Kendall College Board of Directors Names Emily Williams Knight President
The Kendall College Board of Directors has named Emily Williams Knight president of Kendall College. Knight brings more than 15 years of experience in the education and hospitality industry to her role at Kendall College. Dr. Karen Gersten, who served as president of Kendall College since 2010, has been named Vice President of Academic Affairs in the Institutional Quality and Integrity Unit of the Global Products and Services Group at Laureate Education, Inc.
Knight joined Laureate Education, Inc., in 2011 as a vice president responsible for globally expanding access to the company’s hospitality-management, culinary-arts and art-and-design programs. She previously was the CEO of New England University LLC. Knight formerly worked at Pearson Education for more than 10 years, most recently serving as vice president of marketing and sales strategies for Pearson Teacher Education and Development.
Early in her career, Knight taught business courses at Montgomery County Community College in Pennsylvania. She also worked as an executive meeting manager at Marriott’s Key West Resorts in Florida.
“Emily’s experience and leadership skills make her a natural choice for the role of president. Her passion and relentless energy will undoubtedly have a significant impact on the future of Kendall College,” said David Graves, chief executive officer of Laureate Hospitality, Art and Design. “We are fortunate to have Emily at the helm, continuing to make Kendall College a leading institution of higher education in hospitality management, culinary arts, business and early childhood education.”
“Dr. Gersten has worked tirelessly on behalf of the students, alumni and faculty at Kendall College,” said Paula Singer, chief executive officer of Laureate’s Global Products and Services division. “We are pleased to have her move into a position where her skills and expertise in student assessment can be leveraged not just at Kendall, but at our other institutions of higher education.”
Knight graduated from Troy University with an M.S. in Management. She holds a B.S. in Hospitality Administration from Boston University, where she was an academic trustee scholar, and an A.S. in Hospitality Administration from Newbury College, where she was a presidential scholar and graduated first in her class. Knight and her husband, Alec, have 6-year-old twin girls.