Chae Sweet is the Associate Dean of Developmental Education and English Language Studies at Passaic County Community College in Paterson, New Jersey. Prior to becoming a dean, she was an Assistant Professor of English at Hudson County Community College where she taught for 10 years. She received her B.A. in English and Journalism from Rutgers University, her M.F.A. in Fiction from New School University, and is completing a doctorate in Higher Education Administration at Grambling State University. An educator for nearly 15 years, Chae Sweet began her career teaching poetry and spoken word to New York City high school students and soon transferred her love of reading and writing to teaching essay writing at various colleges in the New York metro area.

Chae Sweet’s career as a professor of English really took shape in the community college classrooms she taught in for over a decade. During that time, she helped hundreds of students to find their voices through writing, learn successful reading strategies, and expand their world through literature. As a faculty leader at her college, Chae Sweet led workshops, coordinated the reading program, and developed and created curriculum. As well, she has been a writer for numerous educational publications over the years, and published her first textbook Novel Strategies: A Guide to Effective College Reading in 2012. Chae Sweet’s passion for education and her belief in the power of the written word fueled the writing of Novel Strategies and will hopefully be communicated to students and instructors alike.

As an educational leader, Chae Sweet is tenacious in her quest to improve and develop programs, curricula, and opportunities for college students. Lives are shaped by the thoughts we think, and through education we become more flexible, creative thinkers. There are few places that hold the transformational potential that is found on college campuses, so, for Chae Sweet, having the opportunity to participate in and enhance this potential is an inspiring and welcome challenge.