Interim President for Scholarship Foundation

Former college professor and administrator Dr. Mary Dwyer has been appointed interim president and CEO of the Scholarship Foundation of Santa Barbara.

Dwyer, who led the renowned Institute for the International Education of Students through a period of extraordinary growth, succeeds Barbara Robertson, who recently announced her retirement after 22 of service to the organization.

A search for a long-term successor for Robertson has already commenced.

After receiving a bachelor’s degree in English and social sciences at Mundelein College, Dwyer earned both a master’s degree in education and a doctorate in public policy analysis at the University of Illinois in Chicago. She went on to serve as a faculty member and executive associate vice chancellor for research at the university.

Dwyer currently serves as a board director for the Chicago Council on Global Affairs. Direct Relief, the Thriving Initiative, and the Arthur J. Schmitt Foundation, among others.

She joined the Scholarship Foundation board of directors in 2021, and served on the executive, human resources, and student programs committee before taking a leave of absence to become interim president and CEO.