It wasn't so very long ago that Dr. Kimberly Cooney was in the same position as the students she is dedicated to guiding in her new role as Manager of Student Success and Retention at Temple University Ambler.

"I had to answer the same questions when I was an undergraduate at Temple. What is the right major for me? What profession? How do I achieve my goals," said Cooney, who graduated with a degree in Psychology from Temple in 2006. "Each student has different needs, particularly when they are starting out; it can be a very complicated process. My goal is to help them determine how they got here and where they want to go."

As Manager of Student Success and Retention, a new position at the Ambler Campus, Cooney will work with the Office of Academic and Student Services to provide direct student services to all current and prospective transfer students at Temple Ambler from initial recruitment through graduation. She will assist students with all aspects of advising, academic planning and achieving professional goals including course selection, registration activities, ensuring students are meeting academic program requirements and clearing students for graduation. Cooney will additionally work with Undergraduate Admissions to manage the recruitment and enrollment process for transfer students at Temple Ambler.

"I am a proud alumnus of Temple Ambler. I had the good fortune to able to become very active on campus as a student leader and get a true feel for what the campus has to offer," she said. "I've always liked the small, close-knit community feel you get at this campus while also having access to all of the resources at Main Campus. With my experience in enrollment and advising, I knew coming back to Temple Ambler was the right choice for me."

Cooney returns to Temple Ambler with 12 years experience in higher education. At Chestnut Hill College, she was Assistant Director of Student Activities from 2007 to 2009 and Director of Student Activities from 2009 to 2011. She additionally worked in academic advising and the campus writing center as a tutor before transitioning to the role of Assistant to the Vice President of Student Life. Prior to arriving at Temple Ambler, she was Director of Student Success at Chestnut Hill for five years, focusing specifically on advising and retention, while pursuing her doctoral degree in higher education at Immaculata University. She continues to teach in Immaculata's doctoral program.

"My goal at Temple Ambler is to be a resource for all transfer students from the start of their journey to when they become alumni themselves. Transfer students may come to us from many different stages of their lives," she said. "They may be balancing family and work while taking classes; it might be the first class that they've taken in 10 years. I want to make sure that we have the resources in place to ensure that they will succeed no matter what their current situation."

In her new role at Temple Ambler, Cooney will develop, organize and implement recruitment and retention plans. She will also ensure successful delivery of presentations, customized transfer events and other on and off-campus events that promote Ambler Campus majors.

"I want to get to know the advising counselors and admissions liaisons," she said. "I want to enhance the relationships that we have with local community colleges so that students who are transferring know that Temple is the right fit for them and the Ambler Campus meets their needs."

For transfer students beginning their experience at Temple Ambler, Cooney said that, like it was for her, she wants the campus to become "a place to call home, somewhere you can always come back to."

"I hope that they are able to make the most of their experience, meet great people and learn a lot about themselves. While I was a student at Temple Ambler, I was able to get involved in many different areas of the campus community, well beyond just my major. My Temple Ambler experience is what made me want to go into higher education as a career," she said. "My approach is that every student matters. I've learned through my own education and my professional experience that success looks different depending on the students' goals — it's essential to get to know each student so that you can help them achieve those individual goals."