Meet Our Team

Laurie Ross, professor and director of the Sustainability and Social Justice department, is serving as the interim Associate Provost and Dean of the College. As Dean of the College, Laurie oversees the undergraduate academic experience at Clark.

Laurie brings expertise in developing and supporting long-term community-university partnerships that address the social determinants of youth violence.

As Associate Dean of the College, Jennifer is responsible for supporting the Dean of the College in managing university-wide curricula and developing strategies to implement new curricular initiatives. Jennifer also oversees academic policies, chairs College Board in adjudicating student cases on academic integrity and petitions, and supervises units that offer curricular fundamentals and support, including the Writing Program and the Writing Center, and other foundational academic course work currently under development. 

Jennifer Plante has been working at Clark since 2000, and has been the director of the Writing Center and Writing Program since 2006. She has taught a variety of courses, including Expository Writing, Queer Horror, Writing: The Beats (a course that studies texts from Beat Generation writers), and has taught continuing education courses in both literature and film.

Plante comes to this position with a lengthy history in the Worcester area. She graduated from Worcester Polytechnic Institute with a degree in humanities; after working as a technical writer in the area, Jennifer decided to pursue a graduate degree in English from Clark University.

Evan Wilson has been working at Clark since 2017 and has served as the Assistant Dean of the College since 2023. Evan first started at Clark as the Associate Director of Study Abroad and Away programs and was promoted in 2020 to serve as the interim Director of First Year Experience and then later appointed the Director of Academic Transitions.

As Assistant Dean of the College, Evan oversees a variety of initiatives related to the undergraduate academic experience including the first-year academic program, the Curriculum and Careers Initiative, academic strategic framework planning, and serving as a liaison to departments across campus to support student success.

Evan is a proud Clark alum, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in International Development and Social Change, as well as a master’s degree in Community Development and Planning. Before returning to Clark, Evan earned a master’s degree in Education from UMass Boston and held a variety of roles within education ranging from experiential learning facilitation, youth leadership program management, and classroom teaching.

Steven Moon (they/them) joined the Office of the Dean of the College as the Director of Special Academic Opportunities in January 2023. In this position, their aim is to help more students see themselves as competitive applicants for fellowships and scholarships for internships, research, and teaching both in the US and abroad. Steven will also coordinate numerous undergraduate research initiatives on campus, including summer research Opportunity Funds such as the HERO, Plave, Weiller, and Steinbrecher as well as ClarkFEST.

Originally from Western Pennsylvania, Steven earned their BSEd at Indiana University of Pennsylvania, and their MA and Ph.D. in Ethnomusicology at the University of Pittsburgh. Prior to joining the staff at Clark, Steven held a postdoctoral fellowship with the American Research Institute in Turkey, where they continued their research on Ottoman-era musical healing practices in contemporary clinical medical research. They bring with them experience as both a recipient of, and advisor of winning applications to, Fulbright, the Critical Language Scholarship, and more.

Faculty members can expect to hear from Steven throughout the academic year as your students are applying for fellowships and scholarships or submitting their work to ClarkFEST. In particular, an email from them might include:

• Imminent deadlines for fellowship or scholarship applications
• Upcoming information sessions for students
• Offers to visit departmental meetings and discuss opportunities most relevant for your students’ discipline
• Information about Opportunity Funding for summer internships and research
• Promotional materials for ClarkFEST

Faculty are highly encouraged to get in touch to identify high-achieving students who are good candidates for programs such as the Fulbright, Goldwater, Boren, or Critical Language Scholarships. Remember that GPA is only one small component of these and that a competitive application encompasses leadership, engagement, and overall promise.

Janet joined Clark University in July 2024. Janet supports both the Dean of the College office and the Center for Gender, Race, and Area Studies (CGRAS). Previous to working at Clark, Janet held administrative positions at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Harvard Medical School, and UMass Medical School