Meet the Team

Michelle Smith
Executive Director of Institutional Research
E-mail: smithm@cofc.edu
Office Location: Randolph Hall, Room 106E

Michelle Eleazer Smith joined Institutional Research in January 1994 as a Statistician. She is now the Executive Director of Institutional Research. She has established extensive data marts needed for decision support and for official unit-record reporting to the S.C. Commission on Higher Education. Michelle produces financial and enrollment projection models, and serves as a campus resource for data integrity, data standards and reporting solutions. She is a SAS programming expert and experienced Tableau dashboard developer.

Michelle is a College of Charleston alumnus, receiving her Bachelor's and Master's Degrees in Mathematics in 1991 and 1992, respectively, with emphases in computer programming, accounting, and statistics. Her first position at the College after graduating was the Budget Analyst for the Dean of the School of Sciences and Mathematics, which she held until hired in IR in 1994. Michelle received the ExCEL President Alex Sanders Outstanding Public Service Award in 2013.

Kate Anderson
Associate Director of Institutional Research
E-mail: andersonk10@cofc.edu
Office Location: Randolph Hall, Room 106F

Kate joined the office in July 2023, coming from Towson University in Maryland. She graduated from Salisbury University with a Bachelor’s in Communications, and received a Master’s degree in Applied Information Technology, focusing on Database Administration, from Towson University. Kate started in institutional research at Towson in 2013 and worked her way up to Senior Research Analyst being responsible for various regulatory requests, as well as assisting with enrollment planning and capturing data for official reporting. Prior to TU, Kate had gotten started in data analysis at Arbitron, which handled radio ratings data.

Kate was born and raised in Maryland and relocated to South Carolina with her husband and 2 children, as well as their black lab Maggie. In her spare time she enjoys beach visits, reading, and exploring the historic sites of South Carolina.