Admission Staff | Office of Admission

Yvonne Berumen

Vice President for Admission & Financial Aid
yvonne_berumen@pitzer.edu

Yvonne grew up in Pico Rivera, California where she attended El Rancho High School. A Pitzer alumna from the Class of 1997, Yvonne received her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Sociology. In 2005, she earned her Master’s in Higher Education with an emphasis in Quantitative Analysis. Yvonne has over 19 years of experience in higher education and college counseling. Prior to returning to Pitzer, she was the Vice President of Scholarships and Academic Support for the Hispanic Scholarship Fund where she managed HSF’s strategic outreach to students, parents and educational constituents, which included developing content that promoted college attainment and academic success. She was co-architect of a $417 million grant to establish The Gates Scholarship, a next generation scholarship that would recruit, retain and support the best and brightest underrepresented students through their bachelor’s degree. In her spare time, Yvonne enjoys staying active through dance and hikes with her dogs.

Recruitment and application reading territories: California (East Los Angeles, Whittier), Hawaii, International (Middle East, South Central Asia)

Santiago Ybarra

Director of Admission
santiago_ybarra@pitzer.edu

Santiago was raised in California’s central coast. After graduating from Watsonville High School he attended Pomona College, earned a degree in psychology and found himself drawn to college admissions. While in college he interned for the Minority Student Action Program and worked as a Senior Interviewer. He was also involved in the 5-College ballroom dance team and volunteered at a local elementary school. He enjoys road trips to national parks, camping, biking and spending time with his dogs. Since joining Pitzer’s internationally-minded community in 2010, Santiago has been inspired to visit a greater variety of international locales.

Recruitment and application reading territories: California (Far Northern California, Marin, Sonoma), Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York (all but Brooklyn, Long Island, Manhattan, Queens, Staten Island), Rhode Island, Vermont, U.S. Territories (Guam, Puerto Rico, America Samoa), International (Caribbean, Latin America)

Owen Wolf

Associate Director of Admission
owen_wolf@pitzer.edu

Owen grew up in Claremont, California. After graduating from Claremont High School, Owen attended Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas, where he majored in English and minored in Medieval and Renaissance Studies. After serving as an admissions counselor at Pitzer for one year, Owen spent six years at the California Institute of Technology, where he worked as an event planner, athletics liaison and marketing coordinator for the Undergraduate Admissions Office. A huge film buff, Owen has a particular fondness for documentaries. A minor league baseball and hockey fan, Owen enjoys racquetball, hiking on the Claremont Wilderness Trail, hanging out in Los Angeles and going to the movies with his wife.

Recruitment and application reading territories: California (Central Coast, Santa Barbara, Ventura), Washington, International (Canada, China, South East Asia)

Hayley Burke

Admission Counselor
hayley_burke@pitzer.edu

Hayley is lucky to have spent her entire life in sunny Southern California. That is, aside from the five years she spent freezing in Philadelphia, PA at Bryn Mawr College. After graduating in 2015 as a sociology major, she stayed on to pursue her Master of Social Work degree from Bryn Mawr’s Graduate School of Social Work and Social Research. During college, Hayley had the opportunity to leave the country for the first time. Bitten by the travel bug, the list of destinations she’s visited now include: Singapore, Cambodia, Copenhagen and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba! While at Bryn Mawr, Hayley was surrounded by extraordinary women who pushed her to become a strong advocate against social inequity and injustice. Working towards this goal, she co-founded a reading and writing group for local incarcerated women. She also helped launch a new group for first-generation students, faculty and staff on campus called First-Goers. Now that she’s out of college, Hayley has discovered this new “free time” thing, which she likes to spend doing Pilates, completing her goal of seeing every National Park, and baking cookies for her side gig, Baking Bad!

Recruitment and application reading territories: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California (Central Los Angeles, Central Valley, Orange County, South Bay of Los Angeles), Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Texas

Alex Cromidas

Admission Counselor
alex_cromidas@pitzer.edu

Alex grew up in San Diego, California, where he remained until making the decision to apply to Pitzer College his senior year of high school. Alex joined the Pitzer community in the fall of 2011, and, over the course of the next four years, tried his best to take full advantage of the opportunities offered by the school. Alex majored in sociology, taking more than a dozen classes in the subject since his first year, but in reality probably spent the majority of his time on campus working. Whether as a Resident Assistant, a sound technician, an Office of Admission visit coordinator and interviewer, a member of the student senate, or as a KSPC volunteer, Alex was heavily invested in campus life. It was only natural to him that he join up with Pitzer professionally immediately after graduating in 2015! Back when he was a student, Alex spent his free time either performing on stage as a member of the Pomona College Band, theatre department, and Sea Chanty and Maritime Music Ensemble, or helping to run Pitzer’s BoXcar club with his closest friends. He loves being outdoors, and considers any distance within a ten mile radius a “walkable” one. Alex is really excited to keep helping current and prospective Pitzer students out in the future, whether it’s in the application process, or beyond!

Recruitment and application reading territories: California (Glendale, Pasadena, San Diego), Illinois, Nevada, Oregon, International (Ireland, United Kingdom)

Erin Griffin

Admission Counselor
erin_griffin@pitzer.edu

Erin was born and raised in Carpinteria, California where she attended Cate School. Wanting to explore and challenge herself after graduation, she set out east to Colby College in Waterville, Maine where she earned her degree in Spanish and Environmental Studies. She devoted her time at Colby to the Residential Life program as a Community Advisor and Area Resident Director, volunteering at the local homeless shelter and teen center, and working as a Senior Fellow in the admission office. During her four years she spent a semester abroad in Córdoba, Spain and took weekends to explore Maine’s small towns, mountains, and extensive coastline. Although a fan of the snow, Erin made her way back west after graduation and spent some time interning at a disaster relief organization in her hometown. Eager to jump back into higher education and admissions work, she found Pitzer. In her free time Erin loves the ocean, hiking, and all things food.

Recruitment and application reading territories: California (San Francisco, Silicon Valley), Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Wisconsin, International (Oceania)

Dwayne Okpaise

Admission Counselor
dwayne_okpaise@pitzer.edu

Dwayne grew up in Simi Valley, California where he attended Santa Susana High School, and is happy to return home to Southern California. Dwayne earned his degree in art history from Reed College in Portland, Oregon. While a student at Reed, he spent a semester abroad in Buenos Aires, Argentina and wrote his thesis on the relation between dictatorship and performance art in that country. In addition to working in the Admission Office at Reed, Dwayne was involved with the Multicultural Resource Center and student government. In his free time, Dwayne enjoys spending entire days at museums and using public transit to get around Los Angeles (don’t believe the rumors, LA has public transit!).

Recruitment and application reading territories: California (East Bay of San Francisco, Sacramento, West Los Angeles, San Fernando Valley), Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia

Alexis Perez

Admission Counselor
alexis_perez@pitzer.edu

Alexis grew up right down the street in Upland, CA and after graduating from St. Lucy’s Priory High School in Glendora, CA went off to beautiful, colorful Colorado to study Musical Theatre at the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley. While at UNC, she worked in the Office of Admissions as a Student Ambassador and, upon graduation, was honored to have the opportunity to work full-time for her alma mater, first as Event Coordinator and then as a Regional Admission Counselor based in the Los Angeles area. She took a break from higher education for a year and a half and spent some time following her childhood dream of living and learning in New York City. She is grateful to be back home in sunny Southern California. In her spare time, Alexis loves reading, quoting movies, attempting Pinterest crafts and recipes, and snuggling with her dog, Belle.

Recruitment and application reading territories: Alaska, California (Covina, West Covina, Inland Empire), Colorado, New York (Brooklyn, Long Island, Manhattan, Queens, Staten Island), International (Africa, Europe – all but the UK)

Gloria Romo
Executive Assistant to the Vice President
gloria_romo@pitzer.edu

Gloria was born in Los Angeles and graduated from South Gate High School. She joined Pitzer in 1999 bringing many years of experience as an executive assistant both in the private sector and in academia. She has also completed relevant coursework at Mt. SAC and Cal Poly Pomona. Gloria loves to travel, read, watch black & white movies, attend musical productions and museums, has a heavy social life with her friends and family (especially with her eight grandchildren), and enjoys extended weekends with her husband to the beach or mountains.

Kristina Kelpe
Operations Manager
kristina_kelpe@pitzer.edu

Kristina grew up in Cincinnati, OH. She attended Purdue University and earned degrees in English and Political Science. She then went on to earn her Master’s in the Social Sciences from University of Chicago before starting a career in higher education. After deciding that the Midwest was just too cold for her, she moved to Southern California in 2008 and has been working at The Claremont Colleges since then at Pomona College and Harvey Mudd College. She served as the Associate Director in Career Services, Annual Giving, and Advancement Services before joining the Pitzer College Admissions team in 2014. In her spare time, Kristina enjoys traveling, hiking with her dog, cheering on the Purdue Boilermakers as well as other sports teams, and spending time with her family.

Lesley Malinoski
Admission Administrative Assistant
lesley_malinoski@pitzer.edu

Lesley grew up in Chicago, IL and attended both Hyde Park and South Shore High Schools. She attended Roosevelt University and Chicago College of Commerce where she earned a certificate for court reporting. After 8 years in the legal field, Lesley began the next exciting chapter of life as a full-time mom while volunteering and fund raising. Returning to the work force, she worked at the Claremont Courier and then traveled to Taiwan to work at an American school. After recalling her involvement in the college application process with two children of her own, she was drawn to the opportunity to be the first person that many prospective Pitzer students and parents interact with. She continues to enjoy the opportunity to help reduce a bit of the stress that applicants and their families experience during the college search process. After hours, Lesley enjoys interior decorating, gardening, travel and fun with her family.