As the Associate Dean for Management at the Graduate School, Karen Weinberg, MS uses her time management and problem-solving skills to assist both staff and students with any issues they face. In her free time, she loves to read and travel. Read on to learn more about Karen and her 20-year experience working at the Graduate School!  

What do you do in your day-to-day role? 

I oversee all the administrative affairs of the Graduate School, including finance and budget, facilities, operations, IT, communications, the front desk, and our program coordinators. On a day-to-day basis, I review a lot of forms, do a lot of problem solving, approve transactions, and help the staff with anything they might need.  

What projects are you currently working on? 

Right now, it is budget season, so I’m working on the budget for the institutions. I am also trying to formalize our staff onboarding process. We have a lot of different people doing different things at the moment, so I’m trying to make that process more streamlined.  

What excites you the most about working for the Graduate School? 

I like working with the people — the faculty and students, and especially the staff. I’ve been here for 20 years and the reason that I have stayed so long is because I love working with everyone here. Being able to help people, whether it be a student or staff member with an issue, is one of my favorite parts about my job. 

What are your hobbies outside of work? 

I have one hobby, and that is reading! I love to read and am currently way ahead of my reading goal for the year. I also love to travel, especially to Disney! I especially love putting those two things together, so I’m always reading a lot when I travel! 

What skills do you find most valuable in your work? 

Organization and time management are by far the most important. Since a lot of what I do is problem solving, sometimes I have to drop what I’m currently doing to fix a problem. So, if I’m organized and have my deadlines and priorities under control then I can adjust on the fly as needed.  

What is your favorite memory at the Graduate School? 

Honestly, it’s any time that we all come together to help each other. In 2023 we had a staff retreat and we all spent the day learning more about each other and talking about how we can work better together. We’ve also had some not so great times where we all came together, like in 2017 when Hurricane Harvey hit, we all helped to check in on our students. It was great to see everyone come together to support each other during such a difficult time. That’s why the Graduate School is such a great place to be a student, and to work.