Equity and Belonging

Lorenley Báez joined The New School in January 2020 as assistant vice president of Student Success. She was later appointed associate provost for Academic Advising and Career Development in Student Success in 2021.  In 2023, Lorenley was appointed associate provost for Equity and Belonging, an inaugural role that fosters a uniquely creative and intellectual learning community that values a diversity of identities, perspectives, values, ideas, experiences, and beliefs.

Previously Lorenley worked at the University of Mount Saint Vincent, where she served as associate dean of the Oxley Center for Academic Advisement, providing strategic oversight for career education, internships, academic advisement, TRiO Student Support Services, the Mount Access Program, the Arthur O. Eve Higher Education Opportunity Program, the Academic Resource Center, and the Office of Disability Services. She was also an adjunct instructor in the Department of Sociology, where she taught race and gender identity theory.

Lorenley is also the principal consultant for Lorenley Báez Consulting, where she works with nonprofit organizations, colleges, and universities to improve the student experience by providing an array of support services in the following areas: team development and professional coaching, curriculum and co-curricular design and assessment, organizational development and strategic planning, and equity, inclusion, and social justice education, awareness, and competency.

Lorenley is a graduate of American University (AU), where she earned a bachelor’s degree in print journalism and two master's degrees in organization development and public administration. Lorenley co-founded the first Latino Student Conference, intended to provide resources, community building and an array of opportunities for college-age Latino students in the Washington metropolitan area. Additionally, as a former AU employee, she co-created the university’s first Latino affinity alumni group, which was later recognized as the first chapter for Latino alumni of American University.

J’Andrea Barrow was born on the small but mighty island of Barbados and was raised in Queens, New York. As a child, J’Andrea had a deep passion for foster and youth programs, and she ended up attending SUNY Plattsburgh, where she earned her bachelor’s in Social Work. Her passion for higher education and opportunity programs emerged during her time at Plattsburgh, and for that she is eternally grateful. J’Andrea immediately entered a master’s in Social Work program at Stony Brook, where she concentrated in higher education and social and community development. She has served in various capacities in different institutions and has been a Student Success advisor for Parsons School of Design for the past two years. The opportunity to work with New School students, advocate on their behalf, and connect them to resources to help them succeed at our institution has left her fulfilled, as she wanted to continue pursuing that passion more directly, returning to her original interest in working with and for HEOP, IOP, and other success opportunity programs. J’Andrea is very excited to be transitioning into this new realm, and she is even more excited to continue working with the New School community on a larger scale.