Cottey College names new president

The Joplin Globe, Mo.
·2 min read

Apr. 27—NEVADA, Mo. — Stefanie D. Niles has been named president of Cottey College, its board of trustees announced this week.

Niles is currently the vice president for enrollment and communications at Ohio Wesleyan University in Delaware, Ohio. She will begin July 1 and will succeed Jann Weitzel, who had announced in August that she would retire at the end of the school year.

"I am deeply honored to have the opportunity to become the next president of Cottey College," Niles said in a statement. "I am inspired by Cottey's mission to educate women to be contributing members of a global society, particularly as I have both benefited personally from a single-gender educational experience, and I have worked at a women's college. The unique experience that Cottey offers its students is distinctive and important, and I'm eager to champion Cottey and be a vocal and impassioned advocate for the many opportunities offered to the women it serves."

Niles previously worked at Dickinson College, Hollins University, Bryn Athyn College, DePauw University and the University of Tennessee. She also served as president of the National Association for College Admission Counseling in 2018-19 and was named to the Fulbright International Education Administrators Program in 2017.

Niles holds a bachelor's degree in English from the University of Virginia, a master's degree in education from Indiana University and a doctor of education degree in higher education management from the University of Pennsylvania.

"Cottey is incredibly fortunate to find a candidate like Dr. Niles," said Kathryn Bayne, chair of the Cottey College board of trustees, in a statement. "She has extensive experience in a variety of increasingly responsible positions in higher education. Her work in enrollment and communication will be an asset to the college as it continues to move forward."

Cottey College, an independent, liberal arts and science college for women, is owned by the PEO Sisterhood, an international women's organization with more than 210,000 members. Patricia L. Brolin-Ribi, president of the international chapter, said Niles will provide "excellent leadership" for the college.