Mount St. Mary’s University has hired Bernard Franklin, Ph.D., as vice president for student life, effective August 1, 2018. He will provide the leadership necessary for the Mount to continue its growth as a cohesive learning community that is focused on student success.
Franklin, who currently is special assistant to the president and assistant vice president for student life at Kansas State University, will serve as the leader of the student life division, bringing to the president’s cabinet a strong commitment to student success, a deep background in student affairs and an energetic, collaborative and healing approach. Franklin also possesses considerable experience in supporting students of color and first-generation students in successfully navigating college, a strength that will benefit the increasing number of students from underrepresented populations at the Mount. In academic year 2018-19, students of color are projected to make up 42 percent of the freshman class, a considerable increase from 25 percent in 2013-14.
Franklin joins the Mount as momentum builds from a series of leadership and academic successes, including projected record freshman enrollment in Fall 2018; implementation of a strategic plan; ranking as the No. 1 college for employment in Maryland and No. 21 in the nation; the awarding of inaugural degrees in cybersecurity and forensic accounting; numerous articulation agreements with regional community and peer colleges; and the continuing recognition of students and faculty by such organizations as the Fulbright and Marshall Scholars programs.
Demonstrating his energy and work ethic, Franklin also currently serves as director of the Kansas State College Advising Corps, a program that focuses on assisting low-income, first-generation students in completing their college enrollment process and director of university programs for Shawnee Mission, Kansas School District. In addition, he founded and serves as president of the Center for Imagineering Leadership, where he applies and integrates through a trauma-informed lens, resilience and the growing research of neuroscience to personal counseling, leadership development/coaching, organizational strategy, strategic planning and consulting. Franklin is considered a national thought leader in the emerging work of cultivating and sustaining a culture of calm and excellence in high-pressured youth learning environments.
Earlier in his career, Franklin served as president of Metropolitan Community College-Penn Valley and of Junior Achievement of Middle America. As assistant to the president at Donnelly College, he was responsible for the strategic planning of this urban Catholic two-year college.
Franklin holds a Bachelor of Arts in political science and a Doctor of Philosophy in counseling and higher education administration from Kansas State University, and a Master of Science in counseling and behavioral studies from University of South Alabama.