Area Coordinator (AC) Lexi Kapij who currently oversees Willets, Woolman, Parrish, and Kyle dormitories is set to leave Swarthmore College on Mar. 11 for an associate director of advising position at Widener University. Kapij’s move to Widener is the second of two AC departures within a month, following William Morrison, who suddenly left the college on Feb. 8. After Kapij’s departure, only two out of four AC positions at the college will be filled.
Kapij entered the AC position in June 2022, serving in her role for almost two years.
Kapij’s departure from the AC position is far from the first, a role that has come to be associated with high turnover. Three of the four ACs listed on the college’s website in October 2022 are no longer in the position.
In an email statement to The Phoenix, Kapij reflected on her time at Swarthmore and thanked the campus community.
“My time at Swarthmore has been an excellent experience thanks to the welcoming atmosphere, worldly campus partners, and driven students. With this being my first full-time, professional job out of graduate school, I have gained so much knowledge about higher education and student development that I will be forever grateful for,” Kapij said. “During my time here, I’ve realized my passion for helping students who may not know what their future holds or are unsure what path to take.”
She also emphasized the important role that the Office of Student Engagement (OSE) staff and Resident Assistants (RAs) had during her time at the college.
“I have to give a special thank you to the OSE staff who have helped me grow professionally and have celebrated my wins with me; it truly did feel like family down in Parrish,” Kapij said. “I also have to give my utmost gratitude to the RAs that I have had the pleasure of supervising in Willets, Mertz, Parrish, Woolman, Kyle, Palmer, Pittenger, and Roberts in the last year and a half. I have been in complete awe of the leadership skills, creative ideas, and successful endeavors these RAs possess. They have helped me learn my leadership style and motivated me to think outside the box.”
In her new role, Kapij will mentor students undecided in their majors and monitor their course credits to “keep them on track for successful completion of their degree.”
“This role aligns closely with my counseling roots, enthusiasm for working with college students, and coursework in my doctoral program,” she stated.
Kapij is hopeful for where the next part of her journey will take her.
“While I am sad to leave behind such a vibrant campus of dedicated, hardworking, determined, and supportive colleagues and students, I am excited to see what this next adventure brings,” Kapij said.
