Meet the award-winning team bringing ‘computer science for everyone’ to life at Khoury College
Collaborating across six campuses, Northeastern’s computer sciences recruitment team has expanded enrollment for underrepresented groups — winning a 2025 Staff Excellence Award along the way.
Northeastern University’s Khoury College of Computer Sciences is driven by a mission: computer science for everyone.
It’s an ambitious goal for a global institution, but one the Khoury Graduate Recruitment Team is working hard to achieve.
“We’re continuously trying to improve the tech gap, not just in our nation but throughout the globe as well,” says Samol Ork, director of recruitment operations for Khoury.
The technology gap refers to the mismatch in technology, skills and opportunities within the computer sciences field, particularly among education and the workforce.
“That essentially means asking: How can we bring different demographics of students all over to consider computer science as a pathway?” Ork continues.
The graduate recruitment team consists of seven people: Ork; Kimberly McCrimmon, director of recruitment marketing; Chelsea Smith, senior assistant director of recruitment marketing; Pamela Allen, regional director of graduate recruitment; Dom Rinaldi, graduate admissions counselor; Madison Barton, graduate admissions counselor; and Timothy Greer, graduate admissions counselor.
And team members are based on six Northeastern campuses: McCrimmon in Charlotte, N.C.; Ork and Allen in Silicon Valley, Calif.; Smith in Boston; Rinaldi in Miami; Barton in Arlington, Va.; and Greer in Seattle.
“A Northeastern education is a global education and there’s value to be had no matter where you are,” Rinaldi says.
The team’s cohesion, camaraderie and successes — for instance, Ork notes that the average computer science program in the United States is only 16% women while Khoury is 52% women — have earned it university recognition for excellence this year.
“It says a lot about the growth of what we’ve done, not just as individuals, but also as a team,” says McCrimmon, who started the team along with Ork about eight years ago.
The team recruits students along two main tracks: the master’s program for students who have a bachelor’s degree in computer science; and students in the Align master’s program designed for those with limited or no tech experience and a bachelor’s degree in another subject.
“It’s able to take people from various backgrounds and help them transition into computer science, which is really life-changing,” Allen says of the Align program. “You can go from wherever you are — whether that’s business or whatever background — and transition into computer science, which is not only lucrative, but if you’re a part of computer science, you shape the future.”
But whichever track students choose, they are sure to get the Northeastern experience.
“At Northeastern, the appeal of innovation means having the freedom of creativity, research opens the doors to solving real-world problems, co-op gives students a head start in their field, and our community here makes collaboration over competition not just possible, but powerful,” McCrimmon says. “Northeastern is just the place to be.”