It is my absolute honor and pleasure to announce the selection of Dr. Julie Tibbitt as our inaugural Director for Career Education and Professional Development (CEPD) within the Office for Student Success and Academic Quality (SSAQ) to lead overall efforts in the education and empowerment of students to reach their career goals as they navigate the career ecosystem, discover new career paths, engage in experiential learning, and build connections within and beyond the signing and deaf community.

Dr. Tibbitt, as a lifelong Deaf advocate and educator grounded in student-centered and social justice practices, brings a blend of background, education and experience that has often resulted in crossing roads with career planning and development for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing learners.  Her doctoral dissertation on formative assessment researched how earnest feedback motivated students to move forward with renewed determination which is also reflected in an article she co-authored with Dr. Christina Yuknis and Dr. Heather Zimmerman, Acquiring Adulthood, that described transition experiences of freshmen at Â鶹´«Ã½¸ßÇå.

In this new role, Dr. Tibbitt is responsible for leading the newly established CEPD in integrating career readiness more fully into Gallaudet’s curriculum, developing best practices for experiential learning internships across campus, and focusing on multifaceted value propositions and strategic relationship engagement with key external partners such as our employers and alumni.

Prior to her position, Dr. Tibbitt served as the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Program Director for Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, where she partnered with sites for internships and advised students on their career options. She also served as the principal at the American School for the Deaf from 2017 to 2021, and worked closely with the ASD Transition Hub responsible for student preparation toward vocational and postsecondary success. Her experience in this capacity will lead CEPD in campus-wide efforts to align its career education efforts with the new General Education curriculum as a foundation and springboard to early declaration of majors for students through the five Schools as a part of Gallaudet’s Promise toward strengthening successful post-graduation outcomes.

We would like to personally thank the search committee for their time and service – Mary Perrodin, Margaux Delotte-Bennett, and Abigail Drake, as well as the other faculty and staff members who participated in the interviewing process.

Please join me in congratulating Dr. Julie Tibbitt on her new role beginning on May 16, 2022.

Sincerely,

Tommy Horejes, Ph.D.
Associate Provost, Student Success and Academic Quality