Kevin Coates

Kevin Coates is Senior Associate Dean for Finance and Administration at Johns Hopkins Carey Business School. As the divisional business officer for Carey, he oversees the school’s finance, human resources, IT, project management, software, and campus operations and events teams.

Coates joined Carey Business School from Syracuse University’s Whitman School of Management and has extensive experience and understanding of the business school market, rankings process, financial planning, and AACSB accreditation standards.

As the executive director of administration and strategic initiatives at Syracuse’s Whitman School of Management, Kevin oversaw finance and administration as well as corporate relations, career services, IT, facilities, and experiential programs. Kevin demonstrated strong leadership in managing complex operations, including oversight of a $140 million budget that grew by 34% under his stewardship. His accomplishments included successfully navigating the school’s COVID-related challenges, key role in multi-phase $8 million capital renovation projects, and driving strategic initiatives to record-breaking outcomes—including a 99% placement rate for undergraduates and increasing average MBA graduate salaries by 83%.

Before joining Syracuse, Kevin spent eight years at Cornell University, where he served as associate director of administration and held other leadership roles. At Cornell, Kevin was responsible for analytics, financial metrics, and reporting. He was also instrumental in building a business intelligence team for Cornell’s alumni affairs and development office.