Kathy Mitchell O'Neal is the Assistant Head of School for Enrollment Management at Hawken School, a co-educational, Pre-K-12 day school in Cleveland. She oversees a staff of nine and enrollment of 1,350 students across three campuses.
Prior to joining the Hawken community in June 2018, Kathy served as Director of Enrollment Management at University Prep, a co-educational, 6-12th grade day school in Seattle. During her 13 years at University Prep, Kathy chaired the Enrollment Advisory Committee and Task Force on Diversity and Community. She developed the Parent Ambassador Program and served on the Development Committee, Academic Council, Committee on Academic Excellence, Head Search Committee, Administrative Team, Advancement Team, and Board Committee on Trusteeship and Governance.
Kathy has worked in independent schools for more than 25 years. She is a founder of the annual Independent School Fair for People of Color in Seattle, now in its13th year. She is also a founder of the Puget Sound Independent Schools admission consortium, where she chaired the Executive, Forms and Mentorship Committees. For seven years, Kathy served on the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS) Call to Action, a national think tank and advisory council on diversity in independent schools. She chaired the 2006 NAIS People of Color Conference in Seattle. The Enrollment Management Association named Kathy the 2016 recipient of the Everett E. Gourley Award, given to an educator whose interest in students and concern for colleagues is an inspiration to those who serve in admission.
Currently, Kathy serves on the Educational Records Bureau (ERB) Board of Directors. She has served on the board of the Giddens School and the Meredith Mathews YMCA in Seattle.