Office Hours with John Gardner: Recent Episodes
Ethan Campbell
We are searching for big ideas that inspire hope and action in higher education around institutional transformation and innovation to advance student success and more equitable student outcomes. Joining John Gardner are higher education leaders and other relevant persons of interest who will discuss innovation and strategies that improve higher education.The Gardner Institute, a 22-year-old non-profit, has been at the forefront of innovation in higher education; our mission very clearly connects us to the broader societal efforts to increase social justice.The Gardner Institute connects with thousands of professionals in the higher education ecosystem; through a wide array of activities such as Transformative Conversations, the Teaching and Learning Academy, and the Socially Just Design Series, and through our work as an Intermediary for Scale supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. As a leader in the student success movement in higher education, we strive to provide support for institutions interested in social justice and institutional transformation.
Daniel J. Allen, Ph.D., is the 30th President of La Salle University. Drawing on more than 20 years of experience in Catholic higher education, Dr. Allen is leading La Salle’s strategy focused on enrollment growth, student retention and enhancing the student experience.
Prior to joining La Salle, Dr. Allen served as senior vice president for advancement and external relations at DePaul University and held leadership roles at the University of Chicago’s Harris School of Public Policy, Lewis University and Loras College. He earned his Ph.D. in education from Loyola University Chicago and continues to pursue his interest in postsecondary educational access for low-income students. He also serves on the board of the International Association of Lasallian Universities, a global network of 64 universities.
Thank you for listening!
Subscribe to our email list for early episode release!
Stay in touch on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and our website.
Deirdre H. McMahon, PhD, is a Teaching Professor of English, Department of English and Philosophy, College of Arts and Sciences, and the Assistant Dean of Online Program Assessment in the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and Professional Studies, College of Medicine at Drexel University. Her literary research focuses on nineteenth-century British literature and culture. A former Provost Fellow, Chair of the Online Learning Council Faculty Fellows, and Assistant Dean of Online Education at the Graduate College, she is leader in online education. Her portfolio also includes the design, support, and assessment of graduate programs across modalities.
Anne Converse Willkomm serves as the Assistant Vice Provost for Curricular Support Services and an Associate Teaching Professor in the Department of Communication in the College of Arts and Sciences at Drexel University. In her current role, she leads university-wide efforts to support curriculum development, academic policy, and program innovation across undergraduate and graduate education. Previously, as Associate Dean of the Graduate College, she advanced interdisciplinary initiatives, oversaw academic administration and student affairs, and supported the growth and quality of graduate programs. With nearly 20 years of experience in higher education, Anne’s work spans curriculum design, assessment, and strategic planning across professional and liberal arts contexts. She has played a key role in launching new programs, guiding institutional policy, and leading cross-university initiatives, including assessment and AI integration. An award-winning educator, she continues to teach, grounding her work in a deep commitment to the student experience.
Thank you for listening!
Subscribe to our email list for early episode release!
Stay in touch on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and our website.
Jennifer Wies has spent more than two decades working across teaching, research, and academic leadership. She holds a PhD in Anthropology and a Graduate Certificate in Medical Behavioral Sciences from the University of Kentucky. Her work focuses on applying anthropology to pressing social issues, including gender-based violence, incarceration, HIV/AIDS, and the experiences of college students and higher education more broadly. In her administrative role, Dr. Wies leads initiatives in assessment and accreditation, curriculum and faculty development, and student success, while supporting institution-wide program evaluation processes. She is also an active leader within the anthropology community, having served as President of the Association of Feminist Anthropology and as both Treasurer and President of the Society for Applied Anthropology.
Thank you for listening!
Subscribe to our email list for early episode release!
Stay in touch on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and our website.
Susannah McGowan is the director for curriculum transformation initiatives at The Red House at Georgetown University where she leads institution-wide initiatives on curricular change and experiential education. Prior to Georgetown, she worked at University College London and King’s College London. While at King’s, she co-established King’s Academy in 2017, a center for educational development supporting integral programs for faculty and graduate students around inclusive pedagogy and assessment. She is a senior fellow of the Higher Education Academy/AdvanceHE in the UK. She serves as an advisory fellow of the Gardner Institute for Excellence in Higher Education working on global student success.
Thank you for listening!
Subscribe to our email list for early episode release!
Stay in touch on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and our website.
Chuan-Chin Chiao obtained his PhD from University of Maryland in 2000, and finished his postdoctoral training in Harvard University in 2002. He joined Department of Life Science, National Tsing Hua University (NTHU), Taiwan, in 2002, and is currently a Tsing Hua Distinguished Professor in this department. He is interested in a variety of vision related topics, including retinal neurobiology and cephalopod neuroethology. Multidisciplinary approaches are undertaken in the lab to seek deep understanding of vision in the context of biology. In addition to research, he is passionate about teaching. He has won the Best Lecturer Awards for three times from NTHU. In 2020, he has also obtained the Best General Education Teacher Award from Ministry of Education in Taiwan. He has produced three MOOCs and several OCW online courses. He has served as the Vice President for Academic Affairs in NTHU in 2020-2021. In 2021-2025, he served as the Director General of National Museum of Natural Science, the largest science museum in Taiwan. In February 2025, he returned to NTHU and continued his research and teaching. Particularly, he helped to advocate the First Year Experience movement in Taiwan, and served as Advisory Consultant at the Center for Exploration and Life Transitions (equivalent to the FYE office) in NTHU. He has taught the First Year Seminar course since fall 2025. Most recently, he has helped to organize the first Taiwan-FYE conference in NTHU.
Dr. Hsinyi (Sindy) Peng holds a B.A. in Chinese Literature from National Taiwan Normal University and a Ph.D. in Information Science and Learning Technologies from the University of Missouri.
Her career spans K–12 teaching, teacher education, and higher education. She began her career as a Chinese teacher in Taipei and later served as an assistant professor at National Chiao Tung University. She also spends a decade in the United States raising her two daughters—an experience that deeply shapes her perspective on life transitions, identity, and the challenges of restarting a career. During that time, she continued teaching as an online instructor with Oregon State University.
Now based at National Tsing Hua University, Sindy works at the intersection of student development, learning design, and higher education innovation. In May 2025, she founded the Center for Exploration and Life Transitions (ExALT), where she leads efforts to support first-year students in exploring their academic and life paths, develops first-year seminars with faculty across disciplines, and trains peer leaders to guide new students. She also organizes Taiwan’s first national conference on first-year education, The 1st Annual Conference of the Taiwan First-Year Experience (T-FYE), in collaboration with Prof. Chuan-Chin Chiao and Prof. Ming-Chi Wu.
Thank you for listening!
Subscribe to our email list for early episode release!
Stay in touch on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and our website.
Geordie Hyland is the President and Chief Executive Officer of American College of Education (ACE). ACE is an accredited, fully online college that specializes in high-quality, flexible, and affordable programs in education, business, leadership, healthcare, and nursing. ACE has over 13,000 students and more than 54,000 graduates and is focused on providing a strong value position to students. 85% of ACE’s students graduate with no debt, and 3rd party market research calculates that for every $1 invested in ACE’s tuition, graduates receive $19.20 in future career earnings. Geordie holds a bachelor's and an MBA from Harvard, as well as an MSc from the London School of Economics and Political Science.
Thank you for listening!
Subscribe to our email list for early episode release!
Stay in touch on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and our website.
Stephanie Bannister is the president of FirstGen Forward. With over two decades of experience in higher education, she has dedicated her career to advancing student success, community building, and leadership development. Stephanie previously served as the assistant vice provost for student success at Kansas State University (K-State), where she began working in 2001 within the division of student life and housing and dining services.
Before her time at K-State, Stephanie was the associate director for student living at the University of Kansas, directed two residence halls, and traveled nationwide as a consultant for Alpha Gamma Delta International Fraternity. A sought-after consultant, Stephanie has worked with higher education institutions and non-profit organizations on strategic planning, reaccreditation, and philanthropic support. She also serves as an external reviewer of programs.
Stephanie holds a B.A. from Fort Hays State University, an M.S. from the University of Kansas, and a Ph.D. in education from K-State. She is a graduate teaching faculty member in the College of Education at K-State and is an active member of the Manhattan, Kansas, community.
A passionate advocate and ally for first-generation students, Stephanie resides in Kansas with her husband, the Honorable Grant D. Bannister, chief judge for Kansas' 21st Judicial District. Together, they are proud parents of Sydney and her partner, Jake; William and Grace; and grandson Lawrence Miles
Thank you for listening!
Subscribe to our email list for early episode release!
Stay in touch on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and our website.
Alexander Bolton is a devoted child of God, a junior student-athlete at Brevard College in North Carolina, and a faith-filled YouTuber.
Alexander has maintained extraordinary grades at Brevard and has made the Dean’s List every year, including this past semester. At Brevard, he is a member of The Hidden Opponent, a leader of Brevard College Worship Nights, Brevard College admissions content work study, and a peer leader. He has also been a writer for the college newspaper.
He has been a page at the S.C. State House for state Sen. Overture Walker, whose successful campaign he worked on in the summer of 2024. Alexander has interned with Banco Bannister Co., a Columbia marketing and public relations firm, for two consecutive summers.
He highlights his walk as a college student, follower of Christ and student of the Word as he explores the gospel on his YouTube channel, “NoLimitAb.”
His favorite scripture is John 14:6: “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”
Thank you for listening!
Subscribe to our email list for early episode release!
Stay in touch on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and our website.
Dr. Kevin P. Reilly is president emeritus and regent professor with the 26-campus University of Wisconsin System, having served as president from 2004-13. He came to Wisconsin from the State University of New York System, where he was associate provost for academic programs and then secretary of the university. As secretary, he was the chief staff officer for the SUNY Board of Trustees.
Currently he has an appointment as Senior Fellow with the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges, working with boards around the country on effective governance. While still president at Wisconsin, he served as president of the National Association of System Heads and a board member at the American Council on Education.
Kevin has authored and edited books and articles on higher education governance and policy, accreditation, biography and autobiography, and Irish literature and culture. For years he wrote a regular column, “Focus on the Presidency,” for AGB’s Trusteeship magazine. Recent articles in Trusteeship include “Too Big to Fail,” on public university systems, and “A Winter of Discontent: Tax Policy, Trust, and the Future of Higher Education.”
Dr. Reilly earned his B.A. at the University of Notre Dame, and his M.A. and Ph.D at the University of Minnesota. He is a board member for the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts, and Letters, the Irish American Cultural Institute, and the Association of College and University Educators.
Thank you for listening!
Subscribe to our email list for early episode release!
Stay in touch on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and our website.
Dr. Kelly Schrum is the Assistant Provost for Graduate Academic Affairs at George Mason University. In this role, she provides leadership for graduate education, working closely with faculty and staff across all colleges to strengthen graduate programs and support student success. Dr. Schrum is a historian and a professor in the Higher Education Program in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences. She has been a faculty member at George Mason University since 2000 and is the recipient of several awards, including the David J. King Teaching Award and the Teaching Excellence Award. Her teaching and research focus on digital pedagogy, the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL), and graduate education.
Thank you for listening!
Subscribe to our email list for early episode release!
Stay in touch on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and our website.
Denise Bartell is Associate Provost for Academic Affairs at Kent State University, where she facilitates strategic initiatives related to access, retention, completion, and student success with a focus on improving equity of outcomes for historically underserved students and empowering faculty as key stakeholders in this work. Her scholarship takes a systemic and explicitly relational approach, most recently exploring a reconceptualization of faculty development to utilize principles of high impact learning experiences and authentic engagement to create communities of transformation where members are empowered to transform public higher education as a tool for building a more just and equitable society. Denise earned a B.S. in Human Development & Family Studies from Cornell University, and an M.A. and Ph.D. in Human Development & Family Sciences from the University of Texas at Austin.
Jerry Daday is a Professor of Sociology at Indiana University Indianapolis where he teaches courses focused on crime and victimization and research methodology. His primary research focuses on the etiology of violent offending and victimization and the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, with a specific emphasis on high-impact practices (HIPs) and experiential learning. He served for seven years as the Executive Associate Dean for the Institute for Engaged Learning at IU Indianapolis, where he collaborated with colleagues to promote high-quality experiential learning opportunities for students. He is the co-editor of the book, Delivering on the Promise of High Impact Practices: Research and Models for Achieving Equity, Fidelity, Impact and Scale, published by Routledge (2022). He lends his expertise to the Center for Leading Improvements in Higher Education, which includes the HIPs in the States track at the Assessment Institute in Indianapolis and Assessment Update. He received his BA in Sociology from Bridgewater State University and his MA and Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of New Mexico. Before joining IU Indianapolis in 2018, he was a Professor of Sociology and served as the Executive Director of the Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning at Western Kentucky University.
Resources from the episode:
The Student Experience Project (SEP) website
The SEP final report
The PERTS Ascend survey
Information on the Kent State faculty communities of transformation
Information on the Student Experience Champions
Information on Ascend Champions
Information on the USU/APLU SEP Institutes
Contact information:
Denise Bartell - dbartell@kent.edu
Jerry Daday - jdaday@iu.edu
Thank you for listening!
Subscribe to our email list for early episode release!
Stay in touch on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and our website.
Annie Goodykoontz is a Phoenix-born student journalist based in Columbia, Missouri. Previously, she has interned at The Los Angeles Times, The Arizona Republic and Brussels-based news site Euractiv. Annie is a junior at the University of Missouri-Columbia, where she spent her sophomore year as editor-in-chief of the student paper, The Maneater. She’s currently a Youth / K-12 Education Reporter at the Columbia Missourian, and a Student Innovation Staffer at the Reynolds Journalism Institute.
Thank you for listening!
Subscribe to our email list for early episode release!
Stay in touch on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and our website.
Ashley Mowreader is a data journalist and education reporter. She is currently a master of journalism student at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY and fellow for the Education Writers Association 21st class. Previously, Ashley was Inside Higher Ed's inaugural Student Success Reporter and host of the Voices of Student Success podcast. She holds a bachelor's in journalism from Pepperdine University.
Thank you for listening!
Subscribe to our email list for early episode release!
Stay in touch on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and our website.
Dr. Scott Evenbeck is a retired president of the Charles and Stella Guttman Community College and currently serves as a University Professor at Baruch College.
Scott Evenbeck joined the City University of New York in 2011 as the Charles and Stella Guttman Community College’s founding president. He served as professor of psychology and founding dean of University College at Indiana University-Purdue University, Indianapolis. Scott has long been involved in designing, implementing and assessing programs for students in their first years of university study. He played a major role in various initiatives to support student achievement in Indiana, including efforts to keep students in college. He has given more than 100 presentations on serving students as they enter college, and he has written many articles and chapters on academic achievement and persistence. Scott was a task force adviser for the Foundations of Excellence in the First College Year, a board member of the American Conference of Academic Deans, and a faculty member for the Learning Community Institute of the Washington Center for Undergraduate Education. The National Learning Community conference recognized him with the lifetime achievement award. He has been on accreditation teams for three regional associations, focusing on general education, assessment and programs for entering students.
Ryan Coughlan is Associate Professor and Founding Faculty Director of the Executive Doctor of Education in Higher Education Administration Program in the Marxe School of Public and International Affairs at Baruch College of the City University of New York. He is a sociologist of education who studies equity and access in public education systems serving students of all ages.
Dr. Coughlan began his career as a secondary science educator in the New York City department of education, where he gained direct insight into the structures and challenges of our nation’s largest school district. As a scholar, Dr. Coughlan maintains a commitment to practitioner-oriented research that maximizes impact in academia and educational institutions. Along with his related publications in academic journals, he has published five books on school integration, the history of progressive education, the social foundations of education, and the sociology of education. His most recent co-authored book is an in-depth mixed methods case study of one school district’s efforts to achieve true integration. Dr. Coughlan’s research has been featured in national media outlets including The New York Times, NPR, and Chalkbeat, and it serves as the foundation for multiple school equity lawsuits.
Thank you for listening!
Subscribe to our email list for early episode release!
Stay in touch on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and our website.
Tam is a senior marketing leader at BVK, where she co-leads the agency’s higher education practice, and she serves as President of the Board for Serve Marketing, BVK’s not-for-profit sister agency. She brings more than 25 years of experience working in higher education marketing and strategy, with a deep understanding of the sector’s evolving challenges, opportunities, and public perception.
Tam is a key architect behind College: Proud Sponsor of America at its Best, a national public-service initiative designed to restore trust in higher education by elevating its impact on workforce development, innovation, democratic engagement, and community well-being. Her work focuses on helping institutions articulate their value with clarity, credibility, and relevance—connecting strategy and storytelling to advance higher education’s essential role in America’s future.
Thank you for listening!
Subscribe to our email list for early episode release!
Stay in touch on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and our website.
A pioneering social entrepreneur, Rajiv Vinnakota serves as President of the Institute for Citizens & Scholars, leading its mission to cultivate the talent, ideas, and networks that develop lifelong, effective citizens. To that end, he works tirelessly to build relationships with the partners and sponsors without whom Citizens & Scholars could not succeed, while at the same time fostering a strong organizational culture focused on American civic values.
Raj has dedicated his life to initiatives that help American citizens from all walks of life to become productive and engaged members of society. Early in his career, Raj co-founded the SEED Foundation, the nation’s first network of public, college preparatory boarding schools for underserved children. The SEED schools were featured in both television and film, and Raj won multiple awards for his work with SEED, including Harvard University’s Innovation in American Government Award, Fast Company/Monitor Group’s Social Capitalist Award, and Oprah Winfrey’s Use Your Life Award. Raj continues to serve on the Board of Directors for SEED.
Raj currently co-chairs the Civics and Civic Engagement Taskforce for the United States Congress Semiquincentennial Commission celebrating the 250th anniversary of the country’s founding. Raj also cochairs the Civic Learning Pillar of the Partnership for American Democracy, a coalition of American leaders directing resources and attention toward efforts to save U.S. democracy and serves on the advisory committee for Citizen Data.
Raj has been at the forefront of innovative scholarship and research that has played a pivotal role in shaping the civic field. His publication credits include From Civic Education to a Civic Learning Ecosystem, Mapping Civic Measurement, and The Civic Outlook of Young Adults in America. He appears regularly on media outlets such as Associated Press, NPR, The Hill, Chronicle of Higher Education, Philanthropy News Digest, and Nonprofit Quarterly. As an expert on civic learning and Gen Z, he has spoken at Fordham Institute, Results for America, Civic Learning Week, the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, and as commencement speaker for the University of Chicago Charter School and the University of Pittsburgh.
Raj grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the child of Indian immigrants who instilled in him the faith that a good education could open doors to great things. He graduated from Princeton University and is a recipient of Princeton’s Woodrow Wilson Award, the university’s highest honor for undergraduate alumni. In addition to being a former trustee and executive committee member for Princeton University, Raj is the former national chair of its annual giving committee. Raj is also the recipient of an honorary doctorate from Rutgers University. He is also board director for two public companies, Enovis Corporation and ESAB. He lives in Maine with his wife, daughter and cat.
Thank you for listening!
Subscribe to our email list for early episode release!
Stay in touch on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and our website.
Suzanne Benally (Navajo and Santa Clara Tewa)—Executive Director, Swift Foundation
Suzanne has worked in the higher education and the non-profit sector for 40 years. Committed to social justice, diversity, and equity, she predicates her work on transformational change. Currently serving as the executive director of the Swift Foundation she advocates for transformative practices in philanthropy that address issues of racism, equity, justice, and seeks to influence philanthropic practices in being more inclusive and in right relations with Indigenous Peoples. Formerly, Suzanne served as the Executive Director of Cultural Survival, an international Indigenous rights advocacy organization that advocates for Indigenous Peoples’ rights, self-determination, land, language, culture, and political resilience. Prior to that she held positions as a Special Assistant to the President for Diversity, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs, and core Environmental Studies faculty member and department chair at Naropa University. Previously she held a long tenure at the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education working with colleges and universities in the west, and with the American Indian Science and Engineering Society in k-12 and higher education programs.
Suzanne serves a co-chair of the University Board of Trustees at Naropa University and recently served as a co-chair of the International Funders for Indigenous Peoples. She was a cohort member of the Rothko Chapel’s Spirituality and Social Justice initiative to further understanding about the relationship between spirituality and social justice. Suzanne has been a consultant, advisor to higher education initiatives and philanthropic organizations, which have included among others the Association for American Colleges and Universities National Commitments Panel, Ford Foundations Higher Education and Diversity Initiative, and the James Irving Campus Diversity Initiative.
Deeply committed to social, environmental and climate justice, her passion and interests center on relationships and interconnectedness between land, spirituality, culture, and people as reflected in narratives and stories past and present. Mostly importantly she engages work that draws on hope now and for future generations to come. Suzanne lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Thank you for listening!
Subscribe to our email list for early episode release!
Stay in touch on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and our website.
Aleksondra Hultquist is an Associate Professor of Critical Thinking and First-Year Studies at Stockton University. Her teaching focus is in Critical Thinking, and a variety of General Studies courses, including Poetry & Mathematics, The Passions, and Adaptations. Her work focuses on the literature and culture of the long eighteenth-century, especially women writers and the passions. She has edited a special issue for Eighteenth Century: Theory and Interpretation called “Emotion in the Eighteenth Century” (2017), and co-edited (with Elizabeth Mathews) New Perspectives on Delarivier Manley and Eighteenth-Century Literature (Routledge, 2017) as well as A Spy on Eliza Haywood, co-edited with Chris Mounsey (Routledge 2022). She has published many articles, including “Amorous Constitutions: Bodies and the Affect of Amatory Seduction in Eliza Haywood’s Lasselia” in Restoration (2020) and "Passionate Educations: John Locke, Aphra Behn, and Jane Austen” in English Literature (2018). Her current projects include her manuscript The Amatory Mode: Amatory Fiction’s Passionate Legacy and editing vol. 6 (Love-Letters between a Nobleman and his Sister) of the Works of Aphra Behn by Cambridge University Press (2027). She is the president of The Aphra Behn Society and a founding editor of ABO: Interactive Journal for Women in the Arts, 1660-1830. She is an Honorary Researcher for the Australian Research Council’s Center of Excellence for the History of Emotion and was a Research Fellow at the Institute of Advanced Studies at Loughborough University in 2023.
I also like quilting, paddleboarding, and cooking. I love the beach—not a pina colada fan, though. Also, being an academic is my third career. And I can shuck clams, though I was better at it in college.
Thank you for listening!
Subscribe to our email list for early episode release!
Stay in touch on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and our website.
Antonio Merlo, PhD, became Drexel University’s 16th president on July 1, 2025. An accomplished higher education leader, scholar and professor, Merlo joined Drexel after serving since 2019 as the Anne and Joel Ehrenkranz Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Science at New York University. In this role, Merlo worked meticulously and strategically to expand the limits of NYU Arts & Science, overseeing the completion of a new, innovative home for the college, NYU’s founding school; establishing new centers and an office of research; growing research and fundraising dollars; and hiring 120 tenure-line faculty.
Originally from Italy, Merlo, a first-generation college graduate, attended Bocconi University earning a Laurea summa cum laude in economics and social sciences. He received his doctorate in economics from NYU, where he earned the Dean’s Outstanding Dissertation Award.
Merlo’s areas of scholarly interest include political economy, policy analysis, public economics, bargaining theory and applications, and empirical microeconomics. His research interests include the economics of crime, voting, the career decisions of politicians, the formation and dissolution of coalition governments, the industrial organization of the political sector, household bargaining, and the study of the residential housing market. He has published numerous articles in the leading economics journals, including the American Economic Review, Econometrica, the Journal of Political Economy, and the Review of Economic Studies. In 2018, he authored an innovative political economy textbook for undergraduates, Political Economy and Policy Analysis (Routledge). His numerous awards and honors include being elected a Fellow of the Econometric Society; the Pareto Lecture in Economics and Social Sciences; being a Peden Senior Fellow at Trinity College, Cambridge; and the Christian R. and Mary F. Lindback Foundation Award for Distinguished Teaching. In addition, he has been the recipient of the Coach of the Year Award for the Collegiate Water Polo Association in 2013 (Men’s Mid-Atlantic Division), 2017 (Women’s Texas Division), and 2018 (Men’s Texas Division).
Merlo joins Drexel as the University embarks on Academic Transformation, a blueprint for reimagining the institution’s future through the integration of programs and schools, redesign of curriculum and transition to a semester calendar — offering an improved academic experience and value proposition for students. Since his presidential appointment, he has emphasized his commitment to the initiative and his strong belief that it is giving Drexel an advantage, especially when combined with the University’s long-established differentiators, including experiential education.
Thank you for listening!
Subscribe to our email list for early episode release!
Stay in touch on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and our website.
Carin Silkaitis is Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences and a Professor of Humanities. Carin has also served UAS in a number of Interim positions, including Provost (AY25), Dean of Research & Sponsored Programs (AY25), Dean of Graduate Studies (AY25), and Dean of Career Education (AY24). Carin hails from Chicago, where she served the faculty and students at Columbia College Chicago as the Allen and Lynn Turner Chair of the Theatre Department, a Professor of Theatre, and a Faculty Fellow serving on the College's Antiracism Transformation Team. At Columbia, Carin managed a substantial budget and led a large faculty, overseeing a significant number of productions annually. Her leadership was instrumental in revamping recruitment strategies, and significantly enhancing student retention during the challenging times of the COVID-19 pandemic. Carin also served as Department Chair of both Art and Theatre at North Central College in Naperville, Illinois for 7 years, and served as a faculty member at this institution for a total of 17 years. While at North Central College, Carin tackled the roles of: Head of Acting, Theatre Program Coordinator, Title IX Investigator, and Lead Trainer/Educator for Green Dot - a bystander training technique that eradicates power-based personal violence. Carinʼs tenure at North Central College exemplified her capability to lead and innovate. She guided a complete overhaul of the theatre curriculum and led the department through significant growth and development (including major fundraising efforts). Carin's dedication to relationship building and community partnerships is evident in her active involvement in numerous boards and councils, including the Juneau Arts and Humanities Council where she served as President. Her commitment to antiracism and inclusivity is further exemplified in her work with the Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on Belonging, Empowerment, Access, Representation & Safety (BEARS) at UAS. A proven leader, Carin's strategic vision, combined with her extensive experience in academia and the arts, makes her an ideal leader during this time of nearly constant change in the academy. Carin's commitment to enhancing the academic landscape through innovative and inclusive practices promises to contribute significantly to the necessary conversations happening in her community and around our nation.
Thank you for listening!
Subscribe to our email list for early episode release!
Stay in touch on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and our website.
Dr. Evan Faulkenbury is the University Historian for the University of South Carolina. He holds a Ph.D. in History from UNC Chapel Hill, and before joining USC in 2024, he taught U.S. and public history for eight years at SUNY Cortland. As the University Historian, Dr. Faulkenbury records oral history interviews with people who shaped USC, co-produces the podcast Remembering the Days, leads historical tours of campus, teaches the occasional history class, and collaborates with various departments and offices around campus. He is working on two books about USC’s history—one is a general history of Carolina, and the other is a close look at the 1998-1999 Gamecock football seasons.
Thank you for listening!
Subscribe to our email list for early episode release!
Stay in touch on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and our website.
Marcella David is a higher education leader, most recently serving as Senior Vice President and Provost at Columbia College Chicago, a liberal arts college with a creative arts focus. Prior to that, she served as Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at Florida A&M University (FAMU), and in various collegiate and university leadership roles at The University of Iowa, including as its chief diversity officer from 2004-2009. As an academic administrator, David has focused on providing students with meaningful access that not only encourages students from different backgrounds to attend college, but provides support that promotes success. Other key priorities she holds include building a vibrant campus community and supporting the development and vitality of the faculty and staff to promote curiosity, inquiry and educational excellence for all.
David holds a B.S. in Computer and Systems Engineering from RPI (1986) and a J.D. from The University of Michigan Law School (1989), and was a Ford Foundation Fellow in International Law at Harvard Law School (1991). She served as a professor of law at The University of Iowa College of Law (1995-2014) and FAMU (2015-2018), and her visiting appointments include The University of Chicago Law School, University of Pennsylvania Law School, and Florida State University College of Law.
Thank you for listening!
Subscribe to our email list for early episode release!
Stay in touch on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and our website.
Dr. Richard Mullendore currently teaches a first-year seminar at the of University of North Carolina Wilmington. He previously served as the vice president for student affairs at the University of Georgia, vice chancellor for student life at the University of Mississippi, and he worked at the University of North Carolina Wilmington, the University of Charleston (WV), and Tusculum College (TN).
Dr. Mullendore, a former president of NODA (Association for Orientation, Retention, and Transition in Higher Education), has provided over 125 conference presentations and keynote addresses nationally and internationally, and has served as a consultant to over 35 colleges and universities on student affairs administration, student learning, orientation, parent programs, retention, housing/residence life, and transfer students; and he is the author of approximately 50 publications.
He has received several awards including the Pillar of the Profession (NASPA), the Bob Leach Award for Outstanding Service to Students (NASPA, Region III), the Outstanding Contributions to the Orientation Profession Award (NODA), the Outstanding Professional Contribution Award (North Carolina College Personnel Association), and the President’s Award (NODA). Mullendore currently lives in Hampstead, NC., and he is most likely to be found on the nearest golf course!
Michael McGinnis was appointed Vice President for Academic Affairs at Saint Francis University in July 2022. Dr. McGinnis has 29 years’ experience in higher education and currently in the 2025-2026 cohort of the Executive Leadership Academy sponsored by the Council of Independent Colleges. Dr. McGinnis came to Saint Francis from Norwich University, a senior military college, where he served as Dean of the College of Science and Mathematics and professor of chemistry since 2013. Prior to Norwich, he served as head of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at University of North Georgia (a sister senior military college) and the Associate Dean and Director of Preprofessional Programs at Georgia College, Georgia’s Public Liberal Arts College. VPAA McGinnis earned his ACS-certified B.S. degree in chemistry from Elizabethtown College (PA) and Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from the University of Tennessee. He completed a one-year teaching-research Postdoctoral Fellowship with the University of Tennessee; also working at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. He has won awards for his undergraduate teaching and advising, participated in science outreach activities and workshops around the globe, and served at the local, regional and national level for the American Chemical Society (ACS). He is currently national chair for ACS’ International Activities Committee. McGinnis’s research, much of it involving undergraduates, presently focuses on microwave-assisted organic reactions. He is an accomplished scientist with published articles and a book.
Suzanne Benally (Navajo and Santa Clara Tewa)—Executive Director, Swift Foundation
Suzanne has worked in the higher education and the non-profit sector for 40 years. Committed to social justice, diversity, and equity, she predicates her work on transformational change. Currently serving as the executive director of the Swift Foundation she advocates for transformative practices in philanthropy that address issues of racism, equity, justice, and seeks to influence philanthropic practices in being more inclusive and in right relations with Indigenous Peoples. Formerly, Suzanne served as the Executive Director of Cultural Survival, an international Indigenous rights advocacy organization that advocates for Indigenous Peoples’ rights, self-determination, land, language, culture, and political resilience. Prior to that she held positions as a Special Assistant to the President for Diversity, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs, and core Environmental Studies faculty member and department chair at Naropa University. Previously she held a long tenure at the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education working with colleges and universities in the west, and with the American Indian Science and Engineering Society in k-12 and higher education programs.
Suzanne serves a co-chair of the University Board of Trustees at Naropa University and recently served as a co-chair of the International Funders for Indigenous Peoples. She was a cohort member of the Rothko Chapel’s Spirituality and Social Justice initiative to further understanding about the relationship between spirituality and social justice. Suzanne has been a consultant, advisor to higher education initiatives and philanthropic organizations, which have included among others the Association for American Colleges and Universities National Commitments Panel, Ford Foundations Higher Education and Diversity Initiative, and the James Irving Campus Diversity Initiative.
Deeply committed to social, environmental and climate justice, her passion and interests center on relationships and interconnectedness between land, spirituality, culture, and people as reflected in narratives and stories past and present. Mostly importantly she engages work that draws on hope now and for future generations to come. Suzanne lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Mays Imad received her undergraduate training in Philosophy from the University of Michigan, focusing on Philosophy of Science and Consciousness. She earned her Ph.D. in Cellular and Clinical Neuroscience from Wayne State University in Detroit, and then completed an NIH-IRACDA post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Arizona.
Mays’s current research focuses on stress, self-awareness, advocacy, and classroom community, and how these relate to cognition, metacognition, and, ultimately, student learning and success. Through her teaching and research, she seeks to provide her students with transformative opportunities which are grounded in the aesthetics of learning, truth-seeking, and self-realization.
Valerie Shepard, PhD, CSAEd, is a student affairs scholar-practitioner who currently serves as the Senior Content and Assessment Analyst for UCLA Recreation, which is organized under Campus Life in the UCLA Division of Student Affairs. She reports to the Executive Director of UCLA Recreation. Prior to her work at UCLA Recreation, she served as the Assistant Director of the UCLA Graduate Student Resource Center. As the Senior Analyst, she supports the UCLA Recreation Executive and Communications teams by coordinating departmental assessment and collaborating on special projects and divisional and campus-wide working groups. A key component of her role is grants support: she has worked with collaborative teams to secure over $9.5M in state and federal grant funds since 2022. Dr. Shepard is also the co-editor of the recent book A Practitioner’s Guide to Supporting Graduate and Professional Students (Routledge, 2022). In 2022, she was awarded NASPA’s Administrators in Graduate and Professional Student Services (AGAPSS) Knowledge Community’s Outstanding Professional Award, along with her co-editor, Dr. April Perry. In 2024, the book was selected for the Outstanding Publication Award by NASPA’s Faculty Council.
Dr. Shepard has also been an editorial board member of the NASPA Journal of Student Affairs Research and Practice (JSARP) since 2016, and a member of the editorial committee of the NASPA Annual Knowledge Communities publication since 2014. She advocates for graduate and professional student success as a member of the AGAPSS leadership team. She also served as an invited humanities expert and content creator throughout the initial 2014-2018 development of ImaginePhD, a web-based career exploration and planning tool for those who have advanced degrees in the humanities and social sciences. ImaginePhD is a collaborative project of the Graduate Career Consortium (GCC), and Dr. Shepard continues to be a GCC member as well.
Prior to her work in Student Affairs, Dr. Shepard completed her PhD in English Literature at UCLA. She also currently serves as the volunteer grants director for the Chromosome 18 Registry and Research Society.
As an academic leader and author, J. David Arnold has focused on learning communities, first-year programs, strategic planning with faculty and promoting the “teacher-scholar” model of faculty professional development at liberal arts institutions. Dr. Arnold's dedication earned him recognition as a National Learning Community Project Fellow. He attributes much of his success to the influence of great mentors throughout his life, which fueled his passion for higher education and student advocacy
Dr. Arnold served as the 26th President of Eureka College in Eureka, Ill. for 11 years. He retired from Eureka as President Emeritus in 2016 and subsequently served as Interim Provost at Salve Regina University and Keystone College.
His Eureka presidential tenure has been some of the strongest and most successful years in the College’s history. Under Arnold’s leadership, the college achieved: 1) record enrollment including graduates who represent over 30% of living alumni; 2) balanced budgets; 3) $35 million in private donor support; 4) more than 30 new endowed scholarships; 5) nearly doubled the College endowment from $12 to over $20 million; and 6) more than $30 million in campus improvements, including the construction of a new residence hall, a new Sanders classroom/laboratory building, a new fitness center, Shenkman Reagan Research Center in the library, and the transformation of the Reagan gym into the Christine Bonati Bollwinkle arena and convocation center. Other achievements include the creation of visiting scholar, artist and executive programs.
The College campus was designated a National Historic District in 2010 for its importance in American history—Eureka has graduated 42 college presidents, seven governors and members of Congress, and the 40th President of the United States. Building on the legacy of creating servant leaders, a Reagan Forward initiative was launched in 2008 to focus on leadership and service—related events include a 2011 national academic conference on “Reagan and the Midwest,” and campus lectures by dozens of Reagan authors. An Honorary Reagan Fellow Award component of the Reagan Leadership Program was created that featured notable participants, such as Mikhail Gorbachev and Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, and hosted national events with former Secretaries of State George Shultz and James Baker.
In honor of Dr. and Mrs. Arnold, the Eureka Board of Trustees renamed the newest residence hall Arnold Hall and established the J. David and Katherine Arnold Leadership Fund.
Arnold formerly was vice president for academic and student affairs at Missouri Western State University. He also served as provost at St. John Fisher College and as a dean and grants officer at Clarion University. He started his academic career as a professor teaching psychology and writing at St. Lawrence University.
In addition to his professional accomplishments, Dr. Arnold has been actively involved in various civic organizations. He has served on the school improvement council at Fountain Inn High School and the board of advisors for the PRISMA YMCA of Greenville. He is a past board member of Academic Search and has chaired the Council for Christian Colleges & Universities under the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and was an academic trustee with the Lincoln Academy of Illinois.
A native of Lancaster, Pa., and the first in his family to graduate from college, Arnold completed his undergraduate degree with honors at Bloomsburg University, graduate degrees at the University of New Hampshire and post-doctoral study at the Institute for Educational Management at Harvard University.
A self-described movie buff and nature enthusiast, Arnold and his wife Katherine have three grown children and three granddaughters.
Dr. Lisa Lambert was appointed Interim President at Chatham University in 2025. After joining Chatham in 1985 as a faculty member in biology, she was promoted to Professor of Biology in 2012. While at Chatham, Dr. Lambert has served as Chair of the Science Department, founding Program Director for MS Biology, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, Assistant Vice President of Undergraduate Learning, and Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs. While serving as Provost, Dr. Lambert participated in the Gardner Institute’s CAO Innovation Community project. She has done sabbaticals at the University of Pittsburgh, Duke University, and Harvard University School of Public Health while pursuing her research interests in the molecular evolution of iron homeostasis. Dr. Lambert earned a Bachelor of Science degree in biology from Furman University, where she was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa, and a Ph.D. in Genetics from Indiana University-Bloomington.
Dr. Jody S. Fournier, a developmental psychologist and professor of psychology with over 25-years of higher education experience, previously served as provost and vice president of learning at Capital University, where his responsibilities encompassed the roles of chief academic officer, chief student affairs officer, and recently - chief enrollment officer. Dr. Fournier will serve as the president of Baker University beginning July 1, 2025.
As part of a national partnership project to Transform the Foundational Post-Secondary Experience to improve student outcomes, Dr. Fournier designed a Student Success Initiative, which realigned strategic planning, academic practices, and business operations to improve student retention and persistence. As part of this initiative, using collaborative, data-informed decision-making, and he integrated Academic Affairs, Student Affairs, and Enrollment Management into a single divisional unit, and implemented numerous action items to raise first-to-second year retention from a low of 71.5% to 79.1%, and fall-to-spring retention to a record 92.5%. Implementation realized record four-year graduation rates, improved transfer student enrollment and success, and neutralization of first generation, Pell Grant recipient, and underserved/underrepresented statuses as predictors of attrition. New enrollment strategies and tactics led to a 23% increase in first-time in college student enrollment.
His work, especially in conjunction with the Gardner Institute and the Ohio Department of Higher Education, serves as an example of the thought leadership needed to inspire educational access and forge collaborative relationships across all sectors – public and private, large and small, two- and four-year.
In collaboration with faculty governance, Dr. Fournier led a cross-divisional strategic enrollment initiative that revised existing academic programs and the development of new degree programs in Law, School Counseling, Clinical Mental Health Counseling, Social Work, Public Health, Applied Behavioral Analysis, Chemical Dependency Counseling, Sport Business, Art Therapy, Data Analytics, and Nursing. This work involved partnerships with businesses and agencies in the community to provide customized employee-based education. Using an advisory board model, community leaders worked with the University team to tailor curricula to meet their workforce needs. This led to new lines of students, new sources of expert instructors, new emphases on career development, and new advancement opportunities.
A recipient of the Praestantia (excellence in teaching) and Cotterman (excellence in service to students) awards, Dr. Fournier earned his Bachelor of Arts in psychology, Master of Science in child development, and Ph.D. in developmental psychology from The Ohio State University. He and his wife, Debbie, have three children and enjoy attending campus and community events.
Paul Mabrey is Director of Student Success Analytics and Associate Professor in Communication Studies at James Madison University. His work bridges holistic student success, data analytics, communication education, and civic engagement to improve the transformative impacts of higher education. At JMU, he leads the Early Student Success Quality Enhancement Plan and campus-wide student success & retention efforts, collaborating on campus-wide initiatives that integrate academic, well-being, basic needs, and co-curricular data to close success gaps and improve outcomes.
A scholar of debate pedagogy and democratic engagement, Paul has collaborated and published on how debate-based pedagogy can improve student learning, student success, and contribute to the civic mission of higher education. He has received grants and led projects supporting debate across the curriculum, data-informed student success, civic learning, and the integration of high-impact practices. Paul regularly presents nationally on student success, analytics, engaged pedagogy, and institutional transformation.
Dr. Michael “Mike” Davis began his tenure as the 27th President of Fairmont State University in July of 2023 and immediately committed himself to positioning Fairmont State as the best regional university in West Virginia.
Using the insights he gathered from listening to countless constituents ranging from students to faculty and staff, community members, business partners, international partners, and state legislators, he guided the creation of a robust Strategic Vision. This vision — for the University to become a Great Place to Learn, to Work, and to Call Home — will guide Fairmont State throughout the next decade as it seeks to educate engaged citizens in a community distinguished by opportunity, growth, and achievement, and delivers transformational impact for West Virginia and beyond.
Dr. G. Duncan Harris has had an illustrious 30-year career in higher education, most recently serving as the CEO of the Capital Campus of Connecticut State Community College (formerly Capital Community College) in Hartford, CT, from 2018 to 2025 where he was responsible for the strategic direction and daily operations of the campus. The Capital campus hosts CT State’s largest nursing program, a number of innovative higher education partnerships with companies like Accenture, Travelers, and Pursuit Aerospace, and is known for its success in providing access to careers that disrupt cycles of poverty and equity gaps for its students, 70% of whom are Black and Hispanic. Dr. Harris is recognized as an expert in student success and retention, community college collaboration with non-profit and corporate entities, and takes pride in his role as a mentor/coach to many community college professionals. Prior to his tenure at CT State Capital, he served in a number of roles including – chief academic officer, chief student affairs officer, counselor, coordinator of advising and was the founding executive director of the CSCU Kresge Student Success Center. Prior to his work in higher education, he had a career in banking and finance.
He has served on a number of boards during his tenure including the New England Board of Higher Education, the American Association of Community Colleges Economic Development and Workforce Commission, the National Council on Black American Affairs, Windsor Federal Bank, and the Wadsworth Athenaeum. He has received many awards for his contributions to the community, including the CT African American Affairs Man of the Year and the NAACP 100 Most Influential Blacks in CT Award.
He holds a Doctorate of Education from Nova Southeastern University, a Master of Science degree in counseling from Central CT State University, a Bachelor of Arts in economics from UConn, and a certificate in Management and Leadership from Harvard University. He is an proud, active, lifetime member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. He resides in Windsor with his lovely wife of 24 years, Garcia, and two children, Grant, a junior, and Grayson, a freshman, both attending Hampton University.
Dr. Phil Cavalier was named the 13th president of Kutztown in Pennsylvania on April 30, 2025 and will begin his tenure on July 7th. For the previous seven years, he served as the provost and senior vice chancellor for academic affairs at the University of Tennessee at Martin. He also served as Interim Chancellor at the University of Tennessee at Martin from March to August 2023.
Some of Dr. Cavalier’s accomplishments during his tenure at UT Martin include leading the university in creating a strategic plan for 2025-30, developing a two five-year strategic enrollment plan, guiding the university to a record-high 77% retention rate for first-year students, adding several new academic programs, and building a UTM in Siena, Italy study abroad program.
Prior to his appointment at UT Martin, Dr. Cavalier served as the provost at two residential liberal arts colleges, Lyon College in Arkansas and Eureka College in Illinois. During the 2005-6 academic year, he was a Fulbright Scholar in Kyiv, Ukraine, where he taught American literature at two Ukrainian universities and delivered lectures throughout Ukraine as well as in Estonia and Egypt. He earned a Ph.D. in English from the University at Buffalo, an M.A. in English from Northeastern University, and a B.A. in Economics from Swarthmore College.
Maria Dykema Erb, M.Ed. is the Inaugural Executive Director of the Boston University Newbury Center which was established to foster the holistic development and success of first-generation undergraduate, graduate, and professional students. Maria has over three decades of higher education experience having worked at the University of Vermont, Elon University, Duke University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and currently at Boston University. She has worked in a broad range of areas including Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging; student recruitment/admissions, enrollment management, academic advising, retention, and outreach; academic dean’s office and graduate/professional school program administration; and student affairs/life.
As a proud first-generation college graduate, Maria holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of New Hampshire and Master of Education degree from The University of Vermont (UVM).
As a higher education and student affairs practitioner, Maria has shared her scholarship through numerous presentations and book chapters. Most recently, she has chapters in: Know That You Are Worthy: Experiences from First-Generation College Graduates; A Handbook for Supporting Today’s Graduate Students; A Practitioner’s Guide to Supporting Graduate and Professional Students; and Fostering First Gen Success and Inclusion: A Guide for Law Schools (in press).
Anthony Abraham Jack, Ph.D. is the Inaugural Faculty Director of the Boston University Newbury Center and Associate Professor of Higher Education Leadership at Boston University.
His scholarship appears in the Common Reader, Du Bois Review, Social Problems, Sociological Forum, and the Sociology of Education and has earned awards from the American Sociological Association, American Educational Studies Association, Association for the Study of Higher Education, Eastern Sociological Society, and the Society for the Study of Social Problems. Tony held fellowships from the Ford Foundation and the National Science Foundation and was a 2015 National Academy of Education/Spencer Foundation Dissertation Fellow. In 2016, The National Center for Institutional Diversity at the University of Michigan named him an Emerging Diversity Scholar. In May 2020, Muhlenberg College awarded him an honorary doctorate for his work in transforming higher education.
The New York Times, Teen Vogue, Boston Globe, The Atlantic, The New Yorker, The Chronicle of Higher Education, The Huffington Post, The Nation, American Conservative Magazine, The National Review, Commentary Magazine, The Washington Post, Financial Times, Times Higher Education, Vice, Vox, and NPR have featured his research and writing as well as biographical profiles of his experiences as a first-generation college student. The Privileged Poor: How Elite Colleges Are Failing Disadvantaged Students (2019) was awarded the 2020 Mirra Komarovsky Book Award, the 2019 CEP Mildred Garcia Award for Exemplary Scholarship, and the Thomas J. Wilson Memorial Prize and was also named a finalist for the 2019 C. Wright Mills Award and a NPR Book’s Best Book of 2019. It is available in English and Chinese. His second book, Class Dismissed: When College Ignore Inequality and Students Pay the Price (2024), received a Starred Review from Kirkus Reviews, was named a finalist for the 2024 Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Award for Education from Foreword Reviews, and earned the 2025 PROSE Award for Education Theory and Practice by the Association of American Publishers.
Ian F. McNeely is professor of history and senior associate dean for undergraduate education at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. A specialist in German history and the history of knowledge, he is the author of three books, including The University Unfettered: Public Higher Education in an Age of Disruption (2025).
Dr. Dan Volchok is currently the Assistant Dean of Student Success at Harvard University’s Kenneth C. Griffin Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. In this role he supports nearly 5,000 Master’s and PhD students studying in 57 graduate programs across the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, and engineering. Dr. Volchok is responsible for most non-academic support services including student conduct, policy development and review, major events such as orientation, convocation and commencement, emergency management and collaboration with university services including disability services, general counsel, health services, registrar, campus police and international students.
Prior to Harvard, Dr. Volchok was Associate Dean of the Tufts University Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences where he was responsible for all student, faculty and academic affairs within the school. In addition to supervising admissions, registrar and program services, he managed student affairs, advised the students government and helped develop new academic programs. He was previously Assistant Dean for Graduate Student Life at Northeastern University and Director of Graduate Program and Student Services at Northeastern’s D’Amore-McKim School of Business.
Dr. Volchok is also currently adjunct faculty in the Northeastern College of Professional Studies Graduate School of Education where he teaches a variety of courses in the Master’s program, including Higher Education Law and Policy, as well as acting as Dissertation Chair for doctoral students in the EdD program.
Dr. Volchok continues to advocate for graduate and professional students through his professional positions and work with the NASPA Administrators in Graduate and Professional Student Services Knowledge Community.
Dr. Volchok earned a Bachelors in Business Administration and MBA from Ohio University and an EdD from Teachers College, Columbia University.
Teresa R. Rivenes is currently the Senior Vice President for the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities, also known as the NWCCU, which is a previously regional and now international accreditation agency. Before this role, Dr. Rivenes served as the Vice President at Umpqua Community College and as the Vice President of Academic and Student Services at Tillamook Bay Community College, both located in Oregon. At both institutions, she focused on systemic change, transforming struggling assessment processes into shining examples of assessment and accreditation success. She also led the first faculty teams in Oregon to eliminate developmental education classes and implement guided self-placement for all students. Prior to this, Dr. Rivenes was the Dean of Instruction at Rogue Community College, where she became the first administrator nominated by faculty for The League for Innovation Excellence Award for outstanding leadership in cross-campus first-year experience initiatives.
Prior work included serving as the Director of Academic Success for Great Falls College—Montana State University, the Campus Center Director and Faculty for Park University, and the Academic Director and Faculty for Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. Dr. Rivenes has also served as the co-chair of the statewide Transfer Council, which is developing Common Course Numbering and Transfer Degree Maps across all state institutions in Oregon.
Dr. Rivenes is a proud community college graduate and first-generation student. She earned her Master’s and PhD in Psychology, focusing her research on the impact of self-esteem on cross-cultural adoption, with a focus on Native American self-esteem and cultural identification. She then went on to earn her EdD from Montana State University, where she earned the Land Grant Student of the Year award and the Distinguished Scholar Award for her research in community college governance and unfunded mandates.
Dr. Rivenes has continued to teach psychology and sociology classes because she is passionate about student success and loves being in the classroom. She is also passionate about relationship-based management, strategic planning for long-term success, innovative educational solutions, and building community partnerships that support student success and economic mobility. Since 2013, she has served as an NWCCU peer accreditor. Dr. Rivenes is a proud completer of the Oregon Institute for Leadership Development, the Future President’s Institute through the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC), a 2020-2021 NWCCU Assessment fellow, a 2023-2024 Gardner Institute Chief Academic Officers Innovation Community member, and a lifelong American Association of University Women (AAUW) member.
Dr. Nariman Farvardin, Stevens Institute of Technology's seventh president since 2011, has transformed the university into a nationally prominent technological research powerhouse. Under his leadership, undergraduate applications surged 294%, enrollment rose 62% and career outcomes reached an impressive 96.8% of graduates employed or in graduate school within six months. Farvardin's tenure has driven a 199% increase in research funding and $500 million in campus improvements, including the landmark University Center Complex. His innovative academic initiatives and creation of new research centers have positioned Stevens at the forefront of technology education, preparing graduates to excel in an increasingly complex, technology-centric world. Access his full bio at //stevens.edu/president.
Contact: president@stevens.edu
Dr. Koch is a child of immigrants who came to the United States in pursuit of a better life. His first language was not English, and postsecondary education was valued by his family as a means for realizing the American Dream. A recipient of need-based aid while in school, Koch is a staunch advocate for and leader of efforts that increase student access to and, ultimately, completion of postsecondary education. He has worked in and with higher education institutions for over 30 years. He has done so since 2010 at the Gardner Institute where he was named Chief Executive Officer in 2021.
Dr. Andrew Koch has substantive experience with undergraduate education administration, redesign of educational systems to address performance gaps, strategic planning, fundraising, reaffirmation of accreditation, postsecondary access and success, and enrollment management efforts. His work includes extensive grant writing and fundraising with support coming from sources such as Ascendium Education Philanthropies, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, ECMC Foundation, GEAR UP, Kresge Foundation, Lilly Endowment, Inc., Lumina Foundation, and the National Science Foundation.
Dr. Koch holds a baccalaureate degree in history and German from the University of Richmond, a master’s degree in history from the University of Richmond, a master’s degree in higher education administration from the University of South Carolina, and a Ph.D. from Purdue University in American Studies. He was an American Council on Education Fellow in 2013-14.
Dr. Koch’s scholarly and professional interests are focused on student success and the ways in which colleges and universities both reflect and shape democracy and culture in the United States. Through this work, he serves as a passionate advocate for historically underrepresented and underserved students – seeing higher education as a vehicle for advancing equity and social justice.
He is the author of an array of publications such as the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th editions of The First-Year Experience in American Higher Education: An Annotated Bibliography as well as Improving Teaching, Learning, Equity, and Success in Gateway Courses: New Directions for Higher Education, Number 180. He is the co-editor of The Transfer Experience (Stylus, 2021). His solo-authored book on "Transforming the gateway course experience: A call to action for higher education" was recently published.
Koch has served on several boards and commissions including the Gardner Institute’s Board of Directors; the Board of Directors for Asheville Empire Youth Lacrosse; the Indiana College Access and Success Network; the Directorate Board for the American College Personnel Association Commission on Admissions, Orientation, and the First-Year Experience; the Military Family Research Institute; the Higher Learning Commission’s Think Tank on Persistence and Completion; the Higher Learning Commission’s Defining Student Success Task Force; the advisory committee for the Association of American Colleges and Universities Strengthening Guided Pathways and Career Success by Ensuring Students are Learning project; the National Advisory Board for the National Resource Center for the First-Year Experience and Students in Transition; and the editorial review board of the Journal of the First-Year Experience and Students in Transition.
Dr. Koch lives with his wife, Dr. Sara Stein Koch, and their six children in Mills River, North Carolina. In their spare time, he and his wife enjoy hiking with their children; attending their children’s track, soccer, and lacrosse events; gardening; and reading.
To contact Drew, email him at koch@jngi.org.
James Black, Ph.D. is an administrative faculty member currently serving as the Director of Student and Academic Affairs in the Office of Graduate Education at Georgia Tech. He reports to the Vice Provost for Graduate and Postdoctoral Education and is a member of her leadership team. In his role as director, he supports a team of faculty and staff that manages student services and success programs for Tech's more than 8,000 on-campus master's and doctoral students. These services and programs address all phases of the graduate student life cycle and graduate student experience. He is the creator of GT6000, an Institute-level, 8-week graduate student first-year experience and extended orientation program. His team oversees graduate student hiring policy compliance for over 4,500 graduate assistants, the administration of over $10M in annual fellowship funding including 120 on-tenure students supported on the NSF GRFP, and thesis and dissertation processing. He is active in shared governance at Georgia Tech chairing and serving on multiple Institute committees and advisory boards. Before joining the Office of Graduate Education, he completed his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering at Georgia Tech doing research on a novel droplet levitation technique utilizing a fluid property called thermocapillarity. While a graduate student, he served as Graduate Student Body President in the Student Government Association. Outside of Georgia Tech, he recently served as the President of the Georgia Council of Graduate Schools, a state-level professional organization that advocates for graduate education in Georgia and currently serves on the national board of directors for Theta Chi Fraternity. He’s also a part-time CrossFit coach, amateur gardener, sci-fi nerd, and father of two young children.
Marc Ebelhar, Ed.D. is an academic professional that serves as graduate student success specialist in the Office of Graduate Education and the instructor of record for GT6000. In this role, he leads the implementation of the GT6000 program along with supporting the assistant instructor and 45 student leaders. Marc has over 20 years’ experience as a higher education professional with a primary focus in graduate education, students in transition, LGBTQIA allyship, and campus housing. Marc earned a bachelor of arts in economics and political science from Bellarmine University in Louisville, KY, a master of education in higher education and student affairs from the University of South Carolina, and a doctorate in student affairs leadership from the University of Georgia. Outside of work Marc enjoys playing tabletop board games, is a proud supporter of Memphis Grizzlies basketball and Leeds United football and loves to explore the cuisine, culture, and community of Buford Highway with his partner, Christina.
Dr. April Perry (she/her) is an Associate Professor in the M.Ed. Higher Education Student Affairs program and serves at Department Head/Chair for Human Services at Western Carolina University. Her research is primarily on college student identity development, career development, student transitions, and institutional initiatives for student success. She is the co-editor of the recent book - A Practitioner's Guide to Supporting Graduate and Professional Students (Routledge, 2022).
As a practitioner, April has worked in Student Leadership Programs, Parent & Family Programs, Fundraising & Marketing, Academic Tutoring Services, Graduate School Administration, and has served in various leadership roles in the academy such as Department Head, Assistant Department Head, Interim Associate Dean of the Grad School, and HESA Graduate Program Director.
In 2016, April received the WCU Graduate School’s Award for Excellence in Graduate Student Mentoring. In 2017, she was named Outstanding Professional in Graduate and Professional Student Services by NASPA's AGAPSS Knowledge Community. In 2020, she was selected for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation's Blue Ridge Stand Out (14 under 40). In 2022, she was honored with NASPA AGAPSS’ Outstanding Contribution to Research and the Profession Award, and also in 2022 received NASPA Faculty Council’s Outstanding Support for Graduate Students Award. In 2024, her book was selected for the Outstanding Publication Award by NASPA’s Faculty Council.
April is passionate about student/human development and lives by the motto that 'the only thing better than watching someone grow is helping them grow.'
Cate Denial is the Bright Distinguished Professor of American History and Director of the Bright Institute at Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois. A winner of the American Historical Association’s Eugene Asher Distinguished Teaching award, Cate has served as a member of the Educational Advisory Committee of the Digital Public Library of America, as a Distinguished Lecturer for the Organization of American Historians, and as a Learned Scholar for the National Historic Landmarks division of the National Park Service. Cate currently sits on the board of Commonplace: A Journal of Early American Life. She has held an Andrew W. Mellon Foundation fellowship from the American Philosophical Society, and is an elected member of the American Antiquarian Society.
Cate is a pedagogical consultant who works with individuals, departments, and institutions in Australia, Canada, Ireland, the U.K. and the U.S. Cate’s new book, A Pedagogy of Kindness, argues that instructors and institutions of higher education must urgently focus on compassion in the classroom; the book is available from the University of Oklahoma Press. Issues of care animate Cate’s work. Between 2022 and 2023, Cate was PI on a $150,000 grant awarded to Knox College by the Mellon Foundation, bringing together thirty-six participants from across higher education in the United States to explore “Pedagogies, Communities, and Practices of Care in the Academy After COVID-19.” In 2024, Cate was also a participant in the NSF-funded “Convening of Care” project, directed by the American Association of Geographers and the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs.
Cate’s historical research has examined the early nineteenth-century experience of pregnancy, childbirth and child-rearing in Upper Midwestern Ojibwe and missionary cultures, research that grew out of Cate’s previous book, Making Marriage: Husbands, Wives, and the American State in Dakota and Ojibwe Country (2013). She is presently researching the life of Susan Richardson, an African-American woman who escaped from slavery to establish herself in Galesburg, Illinois in the 1840s.
As founder and director of the Bright Institute at Knox College, Cate oversees a program which supports thirteen faculty from liberal arts schools across the United States in their teaching and research for three years. Each fellow attends an annual two-week summer seminar on new scholarship in early American history, and receives $3,500 in research funding per year.
Isis Artze-Vega, Ed.D. serves as college provost and vice president for academic affairs at Valencia College in Central Florida, a Hispanic-Serving Institution that serves about 70,000 students annually and has long been regarded one of the nation’s best community colleges.
Isis Artze-Vega provides strategic leadership for the areas of curriculum, assessment, faculty development, distance learning, career and workforce education, and partnerships for educational equity. Prior to joining Valencia, Isis served as assistant vice president for teaching and learning at Florida International University (FIU), leading such efforts as a gateway course project, a hybrid course initiative, and the comprehensive redesign of teaching evaluation. Prior to joining FIU, she taught English composition and enrollment management at the University of Miami. Most importantly, she is the proud wife of visual artist Sinuhe Vega; the proud mami of Kamilah, 13, and Delilah, 11; and forever indebted to extraordinary parents, Mayra and Elias. Her work is fueled by a commitment to equity and justice, implemented through love and service.
Peter Felten Ph.D., is an assistant provost for teaching and learning, executive director of the Center for Engaged Learning, and professor of history at Elon University. Peter Felten has published seven books about undergraduate education, including Connections are Everything: A College Student’s Guide to Relationship-Rich Education(Johns Hopkins University Press, 2023) co-authored by Isis Artze-Vega, Leo Lambert, and Oscar Miranda Tapia – with an open access online version free to all readers. He has served as president of the International Society for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (ISSOTL) and also of the POD Network, the U.S. professional society for educational developers. He is on the advisory board of the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE).
Leo M. Lambert is President Emeritus and Professor at Elon University. Lambert served as president from 1999-2018, leading Elon’s rise to national prominence by promoting a student-centered culture that values strong relationships between students and their faculty and staff mentors. Focused on developing students as global citizens, ethical leaders and creative problem-solvers, Lambert led two strategic plans, creating a model for the modern liberal arts university.
Oscar R. Miranda Tapia is a Research Associate at the Belk Center for Community College Leadership and Research and a Policy Intern at North Carolina Independent Colleges & Universities. He is also a PhD student and Provost Fellow at NC State University, pursuing a degree in Educational Leadership, Policy, and Human Development, with a focus on higher education opportunity, equity, and justice. Prior to his doctoral studies, Oscar led the first-generation initiative at Elon University. He is a co-author of Connections are Everything: A College Student’s Guide to Relationship-Rich Education and holds a bachelor’s degree from Elon University and a master’s degree from Harvard University.
Chaouki T. Abdallah became the tenth president of the Lebanese American University (LAU) on October 1, 2024. Most recently, he served as Executive Vice President for Research at The Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech), from September 2018 until September 2024.
Under Dr. Abdallah’s leadership, research expenditures at Georgia Tech increased significantly from approximately $850 million at the start of his term in 2018 to $1.45 billion as of December 2023. Dr. Abdallah previously served as the 22nd president of the University of New Mexico. His efforts there contributed to an 8% increase in first-year student retention and a 125% increase in four-year graduation rates. A prominent expert in control theory and systems engineering, he has authored eight books, serving as co-editor for three of them and co-author for five. Additionally, he has contributed to more than 400 peer-reviewed articles. Dr. Abdallah is deeply committed to guiding students and has personally mentored 36 Master’s degree and 16 Ph.D. candidates.
Dr. Abdallah studied at the Faculté d’ingénierie of the Université Saint-Joseph in Lebanon before continuing his studies in the United States at Youngstown State University in Ohio, where he obtained a Bachelor of Engineering (B.E.) degree in 1981. He earned M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in electrical engineering from Georgia Tech in 1982 and 1988, respectively.
Dr. Abdallah is a native of Rachana, a village in northern Lebanon known for its beautiful sculptures, where his parents still reside. He and his seven siblings are all first-generation college graduates, thanks in part to the hard work of their parents. Dr. Abdallah met his wife, Catherine, also an engineering graduate, at Georgia Tech. She is the president of a global supply chain company. Their twin sons are Carter, a software engineer in Silicon Valley, and Calvin, who just began medical school.
For nearly a decade, Amanda worked in TRiO programs, spending a year with Talent Search and the next nine leading an Upward Bound project. In 2008, she joined the staff at Marietta College directing the Academic Resource Center (ARC). As the Director of the ARC, Amanda has led the center in tremendous growth including such activities as developing the PioPREP Academy bridge program, the Campus Food Pantry, and co-advising the Tri-Alpha first-generation national honor society to name a few. Under her direction, the ARC has achieved and renewed national certification from the College Learning Center Association’s (CRLA) International Tutor Training Program Certification team. In 2021, The ARC was named the National College Learning Center Association (NCLCA) Frank Christ Outstanding Learning Center Award winner for four-year institutions. Amanda has been recognized for her outstanding service at Marietta College, receiving honors for numerous areas of service. She was recently named the Distinguished Alumna of the year by Washington State Community College for outstanding professional achievement. In addition to her role in the ARC, Ms. Haney-Cech teaches First Year Experience (FYE) courses, a gender studies course, and the PIO 101 and 102 Pio Pathway courses.
Amanda is highly active both on campus and off, working with myriad committees and organizations that promote student success and positive staff engagement. Amanda has been active in promoting academic success and the value of the learning center profession on the state and national level as well. She has served on the board of directors for the Association for the Coaching and Tutoring Profession (formerly ATP), Ohio TRiO (formerly OAEOPP), and most recently, the Ohio College Learning Center Association (OCLCA) where she was engaged with the founding board for the NCLCA affiliate. Amanda has presented numerous conference workshops over the past 20 years and was the featured keynote speaker at the New York College Learning Skills Association annual conference in November of 2021.
Gregory (Greg) L. Heileman, Ph.D., currently serves as the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education and Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Arizona, where he is responsible for facilitating collaboration across campus to strategically enhance quality and institutional capacity related to undergraduate programs academic administration. He has served in various administrative capacities in higher education since 2004.
Greg Heileman’s experience includes work in the areas of faculty development, institutional research, accreditation and academic program review, curriculum management, student success, academic advisement, tutoring, student health & wellbeing, student conduct, budget and finance, economic development, policy development, information technology and data governance, and strategic planning.
From 2017-2019, he served as the Associate Provost for Student & Academic Life and Professor of Electrical & Computer Engineering at the University of Kentucky, where he was responsible for providing vision, leadership and strategic direction for campus-wide student success efforts, while also serving as the university’s Chief Student Affairs Officer. From 2011-2017, he served as the Associate Provost for Curriculum and then as the Vice Provost for Teaching, Learning and Innovation at the University of New Mexico (UNM). During that time, he led campus-wide student academic success initiatives, and worked with key stakeholders on campus, to produce all-time record retention and graduation rates.
His work as a professor began in 1990 when he joined the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) at UNM. He subsequently advanced through the academic ranks to Professor. He has more than 170 peer-reviewed publications in the areas of machine learning and data analytics, information security, and student success in higher education. His research activities have generated more than $9,000,000 in external funding, and he has served as the advisor for 48 M.S. and Ph.D. students. From 2005-2011 he served as Associate Chair (Director of Undergraduate Programs), and led the department through two ABET accreditation visits. In 2011 he became an ABET program evaluator. In 2009 he was also awarded the IEEE Albuquerque Section Outstanding Educator Award. He was the recipient of ECE’s Lawton-Ellis Award for combined excellence in teaching, research, and student/community involvement in 2001 and again 2009. He held ECE’s Gardner Zemke Professorship from 2005-08. He received the School of Engineering’s Teaching Excellence award in 1995, and the ECE Department Distinguished Teacher Award in 2000. During 1998, he held a research fellowship at the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, and in 2005, he held a similar position at the Universidad Politénica de Madrid. He earned the BA degree in Biology from Wake Forest University in 1982, the MS degree in Biomedical Engineering and Mathematics from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill in 1986, and the PhD degree in Computer Engineering from the University of Central Florida in 1989.
Dr. Taylor W. Acee is professor in and program coordinator of the Graduate Program in Postsecondary Student Success in Learning, Literacy, and Mathematics at Texas State University. His research is focused on college student learning, motivation, and self-regulation, and assessments and interventions related to these areas. A major area of his research and practice is focused on postsecondary learning-to-learn courses.
Faculty profile: https://faculty.txstate.edu/profile/1921174
Dr. Russ Hodges is an associate professor in the College of Education at Texas State University (TXST), where he co-created and teaches graduate courses in the doctoral and master's program in Postsecondary Student Success in Learning, Literacy and Mathematics. Dr. Hodges also coordinates the university's learning frameworks courses for undergraduates. His current research focuses on postsecondary student success interventions including learning-to-learn courses, peer-mentoring, peer-tutoring and academic coaching. Among his many publications, Dr. Hodges is co-author of Handbook for Academic Transformation: The Road to College Success (2015, 3rd ed., Pearson), and co-editor of The Rowman & Littlefield Handbook of Peer Tutoring (in press, Rowman & Littlefield), and Handbook for Training Peer Tutors and Mentors (2012, CRLA & Cengage).
Dr. Hodges has held leadership positions including treasurer and president of the College Reading and Learning Association (CRLA), chair of the Council of Learning Assistance and Developmental Education Associations (CLADEA), and co-founder and current co-editor of the Journal of College Academic Support Programs (J-CASP).
Dr. Hodges has received many awards throughout his career including the Diversity and Inclusion Faculty Award, TXST, 2020; Gladys R. Shaw Outstanding Service to Developmental Education Students Award, National Association for Developmental Education, 2016; Distinguished Teaching Award, CRLA, 2015; Teaching Award of Honor, TXST Alumni Association, 2015; National Fellow, CLADEA, 2009; Lifetime Achievement Award, College Academic Support Programs, 2008, and the Robert Griffin Long and Outstanding Service Award, CRLA, 2007.
Duane A. Williams, Ph.D, is the Associate Vice Provost of Student Success and Retention at TexasA&M San Antonio. In his role, he oversees Undergraduate Academic Advisement, the StudentAcademic Success Center, First-year Experience, and other student success-related initiativeswithin the Division of Academic Affairs and the Office of the Provost. In his role, Dr. Williamsworks collaboratively with other university divisions, academic leadership, and various campusunits to develop, implement, and evaluate student success initiatives.
Before Texas A&M - San Antonio, Dr. Williams served in several Directorship roles at MontclairState University, New Jersey. Specifically, he served in the Office of Student Belonging, in theCenter for Leadership and Engagement, and in the Office of Academic Success and RetentionPrograms. In this role, he spearheaded a broad range of programs and activities that supportedstudents' transitional experiences and fostered a sense of belonging. These included multipleareas such as First Year Student Orientations; First-Gen Initiatives, international student supportservices, veteran and military student certification, adult and transfer student programs,advising and engagement initiatives; and an array of leadership development experiences.
Before Montclair State University, Dr. Williams had served as a Director in the Center forAdvisement and Student Success at Hudson County Community College, New Jersey. There, hewas able to develop a comprehensive understanding of the non-traditional and first-generationstudent population. Being a first-generation student, Dr. Williams has enjoyed working oninitiatives that directly and indirectly affect the success and retention of students during theircollege years.
With a formal management and public administration background, Dr. Williams has utilized hisorganizational leadership skills to support and create policies and practices that affect studentdevelopment and ultimately, student success. Dr. Williams earned his Ph.D. in Family Scienceand Human Development at Montclair State University.
Dr. Andy Person serves as the Chief of Strategy and Advancement at Long Island University, a nationally recognized research institution, where he leads transformative initiatives to drive institutional growth, enhance strategic planning, and advance the university's mission. With over two decades of leadership experience in higher education and maritime institutions, Dr. Person is recognized for serving on executive teams that increase enrollment, retention, accreditation excellence, research development, and partnerships that foster workforce development.
Dr. Person's career spans notable leadership roles at SUNY Maritime College, the U.S. Naval Academy, and Mercy University, where his innovative approach has consistently delivered measurable results. A former U.S. Navy officer, Dr. Person brings a unique perspective shaped by his service aboard aircraft carriers in the Mediterranean and Persian Gulf. His hands-on maritime expertise, combined with his strategic acumen, positions him as a forward-thinking leader dedicated to preparing students for success in a competitive, globalized world.
At Long Island University, Dr. Person's vision emphasizes innovation, collaboration, and a commitment to academic and institutional excellence, ensuring the university remains a leader in higher education.
APUS President Nuno Fernandes is a visionary leader who has been successful in making online higher education more affordable and accessible, while delivering top-quality education and favorable student outcomes. As the fifth President of APUS, he is focused on a global digital journey that integrates personalized, collaborative, technology-driven learning experiences to prepare students for tomorrow’s challenges and opportunities.
Mr. Fernandes has a wealth of experience driving innovation across higher education, technology, and business. He has been serving as APUS President since September 2022.
Previously, Mr. Fernandes was president and CEO of Ilumno, the largest online program manager in Latin America, and among the top 3 globally (in terms of managed students, which numbered 300,000). He served in several roles with increasing responsibilities at the company for over a decade. Mr. Fernandes was instrumental in improving student retention, student satisfaction, graduation rates, and reputation at the company’s owned and partner universities. He also led efforts to expand access to higher education in several countries.
Prior to his roles in higher education, Mr. Fernandes accumulated over a decade of experience in the consumer goods industry at Bosch, where he undertook numerous international assignments and held various leadership roles.
Born in Porto, Portugal, Mr. Fernandes holds a Master of Business Administration from the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from the University of Porto. He has also participated in several executive education programs at Harvard Business School and Carnegie Mellon University, among others.
Mr. Fernandes is trilingual, speaking English, Spanish, and Portuguese. To see what Nuno comments on often, please visit LinkedIn: Nuno Fernandes | LinkedIn
Read his works:
- The EdUp Experience: Differentiate or Die: Navigating the Landscape of Higher Education
- The Evolllution Modern Campus: Reimagining Higher Ed: It’s Time to Embrace Change (and Technology)
Amber Fallucca serves as the inaugural Director of the Carolina Experience, University of South Carolina’s focus on providing access to a comprehensive undergraduate experience through an emphasis on transfer, sophomore, junior, and senior student experiences. Prior to joining Carolina Experience, Amber served as USC’s Quality Enhancement Plan Director on integrative and experiential learning. Amber also serves as affiliate faculty in the College of Education at USC where she earned her PhD in Higher Education Administration.
Ambra Hiott currently serves as the Director of the Leadership and Service Center at the University of South Carolina. People recognize her expertise in student leadership, addressing basic needs insecurity, student governance, community partnerships, student involvement, and resolving conflict. She has previous experience in a variety of higher education functional areas including orientation and transition programming, residence life, and student activities. She earned her Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Student Affairs Leadership from the University of Georgia.
Dr. Silvia Patricia Rios Husain serves as the Associate Vice President for Student Success within the University of South Carolina’s Division of Student Affairs and Academic Support. Her career spans over 20 years in higher education, with a deep commitment to fostering student success and enhancing the student experience.
As AVP, she provides strategic direction and oversight to University 101 Programs, National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in Transition, Career Center, Student Success Center, and Carolina Experience. The Carolina Experience is a new initiative to make the entire four-year student experience as impactful as the first year. This initiative leverages and scales peer leadership and structured collaboration while focusing on students’ career readiness and overall health and well-being.
Dr. Colleen McCabe serves as the Provost and Vice President for the Wisconsin Technical College System. In this role, she provides leadership and administrative oversight for the development and delivery of technical college educational programs, student services and assessment, economic development and adult and ELL education.
Prior to this position, she served for 14 years as a K-12 educator, and most recently served as a professor and the department chair of Health and Human Performance at UW-Platteville. At UW-Platteville, her duties for the past 17 years included teaching, directing the development, implementation, and assessment of three programs, and the professional development and evaluation of department faculty and staff. In all, Colleen has over 39 years of experience in education including 20 years in leadership within higher education.
At the time of this podcast recording, Jamia led SCORE’s postsecondary strategy, relying on her deep experience in higher education to build relationships in the field to ensure all Tennessee students have access to postsecondary opportunities that prepare them for a career. Jamia joined SCORE in 2022 as senior director of postsecondary pathways. Prior to that, she served as dean of student success at Rhodes College, worked as an admissions counselor at UT Chattanooga, and held positions at UT Knoxville in career services, teacher education recruitment/retention, academic advising, and student services. Jamia serves on the advisory board for the University of Memphis K-12 Schools and The Schools of Perea, a Memphis public charter school. A Knoxville native, she is a proud graduate of Tennessee public schools. Jamia earned a bachelor’s in communication and a master’s in public administration from the University of Tennessee, Chattanooga, and holds a PhD in higher education administration from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.
I'm newly retired and in the process of sorting through 40 years of books and papers! My professional life has been shaped by a variety of experiences, including my childhood in South Dakota, my experiences at rural and tribal colleges and universities, travels to Latin America and the South Pacific, nonprofit agency and board leadership, teaching undergrad and graduate students, and advocating for social justice. These experiences have taught me how to approach student concerns holistically and to trust the student’s instincts and my own. I seek to bring a diversity of viewpoints to find creative solutions to complex problems, whether that's in a large system workgroup or in a classroom.
I was educated at the University of Sioux Falls, graduating with a degree in Psychology, and Sioux Falls Seminary, where I served as a graduate teaching assistant and was awarded a Masters in Counseling. When I became a licensed as a Marriage and Family Therapist and Chemical Dependency Counselor, I provided clinical supervision and executive leadership to a large nonprofit organization that provided K-12 prevention education to an 18,000 student school district, outpatient treatment services, city/county detox services, county jail and state prison treatment programs, a halfway house for men coming out of treatment and the state’s first halfway house for women and their children. I returned to graduate school at South Dakota State University, where I was accepted into the Honor Society of Agriculture, Gamma Sigma Delta, and awarded a Doctorate of Philosophy. The field research for my dissertation, Higher Education in Rural America: A Study of Northern Plains American Indian and Non-Indian Attitudes, Aspirations, Expectations and Perceived Barriers, was conducted with over two hundred people living within a twenty-five-mile radius of Sinte Gleska University on the Rosebud Reservation, home of the federally recognized Rosebud Sioux Tribe. Chief Spotted Tail (Sinte Gleska), was noted for his interest in bringing education to his tribe.
In 2008, I came to the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system to work with stakeholders across the system’s 54 campuses to develop, implement and assess academic programs and transfer policies and procedures. The Minnesota Legislature had just passed degree credit cap legislation, and my first assignment was working with the seven state universities and 30 colleges to reduce associate degree programs to 60 credits and baccalaureate degree programs to 120 credits. During my tenure I facilitated the system’s Transfer Governance Team, sat on the Policy Council, Graduate School Council, and the Transfer Pathway Coordinating Team, charged with improving student transfer through the development of 26 “Transfer Pathways” designed to guarantee acceptance of all associate-level and junior status for students transferring to the system universities.
Ron Cole, Ph.D., is the 23rd president of Allegheny College. As president, he leads the senior leadership team of the College to drive holistic student success and an interdisciplinary, 21st century education.
Under his direction, the College has implemented a bold Strategic Pathway that emphasizes five primary goals focused on academic excellence, broadened academic offerings with an emphasis on student engagement, community and economic development, a vibrant and inclusive campus and financial sustainability. The message has boosted student enrollment and resonated with benefactors, as Allegheny College’s largest and most ambitious campaign ever, “In for Allegheny: Our Pathway Forward,” launched in the 2024-25 semester has already shattered records for donor support in the College’s 210-year history.
After serving as a faculty member for 20 years, Dr. Cole became provost and dean of the college in 2015. He held a range of leadership positions (including department chair, faculty moderator and a member of the trustee diversity task force), and he chaired the natural science division, faculty council, the faculty review committee, and finance and facilities committee. As chief academic officer, Dr. Cole promoted data-informed change to improve student success that led to revisions to first-year curriculum and course sequencing in STEM and humanities fields and new structures to unify and advance holistic student advising.
He established student retention as a top collaborative priority at the College through the Gardner Retention Performance Management program, achieving a five percent increase in first-to-second year retention within two years. Dr. Cole planned and led strategic work to achieve operational savings while investing in new programs including Informatics, Business, Art/Science and Innovation and the Allegheny Lab for Innovation and Creativity.
Dr. Cole advanced diversity of faculty and the curriculum with an interdisciplinary cohort program in race, gender and/or social justice. He was recognized in 2021 by the Council of Independent Colleges with their Chief Academic Officer Award. As a teacher-scholar, Dr. Cole received the Allegheny College Thoburn Award for Excellence in Teaching and established an active student-focused undergraduate research program in the geosciences with more than $500,000 in funding from the National Science Foundation, National Geographic Society and the American Chemical Society. He was named by City & State PA to their 2022 Power 100 list and Trailblazers in Higher Education in 2023. He is a sought-after speaker and has authored more than 100 published articles and book chapters.
Dr. Cole is a proud alumnus of Allegheny College, having earned a B.S. in Geology in 1987. He received his M.S. and Ph.D. in Geological Sciences from the University of Rochester (NY).
Michael Benitez, Ph.D. is a nationally acclaimed educator in the field of diversity, equity, and inclusion in higher education, often called upon by colleges and universities, community organizations and corporations nationwide for his deep knowledge and practice of innovate equity and inclusion-based strategies and approaches to address some of higher education’s most pressing diversity, equity, and inclusion issues and challenges.
Over the past two decades, Benitez has served higher education in different capacities, including academic and student affairs; diversity, equity and inclusion; and teaching. He brings deep knowledge and experience working in and leading areas in student success, organizational leadership and culture, intercultural development, race and ethnicity, policy and practice, inclusive leadership and pedagogy, and institutional equity, and has authored book chapters and articles on identity development, cultural centers and ethnic studies, hip hop culture, institutional research and campus climates, and faculty development. Dr. Benitez has been featured in educational documentaries, contributed to online magazines, scholarly databases, books, and peer reviewed journals, is often invited by media outlets to conversations on issues of significance, and collaborates with leading national scholars and practitioners.
Dr. Benitez has assumed roles at several institutions throughout his career, including Penn State University, Dickinson College, Lafayette College, Grinnell College, and the University of Puget Sound. He completed both his B.S. and M.Ed. at the Pennsylvania State University (PSU), where he gained interest in pursuing doctoral studies as a TRIO student and McNair Scholar, his Ph.D. at Iowa State University, and has been recognized with multiple leadership and scholarly awards throughout his career, including the Iowa State University College of Human Sciences Alumni Achievement Award.
Dr. Benitez joined MSU Denver in 2019 as vice president for Diversity and Inclusion, where he also serves as an Associate Professor of Multicultural Education the School of Education. Dr. Benitez also serves on the Board of Directors for the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher
Education (NADOHE), is highly engaged with the National Conference on race and Ethnicity (NCORE) and serves as a subject matter expert for Colorado Inclusive Economy (CIE).
Dr. Kate Lehman serves as Director of the National Resource Center for the First-Year Experience and Students in Transition (NRC) where she provides leadership for all center operations, strategic initiatives, conferences and events, publications, and scholarly and research activities. The NRC is the trusted expert, internationally-recognized leader, and clearinghouse for scholarship, policy, and best practice for all postsecondary student transitions. Kate also serves as an affiliated faculty member in the University of South Carolina’s Department of Leadership, Learning Design, and Inquiry. Dr. Lehman’s research interests center on the major selection process for first- and second-year college students, experiences that promote student retention and success in their major field (particularly STEM and computing fields), and the college-to-career transition. Prior to joining the NRC, Kate served as co-founder and Associate Director of Momentum: Accelerating Equity in Computing and Technology and as Assistant Academic Researcher and Assistant Adjunct Professor in UCLA’s School of Education & Information Studies. Over her 12 years at UCLA, Kate worked alongside Dr. Linda Sax to establish Momentum’s reputation as a leader in computing education research. Kate continues to serve as co-PI on Momentum’s NSF-funded study of students at Center for Inclusive Computing institutions.
Tom Ranzweiler is an Edward R. Murrow award-winning and Emmy-nominated senior producer for NBC News. He currently oversees a two hour block of primetime programming for the networks pioneering free 24-hour streaming platform NBC News Now. He previously worked as a producer for NBC Nightly News, MSNBC, and Al Jazeera America. Ranzweiler graduated from Monmouth University in his home state of New Jersey with a bachelor’s degree in communications.
Bryan Dewsbury, Ph.D is a Gardner Institute Fellow and an Associate Professor Biological Sciences Florida International University. He serves as a Teaching and Learning Fellow at the Gardner Institute.
Bryan Dewsbury is the principal investigator of the Science Education and Society research program, which focuses on the social context of teaching and learning in a variety of education contexts. He is ultimately interested in helping to re-frame the education discussion to better address questions of equity and community-building. His work addresses pressing issues such as student retention in STEM fields (especially in higher ed), the under-representation of minority groups in certain STEM fields, and the role of affect (instructor and student) in promoting student learning gains. He also use the results of those efforts to help faculty develop inclusive curricula and sense of community in the classroom.
Dr. Nido Qubein serves as the president of High Point University where, even in the middle of the Great Recession, he increased enrollment by 261%, grew net assets from $56M to almost a billion dollars, created 10 new academic schools – most recently adding the Workman School of Dental Medicine, and attracted $500 million in philanthropic investments. His family is among the institution’s most generous donors. Qubein has led HPU’s total enrollment this year to a record-breaking 6,040 students this year, HPU’s largest ever enrollment.
He came to the United States as a teenager with limited knowledge of English and only $50 before going on to build business partnerships in banking, real estate, publishing, and retail businesses.
Prior to his role as HPU president, Dr. Qubein rose to prominence as an internationally known author and consultant who has given more than 7,500 presentations worldwide.
He serves on the corporate boards of several Fortune 500 companies including Truist, the 6th largest bank in the nation, La-Z-boy, and Savista. Qubein is also executive chairman of the Great Harvest Bread Company.
As a member of the Piedmont Triad Partnership executive committee, Qubein participates in discussions regarding industry recruitment and job-creation among many other important regional topics all tied Piedmont Triad economic growth. Additionally, President Qubein has previously chaired the Economic Development Corporation in High Point and the High Point Chamber of Commerce.
He is inducted into the Horatio Alger Association for Distinguished Americans, along with Oprah Winfrey and Colin Powell. He is also the recipient of the DAR Americanism Award and, along with four U.S. presidents, the recipient of the Ellis Island Medal of Honor. Dr. Qubein has also been recognized as both the Citizen of the Year and Philanthropist of the Year in his home city of High Point. Most recently, he was named the Honorary Chairman for the internationally recognized PGA Wyndham Championship.
Akilah A. Martin serves as an Assistant Vice President for the Gardner Institute. In this role, Dr. Martin serves as one of the leads for the Institutional Transformation Assessment project.
Akilah A. Martin, Ed.D., began her higher education career pathway as a TRiO advisor with Lone Star College, and she continued in higher education, holding positions in admissions, student activities, and advising. Akilah served as the Alvin Community College’s director of dual enrollment and then the director of college and career pathways, championing pathways reform for the institution. In 2020, Akilah became the first Black dean of students in Alvin Community College’s 70-year history. Dr. Martin last served on a campus as dean of student transition and academic engagement at Texas Southern University, and most recently served as a strategy director with Complete College America. Akilah holds a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Southwest Texas State University, a master’s degree in Counselor Education from Texas Southern University, and a doctoral degree in Educational Leadership – Higher Education from the University of Houston–Clear Lake.
As an Assistant Vice President for the Gardner Institute, Dr. Martin serves as one of the leads for the Intermediaries for Scale project, funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
As a first-generation college student who struggled to find her academic stride, during her junior year in undergraduate school at (Southwest) Texas State University, she finally realized that she could be successful in college. During that year, she joined the first African-American Sorority founded in 1908, Alpha Kappa Alpha, Sorority, Inc., and she learned the value of time management, which led her to academic success for the first time ever! Akilah went on to earn a Master’s degree from Texas Southern University in Education and a doctoral degree in Educational Leadership from the University of Houston – Clear Lake.
As an only child to parents who did not pursue higher education, Akilah’s educational journey developed within her a passion for students who have been able to succeed beyond their environment and circumstances. Her passion is evident in how she serves students, ensures their sense of belonging, and roots for their success in and outside of the classroom! Akilah has managed to positively impact students for over 20 years through her Student Services work as a student activities coordinator, academic advisor, director of programs, adjunct faculty, and Dean of Students. Akilah’s passion and experience with K-12, community colleges and universities has now led her to the Gardner Institute, where she brings her knowledge, strengths, and skillset to help cultivate relationships and influence policies that will significantly impact the educational experience of students across the states.
Akilah is mom to her 17-year-old high school senior! She enjoys creating memories (outside as much as possible despite the Houston heat) with family and friends. Traveling has become more of an interest, and she loves Christmas movies.
As Special Assistant to the President at Elon University, Mr. Whittington provides strategic leadership for the President on projects and initiatives assigned by the President in all areas of the campus.
Formerly, Gerald Whittington was the Senior Vice President for Business, Finance and Technology at Elon University serving from January 1992 to June 1, 2019. He also served as the Corporate Treasurer of the Elon University Board of Trustees and Corporation.
He was the Vice President for Business and Finance at Agnes Scott College and has served in the administration at the University of Virginia, Duke University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
In 2018, Mr. Whittington was named the national Distinguished Business Officer by the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO). This is the highest and most prestigious award and honor offered by NACUBO.
He has an undergraduate degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an MBA from Duke University. Mr. Whittington is regularly a national speaker on the topics of higher education finance, institutional planning and construction. Additionally, he is a member of NACUBO and SACUBO and is a finance and administration evaluator for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.
Oscar R. Miranda Tapia is a Research Associate at the Belk Center for Community College Leadership and Research and a Policy Intern at North Carolina Independent Colleges & Universities. He is also a PhD student and Provost Fellow at NC State University, pursuing a degree in Educational Leadership, Policy, and Human Development, with a focus on higher education opportunity, equity, and justice. Prior to his doctoral studies, Oscar led the first-generation initiative at Elon University. He is a co-author of Connections are Everything: A College Student's Guide to Relationship-Rich Education and holds a bachelor’s degree from Elon University and a master’s degree from Harvard University.
Sarah Bunnell is the Director of the Center for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning at Elon University and Past-President of the International Society for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (ISSOTL), Bunnell is an internationally recognized leader in the scholarship of teaching and learning and faculty development. During her tenure at Amherst College, Bunnell partnered with Dr. Sheila Jaswal, Megan Lyster, and countless students and colleagues to assess, refine, and support colleges and universities across the country who have adopted and adapted the “Being Human in STEM (HSTEM)” course (see Bunnell, Jaswal, & Lyster, 2023, Routledge Press). This student, faculty, and staff co-designed course grew out of a 4-day student protest and occupation of the Amherst College library in 2015, in which students holding marginalized identities on campus spoke to their experiences of exclusion and lack of belonging on campus. Now taught across the country, HSTEM seeks to prepare students, faculty, and staff to face moments of challenge and crisis as partners. Through this work, Bunnell and colleagues are working to support educators across the country to work in partnership with their students to enable all individuals in the community to thrive, as full humans, in the academy.
Dr. Kimberly Koledoye is a professor of academic student success and serves as the program coordinator for the Houston Community College system. Additionally she teaches developmental and credit level English. She has made tremendous impact on the institution and statewide as a leader of development teams for First Year Experience courses and Developmental English redesigns. She possesses a Bachelor of Arts in English, Master of Education Administration, a Graduate Certificate in Rhetoric and Composition, and a Doctorate of Higher Education Leadership.
Meghan Gilbert is an Associate Professor of English and the Faculty Coordinator of the First Year Experience (FYE) at Guttman Community College, part of the City University of New York (CUNY). Dr. Gilbert holds a Ph.D. in English from St. John’s University. She has led and participated in several series on Implicit Bias Racial Literacy and Culturally Responsive Pedagogy, as well as many additional workshops and sessions on equitable curriculum and pedagogy, which inform her practice in the classroom and, in particular, her efforts, as Guttman’s FYE Coordinator and former Coordinator of Writing and Writing Across the Curriculum, to center curriculum and pedagogy on anti-racism and linguistic justice. Dr. Gilbert’s recent book- and article-length publications focus on intersectionality and advocacy in contemporary popular culture and fiction. She is the co-editor of Race in Young Adult Speculative Fiction, winner of the Children’s Literature Association’s Edited Book Award, and the forthcoming special issue of South Central Review, “Intersectional Feminist Detective Fiction,” her contribution to which was awarded a Popular Culture Association Earl Bargannier Award. She is writing a book-length manuscript, Composing an Anti-Racist Academy, about culturally responsive pedagogy, anti-racism, and linguistic justice in the Composition classroom and beyond, a version of which she has presented in spaces across the nation, including CUNY’s renowned Teaching Matters series and the nationally recognized Gardner Institute’s Symposium on Transforming the Post-Secondary Experience. She is a 2024 Gardner Institute Russell Edgerton Innovation Fellow, a 2023 Andrew W. Mellon Transformative Learning in the Humanities Faculty Fellow, and a 2022 recipient of the American Association of Community Colleges’ Dale P. Parnell Faculty Distinction Recognition.
Dr. Robert (Bob) Smith is the University of Tennessee System’s Senior Advisor for Executive Leadership and Talent Development.
In 2023, he took leave to serve as the Interim Executive Director for the Tennessee Higher Education Commission, the state’s agency for coordination and state-wide policy guidance to all public institutions of higher education in Tennessee. Responsibilities included executing the state’s master plan for higher education, managing the state’s performance and quality outcomes formulas, as well as increasing degree attainment and protect students and consumers.
Smith has devoted more than five decades of service to public higher education. In 1999, following administrative roles at Wichita State University and the University of Tennessee at Martin, he became the Provost at Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania (SRU) later president, retiring as President Emeritus in 2012. He was named Chancellor of the University of Tennessee at Martin (UTM) and Chancellor Emeritus for service between 2015 and 2017.
Since 2017 in his current role, he created and directed the University of Tennessee Executive Leadership Institute and the Tennessee Higher Education Innovation and Leadership Fellows program for the Tennessee Higher Education Commission. These two programs have helped prepare a new generation of executive leaders for all Tennessee public higher education sectors.
In 1980-1981, he was competitively selected as a Fellow for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Secretary, serving in the Carter and Reagan administrations.
His work has led to more than two dozen national institutional honors for innovation in enrollment management. In 2011, the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers awarded him their inaugural “Strategic Enrollment Management Leadership” award. He has also been recognized as a "First-Year Student Advocate" by the National Resource Center for the First-Year Experience and Students in Transition; and recipient of two national teaching awards from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE). In 2005, he received an Honorary Doctorate in Letters from Rajasthan Vidyapeeth University in Udaipur India for his help in developing educational opportunities in rural India.
Smith and his wife, Ramona, live in Franklin, Tennessee. His son and daughter-in-law live in Knoxville, Tennessee and his daughter and son-in-law live in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Leonard Cassuto wears many hats. He's a professor of American literature at Fordham University, a well-known voice of reform in the graduate school world, and--encompassing all of these--he's a writer. He has written or edited ten books on subjects such as race and slavery, detective stories, and of course graduate education. As a scholar and journalist, Len has written about science, music, and even sports. In more than a decade as a columnist on graduate education for The Chronicle of Higher Education ("The Graduate Adviser"), he has helped graduate schools think about how to change to meet the needs of changing students during exigent times. Len's newest book, Academic Writing as if Readers Matter, takes in all of these pursuits. It's a pithy and witty handbook filled with advice and examples from across the arts and sciences--and it's also a hortatory call for academic writing that will build community with different kinds of readers, to serve the public good.
We cover a lot of ground in this podcast conversation with Len, from his early career as a scholar, his concerns as a higher ed reformer, and the path that has led to his new book.
Visit his website: www.lcassuto.com
John W. Lawless has many years of experience as a manager and CEO of business and non-profit organizations. His career began in the information systems division of McDonnell Douglas and includes the founding of HBOC, a nationwide healthcare information systems company.
John Lawless was also involved in the establishment of several start-up companies and mergers, most notably the merger of Inforum and Medstat to create the Michigan-based firm of Medstat, a healthcare information company. Lawless has also served on the boards of several arts organizations and served as chair of the board for the Arts Center of Coastal Carolina in Hilton Head,SC.
Lawless is now retired and lives with his wife, Barbara, in Hendersonville, NC. Mr. Lawless served the Gardner Institute board for over 8 years. He brings a long history of making non-profit organizations even more viable in addition to his extraordinary business acumen and experience in strategic planning.
A Maine native, Wendy Ault is a graduate of Bates College in Lewiston, Maine. She has worked as a reproductive health teacher and the Assistant Director of Admissions at Westbrook College (now the University of New England) in Portland, Maine.
Wendy Ault served as University of Maine at Farmington’s Associate Director of Admissions for seventeen years. For eight years of her time at UMF, she ran and was elected to the Maine House of Representatives representing part of Kennebec County from 1988 through 1996. She served all eight years as a member of the Joint Standing Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs, serving as its House Chair during her last term. In September 1999, Ms. Ault became President of the non-profit Maine Educational Loan Marketing Corporation. When MELMAC was sold to a for-profit corporation in January 2001, the proceeds from that sale created the MELMAC Education Foundation. Since 2001 Wendy has been the Executive Director of the MELMAC Education Foundation. She lives in Wayne, Maine with her husband.
Dr. James “Jim” Reardon is a retired psychiatrist who resides with his wife in New Zealand. He came to the attention of this podcast by being the first supervisor of podcast host, John Gardner, when both Gardner and Reardon were THE “Psychiatric Clinic” at Shaw Air Force Base, Sumter, South Carolina during the Vietnam War. Dr. Reardon was the Base psychiatrist and Gardner was his only psychiatric social worker. Together they provided mental health services for 8000 troops and 19,000 dependents during wartime. Jim is a perfect fit for this podcast because he was then an innovator right after finishing medical school, residency, and practice at a large California state mental hospital. Jim showed his impressionable and seven years younger subordinate how to do two things: 1) innovate in a profession where one successfully modified the status quo modality for “treatment” of patients for the kinds of challenges they were facing in the Air Force during war time; 2) innovate in a highly structured, disciplined and seeming inflexible military structure where to best serve troops some innovative approaches were greatly needed. While young John didn’t quite know it yet, his mentor, Jim Reardon, was teaching him a great deal about how to serve college students better and to enact change in a very traditional, centuries old structure. After the Air Force Jim went on to practice psychiatry for the next 50 years or so in both the United States and New Zealand. He and John continue to influence each other via Zoom on a regular basis. Jim hasn’t lost his mentor touch and John his openness to learn from other inspiring innovators.
Will Bryant is a native of Western North Carolina and was ordained in the Episcopal Church in 2021.
Will holds a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a Master of Divinity degree from Church Divinity School of the Pacific in Berkeley, California.
With over 12 years of experience working in and among Episcopal congregations, Will is passionate about pastoral care, preaching, and youth ministry. He currently acts as the dean of the Asheville deanery. He is a product of Camp Henry, and he attended the diocesan summer camp for over a decade as a camper and counselor. He proudly serves on the Board of Directors for the Lake Logan Episcopal Center.
Will is a proud alumnus of the Young Adult Service Corps of the Episcopal Church (YASC). Will completed two years as a YASC missionary, proudly serving at the Mission to Seafarers in Hong Kong, and St. Paul's Within the Walls Episcopal Church in Rome, Italy.
When not at church, you can probably find Will out running or hiking on one of Asheville's many trails. He loves being outside, cooking, reading fiction, and playing backgammon. He and his wife, Molly, and their charming dog, Camper, live in West Asheville.
Will Bryant is a native of Western North Carolina and was ordained in the Episcopal Church in 2021.
Will holds a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a Master of Divinity degree from Church Divinity School of the Pacific in Berkeley, California.
With over 12 years of experience working in and among Episcopal congregations, Will is passionate about pastoral care, preaching, and youth ministry. He currently acts as the dean of the Asheville deanery. He is a product of Camp Henry, and he attended the diocesan summer camp for over a decade as a camper and counselor. He proudly serves on the Board of Directors for the Lake Logan Episcopal Center.
Will is a proud alumnus of the Young Adult Service Corps of the Episcopal Church (YASC). Will completed two years as a YASC missionary, proudly serving at the Mission to Seafarers in Hong Kong, and St. Paul's Within the Walls Episcopal Church in Rome, Italy.
When not at church, you can probably find Will out running or hiking on one of Asheville's many trails. He loves being outside, cooking, reading fiction, and playing backgammon. He and his wife, Molly, and their charming dog, Camper, live in West Asheville.
Amy Goodburn is Senior Associate Vice Chancellor and Dean of Undergraduate Education and Professor of English at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) where she leads units in advising and career development, teaching and learning, and student retention and transition. Passionate about UNL’s land-grant mission to support access and equity, in 2017 she created First Generation Nebraska, a campus initiative to support first generation scholars.
Goodburn has served as a board member and president for UERU, a board member for UNIZIN, and a peer reviewer for the Higher Learning Commission. She was UNL’s institutional lead for the APLU Powered by Publics initiative from 2018-2023 and has led UNL’s First Scholars participation since 2018.
From 2001-2013, Goodburn co-coordinated UNL’s Peer Review of Teaching Project, a faculty development program to document and assess student learning which won the 2006 TIAA-CREFF Hesburgh award. Her publications include Inquiry into the College Classroom: A Model for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning and Making Teaching and Learning Visible: Peer Review and Course Portfolios. She earned a bachelor’s degree in English and Political Science from Miami University and two Masters’ degrees in English Education and English and a Ph.D. in Composition and Rhetoric from The Ohio State University.
Dr. Stephen C. Ehrmann has dedicated over fifty years to supporting innovation in higher education through his roles as a researcher, grant-maker, consultant, and academic leader. He is currently exploring how institutions can simultaneously enhance the authenticity of learning, equity of access to degrees, and affordability. Throughout his career, Dr. Ehrmann has worked hundreds of institutions in the US and abroad, keynoted conferences, and authored three books and over one hundred articles. He holds a Ph.D. in Management and Higher Education from MIT.
Dr. Ehrmann began his career at The Evergreen State College, where he evaluated the development of the institution. He also worked with administrators and faculty to help them get answers to their most important questions by doing research together. Today that practice is called the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning.
For the next 18 years, he served as a program officer, initially with the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE) and later with the Annenberg/CPB Project. During this period, he supported pioneering projects including early online degree programs, innovative faculty development approaches, novel program evaluation methods, multimedia databases for research and teaching, and a consortium for quality in non-traditional education.
Dr. Ehrmann then became the founding Vice President of the non-profit Teaching, Learning, and Technology Group (TLT Group), where he led the Flashlight Program. Flashlight provided innovative tools and methods for evaluating educational innovations, particularly in the use of technology. The Flashlight Program received the 1998 award for Best Contribution to Distance Learning Research from the United States Distance Learning Association and the 2001 Award for Outstanding Innovation in Distance Learning from the Instructional Technology Council.
As Vice Provost for Teaching and Learning at The George Washington University, Dr. Ehrmann established the university’s teaching center and directed its faculty development efforts. He led a cross-silo effort to make valuable and visible improvements in undergraduate research. Steve also created the GW Coalition for Teaching Support, uniting leaders from nearly 40 units and committees responsible for teaching support. During his tenure, he collaborated with leaders of new online degree programs to identify features that enhanced both recruitment and educational effectiveness.
At the Kirwan Center for Academic Innovation, Dr. Ehrmann evaluated the University System of Maryland’s eight-year course redesign program. The redesigned courses typically had lower DFW rates and higher grades while saving faculty time. Undergraduate learning assistants were often a key factor in the success of large, redesigned courses.
Dr. Ehrmann’s influential publications include "Implementing the Seven Principles: Technology as Lever" (co-authored with Arthur Chickering), "Asking the Right Questions: What Research Tells Us About Technology and Higher Learning," and "The Future of the Learning Space" (co-authored with Phil Long). His latest book, Pursuing Quality, Access, and Affordability: A Field Guide to Improving Higher Education, has been called “one of the most important books on higher education in decades.”
Meet JD Gardner, the grandson of founder Dr. John Gardner. JD is from Lexington, South Carolina and graduated in 2023 from Heathwood Hall, a prestigious private school in Columbia, South Carolina.
In his time as a Heathwood Hall student, he earned a 3.9 GPA, was a 3-year honor roll student, as well as voted into school office as the executive council secretary. JD has devoted his life to athletics just as much in the classroom. On the court at Heathwood Hall, JD was a 1000 point scorer, the 2022-23 regional player of the year, a 3 time all region player, broke the schools single game scoring record, as well as achieving other notable honors.
JD is now a student-athlete at Sewanee: The University of the South, where he has continued his basketball career. In his first year, JD was selected to the Deans List, as well as a conference SAA all academic honor roll selection. JD is a member of the Greens-view Capital Investments Club. JD is an undeclared student, but is a business minor and heading towards the finance/economics route. For the 2024 summer, JD is interning with State Farm.
Claire Howell Major is Professor of Higher Education and Director of the Teaching Academy at the University of Alabama. Her research centers on faculty work, pedagogical approaches, technology for teaching, and online learning. Major has authored and co-authored several books, including five with Elizabeth Barkley. Their newest work is titled Engaged Teaching: A Handbook for College Faculty. They also have four additional texts that comprise the College Teaching Techniques series published by Wiley/Jossey Bass: Interactive Lecturing, Student Engagement Techniques, Collaborative Learning Techniques, and Learning Assessment Techniques. She has also published Teaching Online: A Guide to Theory, Research, and Practice (published by Johns Hopkins University Press)and Teaching for Learning: 101 Intentionally Designed Educational Techniques to Put Students on the Path to Success (published by Routledge, with Michael Harris and Todd Zakrajsek). In addition, she has published several books on qualitative research methods. She has made over 100 presentations worldwide and is the co-founder of the K. Patricia Cross Academy (https://kpcrossacademy.org).
Dr. Eileen Strempel currently serves as the Inaugural Dean of UCLA’s Herb Alpert School of Music and is also a Professor in UCLA’s School of Education & Information Studies. Strempel is recognized as one of “The Top Ten Deans in U.S. Colleges and Universities,” and has served as PI or co-PI on ~$11M in extramural funding from the National Science Foundation, the Department of Labor, the Department of Education, the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, the NY State Education Department and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.
A Presidential Scholar, Strempel is a nationally recognized higher education scholar, with a special interest in equitable student success and transfer students. Strempel views access to superb public education as one of the principal social justice issues of our time. Her most recent book with co-author Stephen J. Handel is entitled: Beyond Free College: Making Higher Education Work for 21st Century Students. Strempel received her Bachelor of Music from Eastman School of Music and her doctorate from Indiana University.
Steve MacQueen is the Executive Director of the Vermont International Film Festival, a position he has occupied since June of 2023. He has been a curator and arts administrator since 1998, heading multidisciplinary programs in Georgia, Florida and North Carolina before coming to Vermont. He was the Artistic Director for the Flynn Center for the Performing Arts and Burlington Discover Jazz Festival from 2012-2022. From 2022-2023, he was the Executive Artistic Director of Circus Smirkus, the iconic youth-cirque troupe based in Greensboro, VT. Prior to his arts-admin life, he spent 10 years as a reporter and arts writer for daily newspapers in Florida. He is a double-graduate of Florida State University, where he earned his BA in English/Film Studies and his MA in Arts Administration.
Dr. Kerri Kearney is a professor of higher education and student affairs at Oklahoma State University (OSU). Her research and service primarily focuses on hidden student populations in higher education (students with backgrounds of socially stigmatizing, complex trauma) and organizational behavior, theory, and structure in higher education. Using her evolving research and practice experience, she established the R is for Thursday Network of Oklahoma in 2013, an initiative at the convergence of child welfare and higher education and a forerunner of the R is for Thursday Collective. Nationally, Dr. Kearney sits on the leadership team for Fostering Academic Achievement Nationwide (FAAN) and is the founder and leader of the National Conference for Hidden Student Populations, the nation’s first research conference on college students with foster care experience and other socially stigmatizing trauma. She sat on the board of directors for Oklahoma’s Count Me in 4 Kids, which received a governor’s commendation and established Oklahoma’s current Safe Families program, and she is a former executive committee member for the National Research Collaborative for Foster Alumni and Higher Education. Dr. Kearney’s work is published in diverse fields including higher education and student affairs, management and executive coaching, and qualitative research. Dr. Kearney has an M.B.A. in management and an Ed.D., as well as multiple trauma and wellness-related certifications. She spent over 20 years as an organizational consultant across varied industries before entering academia. She holds the Christine Cashel Professorship in Higher Education and Student Affairs and also serves as the Associate School Head for Educational Foundations, Leadership and Aviation in OSU's College of Education and Human Sciences.
Dr. Doris J. Fields is the Interim Associate Provost and Associate Vice President of Academic Programs and Initiatives and Professor of Communication at Eastern Michigan University. Dr. Fields completed both a Bachelor of Science degree (1990) and a Master of Arts degree (1992) from Eastern Michigan University. Dr. Fields later pursued a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Communication Education from Wayne State University (2002). Dr. Fields’ areas of specialization include Interracial/Interethnic Communication, Intercultural Communication, Public Speaking, Gender Communication and Persuasion. Additionally, Dr. Fields has designed and facilitated several workshops on Diversity/Race and Communication.
Dr. Fields is the recipient of: The Ronald W. Collins Distinguished Faculty II Award (2013), Michigan Distinguished Professor of the Year Nominee (2014), Top 25 Women Professors in Michigan Recognition (2013), Cornerstone Award recipient from The Center for Multicultural Affairs (2015), EMU Alumni Teaching Excellence Award recipient, Most Valuable Professor Award presented by the Eastern Michigan Men’s and Women's Basketball Teams, Teaching Recognition by the TAU Kappa Epsilon Chapter., Nominated for the Celebration of Student Success Award and the NAACP-EMU 12th, “Thank A Teacher,” recipient, Keynote Speaker for the Eastern Michigan University Freshman Orientation (Fall 2014), Keynote Speaker for the Multicultural Graduation (2017), EMU Distinguished Woman in Higher Education Leadership Award Recipient (2019), recipient of the Eastern Michigan University Board of Regents resolution for participation on the MLK celebration planning committee (2020) and recipient of the resolution from Washtenaw County’s 2nd Annual Juneteenth Celebration Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners (2022).
Victoria T. Fields is a doctoral student and Instructor of Record in the Department of Communication at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign (UIUC). In 2023, she was awarded the Ebony Excellence Instructor of the Year Award from the Bruce D. Nesbitt African American Cultural Center at UIUC.
Victoria also works as a graduate assistant for Instructional Design for the Gardner Institute and contributes to the design and delivery of academies offered through the Gardner Institute across the country.
Victoria's research centers on rhetorical history, Black women's rhetoric, social movements, and sports. She also has a graduate minor in Gender and Women’s Studies with an emphasis on Black feminism and activism, as well as experience as a DEI professional. Her work has been published in Volume 11 of the Eastern Michigan University McNair Scholars Journal, International Review for the Sociology of Sport, and the Sociology of Sport Journal.
Dr. Steven P. Dandaneau is Associate Provost at Colorado State University and Executive Director of the Association for Undergraduate Education at Research Universities (UERU). In these roles, Dr. Dandaneau provides executive leadership for a national consortium of leading research universities focused on innovation in undergraduate education and collaborates with colleagues to strengthen the undergraduate experience at CSU.
Dr. Dandaneau previously served as Vice Provost for Undergraduate Studies at Kansas State University; Associate Provost and Director of the Chancellor’s Honors and Halsam Scholars Programs at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville; visiting professor of Sociology at the University of Maryland, College Park; and Director of the University Honors & John W. Berry Sr. Scholars Programs at the University of Dayton.
He earned a B.A. in Economics (with honors) from Michigan State University and an M.A. and Ph.D. in Sociology from Brandeis University.
Stephanie M. Foote is the Vice President for Teaching, Learning, and Evidence-Based Practices. Prior to joining the Institute staff in August 2017, Stephanie was the founding director of the Master of Science in First-Year Studies, professor of education in the Department of First-Year and Transition Studies, and faculty fellow for High-Impact Practices at Kennesaw State University.
Stephanie M. Foote served as the founding Director of the Academic Success Center and First-Year Experience at the University of South Carolina Aiken, and was the Associate Director for Student Orientation and Family Programs at Stony Brook University.
Her scholarship and consultative work span a variety of aspects of student development and transition, including: the role of first-year seminars and experiential pedagogy on student engagement in the early college experience, the community college transfer student transition, self-authorship development, engagement and learning in online environments, faculty development, metacognitive teaching and learning approaches, and high-impact educational practices. Stephanie is a recipient of the McGraw-Hill Excellence in Teaching First-Year Seminars award, and a past recipient of the NODA Outstanding Research Award for her research on the effects of first-year seminar participation on the experience of students in the early college experience. Stephanie routinely serves as a faculty member for the National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in Transition’s Institute on Developing and Sustaining First-Year Seminars and developed and has taught the online course, Fostering First-Year Student Success for the Center since 2010.
Stephanie earned her Ph.D. from the University of South Carolina in Educational Administration-Higher Education and has served as a Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) Lead Evaluator for several institutions during their reaffirmation process through the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS-COC), and Stephanie has participated in the Foundations of Excellence Process for both first-year and transfer students.
Dr. Robert Blanc has taught in medical schools, universities, colleges, high schools, and a primary school during his 70+ years in education. Bob is a long-time collaborator with Deanna C. Martin. He helped Deanna develop the “supplementary instruction” (SI) program and practices around the world. SI programs are commonly named “Peer Assisted Study Session” (PASS) programs in schools in Europe, Africa, and Oceana. Bob’s successful work at Port ElizabethUniversity (now Mandela University) helped open South Africa to SI. Bob also made a big contribution to SI/PASS through its application to medical education in US and Caribbean medical schools.
Dr. Tonya C. Bailey(she/her/hers) is an accomplished executive leader with over 25 years of experience in higher education and corporate settings, leading transformative programming, and implementing award-winning diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, coaching, & teaching services.
Dr. Bailey is a sought-after speaker, workshop presenter, life coach, and inclusionist skilled in engaging diverse audiences by creating environments that accommodate the diverse needs of everyone.
Her professional experiences include serving in executive-level roles such as President Advisor, Vice President of Operations, Chief Diversity Officer, Program Director for Student Success, Lead Faculty, and Curriculum Development Director. Currently, she serves as the Associate Dean for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) and Community Engagement at Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine, where she also serves as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Foundational Medical Studies. She earned her Ph.D. in the Higher Educational Leadership program at Central Michigan University, received her master’s degree in public administration from the University of Michigan, and obtained her Bachelor of Science in Mass Communications.
Dr. Bailey is the CEO of her consulting business, TCB Consulting LLC. TCB Consulting, Inc. is a boutique executive/team coaching, corporate strategy practice, and professional development service. Founded in 2011 with a dual mission: to serve the most critical challenges faced by organizations and their leaders and to address professional development from the only place it works: from the inside out, TCB Consulting’s purpose is to make individuals and organizations wildly successful.
In addition to her professional career, Dr. Bailey is a podcast host, a licensed realtor, and a recording artist. She also serves the community in numerous capacities, including as Executive Board Member of the Michigan Health Council, National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education (NADOHE) Board Member, Michigan Coronavirus Taskforce on Racial Disparities Michigan Racial Disparities, and the Community-Based Organization Partners - Community Ethics Review Board. She was recently elected to the American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC) Group on the Diversity and Inclusion Steering Committee, overseeing the entire Central Region for the association. The organizer and founder of Women in Power (WIP), an Annual two-day empowerment Summit for women and teens attracts over 300 attendees annually. Her mentoring program, Women Inspiring Scholarship and Empowerment (WISE), expands across three Michigan cities and supports college-age students.
In February 2023, Dr. Bailey launched national quarterly empowerment breakfast meetings entitled “The Renaissance of Women” to provide a safe space for women to retool, reassess, and refresh their skills. This fall, she will host Women Empowerment Sessions for women in leadership roles to further their professional development and help them realize their dreams. Dr. Bailey received the 2022 Michigan ACE (American Council on Education) Network Distinguished Woman in Higher Education Leadership Award. Dr. Tonya Bailey is cited for her efforts on behalf of the human need for community, connection, and belonging. She has founded and led several programs throughout Michigan focusing on leadership, entrepreneurship, mentoring, and inspiring women.
As a Certified Diversity Executive (CDE) ®, Dr. Bailey is a cultural diversity resource in any organization and lives by the motto, “You don’t become great until you make someone else greater!”
Dr. April Perry (she/her) is an Associate Professor in the M.Ed. Higher Education Student Affairs program and serves at Department Head/Chair for Human Services at Western Carolina University. Her research is primarily on college student identity development, career development, student transitions, and institutional initiatives for student success. She is the co-editor of the recent book - A Practitioner's Guide to Supporting Graduate and Professional Students (Routledge, 2022).
As a practitioner, April has worked in Student Leadership Programs, Parent & Family Programs, Fundraising & Marketing, Academic Tutoring Services, Graduate School Administration, and has served in various leadership roles in the academy such as Department Head, Assistant Department Head, Interim Associate Dean of the Grad School, and HESA Graduate Program Director.
In 2016, April received the WCU Graduate School’s Award for Excellence in Graduate Student Mentoring. In 2017, she was named Outstanding Professional in Graduate and Professional Student Services by NASPA's AGAPSS Knowledge Community. In 2020, she was selected for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation's Blue Ridge Stand Out (14 under 40). In 2022, she was honored with NASPA AGAPSS’ Outstanding Contribution to Research and the Profession Award, and also in 2022 received NASPA Faculty Council’s Outstanding Support for Graduate Students Award. In 2024, her book was selected for the Outstanding Publication Award by NASPA’s Faculty Council.
April is passionate about student/human development and lives by the motto that 'the only thing better than watching someone grow is helping them grow.'
Dr. Lane Perry is focused on innovation, creativity, and entrepreneurship. He works to connect with students, partners, and colleagues to leverage resources to solve problems collaboratively. He is keenly focused on work that is dedicated to improving the lot of others and tapping into their deepest wells of energy, passion, and knowledge. His ultimate goal is to guide students to develop the tools to discover their personal answer to the question, "What do you care enough about, to do something about in this world?" He is a USASBE Rural Entrepreneurship Fellow, has received dozens of awards for his work with community engagement, service-learning, and civic development, and has published extensively in the fields of pedagogy, global education, community engagement, entrepreneurship, and public health. His latest work is an edited book focused on social entrepreneurship with De Gruyter publishing (expected publishing date is late-2024).
Kevin Kelly, EdD, works with colleges and universities as a consultant to address distance education, educational technology, and organizational challenges. He teaches online courses as a Lecturer in the Department of Equity, Leadership Studies, and Instructional Technologies at San Francisco State University, where he also previously served as the Online Teaching and Learning Manager. Kevin is the author or co-author of several books including Making College Courses Flexible (2024), The Blended Course Design Workbook (2024, with Kathryn Linder), and Advancing Online Teaching: Creating Equity-Based Digital Learning Environments (2021, with Todd Zakrajsek).
Dr. Jillian Kinzie is Associate Director of the Indiana University Center for Postsecondary Research and the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) Institute. She conducts research and leads project activities on effective use of student engagement data to improve educational quality, and serves as senior scholar with the National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment (NILOA) project. She is co-author of Radical Reimagining for Student Success (2023); Delivering on the Promise of High-Impact Practices: Research and Models for Achieving Equity, Fidelity, Impact, and Scale (2022), Assessment in Student Affairs (2016); Using Evidence of Student Learning to Improve Higher Education (2015); One Size Does not Fit All: Traditional and Innovative Models of Student Affairs Practice, Second Edition (2014), and Student Success in College (2005/2010). She is co-editor of New Directions in Higher Education, is on the editorial board of Innovative Higher Education and the Journal of Postsecondary Student Success and serves on the board of the Gardner Institute for Excellence in Undergraduate Education. She is a peer reviewer for several accreditors and regularly consults with colleges and universities about assessment, effective educational practice, inclusive excellence, high-impact practices, and support for student success.
Dr. Phyllis Curtis-Tweed earned her Ph.D. at Emory University in Educational Studies with a focus on educational leadership and issues in psychology, specifically agency development, and moral development. She pursued postdoctoral training in psychology in the Clinical Research Training Program in Social Psychiatry at Harvard University where she was also an instructor for five years and taught at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, Simmons College and at the Harvard affiliated Hospitals. She previously served as College-wide Dean at Oakland Community College in Michigan and worked in various capacities at Medgar Evers College, CUNY including Director of the Freshman Year Programs, Assistant Provost for Student Success and Assessment, and interim Associate Provost.
Dr. Phyllis Curtis-Tweed then served as the Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs at Bermuda College where she transformed the Division of Nursing into the Division of Nursing and Allied Health, and added multiple programmes including pre-health, medical imaging, and pre-medicine. She developed strong relations with community and industry leaders in re/insurance leading to the development of numerous internships and scholarships opportunities for Bermuda College graduates. She also led the strategic planning and implementation initiative, collaborated with college task forces to improve campus culture and develop a shared governance model. She also served as co-editor of Bermuda College’s Voices in Education journal. Dr. Curtis-Tweed also worked with community partners to support the pipeline for higher education by improving reading literacy outcomes for children in elementary education. Dr Curtis-Tweed is an Executive Board Member and Treasurer for the Association for Moral Education, and is the co-chair for the Association’s Special Interest Group on Race and Social Justice. She is a co-researcher on a project designed to improve the experience of education for teachers and students by addressing issues of race and contexts of racial meaning in education and concomitant intersections with religion and culture via authentic dialogue in response to selected films. She has published and presented at national and international conferences on issues in psychology and education, particularly regarding the first year experience. Dr. Curtis-Tweed also worked with community partners to support the pipeline for higher education by improving reading literacy outcomes for children in elementary education.
Dr. Curtis-Tweed is an Executive Board Member and Treasurer for the Association for Moral Education, and is the co-chair for the Association’s Special Interest Group on Race and Social Justice. She is a co-researcher on a project designed to improve the experience of education for teachers and students by addressing issues of race and contexts of racial meaning in education and concomitant intersections with religion and culture via authentic dialogue in response to selected films. She has published and presented at national and international conferences on issues in psychology and education, particularly regarding the first year experience. Dr. Curtis-Tweed has also served as an invited external evaluator for accrediting agencies including the Southern Association of Colleges and School (SACS) and the Western Association of Schools and College (WASC) and was a Commissioner-Elect for the New England Commission for Higher Education (NECHE).
Dr. Curtis-Tweed is currently the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at Queensborough Community College of the City University of New York(CUNY).
Steve Smith is a Professor of Psychology at Saint Mary’s University. He has previously held the roles of Associate Vice-President Academic & Enrollment Management, Dean of Science, and Registrar, all at SMU. As an administrator, Steve’s focus was on initiatives to support student success. In partnership with his SMU colleagues, he launched (and assessed) several new initiatives. The research he has presented and published on those initiatives has demonstrated the short- and long-term benefits of several different student success programs. Steve’s Tri-Council, provincial, and industry-funded research covers a broad range of topics, including forensic psychology, bias against people with criminal records, particularly Black and Indigenous applicants, student success, health promotion, DEI issues, and others.
Denise Bartell is Associate Provost for Academic Affairs at Kent State University, where she facilitates strategic initiatives related to access, retention, completion, and student success with a focus on improving equity of outcomes for historically underserved students and empowering faculty as key stakeholders in this work. Her scholarship takes a systemic and explicitly relational approach, most recently exploring a reconceptualization of faculty development to utilize principles of high impact learning experiences and authentic engagement to create communities of transformation where members are empowered to transform public higher education as a tool for building a more just and equitable society. Denise earned a B.S. in Human Development & Family Studies from Cornell University, and an M.A. and Ph.D. in Human Development & Family Sciences from the University of Texas at Austin.
Dr. David L. Graham is the Assistant Vice-Provost for Student Academic Success at The Ohio State University. He has been at Ohio State since 2006 and has over twenty-five years of higher education experience in academic affairs, student life, and intercollegiate athletics. Dr. Graham was a 2013-2014 American Council on Education (ACE) Fellow and earned a bachelor’s degree in Electronic Engineering, Technology, and Mathematics from Savannah State University, a master’s degree in Sports Management from Georgia Southern University, and a Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration from the Ohio University Patton College of Education.
Dr. Graham has been recognized for his ability to develop and implement strategic plans to achieve specific student success goals. His research is focused on various issues concerning the administration of intercollegiate athletics in higher education (e.g., academic integrity and achievement, gender, racial and ethnic diversity, Title IX, corporate sponsorship, learning disabilities, and fiscal responsibility), and the effects of college on student-athlete development and learning outcomes. He is a co-author of the book Black Males and Intercollegiate Athletics: An Exploration of Problems and Solutions and has delivered more than 100 professional conference presentations, workshops, symposia, and other scholarly addresses.
Paul LePore is the associate dean for Student and Academic Programs in The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and a clinical professor in ASU’s T. Denny Sanford School of Social and Family Dynamics. His appointment began in December 2008. As associate dean, LePore focuses on issues involving student success, including new student recruitment; improving student retention and time to graduation; academic advising; curriculum development; learning assessment; student engagement in high impact practices; managing the college’s residential living/learning programs; and enrollment management. A sociologist by training (specializing in social psychology, sociology of education, and comparative sociology), LePore’s scholarship explores educational policies and practices that promote equity and achievement for all students.
Professor Sally Kift is a Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (PFHEA), a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Law (FAAL), and President of the Australian Learning & Teaching Fellows (ALTF). She has held several Australian university leadership positions, including as Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) at James Cook University (JCU) and inaugural Director, First Year Experience at Queensland University of Technology (QUT). Sally is a national Teaching Award winner (Business & Law: 2003), a national Program Award winner (Assessment & Feedback: 2006) and was appointed an Australian Discipline Scholar in Law in 2010. She was awarded a national Senior Teaching Fellowship over 2006-2009 to investigate the First Year Experience and develop Transition Pedagogy to support diverse student cohorts’ success via intentional and inclusive curriculum design. In 2017, Sally received an Australian Awards for University TeachingCareer Achievement Award for her contribution to Australian higher education.
Since 2017, Sally has been working as an independent higher education consultant. Over 2018-2021, she was a Visiting Professorial Fellow at the National Centre for Student Equity in Higher Education (NCSEHE), Curtin University and now chairs NCSEHE’s Grants and Fellowships Committee. In 2018-2019, she was a Ministerial appointment to the Australian Qualifications Framework Review that recommended a range of enhancements for diverse learners’ participation and attainment in pursuit of lifelong learning. Sally now holds a Vice Chancellor’s Strategic Fellowship at Victoria University and is an Adjunct Professor at JCU, QUT and La Trobe University. She is Advisory Board Chair for the Student Success Journal and has co-edited an international collection on Student Retention and Success in Higher Education (2021).
His 30 years of experience in teaching, research & executive leadership, includes being a 2003 Fellow of the American Council on Education. Currently, he is the Northwest region President at the Community College of Allegheny County in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania. Previous roles included President, Campus CEO and Vice President for Student Affairs and Enrollment Management. He was the recipient of the Faculty Award, for "Excellence in Scholarship" while serving as faculty and chairperson of the education department at Olivet College. In 2020, he was the recipient of the prestigious Paragon Award for New Presidents, where he was one of 28 community college presidents who were recognized by the Phi Theta Kappa national honor society. This award is given to new presidents who have shown strong support of student success by recognizing academic achievement, leadership and service among high-achieving students at their college.
During his career, he served as a systems appraiser for the Academic Quality Improvement program for the Higher Learning Commission, as well as being appointed the American Association of Community Colleges to serve as a Commissioner on their College Readiness and on Student Success. He is currently serves a three year term on the structured pathways commission. His research activities on issues associated with student success, diversity, strategic planning and enrollment management, have led to over 150 citations of his work, as well as book chapters and publications in national journals. He currently serves as a reviewer for the Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory and Practice and editor for the American Association for Advancement of Science - AAAS-IUSE’s The Disruptor Blog. He teaches within the Higher Education program at Stony Brook University, where he teaches their Community College Leadership course.
Recognized for his entrepreneurial and collaborative leadership approach, he is credited with spearheading the conceptualizing and redesign of high tech and data driven Student Success Centers and enrollment processes at three community colleges. In addition to receiving national recognition from the League of Innovation and EDUCAUSE, these initiatives led to increases in student persistence and enrollment. While at Suffolk County Community College, he was a part of an executive team that partnered with the faculty and the union leadership in spearheading advocacy efforts on behalf of the Eastern campus that led to receiving $40 million in capital funding to construct a new Learning Resource Center and a Health and Wellness facility.
In 2013, he was awarded the New York Suffolk County, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commission award and the New York Governor's certificate of recognition for his public service and contributions to diversity in Suffolk County. Locally, he currently serves on the boards of the Northside Shore Chamber of Commerce as its Vice Chair, Propel Charter Schools as its Vice President and Secretary and Allen Place. He is also a member of Carnegie Mellon University’s “Center for Shared Prosperity”. He is involved with the Pittsburgh Region Talent Coalition and the Chamber’s Northside Works Committee on Workforce development.
Stephen J. Handel, PhD, oversees a portfolio of grants designed to solidify ECMC Foundation’s commitment to the systematic and widespread improvement of students' postsecondary education outcomes, especially students from underserved groups. Steve’s special focus is on college and university transformation as a key lever in substantially increasing student degree and credential completion and advancing their social and economic mobility. Prior to joining the Foundation, he served as the College Board’s Senior Strategist for Strategic Higher Education Assessment Use and Opportunity. In this capacity, he consulted with college and university enrollment leaders in the application of fair and effective higher education admission assessments and other resources that benefit students seeking success in postsecondary education, especially students from underserved groups. Steve also served as chief admission officer for the University of California (UC) system, providing leadership on freshman and community college transfer policy and practice for the nine UC undergraduate campuses. With over 23 years of service at the UC, Steve served in a variety of leadership roles in such areas as undergraduate admissions, enrollment management, outreach, and student services.
Steve is the co-author of books and monographs on higher education, including Beyond Free College: Making Higher Education Work for 21st Century Students with Eileen L. Strempel (Rowman & Littlefield, 2021) and the two-volume series, Transition and Transformation (also with Strempel, 2016, 2018), The Promise of the Transfer Pathway: Opportunity and Challenge for Community College Students Seeking the Baccalaureate Degree (with Ronald Williams, 2012) and the Community College Sourcebook: Strategies for Advising Transfer Students from Experienced Community College Counselors (2009). Steve's articles and essays have appeared in The Los Angeles Times, The Chronicle of Higher Education, Inside Higher Education, Times Higher Education (UK), Change: The Magazine of Higher Learning, and About Campus. Some titles include Fairness and Fate in Elite College Admissions, Reigniting the Promise of the Transfer Pathway, College Admission: Now and Then Again, Under Match and the Community College Student, Reimagining Remediation (with Ronald Williams), Strengthening the Nation by Narrowing the Gap (with James Montoya) and Second Chance, Not Second Class: A Blueprint for Community College Transfer.
Steve earned his PhD and MA degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles, a BA from California State University, Sacramento, and an AA from Cosumnes River Community College (Sacramento, CA).
Dr. Amy Salazar currently serves as the Associate Vice Provost of Student Success at Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, TX. In her current role, she oversees several functional areas related to student success including Academic Advising, Academic Support, First Year Experience, Career Success, Global Engagement, First Gen Student Center, and Academic Redesign & Course Enhancement.
In addition to the leadership of these areas, Dr. Salazar works at the institutional level to identify barriers to student success informed by data, and designs and implements solutions to increase the likelihood of student persistence and degree attainment.
She is currently focused on the effects of COVID-19 related learning loss and the ways it has shaped both the student and faculty experience. Her prior experience and publications have focused on student success in the areas above, and also include TRiO programs, high impact practices such as undergraduate research, and mentorship programs. Her current teaching foci include assessment in higher education, teaching and learning for student success, and advocacy for underserved student populations in higher education.
Jeffrey Baylor, who has successfully led enrollment efforts at institutions across the U.S., joined the University of Virginia’s College at Wise in 2022 as Vice Chancellor for Enrollment Management.
Baylor spent three years at West Texas A&M University (WTAMU) as the Associate Vice President for Student Enrollment Engagement and Success. During his time at WTAMU, he led the University’s recruitment efforts through the pandemic, including recording WTAMU’s highest enrollment on record.
Prior to Texas, Baylor spent eight years as Vice President for Marketing, Enrollment and Student Services at the University of South Dakota (USD), where he was accredited with increasing enrollment while transitioning the University from a regional university to a national brand, claiming its stake as South Dakota’s flagship.
Before arriving at USD, Baylor served in several key student services and enrollment leadership positions including Saint Leo University in Florida, Thiel College in Pennsylvania, and his alma mater, Marietta College in Ohio. Baylor’s experiences have included all levels of the NCAA and NAIA, three of the six accreditation regions, and institutions ranging from 1,000 to 14,000 students.
The Apollo, PA native earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Marietta College in 1993 and 1996 as well as a Master of Business Administration from Tiffin University in 2003.
Dr. Andrew Koch is a child of immigrants who came to the United States in pursuit of a better life. His first language was not English, and postsecondary education was valued by his family as a means for realizing the American Dream. A recipient of need-based aid while in school, Koch is a staunch advocate for and leader of efforts that increase student access to and, ultimately, completion of postsecondary education. He has worked in and with higher education institutions for over 30 years. He has done so since 2010 at the Gardner Institute where he was named Chief Executive Officer in 2021.
Brooke Barnett, Ph.D., Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, previously served as Dean of the College of Communication at Butler. Brooke earned a Bachelor of Arts in English and Communication Studies at Georgetown College, a Master of Arts in Journalism and doctorate in Mass Communication with a concentration in Law and Visual Communication at IU-Bloomington. Prior to her arrival at Butler, and in addition to her career as a teacher and scholar spanning more than 25 years, at Elon University Brooke served for nine years on the President’s senior cabinet, as Associate Provost for Academic and Inclusive Excellence, and as chair of the faculty governing body. She is a board member and a faculty member at the Higher Education Resource Services (HERS) institutes for women in higher education leadership.
Melissa Beckwith currently serves Butler University as the University’s first Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer after serving five years as Vice President for Strategy and Innovation. As CSO, Melissa is primarily responsible for supporting the University’s visioning and planning efforts to ensure Butler is well-positioned to leverage future opportunities and emerging trends in the ever-changing world of higher education. Melissa leads the University’s long-range goal planning and works with colleagues across the university to advance strategic initiatives that support the university’s growth plan including partnerships, new program development, and new mission-aligned ventures. In addition, Melissa oversees Butler Ventures, a subsidiary focused on supporting the advancement of transformational efforts in higher education, especially those focused on enhancing access and opportunities for all learners.
During her fifteen years at Butler, Melissa has served in a variety of roles including the manager of a start-up consulting organization for privately held businesses across Indiana, the Director of Strategic Initiatives within Information Technology, and Interim Vice President of Marketing and Communications.
Melissa regularly engages with early-stage education companies as an advisor and mentor.
Melissa earned her bachelor’s degree from the Lacy School of Business at Butler University and MBA from Valparaiso University. Prior to joining Butler, Melissa served in industry as a management consultant and in higher education as a marketing and communication leader.
Correction from guest:
In typical academic fashion, Brooke Barnett did a fact check on her own claim that Butler has been offering graduate degrees for 70 years. According to Mac Waller’s 2003 history of the university,
the first Pharmacy master’s degree was offered in 1952. Our great Butler Library faculty skimmed through bulletins, catalogues, and commencement programs, and it looks like, per Waller’s citation, that the process for Master’s degrees was described in 1874 and they also found a 1902 commencement program with a single student graduating with a Master’s of Arts. So maybe Brooke’s 70 years comment actually undersold university history.
Dr. Alexandra Perry is the Interim Dean of the McDonough Center for Leadership and Business and an Associate Professor of Leadership and Ethics at Marietta College. Dr. Perry teaches undergraduate classes in leadership and ethics, oversees the McDonough Center's academic and community engagement offerings, and serves on the College's faculty council and as the faculty advisor to the Student Government Association. Dr. Perry's reasearch centers on leadership, ethics, and public health, and in particular on healthcare for rural, diverse, and underserved populations, leadership development as a public health intervention, and ethical issues in neonatology, pediatrics, and end-of-life care. She is currently working on a book that looks at end-of-life care in American hospitals, and projects surrounding the opioid epidemic, and rural and indigenous healthcare. Dr. Perry is on the board of trustees of the Bioethics Network of Ohio and is the author or editor of five books including Ethical Leadership: A Primer, co-authored with Robert McManus and Stanley Ward, and published by Edward Elgar. Additionally, Dr. Perry provides ethics consultation for a healthcare system, and her clinical ethics training and specializations include rural health, opioid use disorder, pediatrics and neonatology, blood conservation programs, and transplant and advanced cardiac critical care.
Frank Cuevas serves as the vice chancellor for the Division of Student Life. Student Life departments provide the daily support students need to learn, lead, and serve on campus and in our community. We provide students with transformational experiences that are critical to realizing their academic and personal aspirations.
The vice chancellor is the chief student advocate for the campus. This role supports the development, assessment, and improvement of campus life and student experiences that meet the university’s mission, priorities, and strategic plan.
As vice chancellor, Cuevas and his leadership team are responsible for student care and support, health and wellness initiatives, and leadership and engagement opportunities. He oversees over 500 staff members and a division budget of approximately $90 million. Additionally, he manages 3.7 million square feet of facility space that includes on-campus housing, campus recreation, the Student Health Center, the Frieson Black Cultural Center, and the Student Union.
Cuevas has led significant capital projects at UT. He lead the planning and construction of six residence halls from 2013 to 2018, the Student Union in 2019, and the National Pan-Hellenic Council monuments in 2021. Additionally, Cuevas served as a central leader of UT’s COVID-19 pandemic response team where his focus was on safe and effective student programs and services. In 2021, Cuevas announced a new strategic plan for Student Life. This involved a division-wide reorganization to foster an environment where students learn, lead, and serve.
Cuevas earned his bachelor’s in international affairs, his master’s in higher education, and his doctorate in higher education administration from Florida State University. Cuevas began his student affairs career at The Ohio State University as a residence hall director. Following his time at The Ohio State University, he returned to Florida State University where he worked in housing and various leadership roles for more than 15 years. In 2010, Cuevas joined UT as the executive director of University Housing and has served in several leadership roles within Student Life. Cuevas is also an adjunct assistant professor for the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies.
Artist Sabrina Fadial is known for making the impermanent permanent and the minute monumental. She forges iron into delicate organic forms that are larger than life. The strength of the metal becomes malleable in her hands, yielding graceful passages of iron that unfurl in space. Fadial asks us to consider the minute facets of our lives that tend to be taken for granted. Reflecting on this moment of existence that is often overshadowed by the systems in which we function. She challenges societal expectations through which we define ourselves. Fadial’s artwork takes on a purpose beyond beauty that is startling to see. Her work suggests a moment caught in time; a motion gracefully suspended in space.
In 1989 Fadial earned her BFA in Textiles from Rhode Island School of Design. She moved to Spartanburg, South Carolina to be a designer at Milliken & Company where she received two patentes for her work. After Milliken in 1994 she began teaching 9th through 12th grade art at Charlotte Country Day School in Charlotte, North Carolina. Skills learned in 1997 and 1998 at Penland Craft School and Haystack Mountain Craft School transformed the scope and scale of her art. During this time Fadial also ran the Blooming Arts Festival in Monroe, NC. In 2001 she earned her MFA in Visual Art from Vermont College of Norwich University (now VCFA). This led to a position as Visiting Artist at Wingate University. In 2002 Fadial moved to Oakland California and began teaching at DIablo Valley College in Pleasant Hill, CA, the Art Institute of CA in San Francisco, and the Crucible in Oakland, CA. Fadial was also a docent at the DI Rosa Preserve in Napa. During this time she continued her relationship with VCFA as Exhibition Coordinator. Residencies in 2006 (Venice Italy) and 2009 (Vermont Studio Center) were expansive and transformative. In 2010 Fadial moved her art practice to VT to become the Assistant Director of Visual Art at VCFA. A few years later she was promoted to Director of Alumni Relations. Fadial has an active studio practice, exhibiting her work around the country. Sabrina is currently the Executive Director of the TW Wood Gallery: A Museum of American Art, Adjunct Professor in the School of Architecture + Art at Norwich University and Rosie’s Girls welding instructor for middle school girls.
David R. Arendale, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor Emeritus in the Curriculum and Instruction Department at the University of Minnesota (UMN). Arendale is Co-convener of Colleagues of Color for Social Justice and editor of the EOA Best Practices Clearinghouse. At UMN, he led a team that developed the Peer Assisted Learning program for courses throughout the curriculum. Arendale investigates the history and best practices of equity programs, learning assistance, and academic interventions supporting improved student achievement and persistence. For more than two decades, Arendale taught an introductory global history course which he embedded with best practices of learning. At the University of Missouri-Kansas City, Arendale was National Project Director of Supplemental Instruction. Current research and publications are available at www.arendale.org and his podcasts and social media are at www.davidmedia.org
As a senior director at the American Institutes for Research (AIR), Veronica Tate provides strategic direction and quality assurance for mission-aligned projects and services in education and related content areas. She serves as a strategic advisor and relationship manager on the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Intermediaries for Scale grant project aimed at catalyzing post-secondary institutional transformation through guidance from intermediary organizations and an ecosystem of support partners. Tate formerly served as president & CEO of Virginia Ed Strategies (formerly Virginia Advanced Study Strategies), a non-profit education service organization focused on increasing college and career readiness for students, especially for rural and underserved students. She provided strategic direction and directed partnerships between districts, business, and industry partners; higher education; and other education organizations to pilot evidence-based solutions to systemic challenges impacting post-secondary success. In this role, she served as co-director for two U.S. Department of Education Investing in Innovation (i3) research and development projects focused on increasing underrepresented student success in STEM courses and career pathways. In her previous role as director of ESEA Programs at the Virginia Department of Education, Tate led a team of content and policy experts in delivering high-quality professional development and technical assistance to implement transformative programs and services that improve student outcomes. She led the revision of Virginia’s statewide K-12 accountability system, including the development of annual measurable objectives and strategies to support low-performing schools. Tate also served as president of the National Title I Association and as a liaison to the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Elementary and Secondary Education and to the Council of Chief State School Officers
Nicole Poff currently serves as the Director of Academic Services and Assessment at United State University, an online institution committed to serving underserved student populations. In her present role, Nicole offers strategic support across multiple domains, including new program development, curriculum enhancements, assessment, faculty development, and student success initiatives. Her experience in various departments and roles within Higher Education provides her with a comprehensive perspective, enabling her to take a holistic approach to problem-solving that integrates insights from multiple areas and leverages data to prioritize student-centric decision-making.
As an educational consultant, she has navigated a variety of educational landscapes, aiding traditional campuses' transition into the digital realm, empowering K-12 school districts to create new offerings, co-creating innovative programs with colleges, and supporting universities in re-envisioning processes and expanding student services.
Recently, Nicole has embarked on an exciting new venture with Cloudline Solutions. As the Director of Learning Innovation, she collaborates on a passion project that seeks to revolutionize technology solutions in higher education. Breaking free from conventional Software as a Service (SaaS) limitations, Nicole and the team at Cloudline are charting toward custom-built solutions that promise to reshape the educational technology landscape.
Nicole resides in Kansas with her husband, Donnie, and 2 daughters, Kennedy and Reagan. Nicole is currently pursuing her PhD in Curriculum and Instruction at Kansas State University.
To contact Nicole, please email her at Nicole.poff@usuniversity.edu
Lori Stewart Gonzalez, Ph.D., joined Ohio University from the University of Louisville where she served as the executive vice president and university provost. Dr. Gonzalez received her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Kentucky in speech pathology and audiology, a Master of Arts degree in communication disorders from Eastern Kentucky University and a Ph.D. in communication disorders from the University of Florida. She began her academic career at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale in 1988. In 1991, she returned to UK as an assistant professor in the Communication Sciences and Disorders program. She then spent 20 years in roles as a professor and associate dean of Academic Affairs. In 2005, she was appointed dean of the College of Health Sciences, a position she held for seven years. In 2011, Dr. Gonzalez moved to Appalachian State University, where she served as provost and executive vice chancellor for three years, followed by a year as special advisor to the senior vice president for Academic Affairs at the University of North Carolina System. From 2015 until the spring of 2021, she served as the vice chancellor for Academic, Faculty and Student Affairs at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center in Memphis. In April of 2021, Dr. Gonzalez was appointed executive vice president and university provost at the University of Louisville, followed by one year of service as interim university president.
A native of the Appalachian region, Dr. Gonzalez was born and raised in the small town of Mt. Vernon, Kentucky. She credits her commitment to public education to her parents, who believed in the transformative power of education and instilled in her a responsibility to give back to her community.
Dr. Scott E. Evenbeck is a retired president of the Charles and Stella Guttman Community College and currently serves as a University Professor at Baruch College.
Scott joined CUNY in 2011 as The New Community College’s founding president. He served as professor of psychology and founding dean of University College at Indiana University-Purdue University, Indianapolis. He joined the psychology faculty there after completing his Masters' and Doctorate in Social Psychology at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He earned his Bachelor's degree in Psychology at Indiana University at Bloomington. Scott has long been involved in designing, implementing and assessing programs for students in their first years of university study. He played a major role in various initiatives to support student achievement in Indiana, including efforts to keep students in college. He has given more than 100 presentations on serving students as they enter college, and he has written many articles and chapters on academic achievement and persistence. Scott was a task force advisor for the Foundations of Excellence in the First College Year and a board member of the American Conference of Academic Deans. He has been a resource faculty member at the Summer Quality Academy of the Institute for Higher Education Policy and for the General Education and Assessment Institute of the Association of American Colleges and Universities. He served on the advisory board for the National Resource Center for the First-Year Experience and Students in Transition, and as a faculty member for the Learning Community Institute of the Washington Center for Undergraduate Education. The National Learning Community conference recognized him with the lifetime achievement award. He has been on accreditation teams for three regional associations, focusing on general education, assessment and programs for entering students.
Dr. Alyssa Crittenden is the Vice Provost for Graduate Education, Dean of the Graduate College, and a Professor of Anthropology at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). The university, and the Graduate College, are deeply committed to creating an environment where all students can thrive. UNLV is a large public university that holds the Carnegie R1 ranking for research and is a designated Minority Serving Institution (MSI), Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI), and Asian American Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institution (ANNAPISI). In her role at UNLV, Alyssa is responsible for all academic, personnel, administrative, and financial activities within the graduate college, which supports more than 175 graduate certificate, master's, specialist, and doctoral programs serving more than 5,000 graduate and professional students.
She began her academic career in 2011 as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Anthropology at UNLV, teaching courses in human biology, reproduction, biological anthropology, cultural anthropology, and research ethics. Her research explores the relationship between behavior, reproduction, and the environment (ecological, political, and social) with an emphasis on nutrition and maternal and infant health & wellbeing. She has worked for the past twenty years with Hadzabe in Tanzania, a hunting and gathering community that still forages for a large portion of their diet. She is the recipient of the 2021 Conrad Arensberg Award from the American Anthropological Association for furthering anthropology as a natural science. Her current work with the Hadzabe community (see www.olanakwe.org) and her current role at UNLV both reflect her steadfast commitment to equitable access to education.
Resources from episode:
- Sonya Atalay's concept of braided knowledge, particularly in regard to working in partnership with Indigenous communities to bring their voices and knowledge to the forefront.
Atalay, S. (2012). Community-based archaeology: Research with, by, and for indigenous and local communities. Univ of California Press.
- Len Cassuto's work:
Cassuto, L. (2015). The graduate school mess: What caused it and how we can fix it. Harvard University Press.
Cassuto, L., & Weisbuch, R. (2021). The new PhD: How to build a better graduate education.
-
Olanakwe Community Fund (www.olanakwe.org). A mutual aid organization supporting community-based educational programs and economic development projects that directly benefit Indigenous Hadzabe hunter-gatherers of Tanzania, East Africa.
-
Additional references that might be of interest:
Calarco, J. M. (2020). A field guide to grad school: Uncovering the hidden curriculum. Princeton University Press.
Nguyen, D. J., & Yao, C. W. (Eds.). (2023). A Handbook for Supporting Today's Graduate Students. Taylor & Francis.
Douglas L. Robertson (Ph.D., Maxwell School, Syracuse University, 1978) is Tenured Full Professor of Higher Education in the Department of Educational Policy Studies, School of Education and Human Development, College of Arts, Sciences, and Education, at Florida International University, a public metropolitan research university in Miami with highest research activity (R1) and engaged Carnegie designations (2021 enrollment, 74,678). From 2008 to 2016, Dr. Robertson was the University Dean of Undergraduate Education. From 2011 to 2015, Dr. Robertson served as university lead for the Graduation Success Initiative (GSI), a complex set of institution-wide, student success interventions that improved the six-year graduation rate by 16 points in its four years of existence and that in November, 2013, won the Most Visible Progress (MVP) Award from the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities (APLU). Since 2009, Dr. Robertson has been the Principal Investigator or CoPrincipal Investigator of six student success grants totaling over $4.6 million. From 2014 to 2016, he was FIU’s Founding Operational Lead for the innovative Florida Consortium of Metropolitan Research Universities, in partnership with the University of Central Florida (Orlando) and the University of South Florida (Tampa Bay).
Dr. Robertson has been actively involved in significant innovations in American higher education for 46 years, including both undergraduate and graduate education, and has over 32 years of experience as an academic administrator (12 years private, 20 years public). He has chaired academic departments, co-directed a liberal arts division, administered doctoral and masters programs, been a university dean, and served for 18 years (1999-2016) on the executive staff of nine university Chief Academic Officers.
Farrah Jackson Ward, Ph.D. is the Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Professor of Mathematics at Elizabeth City State University (ECSU). She received her B.S. in mathematics education from North Carolina A&T State University and MS and PhD degrees in mathematics from North Carolina State University. Dr. Ward holds a post graduate Certificate in Academic Leadership from The Chicago School of Professional Psychology and is a graduate of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities’ Millennium Leadership Initiative. She taught at the University of North Carolina Wilmington before joining the faculty at ECSU in 2007. Dr. Ward was appointed Chair of the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science and served in that role for 6 years before being named Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs in 2016. She served as interim Provost from 2018 – 2019 and was appointed Provost in 2019.
Under the leadership of Dr. Ward, ECSU ranked in the top ten nationally for graduating the largest number of African Americans with undergraduate degrees in mathematics. ECSU was also ranked under her leadership as the #1 institution in the nation for graduating the largest number of African Americans with master’s degrees in mathematics. Her expertise in addressing educational barriers for STEM undergraduate and graduate students led to the successful acquisition of more than $5 million in external funding from the National Science Foundation and Department of Education. She has created several initiatives aimed at improving student success including the implementation of EAB’s Navigate, a restructuring of ECSU’s academic advising services, and a campus-wide reduction in the number of credits required for graduation from an average of 128 credits to 120 credits. In partnership with the John Gardner Institute for Excellence in Undergraduate Studies, Dr. Ward led the Foundations of Excellence (FoE) project which created a comprehensive plan targeting improvements to the first-year experience. She is strategic in developing programs to enhance student success and because of her leadership as Provost, ECSU has experienced a 5.6% increase in freshman retention and a 21% increase in enrollment.
Dr. Ward is widely recognized for her work in student success and higher education administration and has been invited as a featured speaker by a variety of organizations such as the Association of College and University Educators (ACUE), AASCU, Interfolio, and EAB.
Dr. Brad A. Williams is Senior Vice President of Enrollment Management and Student Affairs and Dean at Nova Southeastern University in Ft. Lauderdale, FL. Arriving in 1989, Williams has created and developed numerous aspects of co-curricular life at NSU. These include entities such as NSU recreation program (1989), Greek system (1992), Student Leadership (1990), Campus Radio (1990), Student Union (1996), and Student Judicial System (2000). In 2006, Williams authored and designed initial proposals which have blossomed into NSU’s “University Center”, an $82 million ‘fusion’ building merging recreation, athletics, student union, and performing arts. Williams oversees a division that employs over 300 full-time professionals and 30 graduate assistants along with an annual operating budget of approximately $7 million.
Dr. Williams has also served as an adjunct professor since 1991, instructing methods and leadership development courses to over 2000 future leaders in Broward and Dade Counties as well as in The Bahamas. Additionally, Dr. Williams co-authored and teaches in the Masters in College Student Affairs program through NSU’s Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences.
Dr. Williams is celebrating his 48th year in Student Affairs. Prior to NSU, Williams served as Athletic Director for Marietta City Schools in Marietta, Ohio. Williams also has stops at St. Thomas University and Ohio University where he worked in director level positions in Residential Life. Williams began his career teaching high school English and coaching baseball and basketball. In addition to his doctoral degree in Higher Education Administration from Nova Southeastern, Dr. Williams earned a Masters degree (St. Thomas: Sports Administration) and a Bachelors (Ohio University: Education).
Williams lives in Plantation, Florida, with his bride of 41 years Teri Sue. They have three adult children (Taylor Anne, Lucas Chandler, and Brice Alan).
Marjorie Hass is a philosopher, leader, award-winning teacher, mentor, author, and an influential thinker in independent higher education. She has led the Council of Independent Colleges since 2021. Before joining CIC, Hass served as president of Rhodes College and of Austin College. She is the author of A Leadership Guide for Women in Higher Education (JohnsHopkinsPress,2021).
Dr. Kevin P. Reilly is president emeritus and regent professor with the 26-campus University of Wisconsin System, having served as president from 2004-13. He came to Wisconsin from the State University of New York System, where he was associate provost for academic programs and then secretary of the university. As secretary, he was the chief staff officer for the SUNY Board of Trustees.
Currently he has an appointment as Senior Fellow with the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges, working with boards around the country on effective governance. While still president at Wisconsin, he served as president of the National Association of System Heads and a board member at the American Council on Education.
Kevin has authored and edited books and articles on higher education governance and policy, accreditation, biography and autobiography, and Irish literature and culture. For years he wrote a regular column, “Focus on the Presidency,” for AGB’s Trusteeship magazine. Recent articles in Trusteeship include “Too Big to Fail,” on public university systems, and “A Winter of Discontent: Tax Policy, Trust, and the Future of Higher Education.”
Dr. Reilly earned his B.A. at the University of Notre Dame, and his M.A. and Ph.D at the University of Minnesota. He is a board member for the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts, and Letters, the Irish American Cultural Institute, and the Association of College and University Educators.
Dr. Houston Davis serves as the 11th president of the University of Central Arkansas. Prior to becoming president of UCA, Davis was interim President of Kennesaw State University in Georgia. Davis also served as Executive Vice Chancellor and Chief Academic Officer of the University System of Georgia from 2012 to 2016. Before his role in Georgia, Davis served as theVice Chancellor for Academic Affairs for the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education from 2007 to 2012. He has also served as Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs for the Tennessee Board of Regents, on faculty and in academic leadership for Austin Peay StateUniversity, in fiscal and academic affairs for the Tennessee Higher Education Commission, and as a regional counselor for the University of Memphis. His professional background includes research projects and policy workin the areas of higher education governance, economic development, accreditation, and accountability issues in higher education and has service on several national advisory groups on higher education policy, degree completion, academic preparation, and accountability. This work includes having served as the national project director for the Educational Needs Index project, a 50 state and 3,140 county study of educational, economic, and population pressures that influence educational policy and planning at local, regional, and state levels. He received his Ph.D. from Vanderbilt University with other degrees from the University of Memphis and Tennessee State University. He and his wife, Jenny, have three children–Polly, Whitney, and Joshua.
Beverly Kahn earned degrees in Political Science from Dickinson College (AB), Columbia University (MA), and Indiana University (PhD). As a scholar, she was awarded The Rome Prize from the American Academy in Rome and a Fulbright Fellowship in support of her research focused on Italian Politics and Political Philosophy.
She was a faculty member for 17 years (University of South Carolina and The Ohio State University) before moving on into academic administration. Beverly served as a senior academic administrator for 30 years (Dean of Arts and Sciences at Fairfield University, Associate Provost and VP for Internationalization at Pace University, and Provost and Academic Vice President at SUNY Farmingdale State College). During her career she authored and directed $20 million in institutional grants – including the following at Farmingdale: Title III, SSS TRIO, and First in the World FIPSE from the US Dept of Education, Smart Grid from the Dept of Energy, and an NSF S-STEM grant. She also served as Fulbright Advisor at Fairfield, Pace, and Farmingdale, launching competitions and helping more than 60 undergraduate students win Fulbright Scholarships for study and research abroad. She has been recognized for her advocacy in support of students and affirmative action at each of the five institutions where she has worked. She is dedicated to - and has expertise and experience in - increasing opportunities for minority, low income, and first-generation college students.
Since retiring in fall 2020 Beverly has continued to offer (with her husband Robert Kahn) workshops on grant writing at universities across the nation. She also assists individuals in crafting grant proposals.
As the Executive Vice Provost at Nevada State College, Dr. Tony Scinta guides efforts to improve the overall student experience at NSC, with the ultimate goal of helping more students earn degrees on the path to a better quality of life. To this end, much of his time is invested in student success initiatives, the effective integration of academic and student affairs, and the application of evidence-based decisions to promote improved student and institutional outcomes. In his time at NSC, which dates back to a time when the entire institution was housed in a single building, Dr. Scinta has contributed to campus-wide strategic plans, served as the college’s accreditation liaison officer, helped promote robust increases in enrollment numbers and graduation rates, and has generally worked to advance the fortunes of the college’s largely diverse and first-generation student population.
Lou Albert is a Professor of Practice in the Division of Educational Leadership and Innovation at Arizona State University’s Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College.
Prior to his appointment at ASU, Lou served as President of the West Campus of Pima County Community College in Tucson, Arizona from 2003 until his retirement in 2015. He is a former academic Vice Chancellor of the San Jose/Evergreen Community College District (1998-2003); and former Vice President of the American Association for Higher Education (1982-98), a not-for-profit membership association where John Gardner served as a member of its Board of Trustees. At AAHE, Lou was responsible for organizing the annual National Conference on Higher Education, and for special initiatives that focused on school/college partnerships, service-learning and civic engagement, and instructional technology.
Lou was also a faculty member and senior administrator at Essex Community College, now a part of the Community College of Baltimore County. Lou’s board service includes the National Board of Campus Compact, a consortium of nearly 1,200 college and university presidents committed to advancing the civic mission of higher education.
He also served for six years as Chair of the Board of Trustees for the International Partnership for Service-Learning. In Tucson, he is a past Board Chair for the United Way of Tucson and Southern Arizona.
Lou earned his Master of Science in Zoology and Ph.D. in Higher Education from the University of Maryland-College Park. He holds a B.S. in Biology from Loyola College (now University) of Maryland. In 2001, he was awarded the Doctor of Humane Letters (Honoris Causa) from Cuttington University in the West African nation of Liberia.
Isis Artze-Vega, Ed.D. serves as college provost and vice president for academic affairs at Valencia College in Central Florida, a Hispanic-Serving Institution that serves about 70,000 students annually and has long been regarded as one of the nation’s best community colleges. She provides strategic leadership for the areas of curriculum, assessment, faculty development, distance learning, career and workforce education, and partnerships for educational equity. Prior to joining Valencia, Isis served as assistant vice president for teaching and learning at Florida International University (FIU), leading such efforts as a gateway course project, a hybrid course initiative, and the comprehensive redesign of teaching evaluation. Prior to joining FIU, she taught English composition and enrollment management at the University of Miami. Most importantly, she is the proud wife of visual artist Sinuhe Vega; the proud mami of Kamilah, 16, and Delilah, 14; and forever indebted to extraordinary parents, Mayra and Elias. Her work is fueled by a commitment to equity and justice, implemented through love and service.
Dr. Jody S. Fournier, a developmental psychologist and professor of psychology with over 24-years of higher education experience, serves as provost and vice president of learning at Capital University, where his responsibilities encompass the roles of chief academic officer, chief student affairs officer, and chief enrollment officer. Capital University, a private, independent institution, combines liberal arts with professional studies to serve a diverse student body of approximately 3300 students by offering over 60 undergraduate majors and graduate programs in law, nursing, music, business, education, and theology.
Dr. Fournier earned his bachelor of arts in psychology, master of science in child development, and Ph.D. in developmental psychology from The Ohio State University. He and his wife, Debbie, have three children and enjoy attending campus events. Dr. Fournier daily cycles or runs and often is accompanied with his German shorthaired pointers.
Professor Dennin has been Professor of Physics and Astronomy at UCI since 1997, and was appointed the Vice Provost for Teaching and Learning and Dean, Division of Undergraduate Education in May 2015. He received his Bachelor’s Degree in Physics from Princeton University, and his PhD and Masters in Physics from UCSB. His research focuses on the dynamics of foams, Langmuir monolayers, modeling of ice mélange, and institutional issues in education. The studies in complex fluids are crucial for many applications including foam use in oil recovery as well as granular matter in the form of powders and pills in the medical industry. He is a Fellow of the American Physical Society, a Sloan Research Fellow and a Research Corporation Cottrell Scholar. He is a recipient of UCI Senate awards in all three categories: UCI Senate Distinguished mid-Career Award for Service, UCI Senate Distinguished Faculty Award for Teaching, and UCI Senate Distinguished Assistant Professor Award for Research. Professor Dennin has been very active in translating educational research to practical applications within the university. He is dedicated to public outreach in the area of science – teaching a number of Massive Open Online Courses
(MOOCs), including co-teaching one based on the AMC television program The Walking Dead. He has appeared on numerous television programs – including Science of Superman, Spider-man Tech, Batman Tech, Star Wars Tech, and Ancient Aliens. You can find Prof. Dennin in the YouTube series Fascinating Fights (http://bit.ly/1GDKVex) debating the outcome of battles between pop icons. In addition, Prof. Dennin serves as an expert on the podcast Fascinating Gadgets, Gizmos, and Gear-Based Technologies where he explains how to make fictional technology a reality (http://fgggbt.com). Recently, he published a science outreach book on the intersection between science and faith: Divine Science: Finding Reason at the Heart of Faith, from Franciscan Media.
Meet JD Gardner, the grandson of founder Dr. John Gardner. JD is from Lexington, South Carolina and recently graduated from Heathwood Hall, a prestigious private school in Columbia, South Carolina. In his time as a Heathwood Hall student, he earned a 3.9 GPA, was a 3 year honor roll student, as well as voted into school office as the executive council secretary. JD has devoted his life to athletics just as much in the classroom. On the court at Heathwood Hall, JD was a 1000 point scorer, the 2022-23 regional player of the year, a 3 time all region player, broke the schools single game scoring record, as well as achieving other notable honors. JD signed his National Letter of Intent to play college basketball at Sewanee: The University of the South, and will be freshman this fall. JD is interested in studying Pre-Medicine.
Richard Arum is professor with a joint appointment in sociology and education, as well as a courtesy appointment in criminology, law and society at the University of California, Irvine (UCI). At UCI, he is the director of the Next Generation Undergraduate Success Measurement Project and faculty director of the Environmental Climate Change Literacy Project. He recently served as dean of the UCI School of Education, senior fellow at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation from 2013-2015; and director of the Education Research Program at the Social Science Research Council from 2006-2013, where he oversaw the development of the Research Alliance for New York City Schools, a research consortium designed to conduct ongoing evaluation of the New York City public schools. He is author of Judging School Discipline: A Crisis of Moral Authority (Harvard University Press, 2013); coauthor of Aspiring Adults Adrift: Tentative Transitions of College Graduates (University of Chicago Press, 2014) and Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on College Campuses (University of Chicago Press, 2011); as well as coeditor of Improving Quality in American Higher Education: Learning Outcomes and Assessment for the 21st Century (Jossey Bass, 2016), Improving Learning Environments: School Discipline and Student Achievement in Comparative Perspectives (Stanford University Press, 2012), and Stratification in Higher Education: A Comparative Study (Stanford University Press, 2007). He received a Masters of Education in Teaching and Curriculum from Harvard University, and a Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of California, Berkeley.
Brent Drake, has worked in higher education since 2001 with positions focused on institutional research, educational assessment, business intelligence, and institutional effectiveness. He has published and presented refereed conference sessions on research on student success initiatives, gateway course redesign, predictors of individual student success, enrollment management, business intelligence and data analytics, enrollment and student completion predictive modeling, recruitment, and enrollment trends. This includes co-authoring chapters on gateway courses in Talking About Learning Revisited: Persistence, Relocation, and Loss in Undergraduate STEM Education, and The Transfer Experience: A Handbook for Creating a More Equitable and Successful Postsecondary System, on data visualization in Building Capacity in Institutional Research and Decision Support in Higher Education, and on business intelligence and data analytics in New Directions for Institutional Research. He also was honored, along with his co-authors, with the Charles F. Elton Best Paper in Institutional Research in 2019 for their journal article on the signally effects of first-year seminar grades in The Journal of the First-Year Experience & Students in Transition.
Dr. Drake holds a baccalaureate degree in athletic training, a master's degree in sports Psychology, and a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology with a joint focus on psychometrics and motivation theory all from Purdue University. He also taught for several years at Purdue, providing instruction in statistics, measurement theory, research methods, and motivational theory. He presently also serves as a Senior Research Fellow for the College of Education at Claremont Graduate University in California.
Prior to joining the full-time staff of the Gardner Institute, Dr. Drake served as a Research Fellow for the Gardner Institute conducting research on the relationship between the Institute’s institutional transformation efforts and student outcomes such as course grades, retention, persistence, and graduation. His most recent position prior to the Gardner Institute was as the Vice Provost for Decision Support at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas where he served for five years, and prior to that he worked at Purdue University for nearly 17 years ultimately serving as the Chief Data Officer for the final five years of his tenure.
He has served on serval relevant boards and committees including on the Executive Board of the Indiana Association of Institutional Research, a member of the inaugural University Innovation Alliance, the Indiana Postsecondary Data Access Group, and the Minority Serving Institutions Task Force at UNLV. Drake also served for seven years as a reviewer for The Journal of the First-Year Experience & Students in Transition.
Dr. Drake resides in Lafayette, IN with his wife Maria Drake and near his son, daughter-in-law and two granddaughters. He enjoys reading, playing guitar, and intends to play pickleball until his knees cease to function.
To contact Brent, please email him at Drake@jngi.org
Dr. Merrill Schwartz has over 35 years of higher education experience in administration, consulting and facilitation, research, writing, and program development, including 27 years with AGB and nearly a decade with The Washington Center for Internships and Academic Seminars. Schwartz has held a series of progressively responsible positions at AGB in programs, research, consulting, and content. As senior vice president for content and program strategy, she was responsible for the association’s overall strategy for print and digital content development, including books, Trusteeship Magazine, research papers, and web resources as well as virtual and in-person events, including conferences, institutes, and webinars. Previously, as senior vice president for AGB Consulting, she worked with members and consultants to arrange over 150 governance-related engagements annually, ranging from board and presidential assessments to restructuring state systems. Recent grant-funded projects she has led focused on boards and equitable student success.
Schwartz co-authored Assessing Board Performance (AGB, 2018) and authored or contributed to more than twenty-five AGB reports, publications, and articles. Schwartz earned a PhD in higher education administration and leadership from the University of Maryland and MPA and BA degrees from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. The subject of her dissertation was Assessing the Performance of Academic Presidents.
Laurie A. Carter joined Lawrence University as its 17th president on July 1, 2021, bringing with her more than 25 years of leadership experience in higher education. In her short time as President, Carter has brought a sense of urgency to the Lawrence community. Recognizing the need for Lawrence to be well-positioned in an ever-changing higher education landscape, Carter implemented student-centered Guiding Coalitions to facilitate more effective change implementation at the university. Additionally, she has identified focused investment priorities through community-wide engagement that will position Lawrence to anticipate and meet the challenges of the future.
Carter came to Lawrence after serving as president of Shippensburg University in Shippensburg, Pennsylvania. Her tenure at Shippensburg focused on prioritizing student success, telling the university’s story, building a relationship with the community, and enhancing overall quality. Carter’s efforts to strengthen diversity and inclusion at Shippensburg University were recognized by Diverse: Issues in Higher Education, which named her as one of 25 outstanding women in higher education. Prior to assuming the presidency of Shippensburg, Carter served as executive vice president and university counsel for Eastern Kentucky University and held various inaugural leadership positions during her 25 years of service at The Juilliard School, including vice president, general counsel, and executive director of Jazz Studies.
Carter currently serves as a Commissioner for the Middle States Commission on Higher Education and as a member of Annapolis Group Board, the ThedaCare Board of Trustees, the Millennium Leadership Institute Steering Committee, and The Links, Incorporated. A native of New Jersey, Carter attended Clarion University of Pennsylvania where she received a Bachelor of Science degree in communications. She received her Master of Arts degree in communications from William Paterson College and earned her Juris Doctor degree from Rutgers University.
Dr. Chad M. Brown became the sixth president of Zane State College on July 1, 2015.
Dr. Brown has served in a variety of leadership roles, including provost and executive vice president since coming to Zane State College in 2005. He has a strong commitment to, and a history of success in, shaping a data-rich culture. He led the College’s efforts in continuous quality improvement during its 14 years as an AQIP institution. This involved centralizing data collection, expanding information gathering, and developing models for linking data analysis to decision making and the College’s strategic plan. This continues today as an essential component of the College’s focus on student success. Recent publications from the Aspen Institute’s College Excellence Program and the Community College Research Center noted Zane State’s commitment to data democratization, making it widely available to employees and imbedding its use in governance committees.
For more than a decade, Brown served as the College’s core team leader for Achieving the Dream, a national non-governmental reform movement for student success, focused primarily on helping low-income and minority students obtain college credentials. Zane State College has remained an Achieving the Dream Leader College since 2009, and under Dr. Brown’s leadership as Provost, the College was the recipient of the distinguished Leah Meyer Austin Student Success Leadership Award.
This commitment to continuous improvement, has allowed Dr. Brown and Zane State College to remain on the leading edge nationally by working closely with a variety of funders and educational innovators including; the American Association of Community Colleges, Ascendium, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, JFF, the John N Gardner Institute for Excellence in Undergraduate Education, Lumina Foundation, MDC, the Joyce Foundation, Education Design Lab, MDRC, and the National Center for Inquiry and Improvement. Dr. Brown has also presented for numerous professional organizations including the Association for Institutional Research, State Higher Education Executive Officers Association, Women in Government, Achieving the Dream, the National Conference on the First Year Experience and Students in Transition, the Higher Learning Commission, the League for Innovation, and the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development. In January 2023, Brown was named as one of five finalists for the Community College CEO of the Year by the American Association of Community Colleges.
Rebecca Mushtare is the associate dean of Graduate Studies and a professor of interaction design at SUNY Oswego. With John Kane, she co-hosts the Tea for Teaching podcast which she helped co-found when she was the associate director of the Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching. Rebecca’s primary research areas are inclusive design, design for older adults, and digital accessibility.
John Kane is a Professor of Economics and Director of the Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching at SUNY-Oswego. Since 2017, he has been the co-host of the Tea for Teaching podcast.
J. Cameron West (Cam) has served as the 14th President of Huntingdon College, Montgomery, Alabama, since June 1, 2003. Prior to assuming the Huntingdon presidency, he was a vice president and dean at Brevard College, Brevard, North Carolina, from 1999-2003. He was a parish minister from 1978 to 1999 in United Methodist congregations across his native North Carolina and was the Bishop's Ecumenical Officer in the Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church from 1996 - 1999.
West has served on the Executive Committee of the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (NAICU), has twice chaired the Board of Directors of the Alabama Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (AAICU), and has chaired the Presidents Council of the NCAA Division III USA South Athletic Conference. An ordained Elder of the United Methodist Church, West was presented the Francis Asbury Award in 2013 by the Alabama - West Florida Conference of the United Methodist Church for leadership excellence in United Methodist higher education. He is a former member of the University Senate of the United Methodist Church and an emeritus member of the Duke University Divinity School Board of Visitors.
West earned the Bachelor of Arts in American Studies from the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill in 1972 (Phi Beta Kappa, North Carolina Fellow); the Master of Divinity cum laude from Yale University Divinity School in 1978 (Rockefeller Brothers Fellow); and the Master of Theology from Duke University Divinity School in 1986, where his thesis treated the preaching of John Wesley.
Josh Wyner is founder and executive director of the College Excellence Program (CEP) at the Aspen Institute, where he also serves as a vice president. CEP aims to advance college and university practices, policies, and leadership that significantly improve student outcomes, with a focus on students who are historically underserved in higher education.
Josh has spent the past two decades designing and building new organizations that promote talent development and social mobility. He has authored numerous publications about education, including a book, What Excellent Community Colleges Do: Preparing All Students for Success (Harvard Education Press, 2014).
He has a B.A. from Vassar College, a MPA from Syracuse University, and a J.D. from New York University School of Law.
Manuel João Costa is an Associate Professor at the School of Medicine, and currently Pro-Rector for Educational Innovation and Student Affairs at the University of Minho and coordinator of the University of Minho’s center for innovation and development to teaching and learning (IDEA-UMinho).
Manuel is a graduate in Biochemistry and holds a PhD in Biomedical Sciences, both from the University of Porto. Manuel’s teaching areas are biochemistry and molecular biology, and education in the health sciences. Manuel developed a passion for education after experiencing teaching, and has been devoting his academic life to development of learning and teaching and to institutional educational development, since 2004. His main interests now are organizational transformation of learning and teaching in higher education.
He is appointed member to the Learning and Teaching Steering Committee of the European University Association, the education committees of the Federation of European Biochemical Societies and delegate at the faculty development committee of the Association for Medical Education in Europe. Is also a member of the international Global Forum for Student Success. Throughout his career, Manuel invests in bringing together and supporting colleagues and institutions in higher education, to explore opportunities to collaborate, with the intention of improving student experience in higher education through the enhancement of learning and teaching.
Duncan Pritchard is UC Distinguished Professor of Philosophy and Director of the Center for Knowledge, Technology & Society at the University of California, Irvine. He was previously Professor of Philosophy and Director of the Eidyn research center at the University of Edinburgh. His monographs include Epistemic Luck (Oxford UP, 2005), The Nature and Value of Knowledge (co-authored, Oxford UP, 2010), Epistemological Disjunctivism (Oxford UP, 2012), Epistemic Angst: Radical Skepticism and the Groundlessness of Our Believing (Princeton UP, 2015), and Scepticism: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford UP, 2019). His most recent book is Scepticism (with A. Coliva, Routledge, 2022). His academic distinctions include the award of the Philip Leverhulme Prize, election to a Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, and delivering the annual Soochow Lectures in Philosophy.
Steve Desir is an Assistant Research Professor in the Pullias Center for Higher Education at the USC Rossier School of Education. His research interests include racial equity in college admissions, organizational change, and the use of theory-based psychological interventions to facilitate behavioral change. More specifically, Steve is interested in whether insights from social psychology, sociology, and behavioral economics can be used to improve educational experiences for minoritized groups. Steve earned his doctoral degree in Higher Education from USC, and a master’s degree in Education Policy and Management from Harvard. Prior to his studies at USC and HGSE, Steve completed his master’s degree in secondary education from NYU, and earned his bachelor’s degree in Economics and Political Science at Penn State. Steve is a native New Yorker, and in his spare time enjoys running, Muay-Thai kickboxing, and attending concerts.
Charles Schroeder received his B.A. (Psychology and History) and M.A. (Psychology) degrees from Austin College and his doctorate (Education, 1972) from Oregon State University. For over three decades, he served as the Chief Student Affairs Officer at Mercer University, Saint Louis University, Georgia Institute of Technology and the University of Missouri-Columbia (MU). In 2001, he was appointed a Professor of Higher Education in the Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis Department at the University of Missouri. Following his retirement from MU, Schroeder became a Senior Executive at Noel-Levitz, a national higher education consulting firm from 2004-2006. He recently served as a part-time Senior Associate Consultant for Ruffalo-Noellevitz specializing in retention and student success strategies and interventions. In this role he has served over five dozen institutions. He currently provides pro bono consultations to Methodist and numerous other colleges and universities interested in improving retention and degree completion.
Jamey Rorison, Ph.D., is a senior program officer on the U.S. Program Data team at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, where he leads efforts to advance a field-led movement to increase equitable postsecondary value, building on the work of the Postsecondary Value Commission, as well as a portfolio seeking to improve postsecondary data quality, use, and infrastructure at the local, state, and national levels. Prior to joining the foundation, Rorison served as director of research and policy at the Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP), where he managed the Postsecondary Data Collaborative (PostsecData) and the National Postsecondary Data Infrastructure Expert Working Group, and led research examining issues of college affordability and equitable college access and completion.
Rorison earned his Ph.D. in higher education from the University of Pennsylvania, where his dissertation examined the role of financial aid and other resources in persistence toward a bachelor’s degree for students from low-income families. He also holds a master’s degree in higher education and a bachelor’s degree in elementary education, also from the University of Pennsylvania.
Thomas A. Parham, Ph.D., is a family man who resides in the Southern California area with his wife, Davida. Dr. Parham is the 11th president of California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH), a highly diverse, metropolitan university primarily serving the South Central and South Bay areas of Los Angeles County. Established in 1960, CSUDH is one of the 23 campuses that comprise the California State University system, the largest system of public higher education in the nation.
Dr. Parham previously served as vice chancellor of student affairs and an adjunct faculty member at the University of California, Irvine, where he had been since 1985.
For the past 38-plus years, Dr. Parham has focused his research efforts in the area of psychological nigrescence and has authored or co-authored six books and 45-50 journal articles and book chapters. He has sustained a scholarly focus in the areas of racial identity development, African psychology and multicultural counseling.
Dr. Parham grew up in Southern California and received his bachelor’s degree in social ecology from the University of California, Irvine, his master’s degree in counseling psychology at Washington University in St. Louis, and received his Ph.D. in counseling psychology at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. He is licensed to practice psychology in California.
In addition to his duties as president, Dr. Parham remains an active member of the community contributing his talents in the areas of social advocacy, community uplift and youth empowerment.
Dr. Rolundus R. Rice is a thought leader, orator, professor and university administrator. Dr. Rice has used these platforms to inspire thousands of students to earn high school diplomas, baccalaureate and advanced degrees by sharing his firsthand experiences as a troubled youth who spent his elementary years in the behavior and learning disorders programs in the Dekalb County School System in Metropolitan Atlanta before dropping out of high school. Rice’s “Pilgrimage to Purpose” narrative arc, which he has shared with more than 800,000 people, chronicles his life from a GED to a Ph.D. recipient.
Dr. Rice was lured into university leadership at a young age. At 33, he was appointed Dean of Humanities and Fine Arts at Talladega College in Talladega, Alabama -- one of the youngest academic deans at an accredited four-year institution in the United States. The “Dapper Dean,” as he was affectionately referred to by his students, was responsible for leading the reorganization of the History, English, Music, Mass Media and Fine Arts curricula, respectively. He was also instrumental in securing a $1.25 million implementation cluster grant from the United Negro College Fund’s (UNCF) Career Pathways Initiative to fund projects to increase Talladega College students’ chances of finding meaningful employment upon graduation. Dr. Rice’s subsequent work and experiences at various institutions of higher education include Chief Diversity Officer, Assistant Provost for Academic Affairs, and Dean of the School of Graduate Studies, Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs and Enrollment Management and Central Region Director of Adult Education and Provost/Vice President for Academic Affairs at Rust College. He is currently serving as the Chief Operating Officer at Tuskegee University.
Dr. Rice is a professionally-trained historian who has taught a variety of lower and upper division undergraduate courses, including World History, United States History, The Civil Rights Movement and American Religious History, respectively. His research and publishing agenda are focused squarely on the Modern Civil Rights Movement. Dr. Rice’s book, Hosea Williams: A Lifetime of Defiance and Protest was recently published by the University of South Carolina Press. This book is the first scholarly biography on one of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s closest lieutenants and organizer of “Bloody Sunday and the subsequent Selma to Montgomery March.
Dr. Rice has also been identified as a subject-matter expert on the Civil Rights Movement who has been interviewed by CNN, the Atlanta Journal Constitution and the Montgomery Advertiser.
As the President and Chief Executive Officer of The Dapper Dean Education Empowerment Firm, Dr. Rice sees the world as a global classroom and grooming ground for greatness. For additional information, please visit his website at www.thedapperdean.com.
Dr. Rice graduated from DeVry University with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, Magna Cum Laude. He holds two advanced degrees. Rice earned the Master of Arts in History from Alabama State University and the Doctor of Philosophy in History from Auburn University. He is the first GED recipient to earn a Ph.D. in Auburn’s 166-year history.
Dr. Rice is married to the former Dana Lee. They have four children: Madison, Marley, Rolundus III and Remington.
Bio:
I learned to read from my grandmother’s Addams Family collections. My plans to become a professional basketball player sadly stalled when my growth did, around the seventh grade. I have a bachelor of arts degree in English from James Madison University and a Master of Advanced Studies degree in Film and Media Studies from Arizona State University. I’ve been a police reporter, a city and county government reporter, a features columnist, a sports columnist, TV critic, editor, movie critic and media critic. One day I’ll settle on something.
Michael Moffitt shares insights on legal education and work at the undergraduate level. Learn about his innovative opportunities for interdisciplinary collaborations.
DIANE REYNA was raised at her father’s village of Taos Pueblo in Northern New Mexico; her mother was from the Pueblo of Okay Owingeh. She is an experienced facilitator, college instructor, and trainer. She retired from the Institute of American Indian Arts in 2015, where she provided comprehensive support and services to first year students. Prior to working at the Institute, she spent 20 years as a videographer, producer, and director in the field of video news and documentary production. She directed the PBS documentary, “Surviving Columbus”, which was awarded the George Foster Peabody in 1993. She has spent most of her adult life in engaged in the arts and in education.
Dennis Pruitt, vice president for student affairs and vice provost at the University of South Carolina, has led the University’s Division of Student Affairs and Academic Support since 1983. He designed the university’s first and award-winning enrollment-management model, developed what is widely regarded as one of the earliest and most thorough strategic-planning processes in the field and significantly enhanced the university’s student-service programs.
In 2011, NASPA Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education honored Pruitt with the Scott Goodnight Award for Outstanding Service as a Dean, one of the organization’s most prestigious awards. Pruitt’s other awards include NASPA Southeast Region’s John Jones Award for Outstanding Performance as a Senior Student Affairs Officer, NASPA’s Outstanding Pillars of the Profession Award, NASPA Southeast Region’s Bob E. Leach Award for Dedicated and Outstanding Service to Students and the Armstrong State College Distinguished Alumni Award.
Pruitt earned his doctorate in education from Carolina, his master’s degree in counseling/student personnel services from West Georgia College and his bachelor’s degree in history and political science from Armstrong Atlantic State University.
Dr. Jim Hundrieser is the inaugural vice president for consulting and business development at the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO). At NACUBO, he matches higher education institutions with new strategies to that focus on growing revenue, building capacity, providing pragmatic solutions, conducting operational assessments, and increasing student success and completion.
Over his 30-year career in higher education, Jim has served in a variety of roles, from residence hall director, to faculty member, to institutional vice president, to consultant. The core of his work has focused on providing ways for students to gain access to and succeed in higher education.
Prior to joining NACUBO, Jim was the managing director of institutional strategies at the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges, the vice president for enrollment and student affairs at Plymouth State University, and vice president of student development at Lynn University. Jim also served in a senior role at Noel-Levitz as its vice president for strategic enrollment management.
He holds a BS from Northern Michigan University, an MEd from Plymouth State University, and a PhD in leadership and education from Barry University (FL).
A nationally recognized leader in higher education, educational access, financial aid and affordability, and liberal arts and sciences curricula, Dr. Cable served as Dean at Denison University from 1977-1986, Guilford College from 1986-1991, and Vice President and Dean of Admission and Financial Aid at Davidson College from 1991-2005. Together with Davidson trustees, faculty, staff, and student leaders, she helped to lead efforts to advance selectivity, diversity, financial capacity, and to implement a strategic plan that advanced Davidson College’s standing as one of the strongest liberal arts colleges in the U.S. From 2005-2009, she served as Vice President for Development in the College of Engineering at the University of Virginia and later with UVA’s Semester at Sea Program. Following three years of service as Bates College’s Vice President, the Bates College Board of Trustees elected Dr. Cable as Interim President, a position that allowed her to help lead college wide efforts on governance, faculty and curricular issues, and matters of diversity and inclusion.
A member of Phi Beta Kappa, she earned her B.A. from Marietta College, a M.Ed. from the University of Vermont, and a Ph.D. from the University of Virginia. She also completed the Harvard University Institute for Educational Leadership.
Dr. Cable is one of the charter founders of the University of Virginia Semester at Sea Desmond Tutu Program in Global Understanding and the CY Tung Scholars program on US-China Relations. She was named a Fulbright Senior Specialist and has consulted with the Director of the Fulbright Center in Hong Kong on the development of the liberal arts curricula within the evolving Chinese higher education system.
Her professional service has included membership on many boards of trustees for schools and colleges, including Marietta College, The College Board Task Force on Equity in Higher Education, The Council of Independent Colleges, the Maine Public Broadcasting System, the Jacksonville Civic Council, the WJCT Public Radio and Television in Jacksonville, the National Center for Family Philanthropy, and The Asheville School. From 2013-2017, she served as Chair of the Better Angels Society Board of Directors, which advises and supports Ken Burns’ work as America’s leading documentarian of long form historical documentaries. In January 2017, she was appointed to the Board of Trustees of the National Trust for the Humanities in Washington D.C.
For nearly a decade, Amanda worked in TRiO programs, spending a year with Talent Search and the next nine leading an Upward Bound project. In 2008, she joined the staff at Marietta College directing the Academic Resource Center (ARC). As the Director of the ARC, Amanda has led the center in tremendous growth including such activities as developing the PioPREP Academy bridge program, the Campus Food Pantry, and co-advising the Tri-Alpha first-generation national honor society to name a few. Under her direction, the ARC has achieved and renewed national certification from the College Learning Center Association’s (CRLA) International Tutor Training Program Certification team. In 2021, The ARC was named the National College Learning Center Association (NCLCA) Frank Christ Outstanding Learning Center Award winner for four-year institutions. Amanda has been recognized for her outstanding service at Marietta College, receiving honors for numerous areas of service. She was recently named the Distinguished Alumna of the year by Washington State Community College for outstanding professional achievement. In addition to her role in the ARC, Ms. Haney-Cech teaches First Year Experience (FYE) courses, a gender studies course, and the PIO 101 and 102 Pio Pathway courses.
Amanda is highly active both on campus and off, working with myriad committees and organizations that promote student success and positive staff engagement. Amanda has been active in promoting academic success and the value of the learning center profession on the state and national level as well. She has served on the board of directors for the Association for the Coaching and Tutoring Profession (formerly ATP), Ohio TRiO (formerly OAEOPP), and most recently, the Ohio College Learning Center Association (OCLCA) where she was engaged with the founding board for the NCLCA affiliate. Amanda has presented numerous conference workshops over the past 20 years and was the featured keynote speaker at the New York College Learning Skills Association annual conference in November of 2021.
Timothy Renick is the founding Executive Director of the National Institute for Student Success and Professor of Religious Studies at Georgia State University. Between 2008-2020, he directed the student success efforts of the university, overseeing a 62% improvement in graduation rates and the elimination of all equity gaps based on students' race, ethnicity, or income level. For six consecutive years, Georgia State has graduated more African American students with bachelor’s degrees than any other not-for-profit college or university in the nation. Dr. Renick has testified on strategies for helping university students succeed before the U.S. Senate and has twice been invited to speak at the White House. His work has been covered by the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, Time, and CNN and cited by former President Barack Obama. It was also the subject of the book, Won’t Lose this Dream (New Press, 2020) by Andrew Gumbel. Dr. Renick was named one of the Most Innovative People in Higher Education by Washington Monthly and one of the World’s 50 Greatest Leaders by Fortune magazine. He was the recipient of the Award for National Leadership in Student Success Innovation and was awarded the McGraw Prize in Higher Education. He has been principal investigator for more than $50 million in research grants focused on promoting better and more equitable outcomes for college students. At Georgia State, he has served as Chair of the Department of Religious Studies, Director of the Honors Program and Senior Vice President. A summa cum laude graduate of Dartmouth College, Dr. Renick holds his M.A. and Ph.D. in Religion from Princeton University.
Rusty Monhollon is President and Executive Director of the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education. He began his duties on July 15, 2019.
Between 2011-2019, Monhollon was the Assistant Commissioner for Academic Affairs at the Missouri Department of Higher Education. There he oversaw the design, implementation, and monitoring of public policies related to academic programs, assessment of student success, and institutional performance. He led the Missouri Reverse Transfer Initiative, which resulted in more than 1,000 students receiving associate degrees. Monhollon also led the state's efforts to implement best practices in remedial education, including the use of multiple measures for placement, gateway courses aligned to programs of study, alternative modes of delivering remedial education, and sending consistent messages of constitutes college readiness to high school students, among others. Between 2013-2019, the overall rate of remediation in Missouri declined by nearly 36 percent, and by 42 percent in mathematics. He also oversaw the Missouri Math Pathways Initiative, which was implemented in the fall of 2018 with 25 of 27 public institutions participating, and the state's Corequisite at Scale effort, which included three-fourths of all public institutions.
Monhollon also headed up the effort to implement a statewide core transfer curriculum known as CORE 42, which was implemented in the fall of 2018. The CORE 42 is a library of nearly 100 courses guaranteed to transfer course-for-course among all public institutions, which will result in fewer "wasted" credits and unnecessary credit hour accumulation, and will also include the development of appropriate academic maps aligned to CORE 42.
Before joining the MDHE in 2009 as a Senior Associate, Monhollon was Associate Professor of History and Director for the Masters of Arts in Humanities program at Hood College in Frederick, Maryland. He previously held appointments at Washburn University, Rockhurst University, the University of Kansas, and the University of Missouri-Columbia, teaching courses in twentieth-century America, the 1960s, race and race relations, the civil rights movement, and American popular culture. His first book “This is America?”: The Sixties in Lawrence, Kansas (Palgrave, 2002), received the Edward H. Tihen Publication Award from the Kansas State Historical Association, and was nominated for the Phi Alpha Theta Annual Book Award, both in 2003. He also the editor of Baby Boom: People and Perspectives, published by ABC-Clio in 2010. Additionally, Monhollon has published many articles and reviews and given numerous professional presentations.
Prior to entering academia, Monhollon worked as a welder and machinist, and was the general manager of a custom steel fabrication shop. A native Kansan, Monhollon began taking college courses in the evening while working full-time and received his baccalaureate degree at Washburn University of Topeka, with a dual major in History and Political Science. He earned his master’s and doctoral degrees in History from the University of Kansas. He and his wife Sonja Erickson have four children and three grandchildren.
Catherine Finneran Andersen, Ph.D. has served as an advisor to the Gardner Institute for over ten years. She has worked with numerous colleges and university guiding institutional efforts in FoE, four year and transfer as well as Gateways to Completion (G2C). Currently, she is the Vice Provost and is a full professor at the University of Baltimore and is responsible for curriculum, General Education, accreditation, institutional research, excellence in teaching and learning, retention, student success and assessment. Prior, she served as Chief Enrollment and Marketing Officer, Associate Provost, Dean of Enrollment and General Studies, Director of the First-Year Experience and Chairperson of the Communication and Developmental Studies at Gallaudet University and holds the title of Professor Emeritus. She served on the national advisory board for the National Resource Center on the First-Year Experience and Students in Transition, and currently serves on the national advisory board for Teagle Assessment Scholars. In 1994, she was awarded the honor of Gallaudet’s Distinguished Faculty of the Year and 1997 she was named one of the nation’s Outstanding First-Year Advocates; Andersen is thrilled to be using her experience to work with JNGI’s Foundations of Excellence colleges.
John is an educator, university professor and administrator, founder of two non-profit organizations, author, public speaker, consultant, public intellectual and thought leader, change agent, student retention specialist, first-year, sophomore, transfer, and senior year students’ advocate, initiator and scholar of multiple undergraduate education reform movements and…a continuing active participant in the unfinished civil rights movement. He serves as Founder and Executive Chair of the John N. Gardner Institute for Excellence in Undergraduate Education. The Institute was founded by John and his wife, Betsy O. Barefoot, in October 1999 as the Policy Center on the First Year of College which was an outgrowth of their previous pioneering work at the University of South Carolina.
George D. Kuh is Chancellor’s Professor Emeritus of Higher Education at Indiana University (IU). He is founding director of IU’s Center for Postsecondary Research, the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE), and the National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment (NILOA). George has more than 400 publications and made several hundred presentations on topics related to assessment strategies, institutional improvement, college student engagement, and campus cultures. He has consulted with about 400 institutions and organizations in the U.S. and abroad. His recent books include Using Evidence of Student Learning to Improve Higher Education (2015),Ensuring Quality and Taking High-Impact Practices to Scale (2013), High Impact Practices (2008), and Student Success in College: Creating Conditions That Matter (2005, 2010). His work has been recognized with awards from the American College Personnel Association, American Educational Research Association, Association for Institutional Research, Association for the Study of Higher Education, Council for Adult and Experiential Learning, Council of Independent Colleges, National Association of Student Personnel Administrators, and National Center on Public Policy in Higher Education as well as eleven honorary degrees.
Edward Ayers has been named National Professor of the Year, received the National Humanities Medal from President Obama at the White House, served as president of the Organization of American Historians, and won the Bancroft Prize for distinguished writing in American history. Ayers is the executive director of New American History, an online project designed to help students and teachers to see the nation’s history in new ways. He is university professor and president emeritus at the University of Richmond.
https://www.newamericanhistory.org/
https://valley.newamericanhistory.org/
https://www.bunkhistory.org/
From 2008 - 2019 Dr. James A. Anderson served as Chancellor and Professor of Psychology at Fayetteville State University (UNC). He previously served as a senior administrator at SUNY Albany, Texas A&M University, and North Carolina State University. He was a tenured full professor of Psychology at Indiana University of Pennsylvania and Chairperson of the Department of Psychology at Xavier University of New Orleans.
He received a Ph.D. from Cornell University and a B.A. from Villanova University where he also served on the Board of Trustees (2000-2010). He is the author of the book
“Driving Change Through Diversity and Globalization: Transformative Leadership in the Academy” (2008, Stylus Publishing, LLC), and he also edited the book “The Unfinished Agenda of Brown v. Board of Education” (2004) which celebrated the 50th anniversary of this landmark decision.
He has consulted with over 300 colleges, universities, and community colleges on topics like student success and achievement, retention, diversity, non-traditional and underserved students, the First Year Experience, learning communities, outcomes assessment, faculty engagement and teaching communities, service learning, the retention of diverse faculty, the institutional application of evidence-based decision making. He continues to serve as a consultant for SACS and has received distinguished awards from a variety of higher education organizations.
Kurt Edward Ewen was born and raised in Orlando, Florida. He earned an Associate of Arts degree from Valencia Community College and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy from St. Meinrad College in St. Meinrad, Indiana. Graduate and post-graduate studies took him to the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, in Leuven, Belgium where he completed a Master’s degree in Religious Studies and a Licentiate in Sacred Theology (Sacrae Theologiae Licentiatus or S.T.L., a 2-year post-graduate degree) in Philosophical Theology. Kurt completed doctoral studies in Educational Leadership, with a specialization in Higher Education Administration, at Barry University in Miami Shores, Florida. His doctoral dissertation research extends his interest in collective sense-making to the role that data or evidence can play in creating the potential for collaborative decision-making and innovative practice in higher education. Kurt is currently serves as the Chief of Staff and Vice Chancellor of Strategy, Planning and Institutional Effectiveness and at Houston Community College (HCC). Prior to his move to Houston, Kurt worked at Valencia College in Orlando, Florida. In his 15+ years at Valencia, Kurt served as a Professor of Philosophy/Humanities, Director of Institutional Assessment, AVP for Institutional Effectiveness and Planning, and Presidential Fellow under Dr. Sanford “Sandy” Shugart.
Read pieces written by Kurt Ewen:
Recurring Anticipatory GriefA Rude AwakeningOn Falls and Falling
Vicki is an Associate Vice President at the Gardner Institute, where she has served as an Advisor and Fellow since her retirement as Provost and Professor of Psychology at Otterbein University. She is the Process Coordinator for the Retention Performance Management process. She serves as an institutional Advisor and Fellow in both of these processes. She also serves as a Senior Advisor on the Gateways to Completion process. Prior to her retirement, Vicki led curricular, programmatic and business collaboration initiatives for the 52 member institutions of the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Ohio, where she helped found the Ohio Project Kaleidoscope (AAC&U) Regional organization, and the Ohio/Western Pennsylvania/West Virginia Higher Education Recruiting Consortium (HERC) as well as state-wide planning groups focusing on collaborative professional development and course sharing. Prior to her leadership role at Otterbein, Dr. McGillin served as Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the Faculty at Linfield College (OR) and Associate Provost at Texas Woman’s University.
Vicki began her academic career as an assistant professor at the University of Connecticut before moving to Clark University (MA) where she subsequently served as Associate Dean of the College. Stimulated by her first, First Year Experience Conference, she initiated a First Year Seminar program at Clark organized around student engagement with primary research. Subsequently, at Wheaton College (MA), Vicki served as Dean and Assistant Provost. The First Year Advising Teams she created received national recognition, both from NACADA and in the DEEP study of unusually strong student engagement completed by George Kuh and associates. She has consulted with over thirty colleges and universities on advising, resilience, curriculum and faculty development and has served on over a half-dozen higher education boards or executive committees, including multiple positions on the NACADA Board of Directors.
As an academic leader, Vicki focused on the career-span professional development of academics, student academic resilience, strategic planning and budgeting, authentic learning outcomes assessment, the redesign of teaching/learning spaces and on evidence-based curricular reform. She has published or presented over 100 papers on these topics. She has consulted/advised national and regional organizations on leadership development and the development of academic and business collaborations/consortia including the Project Kaleidoscope (AAC&U) STEM Senior Leadership Institute, the New England Resource Center for Higher Education, the NACADA Summer Institute and Assessment Institute, and the Council of Independent Colleges Chairs Institute. Vicki earned her B.S. and M.S. in Psychology from Pennsylvania State University and her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from Michigan State University.
To contact Vicki, please email her at mcgillin@jngi.org
Aaron Brower is the founding Executive Director for the University of Wisconsin Extended Campus, and the Senior Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs at the UW System. UWEX has built a national reputation for award-winning innovative online programs for adults and professionals. Among UWEX’s innovations is the UW Flexible Option, the first-in-the-country (and still only) competency-based educational program run throughout an entire statewide system.
From 2012-2018, Brower served as Provost of UW-Extension (and Interim Chancellor of UW Colleges and UW-Extension during 2014). From 2007-2021, he was UW-Madison’s Vice Provost for Teaching & Learning. Brower remains a tenured professor at UW-Madison’s School of Social Work. Brower earned a dual Ph.D. in Psychology and Social Work in 1985 from the University of Michigan.
Brower has written 5 books, more than 50 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters, and received over $18M in grants to support his work. His scholarship demonstrates the academic and social outcomes produced when colleges blend in- and out-of-class learning – engaging the whole university to support the entire student. His current work develops a new educational approach that allows people to customize the unbundling and rebundling of education and training throughout their lives.
Professor Nthabiseng Audrey Ogude is an Analytical Chemist, Science Educator and is currently Professor and Dean at the University of Pretoria’s Mamelodi Campus. She obtained a BSc degree Upper Class Honours majoring in Chemistry and Biological Sciences (Biochemistry, Parasitology and Entomology) at the National University of Lesotho, a MSc degree in Analytical Chemistry specialising in spectrophotometric methods of chemical analysis of Foods at the University of Nairobi and a PhD in Chemistry specialising in Chemistry Education at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. Her PhD work was on the conceptions of entry level students and final year students of macroscopic and microscopic phenomena in electrochemical reactions and devising and implementing teaching resources (experiments and tutorials) to correct identified misconceptions. She was the first Black woman to receive a PhD in Chemistry at the University of the Witwatersrand in 1992. Professor Ogude was also the first woman to hold the positions of Vice-Chancellor of Tshwane University of Technology, Deputy Vice-Chancellor Teaching and Learning at the University of Pretoria and Deputy Vice-Chancellor Academic at Nelson Mandela University. She is currently Vice-President of the Pan African University Council. She has 30 years’ experience in tertiary education, 15 of which were in strategic leadership positions. She has taught at undergraduate (contact and distance) and postgraduate levels, supervised postgraduate students and published a number of papers in accredited and peer-reviewed journals.
Professor Ogude is passionate about student access and success and using data-informed approaches for holistic development of students. She is one of the first four South Africans who attended the Achieving the Dream Conference in 2010, which formed the basis of the Kresge Foundation’s national initiative Siyaphumelela (We succeed)now rolled out to all South African universities. She also serves as one of the first cohort of six South African Student Success Coaches that assists 19 universities in South Africa in improving undergraduate student outcomes especially among first generation students. As the immediate former Dean of the Mamelodi Campus, she oversees the Anchor Strategy of the Campus, the Mamelodi Collaborative. This a partnership with Rutgers University-Newark, which paved the way for the University of Pretoria to become the first African university to become part of the Coalition of Urban and Metropolitan Universities – i.e. higher education institutions that play a major role in strengthening of the fabric of their communities by aligning university goals with those of the neighbourhoods in which they are anchored, thus promoting educational opportunities, driving economic mobility and improving lives. Her research interests are in the areas of science / chemistry education, women in science, higher education policy and academic management leadership. She has a number of papers published in accredited journals and conference proceedings. She has developed a number of teaching and learning resources. She is currently the acting director of the University of Pretoria’s flagship project the UP: Pre-University Academy.
Merrick L. Furst, Ph.D., Distinguished Professor, runs commercialization and new venture creation and directs undergraduate programs and faculty development in the College of Computing at Georgia Tech. He recently founded the anti-botnet startup, Damballa, Inc. Prior to GT he was a professor at UC Berkeley, president of the International Computer Science Institute at Berkeley and CEO of Essential Surfing Gear, Inc., which grew to 53 employees before being sold in 2000. He also helped establish a new high school in San Francisco. Earlier he was professor and associate dean in the School of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon. Dr. Furst is known for seminal research in algorithms, complexity theory and AI. Merrick co-invented probabilistic circuit analysis and planning graphs, which are considered among the most influential breakthroughs in the field of AI planning.
Isis Artze-Vega, Ed.D. serves as college provost and vice president for academic affairs at Valencia College in Central Florida, a Hispanic-Serving Institution that serves about 70,000 students annually and has long been regarded as one of the nation’s best community colleges. She provides strategic leadership for the areas of curriculum, assessment, faculty development, distance learning, career and workforce education, and partnerships for educational equity. Prior to joining Valencia, Isis served as assistant vice president for teaching and learning at Florida International University (FIU), leading such efforts as a gateway course project, a hybrid course initiative, and the comprehensive redesign of teaching evaluation. Prior to joining FIU, she taught English composition and enrollment management at the University of Miami. Most importantly, she is the proud wife of visual artist Sinuhe Vega; the proud mami of Kamilah, 16, and Delilah, 14; and forever indebted to extraordinary parents, Mayra and Elias. Her work is fueled by a commitment to equity and justice, implemented through love and service.
Jamie Merisotis is a globally recognized leader in philanthropy, education, human work and talent development, and public policy. He has been Lumina’s president and CEO since 2008.
He previously was co-founder and president of the nonpartisan, Washington, D.C.-based Institute for Higher Education Policy and also served as executive director of a bipartisan national commission on college affordability appointed by the U.S. president and congressional leaders. Merisotis is the author of the acclaimed book America Needs Talent, named a Top 10 Business book of 2016 by Booklist, as well as Human Work in the Age of Smart Machines, released to wide praise in October 2020.
He is often requested as a media commentator and contributor. His writing has appeared in The Washington Post, New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, National Journal, Stanford Social Innovation Review, Washington Monthly, Politico, The Hill, Roll Call, and other publications.
Merisotis has extensive global experience as an advisor and consultant in southern Africa, the former Soviet Union, Europe, and other parts of the world. A respected analyst and innovator, Merisotis is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
He has received numerous awards and holds honorary degrees from several universities and colleges. Merisotis also is a trustee and advisor for a diverse array of organizations around the world. He serves as a Governor of The Ditchley Foundation, based in the United Kingdom, and is past chairman and continuing trustee of the Council on Foundations in Washington, D.C. as well as The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis, the world’s largest museum for children. He also is a board member of the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership, the Indiana Chamber of Commerce, and several other entities.
George Mehaffy served for 20 years as the Vice President for Academic Leadership and Change at the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU). There he was responsible for developing and managing programs for almost 400 member institutions in areas such as leadership development, undergraduate education, technology, international education, teacher education and student success. He also worked closely with provosts at AASCU institutions, visiting more than 130 campuses. His division organized a number of national conferences, including two academic affairs meetings annually. In 2003 he launched the American Democracy Project, focused on increasing civic engagement. Notable in his years at AASCU were his projects on student success, including the Graduation Rate Study and Re-Imagining the First Year, supported by more than $ 13 million in external funding.
Prior to AASCU, George had a 19 year career in higher education, first as a faculty member and department chair at Eastern New Mexico University, then serving for 8 years as the Director of the School of Teacher Education at San Diego State, then the largest teacher education program in California. He returned to Eastern New Mexico University as provost for 5 years, leading the initiative that resulted in Eastern receiving the Pew Leadership Award for the Renewal of Undergraduate Education.
He graduated with a BA in History from the University of Washington, taught history and government in high school for 4 years, then earned a Ph.D. at the University of Texas at Austin. He also served for 33 years in the Coast Guard Reserve, retiring as a Captain in 2000.
Philip D. Gardner is Director of the Collegiate Employment Research Institute at Michigan State University. Dr. Gardner has been with MSU for more than 30 years after receiving degrees from Whitman College (BA in Chemistry) and Michigan State University (Ph.D. in Resource & Development Economics/Public Policy). His major areas of research include the transition from college to work, early socialization and career progression in the workplace, workforce readiness, and other areas related to college student studies. MSU’s nationally recognized annual college labor market study is done under his direction each fall. He also served as senior editor of the Journal of Cooperative Education and Internships, and in 2019, he was inducted into the NACE Academy of Fellows for his advancement of knowledge, leadership and excellence in his profession.
Vincent Tinto is a Distinguished University Professor Emeritus at Syracuse University and the former Chair of the Higher Education Program. He has carried out research and has written extensively on higher education, particularly on student success and the impact of learning communities on student growth and attainment. His book, Leaving College, published by the University of Chicago Press, lays out a theory and policy perspective on student success that is considered the benchmark by which work on these issues are judged. His most recent book, Completing College, also published by The University of Chicago Press, lays out a framework for institutional action for student success, describes the range of programs that have been effective in enhancing student success, and the types of policies institutions should follow to successfully implement programs in ways that endure and scale-up over time. His most recent work explores what is learned about persistence and policies to address it when seen through the eyes of students.
He has received numerous recognitions and awards. He was awarded the Council of Educational Opportunity Walter O. Mason 2012 Award for his work on the retention of low-income students, the Council of Independent Colleges 2008 Academic Leadership Award, the National Institute for Staff Development International 2008 Leadership Award and was named Distinguished Fellow in the Council of Learning Assistance and Developmental Education Associations. Most recently, he was named recipient of the 2015 President Harry S. Truman Award for the American Association of Community Colleges for his work for community colleges across America. He has some 50 notable publications, including books, research reports, and journal articles, to his credit and has lectured across the United States, Argentina, Australia, Canada, Chile, Denmark, Great Britain, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, South Africa and The Netherlands. From 1990 to 1996 he was associate director of the National Center for Teaching, Learning, and Assessment. He has worked with a number of organizations, foundations, and government agencies on issues of student success and sits on a number of advisory boards including the Community College Survey of Student Engagement, The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and The Lumina Foundation.
Dr. Tinto received his B.S. from Fordham in Physics and Philosophy, his M.S. from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Physics and Mathematics, and his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago in Education and Sociology.
Dr Barry O’Connor is President Emeritus of Cork Institute of Technology (now Munster Technological University), having previously served asRegistrar and Vice President for Academic Affairs at the Institute prior to which he worked for25 years in University College Cork and significant sabbatical periods in ENSIA(France), Michigan State University (USA) ,ESB Porto (Portugal). He is a member of the French Commission des titres d’ingénieur panel of Experts. He holds engineering and law degrees from UCC and a PhD from MichiganState University. A committed educator, he has served on/chaired Boards of Management at Primary,Secondary and Further Education levels.He is the inaugural Chair of the Cork Access Network and aWorkingGroup Co-Chair of the Global Forum on Student Success.
Dr Emily McIntosh is Director of Learning, Teaching and Student Experience at Middlesex University, London, UK. Emily’s role at Middlesex involves cross institutional leadership for learning and teaching, including student transition, technology enhanced learning (TEL), academic practice, equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI), academic advising, and student engagement. Emily is a Principal Fellow of theHigher Education Academy (PFHEA) and a National Teaching Fellow (NTF). She was a founding Board member and Trustee of UK Advising and Tutoring (UKAT) from 2016-2021 and is now a member of theExecutive Board and Trustee of the Heads of Educational Development Group (HEDG) and is also Academic Board Member of the NACADA Center for Research at Kansas StateUniversity, United States. Emily has always had a keen interest in all things student success and has published monographs, chapters and articles on a wide variety of topics from academic advising, personal tutoring and peer learning to integrated practice. She is on twitter: @emilythemac.
Dr. Daniel Greenstein became the fifth chancellor of Pennsylvania's State System of Higher Education on September 4, 2018. In that role, he serves as chief executive officer of the state's system of 14 public universities, serving more than 90,000 degree-seeking students and thousands more enrolled in certificate and other career-development programs. Chancellor Greenstein is leading a system-wide redesign effort focused on increasing opportunities for students—including those in underserved populations—while enhancing the financial sustainability of the universities.
Greenstein previously led the Postsecondary Success strategy at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, where he worked with other higher education leaders across the country on initiatives designed to raise educational-attainment levels and to promote economic mobility, especially among low-income and minority students. He developed and implemented a national strategy for increasing the number of degrees awarded and for reducing the attainment gaps among majority and non-majority students at U.S. colleges and universities.
Before joining the foundation, Greenstein was Vice Provost for Academic Planning and Programs for the University of California (UC) system. In that role, he oversaw system-wide academic planning and programs, including the University of California Press; the California Digital Library; the UC system's Education Abroad Program; internship programs in Washington, D.C., and Sacramento; and UC Online Education. Greenstein has created and led several internet-based academic information services in the United States and the United Kingdom, and served on boards and acted in strategic consulting roles for educational, cultural heritage, and information organizations.
He began his academic career as a senior lecturer in Modern History at Glasgow University in Scotland. He holds both bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Pennsylvania and a D.Phil. from the University of Oxford. An enthusiastic cyclist, Dan and his wife, Melissa, have two children.
Brandon Smith serves as an Assistant Vice President with the Gardner Institute after over a decade of higher education experience. Smith started his career as a member of the faculty at Midwestern State University and continued on to Brevard College to lead their theatre program and later serve as an associate dean for student success. During his time working on student success initiatives at Brevard College, the number of students retained annually increased by nearly 30%.
Smith is a recipient of the prestigious Richard A. Weaver award for theatrical directing (2010), The Kennedy Center's American College Theatre Festival Distinguished Award for New Work (Bandersnatch, 2012), as well as both the Outstanding Faculty Member of the Year (Brevard College, 2014) and First United Methodist Church Exemplary Teacher Award at Brevard College (2016). Smith also works as a producer for videos showcasing exemplars at colleges and universities. He has collaborated on numerous videos for Duke University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. "How Safe is Safe Enough? The Long Term Effects of E-Cigarettes," a collaboration between the UNC School of Medicine and StoryDriven, was recently nominated for an Emmy award.
Smith continues to teach, write, direct, consult on storytelling, and conduct research in both the arts and postsecondary systems linked to student success. As a practitioner-researcher, Smith is particularly interested in utilizing improvement science tools to focus and catalyze organizational transformation. He recently authored a chapter in The Educational Leader's Guide to Improvement Science: Data, Design, and Cases for Reflection, published by Stylus. In 2012, Smith contributed to an article about cross-disciplinary undergraduate research between the arts and sciences in the Perspectives on Undergraduate Research Methods (PURM), published by Elon University. Brandon's dissertation of practice, Unlocking the Gates: Faculty Professional Development for Increased Student Success in Foundational and Gateway Courses, outlined how the use of improvement science empowered a Networked Improvement Community (NIC) of faculty to redesign gateway and foundational courses at both 4-year and 2-year institutions. He holds an MFA in Dramatic Art from UNC-Chapel Hill and an Ed.D. in Educational Leadership at Western Carolina University.
Brandon is currently working with the Gardner Institute on coordinating aspects of the Intermediaries for Scale Grant, funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; the ECMC PACE initiative; the development of a Readiness, Willingness, and Ability instrument with the Evaluation Learning Research Center at Purdue; development of Networked Improvement Communities; and collaborating on numerous other initiatives at the Institute.
Henry Stoever is the President and CEO of the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges (AGB). He brings to AGB a deep understanding of the importance of strategic governance and a wealth of experience building member-focused organizations. As AGB’s president & CEO, he oversees leadership and operations of the organization serving over 1,300 boards representing over 40,000 individual trustees across more than 2,000 member institutions around the world. Henry champions AGB’s educational and advocacy work including AGB Search, a wholly-owned private company of AGB.
In his prior role at the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD), he oversaw marketing, partner relations, and board-development teams, providing insights on issues shaping board agendas. Earlier in his career, Henry led marketing and communications teams as the Senior Vice President for StudentLoans.com, Vice President of Marketing for the CoStar Group, Senior Director of Industry Marketing at Nextel Communications (now Sprint Communications), Director of Marketing, Communications and Business Development at LexisNexis, and as a brand manager at Kraft Foods.
After graduating from the United States Naval Academy with a B.S. in economics, Henry served in the United States Marine Corps as an infantry officer. Subsequently, he earned an MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg Graduate School of Management.
In addition to serving as a trustee for the United States Naval Academy Foundation’s Academic and Scholarship Programs board, Henry is a member of the board of directors for the Boulder Crest Retreat for Wounded Warriors. He was a visiting professor at American University’s Kogod School of Business.
A. Hope Williams is in her 30th year as president of North Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities (NCICU), the statewide office of the 36 private, nonprofit colleges and universities in North Carolina. She works closely with the State of North Carolina and the federal government, and with the North Carolina public K-12 and higher education sectors to address education and related public policy and funding issues. In addition, she oversees fundraising for student scholarships and grants, professional development opportunities for campus leaders, as well as the development of collaborative programs for the benefit of NCICU campuses.
Dr. Williams received her undergraduate degree from Duke University, an MPA from North Carolina State University and a Ph.D. in Education from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She is a member of the Governor’s Education Cabinet and was named a 2017 CEO of the Year by the Triangle Business Journal. She chairs the boards of MCNC, Dupont Circle Investments, and the North Carolina Aquarium Society, serves on the boards of the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center and the National Student Clearinghouse, College Foundation, Inc., the National Advisory Board of the Institute for Emerging Issues, the NCWorks Commission, myFutureNC and Communities in Schools of North Carolina.
William (Bill) F. L. Moses serves as managing director for The Kresge Foundation’s Education Program, which supports postsecondary access and success for low-income, first-generation and underrepresented students.
The key architect of Kresge’s education programming, Bill leads the team’s continuum of domestic and international grant activities from developing program strategy, reviewing preliminary ideas, and helping grantees develop proposals or initiatives, to awarding funding and monitoring existing grants. Since his arrival at Kresge, Bill has served as a program officer and senior program officer, was instrumental in developing Kresge’s Green Building Initiative and has spearheaded the foundation’s grantmaking in South Africa.
Before joining Kresge, Bill served as executive director of The Thomas J. Watson Foundation in Rhode Island and as a senior analyst at the Investor Responsibility Research Center in Washington, D.C. He also worked as a research officer at TechnoServe and held various administrative positions in Alaska’s state legislature and the federal government, including the U.S. Embassy in Cape Town, South Africa.
A graduate of Claremont McKenna College, Bill holds a master’s degree in international relations from Yale University. He is the author of “A Guide to American State and Local Laws on South Africa” and co-author of “Corporate Responsibility in a Changing South Africa.” He was the co-chair of the seven-foundation Partnership for Higher Education in Africa and serves on the steering committee of the Africa Grantmakers’ Affinity Group, an organization he co-founded. He also is a member of the National Advisory Board of The College Promise Campaign and a Board Member of APIA Scholars. In 2022, Bill was appointed to serve on President Joe Biden’s Board of Advisors on Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) with the aim to increase the capacity of HBCUs to provide the highest-quality education to its students and continue serving as engines of opportunity.
President Emeritus and Senior Fellow, The Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation
Dr. Arthur Levine served as President of the Woodrow Wilson Foundation. Under his leadership, the Woodrow Wilson Foundation transformed into a national leader in educator preparation and school improvement. Staying true to the Foundation’s mission of identifying and developing leaders and institutions to meet the nation’s critical challenges, Levine created a portfolio of new and innovative programs designed to improve educational opportunities, particularly for high-need communities.
Prior to joining the Woodrow Wilson Foundation, Levine was President and Professor of Education at Teachers College, Columbia University. He also previously served as Chair of the Higher Education Program and Chair of the Institute for Educational Management, and Senior Lecturer at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.
David Brightman has been involved in professional book publishing for higher education for two decades. A senior editor at Stylus since 2015, prior to that he served as the lead editor for higher education books at Jossey-Bass from2001-2014. David earned his BA degree in Interdisciplinary Studies at the University of California,Berkeley with highest honors, and later completed the Professional Certificate in Publishing from the UC Berkeley Extension.A native of Washington, DC, and 30-year resident ofSan Francisco, he currently resides in Columbus, Ohio.
Lou Albert is a Professor of Practice in the Division of Educational Leadership and Innovation at Arizona State University’s Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College.
Prior to his appointment at ASU, Lou served as President of the West Campus of Pima County Community College in Tucson, Arizona from 2003 until his retirement in 2015. He is a former academic Vice Chancellor of the San Jose/Evergreen Community College District (1998-2003); and former Vice President of the American Association for Higher Education (1982-98), a not-for-profit membership association where John Gardner served as a member of its Board of Trustees. At AAHE, Lou was responsible for organizing the annual National Conference on Higher Education, and for special initiatives that focused on school/college partnerships, service-learning and civic engagement, and instructional technology.
Lou was also a faculty member and senior administrator at Essex Community College, now a part of the Community College of Baltimore County. Lou’s board service includes two terms on the National Board of Campus Compact, a consortium of nearly 1,200 college and university presidents committed to advancing the civic mission of higher education.
He also served for six years as Chair of the Board of Trustees for the International Partnership for Service-Learning. In Tucson, he is a past Board Chair for the United Way of Tucson and Southern Arizona.
Lou earned his Master of Science in Zoology and Ph.D. in Higher Education from the University of Maryland-College Park. He holds a B.S. in Biology from Loyola College (now University) of Maryland. In 2001, he was awarded the Doctor of Humane Letters (Honoris Causa) from Cuttington University in the West African nation of Liberia.
Janet L. Marling, Ph.D. has been affiliated with NISTS since its establishment in 2002 and was named
executive director in 2011. In this role and through her extensive speaking, training, and consulting activities, Dr. Marling works with individuals, higher education institutions and associations, state agencies, foundations, and legislative bodies to improve transfer policy, practice, and research. She edited
the New Directions for Higher Education volume titled, Collegiate Transfer: Navigating the New Normal,
published by Jossey-Bass, and has been involved as a project director and/or co-principal investigator
for multiple research grants focusing on transfer student success.
John M. Whiteley has been an administrator and professor at the University of California, Irvine since 1972. His research has included the clash between citizen expression of concern which conflicts sharply with the national security imperatives of the U.S. government, moral development from late adolescence to early adult development, social ecology of peace, character and community in the college years, history of the profession of counseling psychology, quest for peace and security in the 21st century. The initiative on fostering moral and intellectual motivation in a residential just community for first-year students will celebrate its 50th Anniversary in 2025. He has published two volumes and a monograph describing in detail this research and a third volume in progress where the chapters most relevant are on four approaches to understanding stages of moral reasoning in men and women, and five initial approaches to moral and character education. There have also been a total of six doctoral dissertations from Harvard, Boston University, and UC Irvine.
Dr. Laura Latta is a dedicated educator with experience in Pre K through postsecondary instructional leadership, cross-sector community development, and education research design and analytics. Laura, a lifelong Tulsan, has committed her entire career to education and has held leadership roles as an award-winning teacher, professor, school administrator, community coordinator, researcher, and nonprofit director. Throughout her career, Laura has used her experience to bring together leaders in education, business, civic and community organizations to work collaboratively toward high quality education and equitable access to learning opportunities for all students from early childhood through postsecondary.
Laura I. Rendón is Professor Emerita and Co-Director of the Center for Research and Policy in Education at University of Texas-San Antonio. A native of Laredo, Texas, Rendón’s scholarly endeavors have focused on college access and success especially for low-income, first-generation students. Rendón is credited with developing the theory of validation that academic and student affairs practitioners have employed as a student success framework. Her current research on student success is focused on shattering deficit frameworks, illuminating student assets, and assisting Latinx students succeed in STEM fields.
Rendón is also a teaching and learning thought leader. She is the author of the book, Sentipensante (Sensing/Thinking Pedagogy): Educating for Wholeness, Social Justice and Liberation, that addresses deep learning experiences employing contemplative tools. Her current work in this area relates to contemplative education that centers social justice. Rendón earned a Ph.D. from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. She holds a Master of Arts degree from Texas A&M University-Kingsville and a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Houston. Rendón earned an Associate of Arts degree from San Antonio College and also attended Laredo Community College.
Purdue University Global Chancellor Dr. Frank J. Dooley boasts an international reputation as an innovative educator and creative researcher. Prior to his appointment in May 2020, Dooley was senior vice provost for Purdue University.
Dooley has received numerous awards for teaching, research, and service, including the Charles B. Murphy Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Award in 2009 and the Agricultural and Applied Economics Association Outstanding Undergraduate Teacher in 2011. He was inducted into Purdue's Teaching Academy in 2002 and into the University's Book of Great Teachers in 2014.
Dooley, who received his bachelor's degree from St. John's University, his Juris Doctor from University of North Dakota, and his doctoral degree from Washington State University, came to Purdue's Department of Agricultural Economics in 1998.
Dr. Susan Whealler Johnston is president and CEO of the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO), a position she has held since August 1, 2018. Prior to joining NACUBO, she was at the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges (AGB), and for 12 years she served as its executive vice president and chief operating officer, responsible for the day-to-day operations of the organization as well as strategic planning. While at AGB, she led national projects on a range of topics including college costs, shared governance, institutional risk, educational quality, and student success. She was also a regular contributor to Trusteeship magazine.
Prior to joining AGB, Susan was professor of English and dean of academic development at Rockford University. She also served as associate dean at Regent’s College, Rockford’s London campus. While at Rockford, she served as department chair, chaired the university’s strategic planning effort, and created grant-funded programs connecting the institution and the community on such topics as girls and STEM, women in the arts, and civic engagement.
Kenneth C. Green, Ph.D., is the founding director of The Campus Computing Project, the largest continuing study of the role of computing, eLearning, and information technology in American higher education. Launched in 1990, Campus Computing is widely cited by both campus officials and corporate executives as a definitive source for data, information, and insight about eLearning and information technology planning and policy issues affecting U.S. colleges and universities. Green also recently served as the director of the Digital Fellows Project, funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, (2017-2019), and as the moderator and co-producer of TO A DEGREE, the postsecondary success podcast of the Gates Foundation.
The author/co-author or editor of more than 20 books and published research reports and more than 100 articles and commentaries that have appeared in academic journals and professional publications Green is often quoted on higher education and information technology issues in The New York Times, The Chronicle of Higher Education, Inside Higher Education, and other print and broadcast media.
In October 2002 Green received the first EDUCAUSE Award for Leadership in Public Policy and Practice. The EDUCAUSE award cited his work in creating The Campus Computing Project and recognized his “prominence in the arena of national and international technology agendas, and the linking of higher education to those agendas.” And in February 2019, EdTech Digest cited Green among the “100 Top Influencers in EdTech", stating that he is a “definitive resource for the higher education transformation conversation.”
Dr. Koch is a child of immigrants who came to the United States in pursuit of a better life for their family. His first language was not English, and postsecondary education was valued by his family as a means for realizing the American Dream. He is a staunch advocate and leader of efforts that increase student access to and, ultimately, completion of postsecondary education. He has worked in and with higher education institutions for nearly 30 years. He has done so since 2010 at the Gardner Institute where he was currently named as Chief Executive Officer.
Kurt Edward Ewen was born and raised in Orlando, Florida. He earned an Associate of Arts degree from Valencia Community College and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy from St. Meinrad College in St. Meinrad, Indiana. Graduate and post-graduate studies took him to the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, in Leuven, Belgium where he completed a Master’s degree in Religious Studies and a Licentiate in Sacred Theology (Sacrae Theologiae Licentiatus or S.T.L., a 2-year post-graduate degree) in Philosophical Theology. Kurt completed doctoral studies in Educational Leadership, with a specialization in Higher Education Administration, at Barry University in Miami Shores, Florida. His doctoral dissertation research extends his interest in collective sense-making to the role that data or evidence can play in creating the potential for collaborative decision-making and innovative practice in higher education. Kurt is currently serves as the Chief of Staff and Vice Chancellor of Strategy, Planning and Institutional Effectiveness and at Houston Community College (HCC). Prior to his move to Houston, Kurt worked at Valencia College in Orlando, Florida. In his 15+ years at Valencia, Kurt served as a Professor of Philosophy/Humanities, Director of Institutional Assessment, AVP for Institutional Effectiveness and Planning, and Presidential Fellow under Dr. Sanford “Sandy” Shugart.
Peter Felten is executive director of the Center for Engaged Learning, assistant provost for teaching and learning, and professor of history at Elon University. He works with colleagues on institution-wide teaching and learning initiatives, and on the scholarship of teaching and learning. Peter has published six books about undergraduate education including (with Leo Lambert), Relationship-Rich Education: How Human Connections Drive Success in College (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2020). He has served as president of the International Society for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (2016-17) and also of the POD Network (2010-2011), the U.S. professional society for educational developers. He is on the advisory board of the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) and is a fellow of the John N. Gardner Institute for Excellence in Undergraduate Education, a foundation that works to advance equity in higher education.
Dr. Dan Friedman is the executive director of University 101 Programs at the University of South Carolina, where he provides leadership for six academic courses, including approximately 270 sections of the nationally renowned first-year seminar taught by over 240 instructors and 260 peer and graduate leaders. Friedman earned his Ph.D. in Higher Education from the University of Virginia and is an affiliate faculty member in the Higher Education and Student Affairs program at UofSC. Prior to coming to the University of South Carolina, he served as director of Freshman Seminar at Appalachian State University and assistant professor of Higher Education. His area of research has centered on the first-year experience, teaching and learning, and assessment. Friedman regularly serves as an invited faculty of the National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in Transition’s Institute on First-Year Assessment and Institute on First-Year Seminar Leadership. He is passionate about baseball, Bruce Springsteen, Legos, and spending time with his two daughters.
Dr. Tristan Denley currently serves as Deputy Commissioner for Academic Affairs and Innovation at the Louisiana Board of Regents. Before moving to Louisiana in January 2022, he served as Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Chief Academic Officer at the University System of Georgia, Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs at the Tennessee Board of Regents and Vice President for Academic Affairs at Austin Peay State. Originally from Penzance, England, Dr. Denley earned his PhD in Mathematics from Trinity College Cambridge, and has held positions in Sweden, Canada, and the University of Mississippi. At Ole Miss he served as Chair of Mathematics, and Senior Fellow of the Residential College program.
Throughout his career, he has taken a hands-on approach in a variety of initiatives impacting student success. In 2007, he was chosen as a Redesign Scholar by the National Center for Academic Transformation for his work in rethinking the teaching of freshmen mathematics classes.
At Austin Peay he created Degree Compass, a course recommendation system that successfully pairs current students with the courses that best fit their talents and program of study for upcoming semesters. This system, which combines hundreds of thousands of past students’ grades with each particular student’s transcript, to make individualized recommendations for current students has received recognition from Educause, Complete College America, Lumina Foundation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and President Obama and won a platinum IMS Global Learning Impact Award in 2014.
In 2016 he was selected as one of the Washington Monthly’s sixteen most innovative people in Higher Education, one of the Center for Digital Education’s Top 30 Technologists, Transformers and Trailblazers and was invited to the White House to address recipients of President Obama’s First in the World grants as a model of what could be achieved by a higher education system. He was the recipient of the 2016 Newel Perry Award from the National Federation of the Blind for his leadership of a systemic approach to the accessibility of educational content. In 2017 he was recognized as one of five higher education leaders to watch in 2017 (and beyond) by Education Dive, and was named as a Complete College America Fellow.
Amongst his most recent work has been the development and implementation of a comprehensive system-scale student success strategy, the Momentum Year, that transforms developmental education and advising. Implementation of the Momentum Year strategies in Georgia increased system-wide 4yr graduation rates by 20%, and by 30% for African American students. He also developed and launched the nexus degree, the first new degree structure in the United States in more than 100 years.
His work continues in using a data informed approach to implement a wide variety of state-wide initiatives surrounding college completion, stretching from education redesign in a variety of disciplines, to the role of predictive analytics and data mining, cognitive psychology and behavioral economics in higher education.
Susan Winslow is President of Macmillan Learning. She has more than 30 years of educational publishing and technology experience. In her career at Macmillan Learning, Ms. Winslow was most recently General Manager, where she championed learning science and the transition to digital learning. Under her leadership, Macmillan Learning gained market share for four consecutive years and developed, tested, and launched its new digital learning platform Achieve. The Bedford Freeman Worth High School team also saw five years of exceptional growth, nearly doubling in size.
As a senior leader in the organization, Ms. Winslow also led the teams through the reorganization and unification of multiple edtech and publishing companies, including Sapling, iClicker, WriterKey, Bedford, Freeman, Worth to one higher education division and championed diversity and inclusion. Her other roles at the company include Managing Director, Vice President of Marketing, and Publisher in the STEM disciplines.
Ms. Winslow has been a significant champion of STEM education as evidenced by her sponsorship of Macmillan Learning’s annual STEM Executive Summit, offered in partnership with Scientific American, which unites leaders across business, policy, and education with a goal of addressing the challenges and opportunities in STEM education.
Her career in publishing has included working with some of the brightest minds in the sciences, social sciences, and humanities as well as calling on classrooms in the U.S., Canada, Europe, and the Middle East.
Charlie Nelms, President-in-Residence, United Negro College Fund
Dr. Charlie Nelms is a transformational servant-leader, a motivational speaker, and a consultant with expertise in higher education. He has more than 40 years of experience and leadership in student access, retention, and graduation; institutional effectiveness; and strategic planning.
The former chancellor of universities in North Carolina, Indiana, and Michigan, Nelms serves as a board member for leading educational associations and foundations across the U.S., including the C.S. Mott Foundation. He is currently a senior scholar at the American Association of State Colleges and Universities, specializing in providing assistance to minority-serving institutions (MSIs) and Senior Advisor to the United Negro College Fund. In addition to serving as an executive coach, he has been a consultant to nearly 100 colleges and universities and education-related organizations.
Nelms is the recipient of numerous awards for his accomplishments in higher education, including two honorary doctorates and fellowships from the American Council on Education and the Ford Foundation. In 2012, President Obama honored him with the MLK Drum Major for Service Award for helping to address the most pressing needs in our communities and nation. He is a founding member of the Millennium Leadership Initiative, and vice president and professor emeritus at Indiana University. Nelms founded the Destination Graduation Initiative, which aims to increase retention and graduation rates at HBCUs, and in 2011, he published A Call to Action, a policy directive intended to spur a national dialogue concerning the revitalization of HBCUs.
Nelms earned a B.S. degree and a master’s of education degree from the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff and an Ed.D. from Indiana University. He is a blogger for the Huffington Post and HBCU Lifestyle, he tweets, and is a frequent guest on podcasts and radio talk shows around the nation.
Dr. Aaron Thompson is a passionate advocate for higher education. As a first-generation college student from rural Clay County, Kentucky, he experienced first-hand the transformative power of a college credential. As President of the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education, he works to ensure all Kentuckians have an equal opportunity to improve their lives through postsecondary education. Before taking the helm of CPE, Thompson served as interim president of Kentucky State University and as executive vice president, provost, and faculty member at Eastern Kentucky University. He has extensive leadership experience within the private and non-profit sectors and is a highly sought-after national speaker. Thompson has authored numerous books on diversity, cultural competence, first-year experience programs, retention and student success. Thompson received his doctoral degree in sociology from the University of Kentucky, with an emphasis on organizational leadership. He earned a master’s degree in sociology from the University of Kentucky, and a bachelor’s degree in political science from Eastern Kentucky University.
Kimberly Koledoye is a professor and the program coordinator of the Academic Student Success/First Year Experience program at Houston Community College. Kimberly’s extensive teaching background in literacy, English, education, and student success spans both the K-12 and post-secondary arenas. She specializes in course design and has led development teams in creating courses for college success, Developmental English, Integrated Reading and Writing, and accelerated Co-requisite models. She is passionate about student success, equity, instructional technologies, social justice, and providing professional development. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in English, Master of Education Administration, a Graduate Certificate in Composition, and a Doctorate of Higher Education Leadership. Her research examining college success, women in leadership, and underrepresented minorities in STEM has led to multiple scholarly presentations and publications.
Dr. Wheelan currently serves as President of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges and is the first African American and the first woman to serve in this capacity. Her career spans over 40 years and includes the roles of faculty member, chief student services officer, campus provost, college president, and Secretary of Education. In several of those roles, she was the first African American and/or woman to serve in those capacities.
Dr. Wheelan received her Bachelor’s degree from Trinity University in Texas (1972) with a double major in Psychology and Sociology; her Master’s from Louisiana State University (1974) in Developmental Educational Psychology; and her Doctorate from the University of Texas at Austin (1984) in Educational Administration with a special concentration in community college leadership.
She has received numerous awards and recognition including six honorary degrees; the Distinguished Graduate Award from Trinity University (2002), and from
the College of Education at the University of Texas at Austin (1992); Washingtonian Magazine’s 100 Most Powerful Women in Washington, DC (2001); the AAUW Woman of Distinction Award (2002); the Suanne Davis Roueche National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development’s Distinguished Lecturer Award (2007); the John E. Roueche National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development’s International Leadership Award (2010); and the AACC Leadership Award (2011); the John Hope Franklin Award from Diverse Issues in Higher Education for outstanding leadership in higher education; and the Educational Testing Service (ETS) Terry O’Banion Prize in Education from the League for Innovation in Community Colleges.
She holds and has held membership in numerous local, state and national organizations including Rotary International; Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.; the American College Testing, Inc., Board of Directors; American Association of Community Colleges, Board of Directors; the Lumina Foundation for Education, Board of Directors; the President’s Round Table of the National Council on Black American Affairs; the National Black College Alumni Hall of Fame, Board of Directors; Excelencia in Education, Board of Directors; National Society of Collegiate Scholars, Community College Honorary Board; Next Generation Learning Challenges, Advisory Panel; Project GOALS (Gaining Online Accessible Learning Through Self-Study); and the National Student Clearinghouse, Board of Directors.
Dr. Wheelan attributes her success to hard work, endurance, tenacity, and being in the right place at the right time. She recognizes that prayer and support from family and friends make anything possible.
Freeman Alphonsa Hrabowski III is an American educator, advocate, and mathematician. In May 1992 he began his term as president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC), one of the twelve public universities composing the University System of Maryland. Dr. Hrabowski has been credited with transforming UMBC into an institution noted for research and innovation. Under his leadership, UMBC was ranked the #1 Up and Coming University in the U.S. for six consecutive years (2009-2014) by U.S. News and World Report magazine. When that designation was retired, U.S. News and World Report began including UMBC on its annual Most Innovative National Universities list.
Dr. Hrabowski is the co-author of the books Beating the Odds: Raising Academically Successful African American Males (1998); Overcoming the Odds: Raising Academically Successful African American Young Women (2001); Holding Fast to Dreams: Empowering Youth from the Civil Rights Crusade to STEM (2015); and The Empowered University: Shared Leadership, Culture Change, and Academic Success (2019).
Dr. Kirsten Turner serves as the Vice President for Student Success, a role that positions her as the institution’s chief student affairs officer and a leading advocate for student development. A leader with a long tenure at the University of Kentucky, she transitioned to her current role after serving in multiple associate provost roles and as one of the institution’s leading architects of strategies to improve retention and graduation rates. Prior to joining the provost’s office, Turner began her career at UK as an assistant dean and chief of staff in the College of Arts and Sciences.
As a member of President Capilouto’s leadership team, Turner is committed to a student-first philosophy. Her portfolio includes areas that span the full range of student experience: from recruitment to graduation and beyond.
Turner earned her Ph.D. at the University of Virginia’s Curry School of Education in the Center for the Study of Higher Education. She holds a master’s degree from the University of Kentucky and a bachelor’s degree from Hanover College.
Maria Martha Chavez Brummell is the Chief Executive Officer for Catch the Next, Inc. She received a PhD and M. Phil from Yale University in Sociology. She also holds two degrees from Kansas State University: a Master’s Degree in Education and a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism, Psychology and Spanish Literature.
Maria Martha began her career in higher education as an Assistant Director of Admissions at Kansas State before taking up a position as Assistant Dean of Yale College, and a member of the faculty; she is still affiliated to the institutions as an Honorary Faculty member, is an Advisor of the Graduate School Executive Committee and serves as part of President Peter Salovey’s World Leader’s Network. At Yale, Dr. Chavez also established the Asian-Chicano-Native American Cultural Centers, and the Chicano Boricua Studies Program that has since evolved into the American Studies, Race, Ethnicity and Migration Major.
For the community of New Haven, she founded the LULAC Head Start Program, a $10 million preschool initiative for 0-5 year olds, led the building of the Latino Youth Center, and helped to build la Casa Otonal, a housing complex for the elderly. Through Save the Children Federation, Maria researched American’s 101 poorest places which led to the Campaign for America’s Forgotten Children for which she led the establishment of six community learning centers in the Central Valley of California. Dr. Chavez has worked with Public Agenda, a research and engagement organizations dealing with clients such as the Council on Foreign Relations, foundations, and state and federal entities. In particular, she worked with The Achieving the Dream Initiative, for which she served as Research and Engagement Coach and member of Knowledge Development Working Group. She has brought her wealth of experience to Catch the Next, where she served as Chief Education Officer before becoming CEO in 2015.
Kurt is currently the Vice Chancellor of Strategy, Planning & Institutional Effectiveness at Houston Community College (HCC) Kurt’s areas of focus include: strategic and operational planning, regional accreditation with SACSCOC, educational policy, data and analytics, innovation and collaborative problem solving, entrepreneurial initiatives, and grants.
Kurt is a recognized speaker on issues related to strategic planning, large-scale organizational change, learning outcomes assessment, student success and transfer readiness, ritualized data-use, and the role of analytics (visual, descriptive, and predictive) in higher education.
A native of Atlanta, Dr. Walter M. Kimbrough was his high school salutatorian and student body president in 1985, and went on to earn degrees from the University of Georgia, Miami University in Ohio, and a doctorate in higher education from Georgia State University. He has enjoyed a fulfilling career in student affairs, serving at Emory University, Georgia State University, Old Dominion University, and finally Albany State University in 2000 where he became the vice president for Student Affairs at the age of 32. In October of 2004, at the age of 37, he was named the 12th president of Philander Smith College. In 2012, he became the seventh president of Dillard University in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Kimbrough has been recognized for his research and writings on HBCUs and African American men in college. Recently, he has emerged as one of the leaders discussing free speech on college campuses. Kimbrough also has been noted for his active use of social media in articles by The Chronicle of Higher Education, and in the book "Follow The Leader: Lessons in Social Media Success from Higher Ed CEOs." He was cited in 2010 by BachelorsDegree.org as one of 25 college presidents you should follow on Twitter. He was also cited by Education Dive as one of 10 college presidents on Twitter who are doing it right. In 2015, he was named by TheBestSchools.org as one of the 20 most interesting college presidents.
A 1986 initiate of the Zeta Pi chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. at the University of Georgia, Kimbrough was the Alpha Phi Alpha College Brother of the Year for the Southern Region and served as the Southern Region Assistant Vice President. Kimbrough has forged a national reputation as an expert on fraternities and sororities, with specific expertise regarding historically Black, Latin and Asian groups. He is the author of the book, "Black Greek 101: The Culture, Customs and Challenges of Black Fraternities and Sororities" and has served as an expert witness in a number if hazing cases.
Kimbrough was named the 1994 New Professional of the Year for the Association of Fraternity Advisors. In 2010, he made the coveted Ebony Magazine Power 100 list of the doers and influencers in the African American community; and in February of 2013, he was named to NBC News/TheGriot.com’s 100 African Americans making history today. Kimbrough was named male HBCU President of the Year for 2014 by HBCU Digest. In 2020 he was named by College Cliffs as one of 50 Top U.S. College and University Presidents.