Email Rene Thomas
Rene Thomas is the Director of Graduate Studies for the Kogod School of Business. Rene has worked at American University since 2011. She began at AU working in Kogod undergraduate advising before transitioning to advising Kogod graduate students in 2016. Prior to coming to AU, Rene worked for many years in the business school at George Washington University. Rene is originally from the Washington, DC, area.
Shari Pattillo is the Director of Student Development and Services at the Kogod School of Business. Before coming to KSB in 2017, she was a counselor in the Academic Support and Access Center, Office of Campus Life, for over nine years. Before joining the university staff, she was an adjunct instructor at AU while working at the Center for Applied Linguistics in overseas refugee education. She enjoys travel and has been a staff advisor on several Alternative Breaks.
- Before beginning at Kogod, Kelsey was the Program Associate for Student Leadership & Engagement at The George Washington University School of Business, where she oversaw student organizations, internal and external case competitions, career networking treks, and taught classes in the First Year Development Program. Previous to GW, Kelsey worked at Shippensburg University in student activities and leadership and women and gender equality and empowerment.
Kelsey is also a Nationally Certified Counselor and is involved with the American College Personnel Association (ACPA).
Kelsey is originally from south central Pennsylvania and has lived in the DMV area since 2017.
Chris holds a master’s degree in higher education from the University of Michigan and a bachelor’s degree in applied psychology and global public health from New York University.
Before joining the Kogod team, Chris served as the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Graduate Intern at the University of Michigan's Center for Campus Involvement, where he oversaw professional and interpersonal development for students, staff, and the university community.
While most recently from Michigan, Chris is originally from Taiwan and lived between Taiwan, California, and Toronto growing up. Having just finished graduate school, Chris is still trying to figure out what he enjoys doing when he is not working, but video games and basketball are on the list!
Email Robin Marks
Prior to joining American University’s Kogod School of Business as the Associate Director for Graduate Career Development, Robin Marks spent her career in corporate recruiting and higher education. Most recently, as the Senior Technical Recruiter at Azul 3D, Robin ran all strategic recruiting initiatives for the 3D printing start-up. Robin spent 10+ years in higher education, leading teams in the career centers at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and the University of Delaware. Robin maintained a private coaching and therapy practice in Charlotte, NC. Robin started her career in recruiting for 2 major law firms in the Washington, DC area. She received her Master of Philosophy in Education in Professional Counseling from the University of Pennsylvania and her Bachelor of Arts in Communication, Legal Institutions, Economics and Government from American University. Robin is a proud AU Eagle and enjoys making an impact on the careers of AU Kogod graduate students.