Prior to her current role, Karen has served as Assistant Chair, Department of Advanced Studies in Education; Professor, Educational Leadership; and Director of Field Programs for Teacher Education at CSULB. She helped develop and implement CSULB’s Ed.D. Educational Leadership program for PreK-16 teacher leaders and administrators. She also helped to develop and co-directs the CSULB’s President and Provost’s Leadership Fellows Program for faculty and staff. Through her participation in university programs, Karen partners with local school districts and community organizations to facilitate and support underserved student populations gain access to retention and graduation from institutions of higher education. Prior to her work at the university, Karen was a public school teacher and principal. Throughout her career Karen has worked closely and collaboratively with educators, parents, and community members to enhance educational opportunities, experiences, and learning for all students.
Since his arrival at Clemson University in June 2015, Max Allen has helped strengthen the overall national reputation and awareness of the Clemson brand. He serves as the chief advisor to President Clements and is the primary liaison with the vice presidents and other direct reports to the president. Under his leadership, he has helped to create and design the President’s Leadership Institute, helped design and implement the Clemson Forward strategic plan, coordinated a strategic reorganization of the campus diversity efforts, served as the primary liaison with key community leaders and partners, served as a member of the university’s crisis decision team, and helped with the successful completion of the $1 billion “Will to Lead” capital campaign. Prior to Clemson, Allen served as the chief of staff at the University of North Carolina Wilmington and the executive assistant to the president and director of university relations at Georgia College & State University in Milledgeville, GA. A retired Navy Lieutenant Commander, Allen has had many successful years of challenging assignments as a Navy public affairs officer. Allen holds a bachelor’s degree from Jacksonville University in Florida and is a graduate of the Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island, and the […]
Nancy has over 20 years of successful achievement in growing and transforming higher education. She has proven ability in operational leadership and building solutions with a focus on student experience and student retention, beginning with the on-boarding experience through graduation. She has served in the student services, enrollment, admissions and operations verticals in Executive Leadership positions. The experience gained was invaluable and helped her to understand both the student experience, the advisor/coach experience as well as institutional goals. Her experience includes managing staff and students, both domestically and internationally, and all support systems and strategies associated therewith. Her passion is seeing students and staff succeed through coaching and leading teams to produce positive results. Nancy has her Masters in Counseling and has implemented coaching centers at previous institutions. The Success Coaching Center at ASU Online has been in operation for over two years and since that time has shown positive trends in engagement and student retention as a result. A recent addition to the Success Center is the Enrollment Recruitment Center. Here we strive to provide an exemplar enrollment experience to students who in turn will make informed, educated decisions about their journey. The focus of the center is to […]
Dr. Hennessey received his bachelor’s degree in English and History and his Masters of Public Administration from Eastern Kentucky University. He was one of the first doctoral graduates of the Institute of Public Policy, now the Schar School of Policy and Management at George Mason University and received his doctorate shortly after his retirement from active duty in 1993. Dr. Hennessey served in the United States Army for 28 years. After retirement from the Army, Dr. Hennessey joined George Mason University and was appointed University Chief of Staff. As Chief of Staff, Dr. Hennessey was responsible for all administration in the Office of the President, served as the University Legislative Liaison to the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Virginia, University Liaison to the Board of Visitors, and the chair of multiple University-wide committees. During his tenure as Chief of Staff, he was twice recognized by Student Government as the Outstanding Administrator of Year. Outside the university he served as the Chair of the Commonwealth Homeland Security Foundation (CHSF) Board until 2012 and Chairman of the Board of the Virginia Economic Bridge (VEB) until 2010. In 2008 he was appointed by Governor Tim Kaine to the Secure Commonwealth Panel, the […]
Brittany serves as a member of Ramapo College’s senior leadership team and as the President’s primary liaison to the Board of Trustees. She is responsible for the strategic development, implementation, and coordination of team leadership and Board activities as well as the coordination of the Office of the President. In addition, she serves as the College’s Spokesperson and leads Ramapo’s public relations, policy, and institutional research functions and also chairs the College’s Policy Committee and Administrative Assessment Committee. During her tenure at Ramapo, she has served as a member of the Campus Facilities Master Plan Steering Committee, Accreditation Steering Committee, Position Review Committee, as well as two Strategic Planning Task Forces. Dr. Williams-Goldstein She began her professional career as a journalist and later transitioned into higher education as an instructor of Spanish and English as a Second Language. She has also fulfilled roles as designated school official, chief human resources officer, and executive assistant to the president. She has presented nationally on board of trustees development and was awarded the Professional Board Staff Member Award (Northeast) by the Association of Community College Trustees in (YEAR). Brittany earned her Ed.D. in Educational Leadership with a focus on Public Policy from Rowan […]
Dr. Nate Bryant currently serves as the Vice President and Chief of Staff to the President at Salem State University in Salem, MA. As VP and Chief of Staff, Nate is responsible for the oversight of the president’s office including the day-to-day activities of the President’s Office, coordinating the work of the president’s senior leadership team, and coordinating the University’s strategic planning efforts. Additionally, Nate oversees the areas of Athletics, Enrollment Management, Marketing and Communications, Public Relations, Center for Civic Engagement, External Affairs, and Grants. Nate has over 30 years of experience in higher education and during that time, has overseen the areas of admissions, financial aid, multicultural affairs, academic advising, tutoring, and both institutional and federally funded college retention programs. Nate also has considerable experience in the areas of crisis management, fundraising, and strategic planning. In addition to his work in higher education, Nate has worked with many non-profit organizations. Nate is currently serving on the Board of Trustees for the North Shore Medical Center, Board of Directors for the Salem Boys and Girls Club, Board of Directors for the Salem Chamber of Commerce, Executive Committee for the Salem Partnership, Corporator for Marblehead Bank, volunteer for Haven from Hunger […]
Durice assumed her current role at Arcadia University in 2020 and brings over a decade of experience working in University Advancement and higher education in roles supporting alumni engagement, annual giving, alumni communications, and major giving. Prior to Arcadia, Durice served as the senior executive director of alumni engagement for the University of California – San Diego. She led a team of 20+ professionals to provide programming, engagement, and lifelong learning opportunities for the institution’s 200,000+ alumni base. She has also worked at Duke University as the interim associate dean of development and alumni relations for the Sanford School of Public Policy and in progressive roles within advancement at her alma mater, Elon University. She received both her undergraduate and graduate degree from Elon University. Durice has become a decorated professional, recognized for her professional accomplishments by her alma mater and our industry’s professional association, the Council for Advancement and Support of Education, where she serves on the CASE Alumni Relations Commission. A driving force in her work is her personal grounding in equity, diversity, and inclusion. She has devoted herself to ensuring that all alumni community members feel welcome, supported, and represented. To that end, she is intentionally focused […]
Alex is a University of Waterloo alumnus who has worked in the University’s Office of Advancement, specifically in Alumni Relations, for just shy of 7 years. She was the first person to hold the position of Alumni Officer, Volunteer Engagement and has been involved in creating a service-based approach to both the students and alumni who volunteer for Alumni Relations. Alex has a certificate in Volunteer Management and uses her background to create meaningful opportunities for volunteers and incorporate volunteer engagement best practices into her advancement team’s work. She was the 2017 recipient of the CCAE (Canadian Council for the Advancement of Education) Rising Star award for her work in developing a volunteer engagement strategy within Alumni Relations at Waterloo.
Prior to her current role, Ms. Chang served as the Title IX Officer for Radford University. She came to these Title IX Officer positions from her role as Associate Counsel in the Office of University Counsel for East Tennessee State University advising the Title IX Office, Student Affairs Division, Human Resources department, among others. Prior to higher Education, Ms. Chang served as a litigation attorney for the U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, and in her own law firm practicing before federal courts and administrative agencies. Her areas of legal practice included, employment, equal opportunity, and administrative law. Throughout her career, she has strived to reduce legal risk and meet legal compliance, and she has encouraged best practices for colleges, universities, and other employers in the areas of Title IX and employment law.
Dr. Samels is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of The Education Alliance and The Samels Group, a full service higher education consulting firm. He is also the founding partner of Samels Associates, a law firm serving independent and public colleges, universities, foundations, non-profit, and for-profit higher education organizations. Dr. Samels has served on the faculties of the University of Massachusetts and Bentley College, and as a guest lecturer at Boston University and Harvard University. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science, a master’s degree in Public Administration, a Juris Doctorate, and a doctoral degree in Education. His publications include scholarly works appearing in such journals as the Chronicle of Higher Education, The Christian Science Monitor, The London Guardian, and The Boston Globe, among many others. He is the co-author of Merging Colleges for Mutual Growth (Johns Hopkins), and First Among Equals: The Role of the Chief Academic Officer (Johns Hopkins). Dr. Samels has consulted on projects and presented research papers at academic institutions and ministries of education around the world.
