Sarah Soule

Director of Admissions and College Counseling

sarah.souleREMOVETHISBEFORESENDING@vermontcommons.org

Undergraduate Degree

B.A. English, Johnson State College
A.S. Marketing, Champlain College
A.A. Liberal Studies, Pine Manor College
Diploma, Upper Valley Teacher's Institute, Lebanon, NH

Activities in college

Tennis and field hockey player, admissions tour guide

Honors and Awards

Received Alumni Leadership Award, for community involvement, from Champlain College, 2007
Named a “Hometown Hero” by the United Way for work as a mentor, 2007
Received the Irvin Katz Award for commitment to mentoring, presented by the IECA Foundation, Miami, FL, 2006
Named Outstanding Admissions Counselor of the Year by the New England Association for College Admissions Counseling. 1997
Former President of the Consortium of Vermont Colleges, an organization comprised of all the admissions officers within the state of Vermont. 1999-2001

Best VCS moment

I love the genuine sense of community and the respectful connection that exists amongst the faculty, staff, and students at VCS. I like to combine that feeling with the knowledge that our students are engaged in a meaningful academic curriculum, they are motivated and curious about the world around them and they each have a strong desire to learn. Each member of our faculty is passionate about teaching and is dedicated and devoted to their students. This, to me, represents the heart and soul of the Vermont Commons experience.

Inspirational quotation

"May you always have old memories and young hopes"

-Arsene Houssaye

Interests and Hobbies

Almost anything and everything outdoors, except, perhaps, when it is well below zero! Traveling, fly fishing, snowshoeing, hiking, cooking, reading and being a member of a great book club.

I spent my childhood on the shores of Lake Champlain surrounded by my siblings and a steady stream of assorted visiting cousins. Growing up in the Green Mountains certainly had its advantages as it was here that I developed my love of the outdoors, most specifically hiking, snowshoeing, and fly fishing. I am a 'graduate' of an Outward Bound whitewater rafting course on the Green and Yampa Rivers in Colorado and Utah. I love to read and have traveled extensively in Europe, the Caribbean and the United States, having visited 45 of the 50 states. I lived in a cabin at 10,000 feet in the mountains high above Telluride, Colorado for three summers while I was in college and still return to the San Juan mountains to see friends there at least every other year, but Vermont will always be my home.

Before coming to Vermont Commons I worked for 20 years at Champlain College as a senior member of the admissions staff, where I was responsible for recruiting and interviewing prospective students. I’ve served on the board of directors at the Burlington Boys and Girls Club, the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum and the Visiting Nurses Association. Since January 1996 I have been a mentor to Emma, a very special 18 year old; we were matched through a mentoring program when she was in kindergarten. I am an avid Boston Red Sox fan and I even named my cats after my favorite baseball team, Ruby and Sox! I love working with the students and faculty at Vermont Commons.