Bridging the Gap

VICKI ENGELHART-THOMPSON:
NEW DEAN OF COLLEGE COUNSELING
By Cara Modisett
The summer of 2015 brought a few changes to the first floor of the Taylor Building in the Upper School, both in terms
of staffing and space. A new student services center (see story on page 13) was created through the reconfiguration of
the hallway, the Upper School Head’s office, and the college counseling offices.
Vicki Englehart-Thompson joined the St. Mary’s family as the new Dean of College Counseling, taking the helm from
the retiring Mimi Grossman. Englehart-Thompson, Lee Avant, registrar and college counseling coordinator, and Chancey
Thompson, assistant dean of college counseling, are redefining the college process at St. Mary’s as well. The college admission
process and all it entails is as important as ever, and seemingly changing by the minute. With an emphasis on advance
planning, in-school application boot camps and more, the college counseling team is not only ready for change, they are
well ahead of it.
Vicki Engelhart-Thompson’s background in education is diverse, both as a student and as an educator and administrator.
She went to a Catholic elementary school, a strong public high school, and then to Louisiana State University and the
University of New Orleans for her undergraduate and master’s degrees. In her career, she’s worked at two all-girls schools,
one all-boys, and one co-ed.
“I think there’s really something about same-sex education. I think it’s good for boys — I think it’s even better for
girls,” she says. She’d known about St. Mary’s long before she came to work here, and she’s finding the students here openminded,
warm, and kind. “They celebrate each other’s differences.”
“I love how these young women speak up. I don’t think they’re afraid to be curious, or even to be wrong.”
Thompson is not completely new to Memphis; some years ago, she began dating her now husband, Carey, who is vice
president of enrollment and communications and dean of admission at Rhodes College. They waited until they both had
empty nests (his daughter, Mary, is a 2015 graduate of St. Mary’s) to marry, and she moved to Memphis in summer of 2015.
As for the faculty and staff, “it was very clear to me early on that everyone really cares about these kids.”
Seniors Hibah Virk and Hannah Meacham discuss their college admissions process with Dean of College Counseling Vicki Englehart-Thompson.
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