Kimberly Rolfe

About Kimberly Rolfe

Twenty years into a successful marketing career, I changed games and it was the best career decision I’ve made. Moving from the highly competitive sporting goods industry to the highly competitive world of higher education, I have found a way to use my background in strategy and innovation to affect a new audience; impacting the professional lives of our students while establishing strong, supportive relationships that will stand the test of time.Now, I spend my time forging new programs like virtual recruiting that has connected hundreds of students to recruiters around the country; advancing their knowledge and access to careers in the industries and organizations that ignite their interests. Collaborating with my team, we seek out innovative solutions to helping students understand the value of identifying and investing in their career aspirations early. I’ve co-created college-wide networking programs, led a cross-campus initiative to improve on-campus student employment, and joined forces with colleagues to ideate, create and launch a career coaching initiative for every First Year student.Relationships are key. Sometimes I’m rallying colleagues to embrace new ideas or strategies, or coaching team members by finding and developing their strengths and interests. One of the most rewarding aspects of what I do is mentor students as they identify and establish new relationships that allow them to access their aspirations. The travel is not as glamorous as my previous career, the brand name is not world-wide, but the satisfaction and joy of helping students and young alumni successfully launch a career can be evidenced by the many Thank You notes filling my bookcase shelves.

Experience

1. Director, Career and Comunity Engagement Center

   Whitman College

   Jul 2025 — Present

   Oversee all aspects of a multi-faceted student engagement center which provides integrated and holistic support to students in ways that allow them to grow into meaningful trajectories and roles that create impact.

Education

• Colorado State University

  BS, Apparel Design & Merchandising

  1989 — 1993

Skills

• Multi-Tasked
• Presentations
• Product Marketing
• Merchandising
• Sporting Goods
• Event Planning
• Apparel
• Cross Functional Relationships
• Social Media
• Strategy
• Sales
• Cross-Functional Team Leadership
• Organization
• Marketing Strategy
• Public Speaking
• Coaching
• Management
• Team Building