Under the leadership of its first female president in its 134-year history, Goldey-Beacom College, a private school in northern Delaware with high standards of educational excellence, is expanding in new and exciting directions.

Dr. Colleen Perry Keith, who served as president of Pfeiffer University in North Carolina since 2015 and was president of Spartanburg Methodist College in South Carolina from 2009 to 2015, took over as the 14th president of Goldey-Beacom in July 2019.

One aspect that drew Dr. Keith to the college is its focus on showing the relevance of its majors to life after college.

“I have been looking forward to the creativity that is inherent with helping the college to envision, plan for, and implement its strategy to claim a bright future,” she said. “Leadership at GBC should be a fun experience, and both personally and professionally fulfilling. We have some long-term leadership who bring historical knowledge, and I am especially eager to tap into their strengths and insights.

“The cost of college and finding meaningful work after college is a concern for all students and families. We ease those concerns. We are an affordable and effective institution of higher education at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Goldey-Beacom has a solid array of majors that connect with open positions in many different career fields. That, combined with the generous aid that we offer, and a better-than-90 percent career placement rate, made coming here exciting for me.”

GBC offers graduate and undergraduate degrees with majors in psychology, economics, criminal justice, English, and all areas of business. Its newest majors include two new Bachelor of Arts degrees (Communication and Media; and Human Services) and a Master of Arts program in Counseling Psychology. The college’s emphasis on business and graduate programs, and a progressive Doctor of Business Administration program, as well as the campus’s physical growth, has it well positioned for the future.

On the athletics front, Dr. Keith, not even a year into her new job, was selected by the NCAA Division II Presidents Council as its Region 1 representative. As such, she has joined a 16-member council – with presidents from universities including Kentucky State, Winston-Salem State, and Indiana University of Pennsylvania – to further strengthen the council’s focus on Division II’s six attributes: learning, balance, resourcefulness, sportsmanship, passion, and service. The council represents more than 300 institutions of higher education.

“The NCAA Division II tag line is ‘Make It Yours’ and that fits nicely with Goldey-Beacom College,” said Dr. Keith. “We want students to make their college experience – both inside and outside the classroom – to be one that fits their unique needs. We have 13 varsity athletic teams, and athletics is a key component of campus life. The positive effects of participating in college athletics lead to this: Athletes often learn better time management and better coping strategies because of the demands on their time.”

A commitment to provide students with a meaningful college experience is what landed Goldey-Beacom College in the midst of a $30 million construction and renovation project. The project includes the construction of William A. Franta Hall, a new, five-story residence hall that will house 152 students, and renovations to the Joseph West Jones Center, which will include new dining services, a new event space, and an expanded Athletics Department.

“This new residence hall represents a completely new chapter in the life of Goldey-Beacom College, not just in design, but also in our student experience,” said Dr. Keith.

Part of student life includes setting an example in giving back to the community. Goldey-Beacom recently partnered with the New Castle County Vocational-Technical School District to donate more than 30 cafeteria tables and 100 chairs from the college’s Lightning Café to Academia Antonia Alonso (La Academia), a dual-language charter school in Wilmington. The donation enabled La Academia to outfit two teachers’ lounges and a parents’ section in the cafeteria.

Click here to learn more about Goldey-Beacom College.

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