Karen Smith
Chesapeake College named Karen Smith — an internal candidate with both corporate and education experience — as the new vice president for administrative services. In her role as vice president, Ms. Smith will oversee finances, facilities, public safety, and auxiliary services.
“It is with great pleasure that I welcome Karen to her new role. Over many years she’s demonstrated outstanding budget management skills as well as effective leadership. She represents an excellent addition to the Chesapeake College senior leadership team as we face challenges and opportunities in an incredibly dynamic time,” said Chesapeake College President Clifford P. Coppersmith.
Ms. Smith joined Chesapeake College in 2003 in the financial services division. Chesapeake’s director of budget and procurement services for 13 years, Ms. Smith has also been serving as the interim vice president since November. As interim vice president, Ms. Smith provided leadership during the pandemic and is overseeing the transition back to normal campus operations. She leads the preparation and presentation of Chesapeake’s annual budget request for the five support counties.
“I look forward to working with our faculty, staff and students and the entire college community as we continue our work on implementing the college’s current strategic plan,” Ms. Smith said. “I feel very fortunate to be a part of the Chesapeake College community and will continue to work to enhance and build upon our strategic priorities.”
Ms. Smith, an Illinois native, earned a Bachelor of Science degree at Western Illinois University and a master’s degree in business administration from Salisbury University. She is a graduate of Shore Leadership and the Academy for Advanced Leadership.
A Tilghman resident, Ms. Smith and her husband Dave moved to the Eastern Shore in 1998. Ms. Smith has volunteered with the Tilghman Waterman’s Museum, Tilghman Island Fire Department, and Chesapeake Bay Retriever Relief & Rescue.
About Chesapeake College
Founded in 1965 as Maryland’s first regional community college, Chesapeake serves five Eastern Shore counties – Caroline, Dorchester, Kent, Queen Anne’s and Talbot. With more than 130,000 alumnae, Chesapeake has 2,300 students and almost 10,000 people enrolled in continuing education programs.
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