Tobie van der Vorm
Patricia T. (Tobie) van der Vorm brings over 14 years of successful search experience to higher education, assisting with over 100 presidential and senior administrator searches for schools in the U.S. and abroad. She has served a wide variety of institutions including liberal arts colleges and universities, seminaries and theological schools, art schools, technical institutions and foundations.
Dr. van der Vorm began her career in higher education search when she joined Academic Search, Inc. in 1998. Prior to that time she was an admissions officer at Hollins University and an administrator at American University (AU), where she spent 22 years developing university-wide experiential learning and career programs for students from all disciplines, working closely with faculty and representatives of the corporate and public sectors. During her career at AU, Dr. van der Vorm presented at national and international conferences and was interviewed by the national media on a variety of topics regarding higher education and the workforce. She also served as consultant to two-year and four-year institutions regarding field experience programs and as a program evaluator for the U.S. Department of Education.
As a frequent presenter for the American Council on Education (ACE), the Council of Colleges of Arts & Sciences (CCAS), the Council of Independent Colleges (CIC), the Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U), the American Conference of Academic Deans (ACAD), and the Phi Beta Kappa Society, Dr. van der Vorm has been actively engaged in “building the pipeline” for leadership positions in higher education. She served as president of the Cooperative Education Association and as a member of the board of directors of the Association for International Practical Training, the Howard University Advisory Council for Career Services, and the Wells College Board of Trustees, which she also chaired for several years. She is currently a member of the American University Arts Council. Dr. van der Vorm has a Bachelor of Arts degree from Wells College and earned her Master’s and Ph.D. degrees from American University.