Simone leads and supports a comprehensive portfolio of initiatives designed to enhance graduate and professional student academic success, retention, and overall well-being. She collaborates across campus to develop, implement, and assess programs such as the K. Leroy Irvis Fellowship Program, the Graduate Global Ties Peer Mentoring Program, and the Students in Community Dinner Series, while also identifying and addressing emerging needs impacting graduate students.
Simone brings over seven years of experience in higher education, with a strong track record of designing and managing student success initiatives that promote engagement, belonging, and persistence. In a former role at Pitt, she developed large-scale programming, collaborated with campus partners to reduce barriers to student success, and used data-driven approaches to assess and strengthen program effectiveness.
She also brings direct experience supporting student retention and career readiness through her work as a career services coach, where she managed a large student caseload and developed systems to enhance engagement and outcomes.
Simone holds a Master of Arts in Higher education management from Geneva College and is currently pursuing her Doctor of Education in urban education at the University of Pittsburgh, with a research focus on belonging, retention, and institutional conditions that support student success.