Hobart and William Smith Colleges

Kelly M. Payne

Senior Associate Dean

Kelly M. Payne, Ph.D., serves as the senior associate dean, a role in which she consults with senior staff, responds to high-level advising issues, and manages the Office of the Deans. Dean Payne advises the Laurel Honor Society and the Hai Timiai Senior Honor Society and co-leads the Laurel Connections Program that pairs honor society students with first-year students. She is a proud first-generation college graduate and is the first in her extended family to earn a doctorate. She holds an M.A. and a Ph.D. in English literature from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, a graduate certificate in Nineteenth Century Studies, and a B.A. in English from Saint Mary’s College (Notre Dame, Indiana). In addition to her duties as a dean, she has experience teaching first-year seminars in the humanities, surveys of American and African American literature, senior-level courses, and she has led a study abroad course in Belgium and the Netherlands on political themes in the literature of the low countries. She has assumed various faculty and administrative roles in her 20+ years in higher education.

Dean Payne is an active member of the Nineteenth Century Studies Association and has served as chair of their Emerging Scholars Committee and on the Article Prize Committee. She has given presentations and webinars through the National Academic Advising Association on advising, ethics, and the influence of the writer and theorist bell hooks. She has published on nineteenth century reform literature, academic advising in the U.S. and the Civil Rights Movement, and the significance of personal narratives in the education of first-generation college students.

Rev. Nita Byrd

Chaplain and Dean for Spiritual Engagement

Joining HWS in 2019, Rev. Nita Byrd leads efforts to foster an inclusive and supportive spiritual community, helping students explore how their values and beliefs shape their experience. She works alongside Muslim Life Adviser Imam Shaheed Ali and Rabbi Dr. Ann Landowne, supporting student engagement through St. John’s Chapel, the Abbe Center for Jewish Life and the Muslim Life Center.

Over her career, she has served in many higher education roles, most recently as Chaplain at St. Augustine’s University in North Carolina. Rev. Byrd works closely with the Association of Episcopal Colleges and is a Distinguished Fellow of the Colleges and Universities of the Anglican Communion. Rev. Byrd earned her B.S. and M.S. degrees from North Carolina State University and her M.Div. and Certificate of Anglican Episcopal Studies from Duke Divinity School. 

Sarah Kirk

Provost and Dean of Faculty

As Provost and Dean of Faculty, Sarah Kirk serves as chief academic officer, providing strategic leadership for HWS’ academic mission. Since joining HWS in 2021, she has led several transformative initiatives, including the development of new graduate programs, a comprehensive review and restructuring of 36 academic programs, and a multi-year redesign of the general education curriculum to prepare students for the evolving demands of the 21st century while preserving the strengths of a liberal arts education.

An accomplished organic chemist, Kirk earned her Ph.D. from the University of California, San Diego and her undergraduate degree in chemistry from Whitman College. She has built a distinguished record of community leadership. As a member of the Geneva 2030 Executive Board, she collaborates with regional partners to improve outcomes for Geneva’s children through a collective impact approach. She has also served on the Executive Board of the Pacific Northwest Conference and previously guided organizational transformation as Leadership Chair of Trinity Covenant Church, leading strategic planning and institutional restructuring.

Kirk is recognized for her commitment to advancing women in STEM and higher education leadership. Through her involvement with the HERS Luce Program, she has helped cultivate a network of women STEM leaders while facilitating conversations focused on mentoring, intersectionality and inclusive leadership.

Kirk served as the principal investigator on a National Science Foundation ADVANCE grant supporting the development of peer networks. She also served as the STEM Administrator on an NSF-S-STEM grant; both grants worked to address barriers impacting the retention and promotion of underrepresented groups in STEM fields.

Susan Cushman ’98

Associate Professor of Practice

Associate Professor of Practice in Biology Susan Cushman joined HWS in 2007 and teaches many courses including Introductory Biology on the topic of “Biology of Environmental Change,” and upper level courses in “General Ecology,” “Aquatic Biology” and “Global Change Biology.” She is the Faculty Liaison for the Finger Lakes Institute here on campus and works closely with the staff there. Her research projects include “Diet of Lake Trout and other salmonids in Seneca Lake,” “Mercury accumulation in stream and lake foodwebs across the Finger Lakes,” “Ecology of the Round Goby, an invasive fish species” and “Restoration of stream habitat and communities in the Finger Lakes National Forest.”

Cushman’s research has been published in Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety, North American Journal of Fisheries Management, Urban Ecosystems and Journal of the North American Benthological Society. She is an active committee member of the American Fisheries Society at the State Chapter and International Society level. She holds a bachelor’s degree from William Smith College, a master’s degree from The Johns Hopkins University and a doctorate from the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science.

Ela Gardiner ’27

President of HWS Student Government

Ela Gardiner is from Wellesley, Mass., majoring in politics and Spanish & Hispanic studies. She is president of HWS Student Government, has served as president of HWS Democrats and is a member of Guiding Eyes for the Blind and HWS Votes!. A Centennial Center Leadership Scholar, Gardiner studied abroad in Seville, Spain, and served as a communications intern with the New Democrat Coalition as part of the inaugural Frelinghuysen Summer Cohort.

Melanie Sage ’95, P’25, P’27

Executive Director of Alumni and Alumnae Relations

As executive director of alumni and alumnae relations, Melanie Sage develops and manages outreach and on-and off-campus alumni events, including Reunion and Homecoming. Sage also helps guide the work of the Hobart and William Smith Alumni/ae Association and the Wells College Association of Alumnae and Alumni. She grew up in the Finger Lakes and attended Geneva High School. She was a first-generation college student at HWS, graduating summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa with a BA in women’s studies.

After working for two years in HWS Admissions, Sage relocated to New England, where she spent the next two decades at a variety of independent secondary schools and colleges. She has worked in advancement, executive and marketing communications, alumni and parent relations, and as a freelance writer with a focus on education. Sage returned to the Finger Lakes in 2020 and previously served as senior associate director of admissions and director of transfer admissions at HWS. She is the proud mom of Annabel Ramsay ’25 and Rupert Ramsay ’27.

Jane M. Erickson ’07

Former Trustee

Jane Erickson has spent her career helping people build more thriving and equitable communities. For more than 15 years, she has worked alongside philanthropies, intermediary organizations and coalitions on the high-stakes work of large-scale social change. She spent much of that time in philanthropy — first with the Clinton Foundation’s global health work, then over a decade at the Rippel Foundation, where she directed national initiatives advancing cross-sector collaboration and built the organization’s approach to measurement, evaluation and learning. She co-developed tools and frameworks now used widely across the country. Today, she runs her own consulting practice, guiding foundations and partnerships as they turn ambitious goals for social change into lasting results. Her approach is deeply relational: she believes change starts with how we treat one another and that lasting progress is rooted in participatory, inclusive practice.

Erickson’s expertise spans systems strategy, program design and evaluation, organizational learning and facilitation — helping groups of very different people find common ground and build the capacity to learn, adapt and move forward together. She’s written and lectured widely on collaboration and social change, transformational learning and evaluation, and shifting norms in philanthropy. She was named a Terrance Keenan Institute Fellow by Grantmakers in Health. She began her career fostering civic engagement in the U.S. and internationally, including as a Fulbright Scholar in Indonesia.

She holds a BA in public policy and political science from HWS, a Master of Public Administration and a MA in international relations from the Maxwell School at Syracuse University, and certificates of advanced study in public health and in conflict and collaboration, also from Maxwell.

As a student at HWS, Erickson founded HWS Votes, a nonpartisan civic-engagement organization, and played lacrosse. She studied in Galway, Ireland, and Washington, D.C., and was the inaugural recipient of the Charles H. Salisbury International Internship Award. HWS is also where she fell in love — with upstate New York and her husband, Paul Wasmund ’07. She’s stayed close to HWS ever since, serving as president of the William Smith Alumnae Association and as a Trustee from 2018 to 2022, helping establish the board’s committee on Belonging, Diversity and Equity. Today, she lives in Fayetteville, N.Y. with Paul and their two daughters, still plays — and now coaches — lacrosse, and spends her free time gardening and enjoying time with friends.

Paul A. Wasmund ’07

Trustee

Paul Wasmund is a director at E Source, formerly Opinion Dynamics, where he provides research and evaluation services to public utilities, public utility commissions, and state energy offices. Much of his work involves close examination of energy programs, such as utility rebate offerings and electric vehicle charging networks. He specializes in helping clients understand the impacts of their programs, such as energy saved and greenhouse gas emissions reduced, applying quantitative and qualitative social science research methods to measure program outcomes and informing evidence-based decisions. His findings help utilities and state agencies make energy programming and investment decisions.

At E Source, Wasmund leads a team of evaluators and analysts on projects across the country. His work has included evaluations of Southern California Edison’s Charge Ready EV charging program and Ameren Missouri’s residential energy efficiency portfolio.

Wasmund earned a BA from HWS, a Master of Public Administration from the Maxwell School at Syracuse University, and a graduate certificate in environmental decision making from SUNY ESF. As a Hobart student, he was a member of the crew team and Kappa Alpha Society.

He has stayed close to HWS over the years, first as president of the Alumni Association and now as a member of the Board of Trustees, where he works with fellow trustees on the institution’s long-term planning and financial health. He also advises Interfaith Works of Central New York on evaluation and reporting for its refugee resettlement, senior support services, and interfaith dialogue programs.

Wasmund lives in Fayetteville, N.Y. with his wife, Jane Erickson ’07, and their two daughters. He is an avid skier and runner and remains partial to fantasy novels.

Mark D. Gearan

President

Mark D. Gearan has led HWS through a transformative era of growth, national recognition and renewed institutional ambition – all guided by an unwavering commitment to student success and civic purpose.

Gearan first served as President of HWS from 1999 to 2017, a period defined by expanded academic offerings, increased student engagement and stronger community partnerships. After stepping down, he served as President in Residence at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and later as Director of the Institute of Politics at Harvard Kennedy School, advancing national conversations on public service and leadership.

In 2022, Gearan returned to HWS. Under his leadership, HWS launched Further Together: The Campaign for Our Third Century in 2024 – a bold initiative to raise $400 million for students, faculty and the institution’s future. The campaign has secured more than $360 million in philanthropy, including a historic $70 million gift from L. Thomas Melly ’52, L.H.D. ’02 and Judith Hershey Melly L.H.D. ’16, one of the largest to any college or university in the nation that year. The gift is expanding scholarship support and establishing the Melly Institute for Business, Innovation and Leadership.

A $25 million gift from Cynthia Gelsthorpe Fish ’82, L.H.D. ’23 and John F. Fish is advancing STEM education through the Fish Center for the Sciences, a nearly 40,000-square-foot hub for science research and instruction currently under construction.

During Gearan’s tenure, HWS has earned national accolades from The Wall Street Journal, The Princeton Review and Washington Monthly for excellence in the student experience, alumni engagement, internship support and career development. With a strong return on investment, 95% of graduates are employed or enrolled in graduate school within four months of graduation.

A champion of civil discourse and democratic engagement, Gearan established The President’s Forum to convene national and global thought leaders on campus. Rooted in his belief that future leaders must be prepared to live and work in diverse communities, the Forum fosters dialogue across lines of difference — including identity, faith, politics and perspective.

Nationally recognized for his leadership in higher education and public service, Gearan has held key roles in government and national politics. He served as White House Communications Director, Deputy Chief of Staff and Campaign Manager for Clinton/Gore ’92, as well as Executive Director of the Democratic Governors Association. In 1995, President Bill Clinton appointed him the 14th Director of the Peace Corps, where he led the agency’s expansion into South Africa, Jordan and Haiti, and launched the Crisis Corps to deploy returned volunteers in response to global emergencies.

Gearan serves on the board of directors for the Robert & Ethel Kennedy Human Rights Center and was Vice Chair of the National Commission on Military, National and Public Service, established by the U.S. Congress. He is a former chair of both National Campus Compact and the Corporation for National and Community Service.

A cum laude graduate of Harvard College and Georgetown University Law Center, Gearan holds 13 honorary degrees in recognition of his contributions to education and service.