President Cecilia M. McCormick, J.D. celebrated her first day on Monday, July 1 with a special gathering for faculty and staff to connect with the College’s new president.

“I’m excited to play a role in giving each Elizabethtown College student a robust educational experience,” said McCormick. “Elizabethtown College is an institution grounded in academic excellence, rich in history, and is an inclusive community driven to help others through service. These qualities are among the reasons that I wanted to join the Blue Jay family, and I am ready to guide our community as we collaborate and build on these values.”

As the College’s 15th president, McCormick has previously served at an executive level in academic affairs, financial management, advancement, legal affairs, facilities management, and community and economic development.

Most recently, she held the position of Vice Provost for Academic Strategy and Special Programs at Thomas Jefferson University (TJU) where she successfully developed numerous strategic initiatives and led the academic merger of TJU and Philadelphia University.

At TJU, she also served as the Chief of Staff for the Office of Academic Affairs and the Associate Provost for Strategic and Academic Initiatives. At Johns Hopkins University, she was the Chief of Staff to the Senior Vice President for Finance and Administration and Chief Operating Officer.


She has also held myriad positions at Widener University, including Executive Director in the Office of the President, functioning as a member of a six-person executive team that transformed the mission and vision of the University as well as Dean and Director of the Legal Education Institute at Widener University School of Law, Associate Director of Admissions for the School of Law, and Associate Dean and Dean of Academic Affairs for the School of Business Administration.

McCormick received her Bachelor’s Degree in Management/Marketing from St. Joseph’s University, her Paralegal Certificate from Widener University, and her Juris Doctorate from Delaware Law School: Widener University and a Post-Doctoral Certificate from the Institute of Educational Management at Harvard University, Graduate School of Education.

McCormick maintains her license to practice law in the State of Pennsylvania. Her legal experience includes serving as an attorney for more than 10 years with two private law firms in the Philadelphia region. Thereafter, she held the positions of Assistant General Counsel for PECO Energy and special project manager for The Vanguard Group’s Retirement Resource Center.

Learn more about President McCormick at etown.edu.