Kate Colbert, Higher Education Marketing Consultant

Kate is a higher education marketing expert with deep experience on both sides of the ivory tower door. She spent more than a decade overseeing the marketing, public relations and alumni relations functions of Chicago-area graduate schools and has consulted for higher education clients, at the graduate and undergraduate level, across the nation.

With a core expertise as a writer and a notable career as a lead generation consultant, Kate develops higher education brand stories that are meaningful to the prospective student (as well as the alumnus, donor, faculty member and current student) and measurable on the institutional balance sheet. Kate is adept at uncovering game-changing insights for colleges and universities through her market research methodologies.

In addition to her focus on enrollment marketing, Kate has expertise in alumni relations, corporate education, university crisis management, and faculty relations. She has overseen accreditation self-study reports, has worked closely with the Higher Learning Commission, has led AQIP continuous improvement projects, and is well versed in FERPA issues and IPEDS filings. Kate served as the Director of Communications at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, and the Director of Marketing & Alumni Relations at Lake Forest Graduate School of Management. She has consulted for Northeastern University, UC San Francisco, The University of Tulsa College of Law, Tulane University Law School, Bradley University, and Medical College of Georgia.

Kate has been an invited speaker at the American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC), the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), and graduate education seminars with EducationDynamics. She is a long-time member of CASE and a six-time recipient of CASE District V’s annual awards for excellence in marketing and communications. She has repeatedly served as a judge for the Pride of CASE V Awards. In 2013, she authored two sidebars about higher education marketing measurement and non-degree programs in the book Net Proceeds: Increased Revenue from Enrollment and Advancement, by Robert M. Moore and Tom Abrahamson.

Kate has served as a faculty member at Illinois State University, the College of Lake County, Loyola University Chicago and Lake Forest Graduate School of Management. She holds a Master’s degree in Comparative Literature and Writing from Illinois State University and an MBA in Organizational Behavior from Lake Forest Graduate School of Management.

There are few academic “hats” that Kate hasn’t worn. She’s been a faculty member, an administrator, a department head, a consultant, many times a student, and a corporate education faculty member. Today, her favorite title is colleague. Consider inviting Kate to be your proxy and your partner as you tackle your most important marketing communications projects.