Meet Our Staff

John Keller, who joined Elms College in July 2009 as the vice president of student affairs, promises to focus on challenging students to grow and develop while providing them with a "supportive safety net." John will supervise student services ranging from athletics to residential life.

"John's experience and leadership will contribute to the educational experience of our students in a significant way," said Elms College president Mary Reap, IHM, Ph.D.

John most recently was vice president for student development and dean of students at Saint Joseph's College in Rensselaer, Indiana. He previously was director of student development and director of residence life at Minnesota State University's branch in Akita, Japan; and director of resident services at the University of South Dakota. He has also held positions in student affairs at Kent State University, Ellsworth (Iowa) Community College, and Shippensburg University.

"This is a challenging time for small, private, enrollment-driven institutions, and I am looking forward to applying what I've learned throughout my career to the benefit of the Elms community," John said.

He has a master of science degree in counseling from Shippensburg University, and has completed doctoral work in education administration at Kent State University.

"We need to be challenged in order to grow and learn, and sometimes the challenges students face may seem overwhelming," he said. "One of our primary tasks as educators is to push and stretch students to develop new and increasingly more sophisticated life skills while providing them with a supportive safety net. Balancing this ‘challenge-support' ratio is the key."

In addition to his duties as director of intercultural programming at Elms College, Kent teaches a First Year Seminar class entitled "The 1960's: Passé or Visionary?" and, with Mary Brainerd, co-teaches a class on cultural competency.

Kent lived and worked for 21 years in NYC, during which time he served as an arts consultant for Teachers and Writers Collaborative, ran conflict resolution clinics and conducted theater, and related workshops at the FDR Veteran's Hospital in Montrose, New York.

He has developed creativity workshops for the SONY Corporation, Outward Bound, the NYC Studio in the School program, The Catskill Arts Society, and New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA).

Kent is also the author of five non-fiction books and numerous plays.

Carol A. Allan, s.s.j., joined the college as campus minister in 2008, after having been an adjunct faculty member since 2003. She had been program director of Rutledge House and Tranquility House for Open Pantry Community Services in Springfield since 2004. Before that, she worked for the Hampden County District Attorney's Office as a victim witness advocate in Holyoke District Court, and was community prosecution coordinator for the Hampden County Restorative Justice Program.

Sister Carol earned a B.A. in psychology and an M.A. in human development with emphasis on learning disabilities from Salve Regina University, and an M.A. in theology of justice and peace at Maryknoll School of Theology.

Nancy Davis, Director of Career Development comes to us from a career school where she has spent the last 2 plus years as the Director of Career Services.  She spent 12 years as a recruiter helping exiting military find new careers.  She earned a bachelor's degree from Mount Saint Mary's College in Emmitsburg, MD. 

Elizabeth assists in the overall management of the housing program and has been a member of the Residence Life staff at Elms College for three years. She is currently responsible for the direct supervision of the Resident Advisor staff and works full time in the Residence Life Office. Elizabeth supervises all of the educational and social programming occurring in the residence halls, assists in budget management, assists in the daily operations of the residence halls, organizes the hiring and training of the entire RA staff, and is one of the primary judicial hearing officers. Elizabeth completed her Master of Education degree in the fall of 2010 and resides in an on campus apartment.

Jill A. Gagne has been employed as a nurse at the Elms College Health Center since 1992, and has been the director since 1998. She is a 1978 graduate of the Baystate Medical Center School of Nursing, and a 1998 graduate of the Elms College nursing program. She is a member of the American College Health Association, and the New England College Health Association.

Trudy Laramee has worked at Elms College since 2004. Before joining Student Services, she was administative assistant to the president and institutional marketing, and for three years before that, she was the college's accounts receivable clerk.

Louise McCleary joined Elms College in 2002 as director of athletics. She had previously been the associate director of athletics and the interim director of athletics for Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York. Prior to that, she was at Tri-State Unviersity in Angola, Indiana as assistant women's basketball coach, tournament director of the NAIA women's basketball national championship, sports infomation director, and assistant athletic director. While at Tri-State,  she spent a few years as an admission counselor and assistant financial aid director. She has held the position of assistant basketball coach at Tri-State, UMass, and Wellesley College. She is a graduate of Wellesley, and holds a master's degree from UMass.

Anne Marie Smith joined Elms College as coordinator of the Office of Disability Services in 2004. In this role, she works with students to develop, monitor, and adjust accommodation plans for students with disabilities.

Previously, she was a special education teacher in the Springfield school system, program manager for the Massachusetts Department of Mental Retardation at the Monson Developmental Center, and the early childhood special education network coordinator for the Connecticut State Department of Education.

Anne Marie is a member of the Council of Professional Attorneys and Advocates (COPAA), and SPEDWATCH, a civil rights grassroots organization. She has served on the advisory board of The Advocacy Institute, the Massachusetts Association of Parent Advisory Councils (MASSPAC), the Agawam public schools special education parents' advisory council, the professional development committee for Ahead New England, and as director of the education team of the Juvenile Bipolar Research Foundation.

Anne Marie holds a bachelor's degree in elementary and special education from American International College, and a master's degree in educational psychology and family relations from the University of Connecticut.

Before coming to the Elms in 2001, Jose worked for 17 years as assistant director of the campus activities advising center at UMass-Amherst. He earned an M.Ed. and a B.A. in education at the University of Massachusetts.