John LaBrie, dean of the School of Professional Studies and associate provost for professional education recently announced new staff appointments. “2019 has been a busy year for Professional Education and the School of Professional Studies at Clark University and we are extremely pleased to welcome these outstanding new members to our team,” he said.
Geoffrey Chisholm, Director of Graduate Marketing
Geoffrey Chisholm has accepted the position of Director of Marketing for Graduate Programs. He is responsible for developing and executing a successful marketing strategy aimed at growing enrollments and enhancing community awareness of Clark’s premier graduate programs.
Chisholm comes to Clark University with more than 20 years’ experience designing and executing strategic marketing plans through traditional, digital, and social media channels. He is passionate about design, branding and visual identity, and digital technologies that create connections between people and education.
For more than twelve years, Chisholm led marketing, lead generation, and enrollment management communications for Brown University’s School of Professional Studies. He supported growth in pre-college programs, and the launch of new programming including online courses, overseas immersion programs, and a portfolio of professional master’s degrees.
Chisholm began his career as a graphic designer in Boston, and has since worked at digital agencies and online startups in the San Francisco Bay Area, and at The New School in New York City.
Dug Jones, Project Manager, Tech Quest DOL Scaling Apprenticeship Grant
Jones has been appointed as the project manager for Clark University’s Tech Quest Apprenticeship Expansion Consortium, developed to promote and implement apprenticeships. Clark was awarded a $12 million apprenticeship grant from the Department of Labor, Employment, and Training Administration to provide business technology training nationwide to people struggling with unemployment and underemployment. The Tech Quest program will provide IT and IT-related apprenticeships to a minimum of 5,000 individuals over the next four years in eight states.
Jones has 33 years of experience in higher education and was most recently Santa Fe College’s (Gainesville, FL) Associate Vice President for Economic Development where he provided leadership for the Center for Innovation & Economic Development (CIED), the Gainesville Technology Entrepreneurship Center (GTEC), and the Innovative Product Development Center (IPDC). The CIED includes Continuing Education & Corporate Training, Community Education, and the Entrepreneur Incubator. GTEC is a business incubator specializing in technology and light manufacturing. The IPDC is an EDA grant funded project supporting regional inventors and entrepreneurs.
His educational background includes Bachelors, Masters, and a Juris Doctorate, all from the University of Florida. Jones currently holds board positions with the Gainesville Area Chamber of Commerce and CareerSource of North Central Florida.
Robert Spellane, Acting Executive Director of the MPA Senior Leadership
Robert Spellane has accepted the position of acting Executive Director for the School of Professional Studies’ Senior Leadership MPA program, bringing his passion for public service to the program designed to maximize leadership potential.
The two-year MPA-SL program is uniquely tailored to the needs of emerging and accomplished public leaders who want to boost their influence and grow their capacity to drive change in the public sector. The program’s online format is supplemented by seven weekend residency sessions in cities across New England where participants meet with experts to address pressing local policy challenges. Students also benefit from one-on-one executive coaching and media training.
Spellane’s career has been defined by a deep commitment to public service and he brings years of policy experience and expertise to the program. From 2001-2011 he represented the Thirteenth Worcester district in the Massachusetts House of Representatives working on key issues like marriage equality, affordable healthcare, and pension reform. He is currently the Vice President, Business Development, at the Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers which seeks to provide primary healthcare to all state residents regardless of pay ability.
Spellane has a Bachelor’s in Political Science from Roanoke College and an MPA from the McCormack Graduate School at the University of Massachusetts Boston.
