Staff Page

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Barbara was promoted to Executive Director of Penn Career Services in 2018 and currently leads the entire office as well as advises students and alumni interested in pursuing MBAs.  Prior to becoming Executive Director Barbara served as a Career Adviser to students in the College of Arts and Sciences and in Wharton.  Barbara holds a Bachelor of Arts from Dickinson College with majors in Psychology and Spanish, a masters in Counseling from Shippensburg University, and an EdD in Higher Education Administration from Penn.

Barbara believes strongly in the power of education to change lives and indeed the world, and has enjoyed focusing her career on helping students and alumni to take what they have learned while in school to contribute to society in their own unique ways.   Away from the office, Barbara spends time with her two teenage daughters and husband as well as a motley collection of furry friends including a shi zhu/ yorkie dog, two cats, and four occasionally noisy guinea pigs (at least when it’s their dinner time!).

Debra Koita, a native New Orleanian, joined Career Services in 1991.  She came to Philadelphia in 1987 when asked by her former employer to join him in starting the Sickle Cell Center at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia where she was Executive Assistant and Liaison to the Sickle Cell Parents’ Support Group.  Prior to her current role in the Career Services office, Debra was the assistant for the Graduate School Counseling unit as well as the Marketing Coordinator.  She is currently the Recruiting Manager where she manages and oversees employer relationship strategy and service delivery, marketing, and recruiting events across all industries.  She is also the marketing coordinator for the Career Services online support program.  Debra attended both Tulane University and the University of Pennsylvania in pursuit of her degree.   In addition to her current work, Debra is a calligrapher and wedding coordinator.  She is an avid and award-winning gardener, and enjoys spending time with her family, traveling, movies and relaxing in her urban garden oasis.

Bee Smith joined the University of Pennsylvania in August 2019 as the Recruiting Coordinator. She graduated from Bryn Mawr College in 2017 with a degree in Sociology, and is excited to be a part of the Quaker Consortium again.

Dr. Joseph Barber is a Senior Associate Director at Career Services serving graduate students and postdocs.  He has a Ph.D. in animal behaviour from University of Oxford (UK), has previously worked as a Research Fellow at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, and currently also teaches graduate students as an Adjunct Professor at Hunter College (CUNY).  Joseph enjoys thinking creatively to help people find and explore different career paths, and is always interested in hearing students and postdocs talk enthusiastically about their research.

Dr. Helen Pho advises graduate students and postdocs as Associate Director at Penn Career Services. Prior to joining Penn in 2017, Helen worked in a variety of roles: search consultant recruiting for higher education executive searches, director of the Freshman Scholars at Yale program, and assistant director of undergraduate admissions at Yale University. A first-generation college graduate, she holds a Ph.D. in History from the University of Texas at Austin and a B.A. in History from Yale. Helen enjoys brainstorming and strategizing with graduate students and postdocs as they explore and pursue meaningful careers. In her free time, she likes exploring different parts of Philly with her family and cheering for the 76ers.

Since 2015, Dianne has been a part of the Career Services team which advises graduate students and postdocs.  In addition to her advising responsibilities with students, Dianne coordinates the partnership between Career Services and Penn Carey Law’s Master in Law program.  Prior to joining the Career Services team, she worked in a variety of student advising roles as a part of the Postbaccalaureate Premedical Program at Bryn Mawr College, as well as in the Career Development Center at Saint Joseph’s University.  Dianne holds a graduate degree from Penn’s Graduate School of Education and an undergraduate degree from Lehigh University.  In her free time, she enjoys traveling with her family and cooking.

Marianne joined the Career Services team in fall 2015 providing career and internship guidance to undergraduate students in the College of Arts and Sciences and now advises graduate students and postdocs.  She has worked at Penn since 2004, starting at the Wharton School where she was an academic advisor to undergraduate students and more recently, in their alumni relations office.  She graduated from Bowdoin College with a double major in Romance Languages and History, and earned her master’s degree in Higher Education Management from the Graduate School of Education at Penn.  She is an avid skier and enjoys traveling.

Kate Lawrence is an Administrative Coordinator at Career Services serving graduate students, postdocs, and the schools of Nursing, GSE, and SP2. She has an MFA in Sculpture + Extended Media from Virginia Commonwealth University and a BFA in Sculpture from the University of Washington in Seattle. She has worked as the Visual Arts Program Coordinator at the Vermont Studio Center and as an exhibiting artist for over ten years. Always looking to engage and to grow, Kate works to build creative environments that support inquisitive thinking and inspired learning for students on any part of their journey.

Dr. Sharon Fleshman has been with Career Services since 2000 and serves students and alumni of the School of Nursing, Graduate School of Education, and the School of Social Policy and Practice.  As she advises those seeking social impact careers, she enjoys empowering them to find their career fit by discovering and articulating their skills, strengths and work values as they reflect on their experiences. Sharon graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science. She has also earned master’s degrees from New York University’s Stern School of Business and Westminster Theological Seminary as well as a Doctor of Ministry degree from Northern Seminary. Before coming to Career Services, Sharon had advisory roles in consulting firms and a faith-based non-profit.  As an ordained minister, she enjoys reading, writing and speaking on spirituality, vocation, and social justice. She has quite a sweet tooth and is known throughout Career Services as a lover of chocolate.

Dr. Esther Ra is an advisor for students and alums in the schools of Nursing, Education, and Social Policy and Practice. She has worked in the field of education in a myriad of roles, including administration, research, supervision, professional development, and teaching. She has also enjoyed teaching internationally in Seoul, South Korea. In addition to advising at Penn, Dr. Ra is also an Adjunct Professor, teaching graduate students at Cabrini University. She earned a Doctorate of Education in Reading, Writing, and Literacy from the University of Pennsylvania, her Master of Arts in Curriculum and Teaching from Teachers College, Columbia University, as well as, a Bachelor of Arts in English with a minor in Sociology, from Barnard College, Columbia University. She also holds a Certificate in TESOL from Biola University. She enjoys interacting and advising students, guiding and mentoring them towards a steered interest or passion.

John Tuton is a career counselor working with a variety of students and postdoctoral fellows. Since 2001, Dr. Tuton has been an independent management consultant based in Philadelphia, PA., providing a comprehensive range of services in the areas of executive assessment, leadership development, performance management and career planning. He has designed and delivered a number of individual and team development programs and workshops, and has also consulted on organizational realignment and human resources planning. Dr. Tuton began his consulting career in 1982 at the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for the Study of Adult Development (CSAD). When CSAD became Integra, Inc in 1984, he was promoted to Director of Assessment Programs. Dr. Tuton left Intergra in 1986 to join Manchester Inc. as a vice president in their Management Development division, and after a four-year tenure there, became principal of his own consulting firm. In 1994, he merged his practice with RHR International, where his services included management assessment, executive coaching, and succession planning. For the past several years, he has served as a career adviser for graduate students and postdocs at the University of Pennsylvania.

Dr. Carol Hagan has advised pre-health students and alumni at the University of Pennsylvania since 2008.  She also advises Quakers pursuing graduate degrees in humanities, social science and business.  She earned a Ph.D. from Penn in art history and has engaged with students as a lecturer and writing instructor.  Prior to settling in Philadelphia, she earned a B.A. in English and art history from Wesleyan University.  Carol enjoys helping students become professionals and hearing about their wide range of intellectual interests and service commitments.

Mia Carpiniello joined the Graduate and Professional School Advising team of Penn Career Services in 2013. She advises students and alumni applying to medical school, dental school and law school. She enjoys learning about her advisees’ individual paths and witnessing their personal development on their journey to graduate school. Mia received her B.A. in History, with a focus on American History, from Columbia University and a J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center. As an attorney, she clerked for a federal judge and subsequently practiced law at the City of Philadelphia Law Department and then at the Juvenile Law Center. Before coming to Penn, Mia also started and ran her own professional organizing business. In her free time, she engages in pro bono legal work for indigent clients and loves to travel.

Caroline Wilky advises Penn undergraduates and undergraduate alumni applying to graduate and professional school, especially health professions schools.  She joined the Career Services team in 2015.  Prior to coming to Penn, she worked at the University of Notre Dame’s Center for Undergraduate Scholarly Engagement, where she advised honors students on undergraduate research, fellowships, and graduate and professional school admissions.  She earned a B.A. in history and philosophy from the University of Texas at Austin, and a Ph.D. in history from the University of Notre Dame.

Dr. Ariana Alexander joined Career Services in 2019 as an Associate Director with the Graduate & Professional School Advising Team.  She advises Penn undergraduates and alumni pursuing law school and medical school.  Her professional experiences include program development, student success coaching, and pre-health advising.  Prior to joining the team, she served as a TRIO Student Success Coach advocating for first-generation college students. During her time at New York University, she worked as a pre-professional advisor to students in the area of pre-health. She earned her BA from Dartmouth College, majoring in English and ethnic studies, and a Ph.D. from New York University in history. She enjoys empowering students to navigate the next steps in their graduate and professional careers.  Originally from Cleveland, Ohio, she is an advocate for local libraries and loves traveling abroad to explore new places.

Becky Tamayo is the Administrative Coordinator for the Graduate and Professional School Advising team, assisting students and alumni pursing admission to graduate, medical, and law schools. A Penn alum with her BA in Psychology and Hispanic Studies from the College of Arts and Sciences, Becky is thrilled to return to campus in this new role and looks forward to working with Penn students and fellow alumni!

Jamie Grant (C’98, GEd’99) is the Senior Associate Director at Career Services supporting undergraduates, Master’s candidates and alumni in the School of Engineering and Applied Science.  Jamie has been a career advisor for more than 20 years, and joined Penn Career Services in 2009.  She has worked with students from just about every academic path, and has provided special programming for students around technical and engineering careers, connecting with alumni, and addressing international student and first-gen/low income student concerns.   Jamie is a native of the greater Philadelphia area and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and a Master of Science in Education in Psychological Services, both from the University of Pennsylvania (Go Quakers!).  Outside of the office, Jamie spends a great deal of time with her two young sons exploring the world and enjoys sports, baking, reading fiction and trivia of all kinds.

Kevin Haines is an Associate Director at Career Services working with undergraduate and graduate engineering students. Prior to working at Career Services, he worked as a Global Programs Manager at Penn Abroad. Before coming to Penn in 2015, Kevin worked at Drexel University in a variety of roles: as an adjunct Spanish faculty member for the Modern Languages department, as the coordinator at the Drexel Study Abroad office, and as a program assistant at the Drexel English Language Center. He also worked at a start-up events and travel organization where he managed volunteer and community efforts in five U.S. cities. Kevin received his B.S. in Spanish and World Languages Education at Penn State. He later received his M.A. from Middlebury College. In his free time, Kevin enjoys traveling, music, exploring the restaurant scene in Philly, and going for runs along the Schuylkill River Trail.

Jillian Cener (GEd ’17) is an Associate Director at Career Services working with undergraduate students, Master’s students, and alumni from the School of Engineering and Applied Science, informed by her belief in the impact of experiential learning on one’s personal and professional identities.  Prior to working at Career Services, she worked as a Global Programs Manager at Penn Abroad, where she helped facilitate international study, intern, and research opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students at Penn.  Jillian holds a B.A. in Italian Studies from Ramapo College of New Jersey, an M.S.Ed. in Higher Education from the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education, and is currently a student in the Ed.D. in Higher Education program at Penn GSE – Jillian moved to Philadelphia to attend Penn GSE and loved it so much she never left!  Outside of her pride for Penn, she enjoys traveling, cooking and eating Italian food, reading, doing yoga (and is an RYT 200 certified yoga teacher), and exploring the city of Philadelphia.

David is a proud Penn alum and joined Penn Career Services in 2007, eager to leverage his professional experience working with students and alumni as they explore career options and embark on the future.  He has worked in career services for many years including employer relations at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business MBA Career Management Office and managing career fairs at Toppel Career Center at the University of Miami. A Washington, DC native, David has lived in several U.S. cities and enjoys discussing the possibilities of relocating to new regions across the country. He obtained a B.S.B.A. in Marketing, Management and Organization & Human Resources from Olin Business School at Washington University in St. Louis, an M.S.Ed. in Higher Education Management from Penn’s Graduate School of Education, an Ed.M. in Human Development and Psychology from Harvard University and a Human Resource Management Certificate from the Wharton Programs for Working Professionals, Aresty Institute of Executive Education at Penn’s Wharton School.  David leads the Wharton team as Senior Associate Director.

Jingy joined Career Services in 2017, first working with students in the College of Arts & Sciences and then transitioning to the Wharton team.  Prior to that, she spent six years as an advisor at the Washington University in St. Louis Career Center.  Jingy received her B.A. in Psychology from WUSTL and her MS in Applied Psychology from the University of Southern California.  She also has experience working as a recruiter in the tech industry, and a brief stint as a professional makeup artist.  Originally from New Jersey, Jingy is excited to be back on the East Coast, and especially at Penn!

Ellery is a 2^nd year MBA student at The Wharton School, concentrating in Business Analytics. Ellery is a “double-dipper,” having graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a dual degree in Finance and Politics in 2014. He spent the 5-years between Wharton and Wharton at Credit Suisse in their debt capital markets group in New York, covering financial services companies, particularly insurers. As a former investment banker-turned-future-consultant, Ellery has an intimate familiarity with the recruiting process for both these tracks and is eager to help undergraduates navigate the job hunt gauntlet. He enjoys science fiction and watches enough soccer to sometimes call it football.

Sam is currently a second-year MBA student at the Wharton School, concentrating in Business Analytics.  He went to NYU Stern for his undergraduate studies majoring in Finance and Economics. Prior to business school, Sam spent 5 years in Wall Street in credit research (Moodys) and investment banking (JPMorgan) before moving into Viacom to the business strategy team to work on his passion for media & technology. He spent his MBA summer internship at Google working in product strategy, working with product managers and engineers to build new products and create go-to-market strategies to scale and commercialize products.

Dr. Claire Klieger relates particularly well to students who are unsure of what they want to be when they grow up because that is how she felt as an undergraduate double majoring in English and Anthropology at the University of Virginia.  Since then, she has worked in different areas of student services including admissions, student activities, and Career Services, where she has been an advisor since 2006.  She believes strongly in the value and versatility of a liberal arts education, and enjoys working with students on identifying their transferable skills.  Claire has also done international development consulting work in Morocco. Claire has a doctorate in Higher Education Management from the University of Pennsylvania, and spent her formative years living abroad in the Middle East and North Africa.

Mylène started her professional career here in Career Services after graduating from the University of Richmond with a double major in English and history. After holding several roles in Career Services including On-Campus Recruiting Coordinator and Information Resources and Web Manager, Mylène ran away to the Caribbean and planned weddings and events at the Ritz-Carlton in St. Thomas for three years. Marriott hotels brought her back home to Philadelphia, and after one more year in hospitality she returned to Penn and Career Services.

Mylène completed her Master of Arts degree in history at Penn and wrote her thesis on Philadelphia food markets. She works with College students in all stages of the career planning process and especially enjoys speaking with students who are in the early days of exploring. Mylène is also a lecturer and writing instructor.

Anne Dickinson is an Associate Director at Career Services and has served College of Arts and Sciences undergraduates and alumni since 2012. She earned her M.S.Ed. in Higher Education from Penn’s Graduate School of Education in 2014 and very much enjoys being around the vibrancy of Penn’s student life. Prior to Penn, Anne worked in various fields, including media/entertainment, government/nonprofits, and marketing/advertising. As a result, she can offer firsthand advice about many industries and job functions, and she loves helping students discover all of the valuable resources Penn has to offer to navigate successful career paths. Anne also earned her B.A. in English and communication from the University of Delaware, and very much believes in the value of a liberal arts education. In her free time, Anne enjoys lots of travel (especially road trips), concerts and theater, home improvement projects and spending time at the Jersey shore. She lives with her husband and puppy in the Philly suburbs.

Natty joined the Career Services team in February 2017 and meets with students from the College of Arts & Sciences about their future career and internship plans.  He also manages the office’s job and internship boards.  Born and raised in Philadelphia, Natty’s high school mascot was also the Quaker.  His interest in higher education started when he was an RA at New York University where he majored in Media, Culture and Communication.  Loving the ability to explore multiple disciplines and subjects, Natty also minored in both English and Web Design.  Prior to coming to the University of Pennsylvania, Natty worked at Temple University as a Pre-Health advisor for four years.  While at Temple, he earned his M.Ed. in Educational Leadership.  He is now thrilled to be helping students at Penn plan for the future.

Emily Barrale is an Associate Director in Career Services, serving students and alumni from the College of Arts & Sciences to help them succeed in their future career and internship plans.  She also manages reporting, analysis, and data visualization for the Career Services department as a whole.  Emily holds a Master of Science in Information Systems from Drexel University and a Bachelor of Arts in English from Temple University.  In her free time she paints, plays piano, and takes care of her extensive collection of house plants.

Julian Roberson is a native Detroiter who is passionate about giving back to his community. Since starting undergrad at Amherst College, he has worked in media and entertainment, social impact, retail, and management consulting. Julian is currently a  second year MBA Candidate at The Wharton School where he is heavily involved on campus and studying marketing. This past summer, he interned at American Express in Global Advertising and Brand Mgmt. In Julian’s free time, he enjoys weightlifting, yoga, community service and traveling.

Zaida Bryant is the Administrative Coordinator for the College team. Zaida received her BA in Anthropology from Susquehanna University, where she studied abroad in Cuba. She enjoys traveling and learning new things.

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Michael began working in Career Services in 2004 and has served in his current position since 2011. He received his B.A. in Theatre Arts from Muhlenberg College and studied performance and theater criticism at Goldsmith’s College, University of London. Outside of Career Services, Michael is a professional podcaster, actor, director and playwright. He is the managing director of The Porch Room film and theater company. His award winning plays are available from Samuel French, Inc. He puts those talents to use as the co-host of the weekly CS Radio Podcast and has wrangled more than one of his co-workers into playing ridiculous parts on his show Mission: Rejected.

Leon Malloy joined Career Services in 2012 and became our Manager of Operations in 2017, having previously worked with employers on the On-Campus Recruiting team. Leon graduated from Loyola University Maryland in 2009 with a BA in English and a minor in writing, and previously worked abroad as an ESL instructor at Saint Gabriel’s College in Bangkok, Thailand.

Robin (He/Him/His) joined Career Services as Operations Coordinator in January 2019. He earned his BA in Environmental Studies from Oberlin College in 2016, where he enjoyed mentorship roles including serving as a Resident Advisor and Community Board Member. These experiences led him to contribute to academic teams at the University of Washington and New York University, where he cultivated a passion for building strong relationships and helping students move toward their goals. Robin is able to draw upon an expansive range of work experiences in the arts, entertainment, writing, sales and technology. He is energized by always learning new things and enjoys exploring new places, listening to music, and finding the best vegan eats.