UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Rachel A. Pell, associate vice president for Strategic Communications, will assume the role of Penn State’s interim vice president for Strategic Communications on Oct. 29.
Pell, who was named to the interim role in September, will succeed Lawrence Lokman, who announced his departure from the University last month.
A senior-level public relations professional with more than 23 years of experience in healthcare and higher education communications, Pell has served in her current role at the University for more than six years. Before her time at Penn State, Pell was a senior vice president and group manager at Ketchum, a leading communications agency in New York City where she worked for more than 12 years, and previously worked at Weber Shandwick, also in New York City.
During her agency time, Pell led the development of strategic professional and consumer-focused programs for leading global pharmaceutical corporations and advocacy organizations, such as Pfizer, Takeda, Boehringer Ingelheim, Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, and Parkinson’s Unity Walk. Pell worked closely with cross-functional global teams and marketing and communications clients to implement proactive initiatives and digital campaigns along with protecting and defending brands facing issues and crises. Pell also had financial oversight for client budgets, administrative function and responsibility for building new business.
“I am so appreciative that Rachel will be stepping into this vital leadership role,” said Penn State President Neeli Bendapudi. “In my time at the University, Rachel has shown the highest degree of professionalism and been a source of expertise and steady counsel. She is a respected and compassionate leader who cares deeply about our students, faculty, staff and alumni. I look forward to continuing to work together to advance our University mission and goals.”
As interim vice president for Strategic Communications, Pell will lead the University’s award-winning central communications division, which consists of University Public Relations, University Marketing, Campus and Community Events, and Licensing Programs. Pell will serve on President’s Council to advise the president and other senior leaders across Penn State’s campuses on communications strategies for internal and external audiences and initiatives.
“I am honored to continue to work with my talented colleagues in Strategic Communications, as well as with communicators across the University, to advance Penn State’s mission and impact in people’s lives across the state and beyond,” Pell said. “We have accomplished so much together already and are poised to continue this critical work to support University priorities and goals.”
In 2016, Pell, a Penn State graduate, returned to State College to assume her current role. In her time leading Strategic Communications’ public relations unit, Pell has overseen internal, issues and crisis, social media, proactive media and research communications efforts for the University.
Pell has spearheaded the development of a holistic proactive media strategy and program focused on driving reputation and increasing visibility for the global-reaching research conducted across Penn State’s campuses. She established Strategic Communications’ first proactive media team and expert database, and combined media and science-writing expertise within the unit to increase engagement and drive placements in top-tier local, regional, national and international news outlets, in collaboration with colleges and units.
In 2021, Pell's team launched a new Penn State News website — which serves as the premier storytelling platform and official source of information about the University for students, faculty, staff, alumni and community members — and accompanying analytics toolkit to drive long-term content strategy.
Working collaboratively with and engaging key stakeholders and constituencies across Penn State, Pell has overseen communications strategies for key University initiatives, including food and housing insecurity, entrepreneurial initiatives such as Invent Penn State, legislative actions and more. With a commitment to diverse teams and thought, Pell has led projects such as Perspective: Leaders at Penn State to showcase the unique expertise and experiences of University leadership. Together with her marketing counterpart, Pell has driven a holistic “surround sound” approach to storytelling using a variety of channels and tactics to develop creative content for Penn State’s brand and impact campaign.
Under Pell’s management, the University has codified a top-notch issues and crisis communications program that is agile and responsive to the ever-changing higher education landscape and range of potential issues facing an institution of Penn State’s scale and scope. As a member of the University’s COVID-19 management team throughout the pandemic, Pell and the team developed the “Mask Up or Pack Up” research-based community health campaign, which received top national and global PR awards, as well as recognition from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Pell’s honors include being named a recipient of Ketchum’s David Drobis Client Excellence Award, one of Ketchum’s highest honors that recognizes individuals globally for superior client service. She holds a bachelor of science degree in marketing from Penn State’s Smeal College of Business and attended the Center for European Studies at Maastricht University in the Netherlands.