Karina Fernandez

Fernandez received her Bachelor’s degree from Hampshire College in 2006, with an interdisciplinary concentration on Latino/Latin American Studies and education, She earned her M.A. from the University of Maine 2009 in Student Development in Higher Education with a concentration on multicultural education. After graduation, Fernandez worked as a Student Support Services Education Coordinator at the University of Vermont, where she provided direct service and advocacy to students who are first generation, and/or low income, and/or have a documented disability. Fernandez went on to become Educational Outreach Coordinator for the Childhood Youth and Learning Program (CYL) at Hampshire College. Fernandez worked with students and faculty who were exploring critical questions about how children and youth grow, change, create, and learn. Concurrently, as a faculty member with the highly competitive Institute for Recruitment of Teachers, for four years Fernandez taught and mentored high achieving upper level undergraduates who were applying to graduate school in the Humanities and Education.

In her current position as Director of Hampshire College’s James Baldwin Scholarship Program, Fernandez oversees an intensive mentorship program for undergraduates from profoundly underserved schools. Many of these scholars have continued with their education to complete graduate degrees at some of the nation’s top universities, earning accolades for their outstanding work. Fernandez’s responsibilities include building academic, residential, financial, and career support networks for the nationally recruited, low income and largely first generation James Baldwin Scholars student cohort. This holistic support demands close engagement with professionals across the college, including faculty, residential life, admissions, financial aid, career resources, and institutional advancement, as well as delicate and dedicated communication with those in the students’ home communities.