Dr. Samantha Dewalt

Managing Director, Western Regional Office

Dr. Samantha Dewalt is an entrepreneurial leader and strategic thinker passionate about inspiring others to reach their greatest potential through education and authentic leadership.

Dewalt serves as the Managing Director of Lehigh West, based in San Francisco. As a strategic extension of the university, Lehigh West advances institutional efforts in student recruitment, academic programs, and collaborative partnerships.

Dewalt has 18+ years’ experience leading strategic innovation in entrepreneurial environments, serving industries including retail, healthcare, technology and higher education. Dewalt joined Lehigh University in January 2015 as the inaugural Senior Director of Industry Engagement within the newly formed Office of Economic Engagement. In this role, Dewalt created a new model for industry engagement and led the team in its mission to create university-level strategic partnerships that advance education and build capacity for innovation.

Prior to joining Lehigh, Dewalt spent three years as the inaugural Associate Director of IT Corporate Engagement at the University of Oklahoma, following six years in industry building early stage companies as Vice President of Marketing for Cole Technology Group and as Partner and Vice President for Hal Smith Marketing Group.

Dewalt graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Oklahoma. She earned a doctorate in Organizational Leadership at Pepperdine University and completed her dissertation on authenticity and women in technology leadership. Dr. Dewalt's research and thought leadership has appeared in internationally recognized publications such as Harvard Business Review, Fortune, Fast Company, and Startups Magazine.