Joseph Fitzpatrick

Joseph comes to us from Maryville University, where he’s been serving as Dean of Students since 2019. His more than 20 years of relevant experience in student life includes many roles at Hofstra University, as well as schools in Chicago and Santa Fe.

At Maryville, his portfolio included serving as the chief conduct officer, assisting with management of all Student Life departments, and providing incident management and early alerts for at-risk students, as well as managing COVID protocols. In his time at Hofstra, Joseph re-designed and implemented the CARES Team (Community Assessment Response and Evaluation of Students). His team designed highly rated new student orientation programming and university-wide events like Family Weekend and Fall Fest. Under his leadership, the Office of Intercultural Engagement and Inclusion at Hofstra saw the establishment of new identity-based affinity groups and facilitated collaboration among them and the greater community.

Joseph brings a 360-degree view to student affairs, and to higher ed overall. Over the course of his career, he’s done it all, from teaching seminars to administering employee benefits and overseeing financial audits to supervising student housing and enrollment. He’s had his hands on the entire student lifecycle, from recruitment through alumni relations. I’m certain he will bring a compassionate and collaborative spirit to us at the Sam Fox School.

Joseph has a Bachelor of Arts in Creative Writing from the College of Santa Fe, and a Master of Higher Education Administration from Upper Iowa University. He’s a first-generation college graduate. He is the youngest of six kids and had an adventurous rural childhood outside Chicago, owns a ridiculously large board game collection, and believes everyone should have a favorite dinosaur (his is the triceratops).