Meena is passionate about the transformative power of education and the role that philanthropy can play in changing lives. At the Case School of Engineering, Meena is responsible for initiating, cultivating, and developing the development program, supporting the associate dean of development with the implementation of the major components of a comprehensive campaign in support of the school (including strategic planning, staff oversight, and volunteer management and solicitation strategies), and serving as a senior strategist for the Case School of Engineering development team. With over 16 years of experience in academic fundraising, Meena started her career at her alma mater, The College of Wooster, where she developed and implemented the parent giving program. She has also served as Director of Alumni Relations at Oberlin College, where she managed a team of five, oversaw the alumni advisory board, was a key campus leader and planner of Commencement/Reunion Weekend (a multi-day celebration of reunions and commencement, which included over 240 events over a 4-day period) and traveled internationally to represent Oberlin in conjunction with the alumni travel program. Her favorite assignments included escorting educational alumni tours to Russia, Cuba, Greece, and Scotland. Prior to joining the Case School of Engineering, Meena served […]
Derek Jones joined the Center for Innovation and Change as Faculty Director in June 2021. He is Associate Professor of Cognitive Science and has directed the Cognitive Science program at UE since 2013. Dr. Jones has held many faculty leadership positions during his time at UE, including Director of the First Year Seminar, Vice Chair of the Faculty Senate and Co-Chair of the UE Mission and Core Values Workgroup. He received the College of Arts and Sciences Dean’s Teaching Award in 2019. In June of 2023, Dr. Jones will begin his role as Director of Field Innovation, where in addition to overseeing UE’s “ChangeLab” experiential education programming, he will develop social innovation programs for rural high schools in southeastern Indiana and Kentucky. Dr. Jones graduated from the University of Evansville with a BA and a BFA in 2003. He served as an officer in the Army after graduating, and then went on to earn an MA from the University of Houston in 2007 and a PhD in Philosophy from Indiana University in 2013. His current research interests include the psychology of creativity, expertise, technology, and embodied cognition, and he has published a book and several articles on related topics. A […]
Acting Associate Vice President, University of Texas at Dallas Dr. Serenity Rose King is the Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs at UT System, a role she started part-time in January 2025. Through August 2025, Serenity also remains the Acting Associate Vice President for Institutional Success and Decision Support at UT Dallas, where she has worked for 21 years, including 16 in the Provost’s Office as an assistant and associate provost for program and policy coordination. While at UT Dallas, Serenity saw a gap in intentional training and development for faculty put in administrative roles, which led to her first creating “optional” onboarding sessions for new deans and associate deans and later developed into a dissertation on Succession Planning and Leadership Development in Texas Public Universities. She then created Lead UTD, a leadership development and administrative training program at UT Dallas that she facilitated from 2019-May 2025, during which 100 deans, associate deans, dept/program heads and other academic leadership participated in Lead UTD. While at UT Dallas, Serenity served as the THECB and accreditation liaison, the university-wide policy coordinator, the provost’s office representative on multiple strategic planning and enrollment management committees and as an executive council member of the new […]
Meet the first ever Metaversity Director, Dr. Muhsinah Lateefah Morris. A BS chemistry graduate of the HBCU Clark Atlanta University. She obtained an MS & PhD from the Harvard of the South, Emory University in Biomolecular Chemistry. Dr. Morris has been part of and leading Morehouse’s Metaversity project since the Spring of 2021. She’s won awards for Teaching Excellence at Morehouse College, Best Emerging Technology and Innovation from CBRE, First Place Unconventional Innovation in Industry by T-Mobile, and Educator of the Year for 2022 by STEM Women Atlanta. She resides in McDonough GA with her husband and five sons. One of her sons has autism and she advocates for the entire autism community as a member of the Community Advisory Council and advocacy Ambassadors for Autism Speaks. She’s a VR pioneer in education and is transforming learning globally. She is affectionately known as Dr. M.O.M. (Molder of Minds) by all her students. She continues to mold the minds of educators and students globally in the Metaverse. She is a member of the XR Advisory Council for the XR Association and Futurist Council for Jobs for the Future (JFF). Her goal is to authentically transform the educational system for our future […]
Mr. Mintz serves as the Department Chair for IT Technology within the School of Cybersecurity and Information Technology at the University of Maryland Global Campus (UMGC). In that role, he manages Graduate and Undergraduate Programs in Computer Science, Management Information Systems, Data Analytics, and Digital Media and Web Development. He also is responsible for an Immersive Pilot effort to explore adding Virtual and Augmented Reality educational content to UMGC courses. Dan brings his experience as the US Department of Transportation’s (DOT) departmental CIO from 2006-2009 and business acumen from serving as a CTO and a COO in the federal business marketplace. Dan is a former Federal 100 winner and is a speaker at conferences and events on the impact of technology, and management challenges in Government and commercial organizations, and cyber-security issues.
O’Neil A.S. Outar serves as Vice President of Institutional Advancement at the Rhode Island School of Design. As a member of the President’s Cabinet, his responsibilities include fundraising, alumni and family relations, and Museum engagement. Under his leadership since 2018, opportunities for alumni and family engagement have expanded dramatically, and RISD has had the best three fundraising years in its history. O’Neil and his team have allowed RISD to make significant increases in student financial aid, including the launch of a new fellowship program for MFA students, and their efforts have led to many improvements to RISD’s Providence campus. Prior to RISD, O’Neil was the Interim Vice Chancellor for Institutional Advancement at the University of Pittsburgh, where he prepared the organization for a comprehensive campaign. He launched a range of important initiatives at Pitt, including the Chancellor’s Global Advisory Council, the Pitt Day of Giving, and the university’s first scholarship stewardship event—all in support of the university’s highest priorities. From 2014 –2016, O’Neil was the Senior Associate Dean and Director of Development for the Faculty of Arts and Sciences at Harvard University. As the chief development officer for Harvard’s largest academic unit, he led the $3.2 billion Campaign for Arts […]
Heather L. Rist is a licensed professional counselor, educator, and consultant in Arizona with a specialty in trauma and trauma-informed care. Heather’s professional career has included community mental health, domestic violence and sexual assault services, private practice, and she is currently the trauma expert on the Employee Assistance and Wellness team for Northern Arizona University. Heather maintains ongoing certification as a Clinical Trauma Professional and is clinically trained in evidence-based trauma treatment. As a consultant, Heather’s mission is to share trauma-informed philosophy and practice in health care and higher education settings, fueled by the understanding that if we can create trauma-informed environments, our systems will become healthier, more effective, and more efficient. Heather lives in Flagstaff, AZ with her family and two dogs.
I partner with leaders to connect deeply with their own values and strengths so they can empower others to move their organizations to the next level of excellence. Sherilyn is Professor Emerita at the University of Washington, a retired academic pediatrician and an ICF Associate Certified Coach (ACC) with over 30 years of experience in academic medicine in the U.S. Her deep knowledge of the roles and responsibilities of academic faculty informs her coaching focus and approach. Sherilyn’s areas of coaching expertise include developing leadership skills, optimizing scholarly productivity (including grant writing and manuscript preparation), program development, navigating the promotion process, transitioning to retirement, increasing satisfaction with clinical responsibilities, enhancing teaching abilities and developing long-term career goals. Sherilyn’s coaching approach is person-centered and leverages appreciative inquiry, foundations of contemporary neuroscience and design thinking. She works with clients to identify their core values and individual strengths to co-create a safe space for productive experimentation toward achieving their goals. She is continuously exploring and leveraging concepts and techniques from a wide variety of leadership and coaching fields to meet her client’s needs. Sherilyn has successfully coached mid- and late-career faculty transitioning into new leadership roles, participating in institutional strategic planning, negotiating workplace […]
I help clients achieve success on their own terms within the challenging realities of the higher ed landscape. Heather draws upon her supervisory experiences as a department chair and executive editor of an international interdisciplinary journal to help her clients find positive, constructive approaches to their unique challenges in bringing out the best in individuals, teams, and academic units. Heather helps mid-career faculty revitalize their careers by restoring their connection to the passion and purpose that first sparked their dedication to their academic fields. Academia is rough terrain that many faculty navigate alone. It’s natural to adopt habits like overworking and people (or institution)-pleasing to cope with early career stresses without realizing the cost of shifting focus from their true aspirations. These habits take root over time, giving life to self-undermining behaviors like perfectionism, impostor syndrome, chronic dissatisfaction, and disengagement. Drawing from the evidence-based methods in positive psychology, insights from cognitive behavioral theory, the proven effectiveness of coactive coaching, and her knowledge of best practices in academia, Heather guides her clients in reorienting their career trajectories toward their true aspirations, aligning their goals with professional benchmarks, charting a path to productivity and fulfillment, and taking continuous steps toward this new […]
I empower clients to manage and lead with conviction, achieve success, and change reality within their existing cultures. Ron is a university administrator and executive coach with over 4 decades of experience in higher education that includes two decades of administrative experience at major universities. A core component of his approach to coaching is assisting his clients in understanding the systems in which they are employed and negotiating such systems to accomplish their career goals. In his coaching approach, Ron frequently uses evidenced-based approaches from clinical psychology and behavior management. He frequently employs humor in his work with clients while managing to teach clients within a strategic framework to build productive and supportive relationships in the work setting. Ron has a great deal of experience in working with faculty, Program Directors, Chairs, Deans and Vice-Presidents within the University setting. Over the years, he has mentored countless administrators so that they have been able to ascend the academic career ladder. Ron’s careful blend of evidenced-based clinical approaches coupled with an emphasis on life balance with family and the work setting have made him a successful mentor of many individuals who have gone on to have impressive, productive and prestigious careers. Ron […]
