News Detail
New directors arrive to RE college counseling
Jason C. Locke has accepted the newly created role of Executive Director of College Counseling at Ransom Everglades, and Patrick R. Tassoni, Jr., has agreed to become Director of College Counseling. Jason joins Ransom Everglades after more than two decades working in the admission and enrollment office at Cornell University, and Patrick arrives from the American School of Dubai. This dual appointment brings decades of experience, strong leadership and strategic thinking to the helm of Ransom Everglades' college counseling office.
The school is also in the final stages of interviews with other top-tier college counseling candidates and will be bringing on additional members of the team soon.
Jason C. Locke has accepted the newly created role of Executive Director of College Counseling. Jason, who spent two decades overseeing Cornell University’s Undergraduate Admissions Office and Division of Enrollment, will lead the college counseling office and manage the strategic direction of the department in the ever-changing world of college admissions. He will join the office in mid-July.
After serving for 10 years as Director of Undergraduate Admissions at Cornell, Jason spent six years as Associate Vice Provost for Enrollment and one year as Associate Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education. During his years at Cornell, he developed expertise for highly competitive and selective college admissions as well as need-based financial aid programs.
“I am delighted to be joining the Ransom Everglades community,” Jason said. “I was well aware of Ransom Everglades’ reputation as a premiere independent school and I am even more impressed after visiting RE. I thoroughly enjoyed my interactions with the students, faculty and the leadership team and look forward to every RE student and family having a successful and rewarding college counseling experience at Ransom Everglades.”
Jason, who is nearing completion of an EdD in Higher Education Management at the University of Pennsylvania, received his BA at Alfred University in New York and a Master of Education at the University of Vermont. He also received a postgraduate certificate in Chinese Higher Education at Peking University.
Patrick R. Tassoni, Jr., is the new Director of College Counseling at Ransom Everglades. Passionate about helping students identify and develop the strengths and talents that will enable them to stand out in the crowded college applicant field, Patrick will oversee the school’s day-to-day counseling efforts, joining the office July 1.
For two decades, he has guided high-achieving high school students through the college process. He spent 19 years at the highly regarded Northside College Preparatory School in Chicago, where he helped grow the college counseling program after arriving in the second year of the school’s existence. In Dubai since 2019, he has expanded his global network of colleges and universities while working with international students.
“I am thrilled to be joining the college counseling office at RE,” he said “I look forward to working with the extraordinary students at Ransom Everglades, and helping them take stock of their talents and passions and share them in a way that will resonate during the college process.”
Patrick earned his BA at Lawrence (Wisc.) University, where he competed on the swimming and track teams. He earned two master’s degrees from DePaul University, where he also served as an adjunct professor for eight years. He is a two-time recipient of the University of Chicago Outstanding Educator Award and also received The Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation Award for Exemplary Dedication to the Field of Education.
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Founded in 1903, Ransom Everglades School is a coeducational, college preparatory day school for grades 6 - 12 located on two campuses in Coconut Grove, Florida. Ransom Everglades School produces graduates who "believe that they are in the world not so much for what they can get out of it as for what they can put into it." The school provides rigorous college preparation that promotes the student's sense of identity, community, personal integrity and values for a productive and satisfying life, and prepares the student to lead and to contribute to society.