Bridget R. McCurtis has had a diverse career focusing on the personal and professional development of a variety of populations. Throughout her career, Dr. McCurtis has secured and administered over 100 million dollars in grants and has managed highly complex organizations in education and non-profit settings. Some of her experiences include career coaching, leadership training, diversity and inclusion strategy, instruction, and advising.
Dr. McCurtis serves as the Founder and Chief Education Officer for Beyond Measure Coaching and Consulting, LLC. Having served in administrative roles for almost 25 years, and the past decade in leadership positions, Dr. McCurtis has been able to utilize her training background to develop individuals, and provide strategic team guidance focused on inclusion, accountability, connectivity and excellence that has helped individuals and organizations take their talents to new heights.
Dr. McCurtis has presented hundreds of personal and professional development workshops over the years and has expertise in personality and career development assessments such as Career Leader, MBTI, Oz Principle Accountability Training, Strengthsfinder, Strong Interest Inventory, JoHari Window and True Colors. In addition to several career and personality assessment certifications, she holds a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology and English from Marquette University, a Master’s degree in Student Personnel Administration from Teachers College, Columbia University and a Doctorate of Philosophy in Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Dr. McCurtis remains engaged in scholarly activities and conducts research on social change leadership, racial esteem and identity development. Her publications highlight the need for purposeful, inclusive and strategic engagement for staff and students in colleges and universities, with a focus on race at predominantly White Institutions.
In her most recent administrative role, Dr. McCurtis rejoined New York University in 2012 as Assistant Vice Provost for Diversity and Senior Director of the Arthur O. Eve Higher Education Opportunity Program (HEOP). As Assistant Vice Provost for Diversity, and with a focus on providing developmental opportunities and mentoring experiences for post-docs, faculty and academic staff, her work facilitated hiring, retention, and promotion. She also provided consultation and diversity and inclusion advisement to many facets of the university. As the Senior Director of New York State’s largest HEOP program, Dr. McCurtis was responsible for securing and managing a multi-million dollar, multi-year grant, leading a full and part-time staff of 50+, and overseeing academic support services for 875 students. In the role, she successfully led the integration of two HEOP programs; implemented strategic priorities that increased graduation rates; enhanced student global and research experiences; and tripled the number of OP students that had access to housing. This position was particularly significant for Dr. McCurtis as a first generation college student and graduate of an opportunity program. In fact, she attributes much of her academic and professional success to the holistic support she received as an undergraduate and has spent the past 25 years committed to doing the same for others.
Prior to joining NYU, Dr. McCurtis gained a wealth of experience as a career and leadership coach; former Vice President and Chief Program Officer at the Jackie Robinson Foundation; Manager and national training specialist at INROADS career development organization; an Instructor for the University of Wisconsin-Madison PEOPLE Program; and an admissions officer at New York University and Teachers College, Columbia University.
A few of the accomplishments she is most proud of are: the mentoring relationships she has maintained for 15+ years; having an NYU 2019 Black Graduation leadership award created in her name; being recognized by the New York Times with a Teachers Who Make a Difference Award for service to young people; being honored as a TRIO Achiever by the Council for Opportunity in Education for civic and professional achievements; and earning the distinction of Outstanding Dissertation of the Year for her examination of Black student involvement, racial esteem and socially responsible leadership.