Michaele Whelan

Michaele Whelan is an American literary scholar and academic administrator serving as the ninth president of Wheaton College since 2022. She was the provost and vice president of academic affairs at Emerson College from 2013 to 2021.

Life Whelan was born to Teresa and Robert J. Whelan the eldest of five children. Her mother was a registered nurse who taught psychiatric nursing at McLean Hospital. She earned a Ph.D. in English and American literature from Harvard University.

Whelan is an academic of modern and postmodern American literature. Whelan taught courses at the Pennsylvania State University. Whelan alongside the vice president of enrollment, Ruthanne Madsen, managed the creation of the business of creative enterprises, sports communication, and comedic arts majors. Following the merger with Marlboro College in 2020, she oversaw the creation and implementation of the Marlboro Institute for Liberal Arts and Interdisciplinary Studies. She was succeeded by interim provost Jan Roberts-Breslin on November 13, 2021. In September 2021, Whelan was selected to succeed Dennis M. Hanno as the ninth president of Wheaton College. She assumed the role on January 1, 2022.

Selected works