Michael Dunn

Director of Professional Pathways

Michael Dunn

Biography

Michael is a seasoned higher education professional dedicated to building vibrant and welcoming campus communities. He has extensive experience with policy development, equity and inclusion, team leadership and management, Title IX coordination, curriculum development, grant implementation, assessment, and classroom teaching.

As the Director of Professional Pathways, Michael oversees the Professional Pathways (CORE-P) courses, an integral part of the College's Learning through Experiential and Applied Discovery (LEAD) curriculum. These courses prepare students to successfully bridge from college to career. Michael is leading efforts to bolster the learning outcomes and assessment measures of these courses, and to incorporate innovative best practices and career-readiness competencies from the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE). 

At St. Mary’s College, Michael previously served as the Assistant Vice President of Equity and Inclusion and Title IX Coordinator. He led the development of new non-discrimination procedures and accessibility grievance procedures. He also co-chaired the Bias Prevention and Support Team and led the Policy Equity Work Group, which was charged to gather and review all campus policies to identify, and make recommendations to address, any discriminatory or inequitable effects. 

As Title IX Coordinator, Michael coordinated the College’s compliance with federal and state sex- and gender-based discrimination and sexual harassment laws and regulations. He led major revisions of campus Title IX policies and worked closely with state agencies and nonprofit organizations to develop innovative training programs, resources, and initiatives. Michael pursued and won grants to develop new, evidence-based sexual violence prevention initiatives, including programming to engage men and boys as allies and to implement hotspot mapping. 

Before coming to the College, Michael served as a Deputy Title IX Coordinator and an academic adviser at Columbia University.

Michael earned a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Virginia; a Master’s Degree from Teachers College, Columbia University; and a Juris Doctorate from Fordham University. He lives in Leonardtown, Maryland with his wife and three kids, and is the president of the Board of Trustees of the St. Mary’s County Library.

Education

  • J.D. in Law at Fordham University School of Law, 2008
  • M.A. in Higher and Postsecondary Education at Teachers College, Columbia University, 2003
  • B.A. in History and Spanish at University of Virginia, 2002

Awards

  • Eastern Association of Colleges and Employers (EACE) 2023 Excellence in Program Development & Innovation Award

    Michael Dunn, along with Julianne Petrilla, coordinator for the first year professional pathways, and the program's externship coordinator, Meghan Druzgala, received the Eastern Association of Colleges and Employers (EACE) 2023 Excellence in Program Development & Innovation Award honoring the Professional Pathways (CORE-P) program.

    The annual award honors outstanding program development in either recruiting or career services that can serve as a model program for others in the field to replicate. EACE represents over 200 colleges from the northern and mid-Atlantic regions.