selection. Like all associate deans she will have student advisees, which, says Denney,“will help ensure that the academic experience remains tied with career planning.”

“I am delighted and honored to be joining the Haverford community at such an exciting time,” says Cleary.“I was extremely impressed by the enthusiasm expressed by the administration, faculty, staff and students regarding the new center which will help students become even more intentional about exploring and ultimately applying their liberal arts foundation to the wide range of challenging and rewarding professional paths available to them.”

As previously announced, Amy Feifer will now be assistant dean and director of career services (within the CCPA), Laura Reiter will be full-time associate director of career services for employer and institutional partnerships and Jennifer Barr continues as pre-law advisor.  Liza Bernard will be internship coordinator and associate director of the CCPA and Emmy Robinson remains as administrative assistant.

Cleary joins Haverford on July 15.  Students and alumni should expect to see new programming and policies beginning with the fall semester.