Catawba College has hired a new vice president of enrollment. Cynthia “Cindy” Lawrence Barr, currently an associate dean of admissions at Elon University, will begin work at Catawba on Sept. 15.
“We are excited to add Cindy’s enthusiasm, experience and dedication to students to the team at Catawba,” said Catawba College President Brien Lewis. “Her expertise and abilities are just what we need to continue building on the outstanding work we have done in enrollment during recent years.”
Barr said she welcomed the challenges that her new role at Catawba would offer, adding, “I love what I do in helping students and their families navigate the journey into higher education. There are so many outstanding opportunities at Catawba right now and I am delighted to be a part of building its future.”
At Elon University, Barr served as assistant dean of admissions from June 2007 to May 2012 before being promoted to associate dean of admissions in June 2012. She has also served as interim director of international admissions since November of 2013. Prior to joining Elon, Barr was at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte as an admissions counselor, a role she held for two years until she was promoted in July 2002 to assistant director of admissions. She was promoted again to senior assistant director of admissions in 2005, a role she held until her departure for Elon in 2007.
A North Carolina native, Barr earned her undergraduate degree in psychology with a minor in theatre from East Carolina University. She holds her master’s degree in clinical and community psychology from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.
Barr is a member of the National Association of College Admissions Counselors, the Overseas Association of College Admission Counselors, the Southern Association of College Admissions Counselors and the Carolinas Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers. She was recognized by the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education District III with a Special Merit Award in 2013 for an admissions search campaign, which included web, print and email components.
Outside of work, Barr is active in community theatre and was a Toastmaster member, who served as president of the Elon Toastmasters Club in 2012.
She and husband Peter “Pete” Barr, a high school educator, have two daughters, Alexandra, 10, and Abigail, 7.