College Leadership

Dean of Students

Victor J. Arcelus joined Connecticut College in July 2013. He is charged with enhancing and extending the personal and intellectual development of the College's diverse student body. A specialist in holistic learning, Arcelus oversees residential education and living, student engagement and leadership education, campus safety, health and counseling services, sexual violence prevention and advocacy, student wellness and health education, new student orientation, and the College’s student conduct process.

varcelus@conncoll.edu Phone: (860) 439-2825 College Center at Crozier-Williams, Room 218

Dean of Students

Vice President for Marketing and Communications

As vice president for marketing and communications, John Cramer is responsible for conveying the College's mission, vision and values to external and internal audiences. Reporting to the President, he provides strategic leadership and counsel in the areas of communications, marketing, branding, crisis management and outreach. His team is responsible for admission, advancement and athletics communications, digital marketing, news and editorial, creative services, media relations, social media, video, photography, web services and public affairs. He previously held senior communications roles at Rutgers University, Princeton University, Dartmouth College, Johns Hopkins Medicine and Vermont Law School. Before that, he was a journalist whose coverage of military conflicts, the environment and other issues appeared in The Washington Post, Roanoke Times and other newspapers. He earned a B.A. in English from Denison University and an M.S. in journalism from Ohio University.

jcramer@conncoll.edu Phone: (860) 439-2393 Becker House

Vice President for Communications

Dean of Strategic and Global Initiatives, Professor of Chinese

A scholar of modern Chinese literature, Amy Dooling has published books on 20th century women’s writing and feminist literary culture. As Associate Dean of Global Initiatives, Dooling works with offices and individuals across campus to coordinate the College’s global education efforts.

addoo@conncoll.edu Phone: (860) 439-2583

Faculty Profile

Dean of the Faculty , Fuller-Maathai Professor of Gender, Sexuality and Intersectionality Studies

R. Danielle Egan, the Fuller-Maathai Professor of Gender, Sexuality and Intersectionality Studies at Connecticut College, is Dean of the Faculty and Chief Academic Officer. The highest-ranking officer after the president, the Dean of the Faculty is responsible for providing academic leadership for the College and its faculty.

regan1@conncoll.edu Phone: (860) 439-2030

Faculty Profile Dean of the Faculty

Interim Dean of Institutional Equity and Inclusion, Director of Faculty Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging, William Meredith Assistant Professor of Psychology

Dr. Hamlett is the current Dean of Institutional Equity and Inclusion and also the William Meredith Assistant Professor of Psychology at Connecticut College. Dr. Hamlett is also the co-investigator on a grant examining reparative solutions for historic racism which is funded by the Mellon Foundation in partnership with the Center for Social Solutions at the University of Michigan. By training, Dr. Hamlett is a former special education teacher and clinical psychologist with over two decades of experience in education, mental health treatment, and assessment. Dr. Hamlett graduated with a doctoral degree in Clinical Psychology from the State University of New York at Albany in 2010 and completed her pre- and post-doctoral fellowships in the Department of Psychiatry at Yale School of Medicine. Upon graduation, Dr. Hamlett worked as an Instructor and Assistant Professor in the same department. Her current clinical and research interests include mental health and wellness, complex trauma, race-based and work-related traumatic stress, personality assessment, and organizational consulting in the areas of climate, culture, and equity-related organizational transformation. In addition to her administrative work and research, Dr. Hamlett works as an independent psychological evaluator and consultant locally and nationally.

Dr. Hamlett’s pronouns: She, Her, Hers

nhamlett@conncoll.edu Phone: (860) 439-2533 Bill Hall 315B

Faculty Profile

Vice President for Information Services, Librarian of the College

W. Lee Hisle was appointed Vice President for Information Services and Librarian of the College in January 2000. As CIO, he oversees all libraries, instructional technology, administrative systems, networks and telecommunications. The Vice President for Information Services and Librarian of the College is the chief information officer of the College and is responsible for managing the College’s information resources and information technology infrastructure and services. It is a position appointed by the President and is a member of the senior administrative team.

wlhis@conncoll.edu

VP for Information Services, College Librarian

Interim Vice President for Finance

As the Interim Vice President for Finance, Amanda provides leadership for the College in the areas of finance, including financial planning, accounting and financial reporting and legal and risk management. She oversees the College’s financial assets and is a key member of several of the College’s shared governance committees.

amayfie1@conncoll.edu Phone: 860-439-2835

Office of Finance and Administration

Dean of the College

Dr. Erika J. Smith joined Connecticut College as Dean of the College in August 2021. She was immediately drawn by Connections, which she sees as the perfect way for all students to have their own expression of success, driving their lives, aspirations and goals further than they knew to aspire. With oversight of the Class Deans, the Academic Resource Center, the Hale Center for Career Development, Study Away, and jointly supporting Fellowships and Scholarships in partnership with the Walter Commons, Dean Smith supports the realization of an integrated and engaged student experience. 

Prior to joining Connecticut College, Dean Smith completed nearly 21 years of service at Brandeis University, most recently having served as Dean of Academic Services from 2016 to 2021. Dr. Smith earned a bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering from Lehigh University, where she matriculated as a Posse Scholar, a master of education in Education Policy and Management from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, and a master’s and Ph.D. in Social Policy from Brandeis’ Heller School for Social Policy and Management.

esmith25@conncoll.edu Phone: (860) 439-2050 Fanning Hall 206

Dean of the College

Dean of Admission and Financial Aid

Andrew Strickler, dean of admission and financial aid, joined Connecticut College in June 2015. He is responsible for determining the overall strategy for recruiting, admitting, matriculating and supporting a diverse and highly selective student body. He manages a staff dedicated not only to attracting the best students, but also to supporting their full demonstrated financial need. He works collaboratively with colleagues across campus — in the offices of the dean of the college, the dean of the faculty, the dean of student life, the vice president for communications and the vice president for finance — to realize these goals, and to ensure that students at Connecticut College have the best possible experience from inquiry to acceptance to matriculation and beyond.

astrickl@conncoll.edu Phone: (860) 439-2200 Horizon House

Dean of Admission & Financial Aid

Vice President for College Advancement

Kim leads all strategic and creative aspects of the College’s multi-faceted fundraising and alumni and parent engagement efforts. Under Kim’s direction, the 35-person advancement team drives leadership gifts; gift planning; corporate, foundation, and government relations; alumni and parent engagement; the Camel Athletics Network; annual giving; donor relations; and advancement services. Kim is currently directing the most ambitious campaign in Conn’s history, the $300M Defy Boundaries comprehensive campaign.

kverstan@conncoll.edu Phone: (860) 439-2408 Becker House

Vice President for College Advancement

Vice president for human resources

Reginald White joined Connecticut College in 2022. As the vice president for human resources, White is responsible for the care and development of a talented workforce with more than 700 employees in a range of professional roles. He oversees organizational design, recruitment and hiring, employee relations, job assessment and satisfaction, health and benefits administration, document management, personnel classification, compensation, and continuous professional development. Much of White’s career has been focused on developing strategies to create more equitable communities. As a leader, he is committed to advancing policies and practices that allow all members of a community to achieve their potential and feel a sense of place and of belonging.

White earned a bachelor’s of science in psychology and human development from Cornell and an executive master’s in business administration from Boston University. He has held positions at Bank of Boston; Citibank; KeyBank; Fidelity Investments; Merrill Lynch; and Toran Enterprises, a consulting firm he founded specializing in executive coaching and professional development in equity and inclusion. Most recently, he served as senior director of human resources for Cornell University’s research division.

rwhite3@conncoll.edu Phone: (860) 439-2085

Interim Vice President for Administration

As the interim vice president for Administration, Justin Wolfradt is responsible for various aspects of administrative, operational and fiscal functions for Connecticut College. He provides leadership and direction to employees in facilities, construction and planning, sustainability and other operational departments. He plans short- and long-term construction and enhancements to effectively steward and plan for the College’s Master Campus Plan, physical assets and asset reinvestment projects.

Prior to joining Connecticut College, Justin most recently served as the director of facilities and was a member of the strategic administrative team and senior leadership team at Kingswood Oxford School in West Hartford, Conn. He graduated from the University of Connecticut with a B.S. focused in engineering management and earned an M.S. from Southern New Hampshire University with a concentration in construction management.

jwolfradt@conncoll.edu Phone: (860) 439-2297

Office of Finance and Administration