Assistant Professor
Office
259 Stouffer Hall
Mailing Address
206 Stouffer Hall
1175 Maple Street
Indiana, PA 15705
E-mail Address
mimi.benjamin@iup.edu
Telephone
724-357-4656
724-357-1251
Fax
724-357-7821
Formal Education
- BS – Clarion University of Pennsylvania - Education: Secondary Education/English
- MEd – Ohio University - Educational Leadership: College Student Personnel
- MA – Clarion University of Pennsylvania - English
- PhD – Iowa State University - Educational Leadership and Policy Studies: Higher Education
Professional Experience and Interests
Mimi Benjamin’s interest in student affairs began at Clarion University of
Pennsylvania, where she served as a resident assistant, orientation leader, and
graduate assistant in Housing/Residence Life. Although she considered a career
in student affairs at that time, instead she pursued her interest in teaching
high school and taught at her alma mater for a year. During that time, she
realized how much she missed and enjoyed working with college students, so she
enrolled in the College Student Personnel program at Ohio University and began
her “official” student affairs career.
After completing the master’s program, she served as a residence hall
director for one year and as an assistant director for Residential Life for two
years at Plymouth State College (now University) in New Hampshire. She moved to
Iowa State University in 1997 and held various roles, including coordinator of
residence life, coordinator for academic services, assistant to the vice
president for student affairs, and interim dean of students. While at Iowa
State, she completed her doctoral degree in Educational Leadership and Policy
Students with a focus on Higher Education in 2004. In 2007, she joined the
Residential Programs staff at Cornell University as an associate director,
working with such areas as faculty programs, assessment, and summer programs.
She was appointed as an assistant professor at IUP in fall 2013.
As an administrator, Benjamin maintained active scholarly and professional
involvement, publishing articles and book chapters and coediting Maybe I
Should...Case Studies in Ethics for Student Affairs Professionals with
Florence Hamrick. Her research interests center on student cocurricular
learning, learning community programs, and faculty experiences. She is the editor of Learning Communities from Start to Finish, a New Directions for
Student Services sourcebook, and a co-author of a forthcoming book on
living-learning programs.
Benjamin has been a member of the ACPA Commission for Professional
Preparation directorate, ACPA Ethics Committee, NASPA IV-East Regional Board,
and NASPA 2010 Conference Program Committee; chaired the NASPA Region IV-East
New Professionals Institute; and cochaired and cocreated the NASPA Region
IV-East Mid-level Professionals Institute. She was the recipient of the 2005 NASPA IV-East Mid-Level Professional
Award, the 2006 NASPA National Mid-Level Professional Award, and the 2007 Betty
Harrah Manuscript of the Year Award from ACUHO-I, and was selected as an ACPA
Emerging Scholar in 2010.
With two degrees in English, Benjamin is an avid
reader who is always looking for a good book recommendation. She also likes to spend time in the kitchen
and enjoys making desserts and canning vegetables from her garden.
See Mimi Benjamin's vita.