Philadelphia Business Journal selects
La Salle vice president for 40 Under 40 list

April 11, 2022

Angela Polec, Ed.D., will be honored at the publication’s May 19 award ceremony.

La Salle University’s Vice President of Enrollment, Marketing, and Communications Angela Polec, Ed.D., has been tapped by Philadelphia Business Journal for its 2022 40 Under 40 list.

Philadelphia Business Journal will recognize Polec’s career accomplishments at its May 19 award ceremony at Rivers Casino Philadelphia.

Polec, 36, joined La Salle’s Executive Cabinet upon her arrival to the University in April 2019. She leads the development and management of the University’s brand, and oversees strategic communications, digital strategy, marketing, media relations, University events, and enrollment and admissions initiatives across all programs.

“Dr. Polec is absolutely deserving of this honor from Philadelphia Business Journal,” said William W. Matthews, III, Esq., ’90, Chair of La Salle’s Board of Trustees, who nominated Polec. “She has brought a high degree of strategy and focus to the core areas of her portfolio. And in addition to managing the breadth of her critically important work through the first 14 months of the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Polec led the multidisciplinary team charged with responding to and keeping our campus safe. We are beyond proud to have Angela as a part of our La Salle community.”

“I am honored to have been selected by Philadelphia Business Journal and grateful to share this recognition with 39 other exemplary leaders across the city,” Polec said. “At La Salle, I am fortunate to work alongside passionate colleagues who prioritize the student experience, helping our Explorers excel during their time on campus and preparing them for success after graduation.”

At La Salle, Polec has overseen scope of work and staff expansions for University Marketing and Communications, while anchoring the division in La Salle’s abiding commitment to Lasallian values; its 159-year historic mission of service, social justice, and community engagement; and transformational outcomes for its students. She has led the reorganization and integration of Enrollment, Marketing, and Communications at La Salle to strengthen cohesion and engagement across the divisions.

Recognized as a thought-leader in higher education marketing, Polec frequently presents at national conferences and has been featured in podcasts and industry and media publications, including The Washington Post, Inside Higher Ed, Higher Voltage, and University Business. In 2021, her research on the role of the CMO in higher education was cited in How to Market a University by Dr. Teresa Flannery. In 2018, she co-authored a book chapter on the use of predictive analytics to support student success in The Analytics Revolution in Higher Education.

Born and educated in Philadelphia, where she still resides, she previously oversaw branding, enrollment marketing, digital strategy, and strategic communications as the executive director of marketing and communications at Montgomery County Community College. She also served as the director of marketing at Temple University, managing the second phase of the Temple Made brand campaign.

Polec supports a number of philanthropic and non-profit organizations. She serves as the chair of the CD Soar the Shore Foundation—an extension of the former alumni association of her alma mater, Cardinal Dougherty High School, which closed in 2010. Additionally, she serves on the PHL250 Legacy Leaders Task Force and the Board of Little Flower Catholic High School for Girls.

Polec is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education, from which she earned a doctorate in higher education management. Her dissertation focused on the role of the chief marketing officer in higher education. She also earned master’s and bachelor’s degrees in marketing from Temple University.

—Christopher A. Vito