New Dean Positions for Six Women at Colleges and Universities

Mary Lou Vredenburg is the new dean of the School of Liberal and Professional Studies at Springfield Technical Community College in Massachusetts. She comes to her new role from Connecticut State Community College’s Manchester campus, where she was associate dean of faculty. Earlier, she was associate dean of arts, humanities, mathematics, and social sciences at Brightpoint Community College in Virginia.

A graduate of Orange County Community College in New York, Dr. Vredenburg holds a bachelor’s degree in history from Binghamton University in New York and a Ph.D. in humanities from Florida State University.

Anna Hickey has been appointed dean of the Joseph W. Luter, III School of Business at Christopher Newport University in Virginia. A recently retired captain in the U.S. Coast Guard, she most recently served as vice provost for academic administration at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut. Earlier in her tenure at the academy, she was dean of the School of Leadership and Management. Her research interests are in governmental financial reporting and accounting education.

Dr. Hickey earned her bachelor’s degree in management from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, her MBA in finance from Florida Atlantic University, and a Ph.D. in accounting from West Virginia University.

Carrie Showalter has been named dean of students and associate vice president of student life at West Virginia University. She has worked for the university in several leadership capacities since 2007. Most recently, she was assistant dean and executive director of campus and community life.

Showalter holds a bachelor’s degree in women’s studies from the College of Wooster in Ohio and a juris doctorate from West Virginia University.

Laura Ken Hoffman has been named the inaugural dean of the forthcoming School of Veterinary Medicine at Murray State University in Kentucky. A faculty member since 2013, she has been a key stakeholder in planning and designing the new academic school. Currently, she leads Murray State’s veterinary technology and pre-veterinary medicine programs.

Dr. Hoffman earned her undergraduate degree from Murray State University and her doctor of veterinary medicine degree from Auburn University in Alabama.

Carrie Mospens is the new dean of career and technical education at Hawai’i Community College. She has been a faculty member with the college since 2010, holding positions such as instructor, associate professor, English department chair, and interim dean of liberal arts and sciences. In her new role, she will oversee programs that prepare students for careers vital to the state’s economy.

Mospens received her bachelor’s degree in English as a second language and her master’s degree in second language studies from the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa.

Suzanne Kissock has been promoted from interim dean to permanent dean of the College of Business and Professional Studies at Missouri Western State University in St. Joseph. After five years as an adjunct professor, Kissock joined the university’s faculty on a full-time basis in 2005. She has held several leadership roles throughout the past two decades, including assistant dean and legal studies program director in the department of criminal justice and legal studies.

Professor Kissock received both her bachelor’s degree and law degree from Saint Louis University.

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