Donita Cook

Donita manages the day-to-day operations of the Academic Appointments Department within Business Operations with a focus on academic hiring, all aspects of student employment, and visa processing for academics. She assists leadership by supporting the faculty and academic appointment process. 

Donita comes to Harris School of Public Policy from UChicago Law School, where she served as an Admission and Financial Aid Analyst. In this role, she administered the Loan Repayment Assistance Program, counseled students on financial aid options, and created financial aid packages. Donita has extensive higher education experience, having worked at City Colleges of Chicago, Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, and Strayer University. At these institutions, her primary focus was program management and helping students navigate the complex world of financial aid. Before entering the higher education field, Donita worked for over a decade at Accenture. In her time there, her main priorities were responding to requests for proposals for new business and managing a recruiting team to exceed client expectations. 

Donita holds a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration/finance from the University of Arkansas, an MBA from Keller Graduate School of Management, and a Master of Public Administration degree from Strayer University.