Attorney Kristie Macioleck Small '96

Attorney Kristie Macioleck Small ’96 is an expert lane-changer. After nearly two decades as a litigator, in 2015, she switched to employment law with PPL, where she has worked for the past five years.

Last April, when PPL was looking for its first Director of Diversity, Inclusion, and Talent Management, the Fortune 500 company knew just the shoulder to tap. “York College’s broad curriculum made me unafraid to try things that are new and different,” says Small, who graduated with a degree in Accounting. “At PPL, I was exposed to a lot of human resources issues and really developed a passion for diversity and inclusion.”

Passion is putting it mildly. She’s a founding member of PPL’s REACH Business Resource Group for differently abled people. In 2015, she was Fellow with The Leadership Council on Legal Diversity. Her interest isn’t just professional. Diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) in 2002, Small led PPL’s sponsorship of the 2018 Walk MS Allentown. “This past year, I have talked [about my MS] at work more than I ever have before,” she says. “The more you talk, the more you educate.” Advocacy is a family mission: husband Kevin suffered a traumatic brain injury in Operation Iraqi Freedom.

“These experiences really exposed me to the diversity issues faced by companies today,” explains the mother of two boys. “It’s imperative to have a diverse workforce. PPL recognizes that this will be our business advantage.”

“My overarching focus is to recruit, retain, and promote the most diverse workforce possible,” she says. “My true clients are current and future employees. Advancing diversity and inclusion requires a clear mission and sustained action.”

A member of the YCP Alumni Board of Directors since 2012, Small’s favorite alumni activity (other than the College’s Annual Easter Egg Hunt) is serving on the Scholarships, Awards, and Board Membership Committee, which awarded $53,750 in scholarships last year: “Today’s students are globally minded
and concerned about diversity issues. They’re a better version of my generation.”

Small graduated magna cum laude in three and a half years and briefly worked as an assistant controller before enrolling in The Catholic University of America, Columbia School of Law. Her undergraduate degree, though, remains her career thread. “The best training I have is my business background,” she says. “I can understand the ‘why’ and ‘how’ a business transaction is set up. I can identify both the opportunities and the associated risks.”

In her new role, her focus is also on the philosophical: “You want everyone to feel they have a path to success. We all desire to succeed at work.”