Keith Paul this summer joined Northern Essex Community College as executive director of marketing communications, taking over from Ron Taber, who is retiring after 24 years with the college.
Paul comes to Northern Essex from Springfield Technical Community College, where he has been the director of marketing and communications since 2019. He says he considers marketing a “contact sport” and brings more than 25 years of experience in public and private sectors to the college.
“NECC is innovating in amazing ways that keep it at the fore of career-based training here and across the nation,” says Paul. “Those innovations are a marketer’s dream, especially at this moment in time. I just had to come here to be a part of the impact Northern Essex is making for our students and the community.”
At Springfield, he modernized campus marketing, where his team earned multiple National Council for Marketing and Public Relations awards for their work. Paul was named the Council’s District 1 Rising Star in 2021. At Springfield, he also co-chaired the campus’ first-ever LGBTQ+ Employee Resource Group and was a founding member of the Anti-Racism and Inclusion Alliance, charting the college’s future culture. He also co-chaired the committee reviewing Springfield’s mission and purpose for the college’s 2021 accreditation self-study.
Paul serves as chair of the Massachusetts Community College Campus Communicators workgroup, whose members represent the 15 colleges in partnership with the Massachusetts Association of Community Colleges. He also serves on the National Council for Marketing and Public Relations District 1 executive council, representing Massachusetts-member colleges.
“Higher education and community colleges are facing an inflection point in how we deliver on our promises. My vision in this role is to show the people of the Merrimack Valley the unlimited potential, talent and civic engagement our graduates will use to improve all our lives,” he adds.
Paul holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology from UMass Amherst and is a life member of its Alumni Association, serving on several networking and fundraising committees. In 2017, he was inducted into the UMass Minuteman Band Hall of Fame. Paul studied design theory at the Rhode Island School of Design and marketing at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. He resides in Sterling.