Meet the Admissions Team

Below is an alphabetical listing of the Tufts admissions officers and their geographic liaison assignments. You can reach your appointed officer by e-mailing him or her at the address provided. If you need immediate assistance with your application, please contact the Admissions Office directly at undergraduate.admissions@tufts.edu. If you have questions about applying as a transfer student, e-mail transfer.admissions@tufts.edu instead.

Matthew Alander '08
Director of Outreach
matthew.alander@tufts.edu

California (Valley of the Moon, Sacramento County, Marin County, San Francisco County, Contra Costa County, Alameda County), Massachusetts*, Africa

Hometown: Hamden, Connecticut
Favorite Tufts tradition: Painting the cannon with the cross-country team and the Tufts Democrats. There isn’t a better way to bond with other students than camping outside in temperatures hovering above freezing while participating in one of Tufts' best traditions!
Favorite campus spot: The 7th floor of the Fletcher School. It not only gives you a great view of campus but reminds you of just how close we are to the city of Boston!

Susan Garrity Ardizzoni
Director of Undergraduate Admissions
susan.ardizzoni@tufts.edu

California (Los Angeles), New York (New York City)

Hometown: Bethel Park, PA (and yes I'm still a Steelers fan!)
Favorite book: It's hard to narrow down to just one, but East of Eden is that book that I always come back to. I tend to really like books that focus on families and the communities in which they live (a more recent favorite is Little Fires Everywhere—highly recommended!).
Favorite campus spot: I am the longest standing member of the staff (notice I didn't say oldest!) so have spent a lot of time on the Tufts campus. While there are many spots on campus that I love, the Memorial Steps are probably my favorite, especially since they were refurbished a few years back. Standing at the top or bottom, you can appreciate their beauty and message.

Sean Sean Ashburn
Assistant Director of Admissions
sean.ashburn@tufts.edu

Connecticut (Hartford), Massachusetts*, New York (Bronx, Manhattan, Queens, Staten Island)

Hometown: Lebanon, Maine
Favorite book: A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara
Tufts class I'd like to take: AMER 94 Pocahontas & Other Myths: Performing the Indigenous Americas

Rachel Brown
Associate Director of Admissions
rachel_e.brown@tufts.edu

California (Imperial Valley, Orange, Riverside, San Bernadino, San Diego, Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties, Ontario, San Fernando Valley), New York (Westchester County)

Hometown: San Diego, California
Tufts class I'd like to take: EXP-0028 Baseball Analytics: The Sabermetrics Model
Elephant fact: Elephants spend about 16 hours a day eating, consuming 300-400 pounds of food!

Thomas Thomas Duncan
Assistant Director of Admissions
thomas.duncan@tufts.edu

SMFA at Tufts, Florida (Broward, Marin, and Palm Beach Counties), Massachusetts*

Hometown: Plymouth, Massachusetts
Favorite book(s): Roussel, Walser, Proust, Stein, Lispector, Michaux, Huysmans, Artaud, Pynchon, Borges, Sterne, Rabelais, Kharms, Vvedensky, Pizarnik, Seneca, Sun Ra, Trakl, Carrington, Mallarmé, Bataille, Celan, Howe, Sarraute, Zürn, any book that has a lot of long lists in it, etc.
Favorite work(s) of art: Laura Owens, Glenn Ligon, James Ensor, Sigmar Polke, Mike Kelley, Fischli+Weiss, Theaster Gates, Tauba Auerbach, Hanne Darboven, John Rafman, Charline von Heyl, Christian Marclay, Isa Genzken, Guy de Cointet, Ree Morton, R.H. Quaytman, Dieter Roth, Adolf Wölfli, Rachel Harrison (did I mention that I’m enthusiastic about a lot of things?)

Brianna Florio
Admissions Counselor
brianna.florio@tufts.edu

SMFA at Tufts, Idaho, Massachusetts*, Montana, Wyoming

Hometown: Warwick, Rhode Island
Favorite work of art: Reverse by Jenny Saville
Favorite quote: “Forget yourself. Become one with eternity. Become part of your environment.” –Yayoi Kusama

Patrick Gladstone
Associate Director of Admissions
patrick.gladstone@tufts.edu

Connecticut (Fairfield County), Illinois, Ohio, Canada

Hometown: Cleveland, Ohio
Favorite work of art: Lady Luck Was an American by Tom Freeman (depicting the battle where the USS Constitution got its “Old Ironsides” nickname)
Favorite campus spot: Cousens Gym—it’s the quintessential collegiate gym

For these territories, please contact:
undergraduate.admissions@tufts.edu

Massachusetts*, New Jersey (Essex, Hudson, Middlesex, South Passiac, Union Counties), New York (Brooklyn), Texas (Amarillo, Beaumont, Corpus Christi, Dallas/Fort Worth, Houston, Lubbock, Midland)

Virginia Hart
Admissions Counselor
virginia.hart@tufts.edu

Connecticut (New London and Windham Counties), Maryland, Massachusetts*, Rhode Island

Hometown: Lexington, Virginia
Tufts class I'd like to take: MUS 0005 Music As Culture
Favorite work of art: Circus-The Caribbean Orange (1978) by Gordon Matta Clark

Roberto Jimenez
Assistant Director of Admissions
roberto.jimenez@tufts.edu

New York (Buffalo, Rochester, Monroe and Erie Counties), Pennsylvania (Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia Counties, Lehigh Valley, Northeastern Pennsylvania), Middle East, Pakistan, Turkey

Hometown: Manati, Puerto Rico
Elephant fact: My hometown means “manatee” in Spanish. Elephants are the manatee’s closest relatives!
Favorite book: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Angela Angela Jones-OBrien
Associate Director of Admissions
angela.jones@tufts.edu

SMFA at Tufts, Kansas, Massachusetts*, Missouri

Hometown: Kansas City, Missouri
Favorite work of art: The entirety of the Frank Zappa catalogue
Favorite Tufts tradition: SMFA Senior Thesis Opening because it’s so exciting to see the culmination of all the work our senior capstone students have done during the year and because we get to see many of their families at the opening – people who we may not have seen since they helped students move in as freshmen!

Emily Lubow Klobucher
Admissions Counselor
emily.klobucher@tufts.edu

SMFA at Tufts, Massachusetts*, Nevada, Oklahoma

Hometown: Wenham, Massachusetts
Favorite quote: “Art is not always about pretty things. It’s about who we are, what happened to us, and how our lives are affected.” –Elizabeth Brown.
Favorite campus spot: The Silkscreen Room! They color-organize the inks in a perfect gradient. Plus, it has these enormous windows that look into the atrium which is perfect for people watching!

Shanice Kok '16
Assistant Director of Admissions
shanice.kok@tufts.edu

Massachusetts*, China (Nanjing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen), Hong Kong, Japan, Mongolia, Singapore, Taiwan

Hometown: Hong Kong and Malaysia
Elephant fact: Elephant herds are led by a matriarch, the oldest female in the group! #girlpower
Favorite Tufts tradition: Pre-Orientation programs! Over 50% of incoming Tufts students will participate one of 8 unique Pre-O programs ranging from TWO (Tufts Wilderness Orientation) to CAFÉ (Conservation, Action, Faith and Education) to GO (Global Orientation). It allows students to come to campus early and meet both incoming and upperclass students with their shared interests. Participating in GO was one of the best decisions I made at Tufts!

Gracie Marshall '15
Assistant Director of Admissions
grace.marshall@tufts.edu

Arizona, California (San Mateo County, Santa Clara County, Central Coast and Central Valley), Colorado, New Mexico, Utah

Hometown: Palo Alto, California
Elephant fact: In addition to the familiar trumpet blast sound they're known for, elephants also purr much like cats do.
Tufts class I'd like to take: MUS-44: History of Rock 'n Roll...again

Abigail McFee '17
Admissions Counselor
abigail.mcfee@tufts.edu

Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, New York (The Adirondacks, Capital Region and Central New York), North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin

Hometown: Chadron, Nebraska
Tufts class I'd like to take: PER-0101: Writing as Performance
Favorite campus spot: The Prez Lawn on the first warm day of spring—students flock there between classes to lie on blankets, pool floaties, and hammocks, play music, picnic, and read.

Bridget Moore
Associate Director of Admissions
bridget.moore@tufts.edu

Bangladesh, China (not including Beijing, Nanjing, Shanghai, Shenzhen), India, Nepal, Sri Lanka

Hometown: Albany, New York
Elephant fact: Some elephants are “lefties,” others are “righties.” Because of constant usage, their preferred tusk gets shorter over time.
Favorite book: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake – can’t pick just one

Alexander Most '14
Assistant Director of Admissions
alexander.most@tufts.edu

Alaska, Connecticut (Litchfield, Waterbury Counties), New York (Nassau County), Oregon, Washington

Hometown: Menlo Park, California
Favorite Tufts tradition: How pumpkins mysteriously appear on campus roofs on Halloween…
Favorite quote: “Never assume conspiracy when incompetence will suffice”

Evelyn Ocampo '17
Admissions Counselor
evelyn.ocampo@tufts.edu

Massachusetts*, Pennsylvania (Western and Central Pennsylvania), Texas (Austin, El Paso, Rio Grande Valley, San Antonio, Victoria)

Hometown: Chicago, Illinois
Favorite Campus Spot: The Echo Spot
Favorite Tufts tradition: Tuftonia’s Day, an end-of-the-year carnival!

Denny Paredes
Director of Strategic Planning
denny.paredes@tufts.edu

California (Los Angeles/Pasadena), Florida (Miami-Dade County), Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, Latin America

Hometown: New York City, New York
Favorite campus spot: Bendetson Hall. This is not only where I get to meet students on paper in their applications, but also where I connect with them in person once they are on campus!
Favorite Tufts tradition: Painting the cannon, because it gives students an outlet to express themselves in a creative and nontraditional way.

Paz Pitarque
Assistant Director of Admissions
paz.pitarque@tufts.edu

Florida (not including Broward, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade Counties), Guam, Massachusetts*, Australia, Caribbean, Korea, New Zealand, Southeast Asia (not including Singapore)

Hometown: Quito, Ecuador
Favorite book: A Separate Peace by John Knowles
Tufts class I’d like to take: EC-144 Income Inequality, Poverty, and Economic Justice

Thomas Radovich
Admissions Counselor
thomas.radovich@tufts.edu

SMFA at Tufts, Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts*, Mississippi, West Virginia

Hometown: Branford, Connecticut
Favorite Tufts tradition: The SMFA Art Sale is such an exciting time of year. All of the walls of the building are lined with hundreds of works of art from SMFA at Tufts students past and present. It's great to see so many people visiting SMFA looking to purchase art. Plus, there's a chance your artwork gets hung next to famous SMFA alumni like Mike and Doug Starn or Jim Dine.
Favorite quote: "Why talk when you can paint?" –Milton Avery

Jason Rathman '17
Admissions Counselor
jason.rathman@tufts.edu

Delaware, Kentucky, Massachusetts*, New Jersey (Burlington, Camden and Monmouth Counties, Southern Jersey), North Carolina, Tennessee

Hometown: Stamford, Connecticut
Favorite (off) campus spot: Magnificent Muffin and Bagel Shop! They get their bagels fresh from New York City!
Favorite book: Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes. I spent a semester reading both parts with Professor Tamara Márquez-Raffetto in the Spanish department.

Karen Richardson
Dean of Admissions and Enrollment Management
karen.richardson@tufts.edu

Hometown: Roebling, New Jersey
Elephant fact: Elephants are the only mammals that can’t jump, but they can run at a maximum speed of 25 mph!
Favorite quote: “Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence.” -“Desiderata” by Max Ehrmann

Sayaka Sayaka Smith
Assistant Director of Admissions
sayaka.smith@tufts.edu

District of Columbia, Virginia, China (Beijing), Europe (not including Turkey)

Hometown: London, United Kingdom
Favorite campus spot: Tisch Library Roof (great views of Boston, breezy in the summer!)
Tufts class I'd like to take: PS 138-03 Politics of Oil & Energy

Jon Sokolski '14
Admissions Counselor
jonathan.sokolski@tufts.edu

Indiana, Maine, Massachusetts*, Michigan, New York (Suffolk County), Vermont

Hometown: Burlington, Massachusetts
Favorite campus spot: Upstairs in the Campus Center (couches, pool tables, and the Rez Cafe)!
Favorite Tufts tradition: Not stepping on the Jumbo logo in the lobby of the athletic center.

Beky Stiles '12
Associate Director of Admissions
rebekah.stiles@tufts.edu

Connecticut (New Haven), Georgia, New Hampshire, New Jersey (Mercer and Somerset Counties), South Carolina

Hometown: Chichester, New Hampshire
Favorite campus spot: The lawn tucked behind Paige Hall where you’ll find an unexpectedly good view of Boston and a handful of very comfortable bright blue chairs.
Tufts class I’d like to take: SCP-0031: 3D Foundations: Wood, Welding and Plaster

Aaron Watts E'18
Admissions Counselor
aaron.watts@tufts.edu

Massachusetts*, New Jersey (Bergen, Hunterdon, Morris, N. Passaic, Sussex and Warren Counties), New York (Hudson Valley, Rockland County, The Catskills)

Hometown: Colorado Springs, Colorado
Favorite campus spot: The Rez Cafe
Favorite book: Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat

*Please note: If you have questions regarding a specific high school, please call the office directly at (617) 627-3170 or email undergraduate.admissions@tufts.edu