Behind Admissions for the Batten School
By: Lianna Hong
“In all things, you have to start with the golden rule,” said Anne Carter Mulligan, the Senior Director of Undergraduate Admissions for the Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy.
Working together with students to achieve a successful outcome by treating others the way you want to be treated, Anne Carter Mulligan has been creating an inclusive, welcoming community wherever she’s been.
After receiving her M.A. in Modern European History from George Mason University, Anne Carter Mulligan began her journey in Charlottesville. She conducted research for a decade at the Miller Center, first as a research associate, then eventually becoming the Director of Support Service and Corporate Secretary of the governing board.
Having extensive experience in higher education, Mulligan always held a soft spot in her heart for engaging with students themselves. Back at Longwood University, Mulligan provided support for the entire student journey from recruitment to financial aid and student success. When she transitioned back to the University, she hoped to carry forward Longwood's values of public engagement and citizen leadership.
“Often students have a set of superpowers for leadership but don’t know how to get there,” Mulligan said.
Pictured is the Bridge to Batten Class from 2024
To prepare students for application, Mulligan helps them tease out the story of how their motivations, backgrounds, and experiences have prepared them to navigate challenges and solve problems in future policy settings.
Mulligan’s passion towards helping historically underserved students to find where they fit in led to the creation of Bridge to Batten, a program dedicated to first-year University students who express high economic need with hopes of long-lasting leadership in policy. By providing dedicated advising, a spring seminar to explore identity, and peer mentorship both in and out of the classroom, Bridge to Batten cements a sense of community within recognizing the potential of promising individuals from diverse backgrounds.
Furthermore, Mulligan continues to focus on reducing cultural barriers by working on a pilot program that builds a transfer pipeline from community college to Batten, aiming to create transfer guides and an early guaranteed offer of admission program to increase transfer admission.
“Taking a step back and focusing on kindness ... is crucial [because] truly understanding someone's goals cannot be done without extending goodwill," says Mulligan.
“Kindness gets a really bad rep in a professional setting, but truly that is what it is all about. Treating people with empathy, kindness, and respect is [not only right], but also helps drive someone to a more successful outcome.”
Oftentimes, Mulligan sees herself as part customer service part cheerleader, uplifting students to allow them to discover their full capacity.
“You catch more flies with honey than with vinegar,” Mulligan said.
As part of the Batten School Undergraduate Admissions process, essay prompts are intentionally crafted to assess a student's soft skills such as resilience and adaptability, teamwork, and the ability to cross divides to achieve a desired outcome, none of which is possible without positivity and kindness.
“Kindness in a public policy setting means you are contributing to the common good,” Mulligan said. “You’re not going to be able to move people if you don’t have empathy.”
Thus, Mulligan acknowledges that empathy and effectiveness go hand in hand, where authentic connection is the key towards being able to advance further as a leader.
“You can exhibit leadership from any role, any position in hierarchy,” Mulligan said.
Mulligan’s motto pulls together students of different circumstances. Through starting with the golden rule, Mulligan creates a leading example for building trust and relationship from goodwill.
“When you hit something that is really challenging, you will be able to move forward by leaning on others,” Mulligan said. “We live in communities; we work in communities where we have to get along to move forward.”
Mulligan weaves together students’ stories to help them on their journey towards kindness, and perhaps, that has become her own special superpower for leadership.