One of the first things Carmen shares with people is that she is from northern New Mexico and where she is from is fundamental to who she is. She was a first-generation college student and earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Northern Colorado in Spanish and Mexican American Studies with a minor in Communication Studies. She was involved in cultural centers, fraternity and sorority life, student government, and studied abroad. All of these experiences ultimately led her to explore a future in higher education. She started her career as an advisor for Upward Bound, a federal TRiO program, serving first-generation and lower income high school students. She continued working with TRiO and access programs for over 13 years. She also served as the Director of Student Experience at INTO Colorado State University, an LLC partnership between the INTO Corporation and CSU that specializes in training international students English and Pathway programs. While working, she earned both her Master’s degree in Student Affairs in Higher Education and her PhD in Higher Education Leadership at Colorado State University. Currently, she is the Talent Manager for Organizational Development for the Division of Student Affairs at CSU and also is a faculty […]
Mario Peraza is the Executive Director of Alumni Relations. In this role, Mario guides the vision and direction for the alumni programming and engagement of the over 67,000 living alumni, as well as provides leadership and support for the Alumni Association of UCSF. He also serves as the liaison between alumni relations and various campus partners. Mario leads a team of professional staff and alumni volunteers that together leverage and expand alumni relationships, connections, and networks across all areas of health care. Mario completed his B.S. in Chemistry at the University of Illinois and his M.Ed. in Higher Education Administration at the University of Maryland College Park. Prior to joining UCSF, Mario was the Director of Alumni Volunteer programs at the University of Maryland working with over 100 alumni volunteers nationwide.
Jay Skipworth works with the Employer Relations team to bring employers to campus to recruit UNC Charlotte students for various employment opportunities. This team coordinates with a wide variety of employers to find talent for the next generation of leaders in the workforce. Prior to joining the University Career Center, Jay worked at Auburn University as Assistant Director for Employer Relations in the Career Center and the Office of Professional and Career Development in the Harbert College of Business. Jay also worked for Troy University, Northwest-Shoals Community College and the University of North Alabama. His professional presentations and webinars include NACE, SoACE, SoACE Employer Relations Knowledge Group, NACADA (national and regional), as well as several state-level conferences. Jay received his Master of Arts in Community Counseling and Bachelor of Science in Public Relations from the University of North Alabama. In addition to his work in higher education, Jay has held a variety of positions in journalism and broadcasting, hosted a top-rated Buffy the Vampire Slayer podcast, and was even in a band that produced a full-length album once upon a time.
Felisha Weaver serves the University’s Marketing and Communication office (MARCOMM) as the sole print designer. During her 10 years in this role, Felisha’s primary focus is prospective marketing, strategic initiatives, and the university’s biannual alumni magazine. A mom/bonus mom to three Gen Z-ers, Felisha began researching the attributes of Gen Z, so she could extrapolate the impact on higher ed marketing in order to make data-driven decisions. From this research, she presented “15 Tips for Designing for Gen Z” at the CASE District IV Conference in 2019, earning the Stellar Speaker award. After 13 years in higher education marketing and communication, Felisha blends form and function, because it doesn’t matter how pretty a design piece is if it is not effective. Felisha is a national award winner and has won awards from University & College Designers Association (UCDA), CASE, Educational Advertising and Educational Digital Marketing. She is a member of CASE, UCDA, and AMA. She is currently serving as Communications Chair. She is also on the 2020 CASE Executive Conference Team for CASE District IV and the Membership Growth & Engagement Committee for UCDA. She has been appointed for a two-year term on the UCDA Designer Magazine Advisory Board (2020-21), […]
Previously Roberta was the senior leader in the Office of Stewardship at Princeton University. Roberta was a founding member of the New England Stewardship Conference, the precursor to the Association of Donor Relations Professionals (ADRP). Roberta served as inaugural Treasurer; content chair and chair for the 2014 and 2015 International Conferences, respectively; and Chair for GATHER@ADRP for senior donor relations leaders. Roberta volunteered as Donor Relations Best Practices Chair for AASP and Relationship Manager for ADRP/AASP. Roberta’s Princeton team won the 2014 CASE Circle of Excellence Bronze Award and the 2015 Gold and Silver Awards for donor recognition pieces, and Roberta received the 2015 CASE Quarter Century Service Award and 2019 ADRP Founder’s Award. A frequent speaker for CASE, ADRP, AASP, and other groups, Roberta has also published extensively on the subjects of donor relations, stewardship, events, surveys, leadership, and other fundraising-related topics. Roberta holds a BA in psychology and English from Rutgers University, where she graduated Phi Beta Kappa, and an MA in English Literature from Northeastern University.
Through skill matching, creativity, feedback, and a bit of calculated risk, Audra has devised strategies that result in higher productivity, longer tenures, and employees who are grateful and engaged. We all know that fundraising is a relationship business, and the longer good employees stay, the more money they raise. Audra has worked professionally in higher education fundraising for the last 18 years. From managing phonathons, to frontline development work in billion dollar campaigns, Audra has led teams to meet and exceed fundraising goals. Driven by a passion to empower philanthropists to make the most meaningful impact, she has raised more than $60M for education. Led by the belief that philanthropy done right is a whole lot of fun, she currently serves as Vice President of Advancement at Semester at Sea. During her career, she has been a vocal advocate for women in Advancement, with a focus on strategies to retain women in the workforce and achieve gender parity. She has also contributed to articles on sexual harassment in fundraising in CASE Currents, spoken at regional CASE conferences on dealing with inappropriate donors, and held workshops for teams about sexual harassment. Her management approaches encourage collaboration and performance. As a mother […]
Dr. Peter Cornish is currently enjoying an 18-month sabbatical in Saskatoon after serving in the Director position at Memorial University of Newfoundland since 2003. Memorial’s Student Wellness and Counselling Centre is an academic and service unit with a focus on interprofessional wellness programming, training, and research. His clinical and research interests include online mental health, stepped care treatments, mental health service innovations, peer support, health care system transformation, change management, interprofessional team functioning, and group dynamics. Over the past four years, he has provided consultation and on-site training on his Stepped Care 2.0 Model to over 150 organizations across North America. He is the principal investigator for a $1.14 CIHR transitions in care four-year research grant aimed at digitizing and evaluating stepped care across two Atlantic provinces. Currently, he is also collaborating with colleagues on a three-book series on stepped care to be published by Springer over the next few years. Peer support is foundational to programming in both projects.
Prior to his current role, Will was the counseling psychologist and Director of Counseling & Psychological Services at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. He is best known for the Flexible Care Model, which is a culturally-informed system of providing psychological services on college campuses. The model focuses on same-day access to treatment, concise counseling sessions, an immediate treatment focus, and customized follow-up plans for students. He is an alumnus of Baldwin-Wallace College and the University of Missouri-Kansas City, where he received a PhD in Counseling Psychology. Will started his professional career as a one-person counseling center serving 4,000 at Washington State University Vancouver.
Stephanie Reyes is a passionate and innovative career services professional motivated to provide transformational high impact experiences for both students and employers. Stephanie currently serves as the Associate Director of Employer Relations at the California State University Fullerton Career Center. Throughout her 10 years of experience in higher education career services, Stephanie has led numerous career development and employer relations programming at three highly diverse universities all located in various metropolitan cities southern California. Stephanie’s unique background within both the counseling and employer relations functional areas has led to the implementation of two-time national award nominated employer relations model at her current institution. Stephanie holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from California State University Fullerton and a Master of College Counseling and Student Services from the University of La Verne. In her spare time she loves to spend time with family and friends through traveling and new experiences.
Ryan is a three-time CASE Award-winning higher education professional with nearly two decades of experience in the higher ed space, with expertise and experience in everything from strategic enrollment management and planning, curriculum design and instruction, to development and alumni relations, with digital media, event planning, retention, and strategic leadership as well. Ryan is a passionate and creative force for the advancement and improvement of the higher education model. He is seeking to change how students experience their college careers, how alumni perceive and engage with their alma mater across the lifespan and the student-to-alumni experience from prospective student to alumni. He holds a doctor of health science from California University of Pennsylvania, where he previously served as Director of Alumni Relations.
