Welcome New Leaders

In November, Jennifer Barry joined Rosemont as Dean of the School of Graduate and Professional Studies. In February, Meghan Haley assumed the new role of Vice President, Enrollment and Marketing. As we did in the last issue, let’s get to know these newest members of the leadership team and what brought them to Rosemont.

Jennifer Barry

Dean, School of Graduate and Professional Studies

Barry comes to Rosemont from American International College (AIC) in Springfield, Massachusetts. With expertise in adult education, online course delivery, educational operations, and micro-emerging markets, Barry will focus her efforts on growing enrollment and developing new programs for adult students.

Prior to her roles at AIC, Barry served the community of Bay Path University as the Director of Admissions for the Longmeadow Campus and Online Programs, the Senior Director of Admissions for Online Recruitment Initiatives, and the Campus Director for the American Women’s College (Online), taking on additional responsibility and oversight with each new role. Barry has many years of teaching experience, including courses such as: Social Environments of Business, Elements of Organization, Learning Across the Lifespan, Women Empowered as Learners and Leaders, and Leadership in Practice. Barry earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Marketing and her Master of Science degree in Organizational Leadership from Southern New Hampshire University in Manchester, New Hampshire, and is expected to complete her Doctorate in Education in 2021.

Why Rosemont? What excites you about the College? I am passionate about helping students achieve their goals. I have spent the past 15 years committed to creating access and equity for non-traditional students by improving policies to be inclusive of adult learners, promoting the use of andragogy in course development. It is my belief that implementing holistic approaches to student engagement, and taking the time to listen to student feedback and the challenges that they face while working toward their degree is critical to the success of every student. Rosemont’s mission states that we are “a community of lifelong learners dedicated to academic excellence and fostering joy in the pursuit of knowledge.” This resonates with me for two reasons. The first reason is that by recognizing that we are “lifelong learners;” it removes the expectation that a student’s college years are tied to a specific age-bracket. As a passionate advocate for non-traditional students, I really appreciate that Rosemont recognizes the value of learning at every age. The only limitation to our ability to learn is the limitation that we place on ourselves. If a student wants to pursue an education, I want to help them succeed in achieving it. The second piece of this statement that I connected with is “fostering joy.” Students have many institutions to choose from when pursuing their degree, but I want to work at an institution that believes that learning should bring you joy. Rosemont embodies its mission and values, and it is important for me to work at an institution where my personal beliefs align with my institution’s values. "What excites me about being at Rosemont is having the opportunity to ensure that we are living the mission in our conversations with students, in the creation of our coursework, and in the way that we are creating new opportunities to engage our students as we develop new programs."

The Program Directors in the School of Graduate and Professional Studies are passionate about their areas of expertise, and I am excited to be working with them and hearing about how they are working with our students. I am looking forward to attending events with students and providing each of them with opportunities to share their stories.

A year from now, what do you want to say you have accomplished at Rosemont? What about three years from now? There are many small movements that I would like to see in the next year in a variety of areas of my work. However, if I were to wake up a year from now, I would like to see that I have fostered the development of new programs, new partnerships, and increased enrollment in the School of Graduate and Professional Studies by 50%. Rosemont College’s commitment to the POWER of small gives us the opportunity to provide students with the support and engagement they need to be successful that larger institutions simply cannot provide. I want to focus on how we can continue to refine and improve our courses and opportunities for student engagement in the School of Graduate and Professional Studies to help achieve this goal. Three years from now, I would expect that the School of Graduate and Professional Studies will not only be more than double in enrollment, but the major offerings will look different than they do today. I expect that there will be more professional studies majors, new graduate programs, and additional certificate options. I would like to see Professional Studies and Graduate Students taking advantage of community spaces on campus (because in three years, I hope that COVID-19 is far behind us) and that we have found new and exciting ways to engage our adult students outside of the classroom.

What book are you currently reading?

I am currently reading Nobody: Casualties of America’s War on the Vulnerable, from Ferguson to Flint and Beyond by Marc Lamont Hill, for the second time. If you haven’t read this book, I strongly encourage you to pick it up.

Where can we find you when you're not at work?

If I am not at work, I am either at home with my husband and my cat, visiting my family and friends, or at the movie theater. I recently moved to the area, and I have not yet found a running route, but I also enjoy running outside.

What is your favorite hobby?

My favorite hobbies are going to the movies, traveling, and going to concerts. I usually attend at least 5-10 concerts a year. In 2020, I made it to three before the pandemic in March. I am hopeful that I will make it to a few this year if it is safe. My favorite places to travel to are London and Aruba.

What excites you about coming to the Philly area?

I have never visited Philadelphia, and I am excited about getting into the city and exploring. I look forward to the warmer months so I can wander around and soak in the culture, the food, and listen to the sounds of the city. I want to see the Liberty Bell and try my best to run all the way up the “Rocky steps.”

Meghan Haley

Vice President, Enrollment and Marketing

Haley comes to Rosemont from Champlain College in Burlington, Vermont where she served for eight years on the Enrollment Leadership Team as the Assistant Vice President of Marketing. During her tenure, she played an integral role in the College’s growth, including enrolling the largest class in its history. Prior to joining Champlain College, Haley had a successful career in advertising, working to advise organizations across varying sectors on business and marketing strategy. This experience with diverse industries, combined with an innate and learned understanding of human behavior, uniquely positions Haley to develop and execute distinctive and innovative higher education enrollment plans. Haley earned her bachelor of science degree in Marketing and Management Information Systems from the University of Vermont. She completed the Excellence in Executive Leadership (ExcEL) Seminar Series, as well as Mediation and Conflict Resolution Training at Champlain College.

Why Rosemont? What excites you about the College?

I joined Rosemont because I believe we have a special opportunity to graduate students who will support positive change in the world. This could be said about every small, liberal arts college, but Rosemont is positioned to do this in a unique, essential way. Rosemont’s small, diverse community is a place where people from all backgrounds can find their voice and gain the awareness, confidence, and access needed to use it to make a difference. Often the positive impact is very personal, but it is through these collective individual experiences that true systemic societal change will happen.

A year from now, what do you want to say you have accomplished at Rosemont? What about three years from now? In a year I hope that we have crafted a unique and compelling story about the unique position Rosemont holds in higher education. With this we can further clarify who the ideal students are for the College, how we can best engage with them, and invite them to join our community. This will be accomplished by creating strong partnerships with faculty, staff, and students. It’s through this that we’ll be able to best understand what makes a Rosemont education unique, what students are successful here, and why. In three years, I hope that we are realizing the benefit of having a compelling and differentiated position in the market, supported by a strategic enrollment and marketing strategy. What this looks like is an engaged and thriving student body that fuels our College community. Enrollment and Marketing’s job is often seen as to bring students in the door...but that is just the beginning of our important work. It’s our job to bring in students who will not only come—but ones that will stay and thrive.

What book are you currently reading? I want to be able to say I am reading something deeply intellectual, but I tend to keep my book reading light—nice, easy beach reads! For more thought provoking, educational content I turn to podcasts. Some of my current favorites are the Brene Brown “Dare to Lead” podcast, “The Happiness Lab” with Dr. Laurie Santos, and “Nice White Parents.” All of these are helping me to look at things in new and different ways by exposing me to different experiences and perspectives.

Where can we find you when you’re not at work?

Right now, like many, you would find me at home! My family and I spend a lot of time outside playing and adventuring.

What is your favorite hobby? I enjoy anything that moves my body. Right now, that is cross-country skiing, but I am also looking forward to spring running. I have a side passion project called Small Acts of Kindness (www.smallactsofkindnessvt.com) that aims to support myself and others in being more intentional about being kind. It is a simple concept, but one that I hope has impact.

What excites you about coming to the Philly area? I will be splitting time working remotely from my family home in Vermont and on campus. In addition to just being thrilled to join the campus community, I am fortunate to have family and friends in the Philly area. Right now, we are having to be creative in how we connect to respect interstate travel guidelines, but even visiting outside with masks is amazing after a year of not seeing them.