President’s Team

Kathy Bradley

Kathy joined Sweet Briar in July 2022 as director of human resources. She has more than twenty-five years of experience in the field, in a variety of industries ranging from engineering manufacturing, to health care and senior living communities, to state agencies. Before coming to Sweet Briar, she was director of human resources at Westminster Canterbury of Lynchburg. Kathy earned a Bachelor of Science in Organizational Management and Development from Eastern Mennonite University in Harrisonburg and a certificate from the Senior Living Leadership Program of Virginia Commonwealth University. She is a Society for Human Resources Management Senior Certified Professional, a Senior Professional in Human Resources, and has additional human resources certifications.

Rita Detwiler

Rita joined Sweet Briar in September 2021 as senior director of enrollment, bringing a wealth of experience in enrollment management to the College. Most recently, she spent 20 years at the University of Lynchburg (former Lynchburg College) and prior to that, she worked at Roanoke College and Lycoming College, her undergraduate alma mater. She also has a master’s degree from Hollins University. Rita sees her leadership role at Sweet Briar as one where she engages the entire community—faculty, staff, current students, alumnae, parents and others—to tell Sweet Briar’s story and bring new students to the College.

John Dudley

John joined Sweet Briar in 2022 as Director of Digital Marketing and head of
Communications. He has a wealth of experience in communications and marketing, particularly in the education sector. He was the Director of Communications and Marketing at Blue Ridge School, an all-boys boarding school in Central Virginia. Prior to that, John was Director of Digital Marketing and Social Media at Hampden-Sydney College, his alma mater. He is therefore the product of, and an advocate for, the benefits of a single-sex, liberal arts education. John also earned a master’s degree in Integrated Marketing Communications from West Virginia University’s Reed College of Media, and has additional experience in radio news, having worked for iHeartMedia (formerly Clear Channel Communications) and CBS Radio in Chicago.

Teresa Garrett

Teresa joined Sweet Briar in Aug. 2019 as vice president of academic affairs and dean of the College. Beginning in 2007, Teresa was an assistant professor of chemistry at Vassar College before becoming a tenured professor and then serving as associate dean. Teresa graduated summa cum laude with honors in biochemistry from Florida State University and earned a Ph.D. in biochemistry at Duke University. She has published or co-published three dozen journal articles and is responsible for more than $2.5 million in grant-funded research. At Sweet Briar, Teresa serves as the chief academic officer responsible for all academic operations. She evaluates academic programs, spearheads curriculum and faculty development activities and serves as the liaison to the educational programs committee of the board of directors.

Kerry Greenstein

Kerry joined Sweet Briar in February 2021. Prior to Sweet Briar, Kerry served as the dean of student affairs at Beacon College. In that role, he was responsible for the oversight and management of housing and residence life, student activities, counseling, health services, safety, fitness and recreation, transportation and overall student advocacy. At Sweet Briar, he utilizes his passion for leadership development to engage students in student life, and in conjunction with the student life team provide students a full co-curricular experience. Kerry holds a B.A. in communications from Rider University, a M.Ed. in student affairs practice in higher education from the University of Delaware, and an Ed.D. in educational administration from Georgia Southern University.

Luther T. Griffith

Luther joined Sweet Briar in May 2019 as vice president for finance, operations and auxiliary enterprises. Luther serves as the chief financial and administrative officer of the College. He is responsible for the operations of agricultural initiatives, the business office, campus safety, dining services, human resources, information technology and the physical plant, as well as auxiliary enterprises such as the book shop and conference center. He is the administrative liaison on the board of directors’ finance committee and is the primary contact for governmental and regulatory affairs. He holds an MBA in finance from Harvard Business School and a Bachelor in Science in economics with a minor in chemistry from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Mary Pope Maybank Hutson ’83

Mary Pope joined Sweet Briar’s Alumnae Relations and Development office in Jan. 2016. For 13 years, she served as executive vice president of the Land Trust Alliance in Washington, D.C. Mary Pope graduated from Sweet Briar with a Bachelor of Arts in international affairs. Her professional career has involved building strategic and beneficial relationships with individuals, as well as fostering coalitions in the public and private sector and obtaining resources for land conservation, historic preservation. Her responsibilities include working with the president and the board of directors to advance alumnae and community engagement, secure funding through numerous sources and boost the College’s brand and enrollment through marketing and communications. She is responsible for designing and implementing programs that encourage financial as well as volunteer support of the College.

Kathleen Placidi

Kathleen has been the grants officer at Sweet Briar since 2003. She received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Case Western Reserve University and did additional graduate study in American art at the University of Virginia. Before coming to Sweet Briar, she was a fundraiser at CWRU and at Monticello, and she has taught art history at several colleges, including Sweet Briar. As the grants officer, Kathleen collaborates with the faculty and professional staff to help the College obtain external grant support from a variety of funders, ranging from federal and state agencies to private foundations, corporations and individual donors. Kathleen serves on a number of College committees and works closely with President Woo on presidential communications and special projects.

Jason Vittone

Jason Vittone became Sweet Briar’s athletics director in November 2022. He has worked in higher education for more than 25 years in various positions at National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I and II and National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) institutions. Jason came to Sweet Briar from William Woods University in Fulton, Missouri, where he was director of athletics with oversight of sixteen NAIA teams, and also served as an advancement officer. He started the baseball program at Brescia University and was its head coach for nine years and was previously assistant baseball coach at Emporia State University and at Illinois State University. He earned a Master of Science in Education from Emporia State University and a Bachelor of Science in Education from Illinois State University.