Paula Younger has been named executive director of government, community, and constituent relations at Ithaca College. In this newly configured position, Younger will assist the college in developing productive relationships at the local, state, and national levels, and in building partnerships between and among campus and community constituencies.
This is the second stint at the college for Younger, who served as executive director for government and community relations from 2018 to 2020. Since 2021 she has been a lecturer/executive-in-residence in the Jeb E. Brooks School of Public Policy at Cornell University, providing public affairs expertise and insights to students enrolled in the Master of Public Administration program. She has also been an independent consultant providing leadership and management guidance to help organizations meet strategic goals.
“We are excited to have Paula rejoin the college,” said President La Jerne Terry Cornish. “She brings a breadth and depth of knowledge and experience to our leadership team from her many years of service in the government, education, and nonprofit sectors.”
From 2006 to 2018, Younger served as deputy county administrator for Tompkins County, assisting in the oversight of day-to-day county operations encompassing 27 departments and an annual budget of $179 million, serving over 100,000 residents. During her nearly three-decade career, she has worked extensively with federal and state agencies, local governments, community-based organizations, and higher education and research entities.
Her key area of expertise is in organization capacity building—with an emphasis on program development; performance planning; policy formation and implementation; workforce development; and diversity, equity, and inclusion relevance and planning.
Younger holds a master’s degree in human services administration from Springfield College and a bachelor’s degree in communication disorders from Hampton University. She has extensive affiliations in the local community, having served as vice chair of the board of directors of Cayuga Health System and on the board of trustees of Kendal at Ithaca. A member of the TC3 Foundation board of directors, she serves as chair of its board development committee. She also performs with the Dorothy Cotton Jubilee Singers.