Whelan was born to Teresa and Robert J. Whelan the eldest of five children.[1] Her mother was a registered nurse who taught psychiatric nursing at McLean Hospital.[1] Her father was a professor of German literature and language.[1] She was raised in Weston, Massachusetts.[1] Whelan earned a B.A., summa cum laude, in English and American literature from Cornell University.[2] She earned a Ph.D. in English and American literature from Harvard University.[2] Her 1991 dissertation was titled, Hawkes's Mindfield: Narratives of Perversion.[3]
Whelan is an academic of modern and postmodern American literature.[2] In 1998, she authored a book on the works of novelist John Hawkes.[4] Whelan taught courses at the Pennsylvania State University.[2] She was the assistant director of undergraduate studies in the department of English and American literature at Harvard College.[2] Whelan was the associate dean of academic planning and innovation in the Tufts University School of Arts and Sciences and Tufts University School of Engineering.[2] She worked at Brandeis University as its vice provost for academic affairs.[2] In 2010, she authored a book titled, Travel Implies Destination.[4]
Whelan joined Emerson College in 2013 as its provost and vice president for academic affairs.[5] Whelan alongside the vice president of enrollment, Ruthanne Madsen, managed the creation of the business of creative enterprises, sports communication, and comedic arts majors.[5] Following the merger with Marlboro College in 2020, she oversaw the creation and implementation of the Marlboro Institute for Liberal Arts and Interdisciplinary Studies.[5] She was succeeded by interim provost Jan Roberts-Breslin on November 13, 2021.[5] In September 2021, Whelan was selected to succeed Dennis M. Hanno as the ninth president of Wheaton College.[2] She assumed the role on January 1, 2022.[2]