Director

Jill Deans is committed to nurturing student excellence.  Come see her for information about national scholarship eligibility and the application process.

Dr. Deans comes to the Office of National Scholarships with a faculty background, having served for two years as an Assistant Professor in Residence in UConn’s English Department where she taught native and twentieth-century American literature courses.  Her research interests also include autobiography and adoption studies which has given her an appreciation for interdisciplinary perspectives and links between the humanities, sciences and social sciences.  On a national level, she has been Chair of the Alliance for the Study of Adoption, Identity and Kinship, an interdisciplinary network of scholars.

She has also taught at Bryn Mawr and Haverford Colleges as well as Kansas State University where, as an Assistant Professor in the English Department, she also served on the Women’s Studies and American Ethnic Studies faculties.  She earned her M.A. and Ph.D. in English from UMass, Amherst in 1998 and her B.A. in English and Religion from Bowdoin College in 1988.  Before her career in higher education, Dr. Deans was an Associate Editor in the General Trade division at Doubleday in New York.  She spends her free time reading and writing essays.

She may be reached at ons@uconn.edu or (860) 486-0087 and welcomes drop-ins at her office, CUE 414.

Program Assistant

Marlene Coughlin welcomes the opportunity to help students and answer inquiries about opportunities offered by the Office of National Scholarships. If she doesn’t know the answer to your question, she knows whom to contact to get the answer for you!

Mrs. Coughlin maintains up-to-date information on each of the scholarships handled by the office. She is willing to meet with students and explain eligibility requirements and application processes, and she oversees the final submission of all national scholarship applications. If you would like to meet with the director, please contact Mrs. Coughlin to set that up.

Mrs. Coughlin may be contacted at marlene.coughlin@uconn.edu or (860) 486-6255. Her office is in CUE 419.