Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs
Dr. Vanessa Morest
Contact Information: 914-606-6712
Dr. Morest comes to us from Norwalk Community College in Connecticut, and is an accomplished academic leader, administrator, researcher, author, and faculty member with two decades of community college experience. She is an immigrant who values public education and understands the experience of first generation college students. Her commitment to college access, student success, and academic excellence is evident in her progressively responsible experience with community colleges.
Her leadership experience at Norwalk includes two years as interim dean of academic affairs and chief academic officer with oversight responsibility for all academic areas of the college, including credit and non-credit programs and academic support services. She has extensive experience collaborating with faculty and staff with a focus on helping community college students succeed. She has been involved in expanding high school partnerships and developing programs supporting current and future industry demands.
Dr. Morest joins Westchester Community College at an exciting time in the college’s 71-year history. More students are graduating than ever before with a nearly 50 percent jump in graduation rate since 2015. Already the most affordable college in Westchester County, and combined with the state’s free tuition Excelsior Scholarship and new credit and non-credit programs in high demand fields, the college is poised for higher levels of growth and student success.
She has taught as an adjunct faculty member in sociology at Norwalk and has taught both undergraduate and graduate courses at Teachers College, Columbia University. She earned her B.A. in English from the College of William and Mary and her M.A. and Ph.D. in sociology of education from Teachers College, Columbia University.