YOLANDA
College Advisor

EDUCATION
University of Pennsylvania, Master of Science in Education
University of Missouri, Bachelor of Arts in Journalism

ADMISSIONS EXPERIENCE
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Assistant Director of Undergraduate Admissions
University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Associate Director of Recruitment and Operations, Levine Scholars Program

After a short stint as a journalist and graphic designer, Yolanda found her way to UNC Chapel Hill, where she served as an Assistant Director of Undergraduate Admissions. While at UNC, she created and led the Counselors & Colleagues Team, represented the university at regional and national recruitment events, and served as an advocate for first-generation college students like herself.

Yolanda later traded in her Carolina Blue for Charlotte Green when she became the Associate Director of Recruitment, Scholar Selection and Operations for the Levine Scholars Program at UNC Charlotte. During her tenure, she wrote the program’s first diversity statement, implemented Safe Zone training for her team, created a travel grant to support low-income students, and established gender-neutral housing options and preferred-name protocols for transgender students. Yolanda eventually switched sides of the desk and spent five years as a college counselor supporting students in pursuit of their postsecondary goals.

Yolanda has evaluated applications for the University of California, Berkeley, the University of San Francisco, the Coca-Cola Scholars Program, and the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation; served as an interviewer for The Gates Scholarship and as a College Coach for PeerForward; and sat on the Advisory Board of the Women + Girls Research Alliance, the Counselor Advisory Board for The Ohio State University, and the Ad Hoc Committee for NACAC's Centering Students in the Development of Equitable Admission Practices.

When Yolanda isn't helping students connect with the power of their own potential, she can be found cooking, kickboxing, or collecting stamps for her passport.

Favorite Place to Study My papasan chair

Favorite Book The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison

Hidden Talent Baking brown butter chocolate chip cookies

Offerings

College Prep

College Advising