Kelli Smith, PhD

Kelli Smith serves as the AVP for Student Success within the Division of Student Affairs at Binghamton University, following the role of the Fleishman Center for Career and Professional Development Director. Her portfolio includes oversight of three dedicated teams, specifically the Fleishman Center, the Center for Civic Engagement (CCE), and Student Transition and Success (Success Coaching, Speaking Center, FYE/UNIV 101, Emerging Leaders, Transfer Student Services, Binghamton Advantage Program, and Supplemental Instruction) which she created with existing resources to better serve Binghamton students. She regularly partners with Academic Affairs on student success-related projects, including high-impact practices and leading the creation of a Common Read program in response to the pandemic and in support of the Black Lives Matter movement. She currently co-chairs the university’s Strategic Priority for Engagement and sits on the President’s extended cabinet. She also has adjunct faculty roles for both the School of Management leadership department and the Student Affairs graduate program. Smith remains involved internationally in the field of career services having co-chaired the Global Career Services Summit in Newcastle, UK, and most recently co-chairing this year’s NACE Task Force on the Positioning of Career Services Task Force and joining the NACE Board of Directors. She also recently rolled off the board for CEA, a provider of educational abroad experiences and international internships. She has conducted numerous presentations related to the field of student affairs and regularly published, including serving as editor for two Wiley New Directions books related to career services. Under her leadership, graduate career outcomes metrics exceeded the campus strategic planning goal 3 years early and the Fleishman Center and the CCE have won numerous state, national, and global awards. Inspired from being a Pell-grant recipient and first-generation college student herself, she created the first campus pantry at her former institution, their first internship scholarship program, and helped champion the creation of Binghamton’s B-First mentoring program. She holds a master’s degree from Indiana University-Bloomington and a Ph.D. in leadership studies from UNL.