Most people retire from a long, productive career and never look back. Not so for Jane MacKillop, outgoing dean of Lehman’s School of Continuing and Professional Studies (SCPS). The retirement celebration she attended on February 5 was not her first.
An accomplished leader in the field of adult education, MacKillop had a long and fruitful history with CUNY. Among her accomplishments, she began at Lehman College in 1987, where she founded the Adult Learning Center in what was the Division of Continuing Education and was acting dean of the Center for Worker Education. She later became associate dean of Continuing Education at LaGuardia Community College, with stints at SUNY Purchase College, and City College, before retiring.
It was a short-lived departure. In 2016, she was invited back to Lehman as dean of the new School of Continuing and Professional Studies. Since then, she has significantly expanded SCPS’s footprint, with workforce development offerings including the Cannabis Workforce and Business Training Program and partnerships with academic departments on career-preparation initiatives for students. During the COVID-19 pandemic, MacKillop developed a program to support local businesses with building online operations. She also oversaw a formal articulation agreement with Hudson Link for Higher Education in Prison, that enables formerly incarcerated students with college credit to continue their education at Lehman.
Reflecting on the timing of this second—and most likely final—retirement, MacKillop said “the best time to leave a party is when it’s in full swing.”