Director of Marketing and Public Relations Named

Central Ohio Technical College (COTC) and The Ohio State University at Newark announce the appointment of Sanath Kumar, PhD, as the institutions’ director of marketing and public relations. The position is shared by the two institutions and reports directly to the COTC president and the Ohio State Newark dean and director. Kumar will assume his role on Dec. 12.

As director of marketing and public relations, Kumar will be responsible for working collaboratively with senior leadership to help generate enrollment through marketing activities and to maintain a positive public image for the institutions. Additionally, he will develop marketing and advertising campaigns, including written content and story material for website, social media and publications to advance the institutions’ goals.

Sanath’s wonderfully comprehensive marketing expertise, familiarity with higher education and rich experience working with internal and external groups will be enormously valuable to the campus,” said Ohio State Newark Dean and Director William MacDonald, PhD. “He brings a visionary approach to his work that will keep us moving in a positive direction.

Kumar is an international technology, business development and marketing executive with expertise in commercial excellence, technical sales and marketing, segmentation, competitive analysis, technology roadmap, R&D strategy, intellectual property management, sustainability, and quality management systems. He has held global R&D, business development and marketing roles at Engelhard, BASF, Stoneridge and the American Chemical Society. Most recently he was the senior marketing director at CAS, a division of the American Chemical Society, where he was responsible for building a global marketing organization, developing Go-To-Market strategies for scientific solutions, and brand elevation, as well as planning, creating and executing global marketing campaigns. Kumar and his wife Kavita live in the Columbus area, where Kavita is a realtor. Their two daughters live and work in Europe. Kumar is an avid motorcycle and automobile enthusiast and enjoys travel, reading, baking and music.

I am thrilled to join the staff at Ohio State Newark and COTC, and to help the next generation of students build successful futures, by taking advantage of all the opportunities available to them.

Kumar holds an EDP from The Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania; a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Illinois at Chicago; an MS in Mechanical Engineering from Queen’s University at Kingston, Canada; and a B Tech in Mechanical Engineering from NITK in Suratkal, India.

A national search began in September 2022. “Our thanks go to the search committee of faculty and staff led by Vice President and Chief of Staff Jackie Parrill,” Berry added. “Their work has led to the best possible choice for this position and our institutions moving forward. We also want to thank Dr. Parrill, who has served as our interim director of marketing and public relations for the past several months. We are grateful for her leadership and look forward to her continued service to our institutions.”