For the last 12 years, Carl Martellino has tirelessly directed the Career Development Office, building its staff, upgrading its web presence, and initiating popular student programs.
Now, he said, it is time for a new challenge.
Martellino will be leaving at the end of the month for a position at the University of Southern California, where he will take on the roles of Executive Director of the Career Center and Associate Dean of Student Affairs.
His announcement comes at a time when the Career Development Office is undergoing massive restructuring. The upcoming changes make it difficult to leave, Martellino explained.
“The CDO is at a perfect point,” he said. “It's a difficult decision, because I love it at Pomona so much. But this will be an entirely new adventure.”
Martellino leaves behind a number of initiatives, including the annual Career Fair, which connects students with jobs on campus; the Career Week, this year themed “Sagehens Beyond the Gates,” which brings speakers and seminars to educate students on career options; the Shadow a Sagehen program, which lets students shadow a Pomona graduate at their workplace over winter break; and the office's popular seminars on financial planning, held in partnership with the Pomona Department of Economics.
Colleagues praised his contributions to the office, and said he will be missed.
“He genuinely cares to see students succeed in their life,” Career Counselor Sarah Yoo said. “He has that strong commitment to counseling and making sure students get that individual attention…For the career center world, he's a rockstar.”
According to Martellino, when he originally came to Pomona from the University of California Los Angeles, the office was much smaller. Now, the office has full-time career and internship counselors, pre-law and pre-med advisors, and strong alumni connections.
Under Martellino's leadership, the office has also updated its website, putting all campus jobs online and installing the Route47 recruiting and information system.
Martellino was unable to comment on who will be replacing him, explaining that the school should announce its decision in the coming months.