CLINTON, N.Y. — Hamilton College has selected Sean Bennett as the college’s first VP for diversity, equity, and inclusion beginning Aug. 16.
Bennett most recently served in a similar role at Salem State University in Massachusetts.
“Sean’s appointment is just one part of a broader effort for making Hamilton a more fully welcoming and inclusive community for every person,” President David Wippman said in a release. “Our community will benefit greatly from his 20 years of progressive experience in education and his track record as an effective communicator, collaborator, and operations leader.”
In his new role, Bennett will provide leadership for constructive and collaborative change, guide and educate campus stakeholders, and promote transparency and shared accountability for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives at all levels at the college. Hamilton established the new cabinet-level position to develop and deepen partnerships with community members across the college and community and to help revise and implement a comprehensive campus-wide strategic vision for DEI.
Prior to serving as VP at Salem State University, Bennett served 10 years as an assistant dean and three years as director of the Multicultural Center for Academic Success at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT). While there, he created a distributed leadership model for college advising and led retention initiatives that helped increase first-year retention in the College of Applied Science as well as the college’s participation in the university honors program. Bennett served as associate VP for institutional diversity initiatives and pipeline programs at Clarkson University prior to his time at RIT.
Bennett earned an Ed.D. in higher-education management at the University of Pennsylvania; and Ed.M. in administration, planning and social policy at Harvard University; an M.S.Ed. at SUNY Brockport; and a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering at Clarkson University.
The college’s search committee included students, faculty, and administrators with assistance from executive search firm Isaacson, Miller.
