Instructors
Jen is the strategic communications manager for MizzouRec Services and Facilities at the University of Missouri. She earned a BFA in Visual Communication from Truman State University, is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Strategic Communications from Mizzou, and has worked as a creative in higher education for 10 years.
Chris Nicholson has over two decades of leadership in higher education as an administrator, consultant, speaker, and faculty member. He currently serves as Assistant Dean of Enrollment, Marketing, and Partnerships for University College at the University of Denver, which offers over 100 academic programs and a robust portfolio of non-credit programing to over 8,000 learners across the world. Chris also serves as a consultant for RNL (formerly Ruffalo Noel Levitz), where he helped launch the firm’s adult, online and graduate practice, and actively consults with college and university leaders on strategic enrollment planning, online program strategy, academic program development, review, and assessment, marketing strategy, and organizational structure. Chris has taught undergraduate and graduate courses in marketing and higher education for nearly 20 years, and speaks around the world on a range of topics, including professional, online, and continuing education, enrollment management and marketing, and U.S. higher education structure and policy. He is active professionally, serving for several years as a volunteer leader for the University Professional and Continuing Education Association (UPCEA).
Lori serves as a Vice President at the Western Association of Schools and Colleges with over 25 years experience in education. Prior to this role, she served as Provost and Accreditation Liaison Officer at Ashford University in San Diego. Previous positions include vice provost of curriculum development and innovation at Kaplan University, vice president of product strategy and development at Laureate Education, executive director of the center for student success at Walden University, and administrative roles at Saint Michael’s College and Middlebury College. Throughout her career, Lori has also taught extensively, serving as a professor, thesis advisor, and mentor.
A Gensler Principal and Registered Architect, David is a Leader of Gensler’s Education Practice Area and leads the Chicago office’s Community Studio. He heads up a team focused on research-based design for educational environments that is redefining the campus in response to today’s digital-native student. Actively leading conversations with administrators, professors and futurists exploring the future of the campus, David and his team have published the results of several studies that show how space can support learning and transform the overall campus experience. David serves on the Academic Advisory Board at the University of Kansas School of Architecture, where he earned his Bachelor of Architecture degree, and he is working with the school to develop new curriculum for the profession’s next generation. He is the Chairman of the Board of the Chicago Loop Alliance (CLA), an organization charged with creating a high-performing urban environment in the Chicago’s Loop, which includes America’s Urban Campus and the 50,000 students that call the district home. He is the Founding Chairperson of the Chicago Placemaking Committee and Founding Member of the Wabash Arts Corridor Advisory Board. David serves with the Chicago Department of Transportation’s Placemaking Advisory Committee, which is looking to redefine the placemaking […]
Mr. Chuck Duerré has over 27 years of crime prevention experience working with government entities, businesses, civic groups, and faith based communities, as well as primary, secondary, and higher education. Chuck is a retired police sergeant of 27 years and has worked as the Director of Campus Safety for a private college in southwestern Ohio. During his tenure as a police officer, Chuck was responsible for the development of a Campus Safety program that was awarded the “National School Safety Award” by the Safe Schools Advocacy Council. Chuck is a graduate of the Ohio Peace Officer’s Training Academy and earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Organizational Leadership from Wilmington College of Ohio. He is completing his Master of Science in Management through Indiana Wesleyan College. Chuck is also a graduate of the Ohio Police Executive Leadership College and Northwestern University’s School of Police Staff and Command. During his tenure as a police officer, Chuck became certified in National Crime Prevention, D.A.R.E., Bullying Prevention, Safe Dates, School Resource Officer Supervisor, Ohio Domestic Violence Prevention instructor, C.I.T. (Crisis Intervention Training) for youth and the Ohio Youth Assessment Survey, which identifies at risk youth. As Director of Campus Safety, Chuck worked closely […]
Ben is the Senior Student Affairs Case Manager and Chair for the Behavioral Intervention Team (BIT) at San José State University, reporting to the Division of Student Affairs. In the past, he has served as the Chief Housing Officer (CHO) & Interim Director for Community Standards at a small private campus in central Florida where he sat on the Students of Concern (SOC) team, coordinated campus crisis on-call efforts, and updated Emergency Management Planning processes. He worked as an Associate Program Director in Housing & Residential Life at a big ten school in the Midwest. Outside of formal roles, he has taught in Gender Women and Sexuality Studies, created new roles for Sustainability Education Coordinators, and lead Social Justice Leadership retreats on multiple campuses.
Melissa Effron Hayek directs Women & Philanthropy at UCLA, an engagement program that encourages philanthropic and leadership opportunities for women supporters. In this role, she creates and implements events, develops communication and outreach strategies, and interacts with donors and prospective members. In 2014, twenty years after its inception, she helped guide a significant shift in the program. The organization’s structure and onboarding model were transformed, altering how women are brought into membership and enhancing engagement with the campus to make it an even more dynamic experience for both the members and the university. There are currently close to 2,000 women in the group. An alumna of UCLA, Melissa gladly returned to campus in 2012 to oversee the Women & Philanthropy program. Previously, Melissa was the Director of Community Services at Planned Parenthood Los Angeles where she coordinated women’s, young professionals, and regional volunteer groups that put on fundraising events and managed educational and outreach programs.
A professional with more than twenty years of experience in connecting and serving women and volunteers, Michele joined the Indiana University Foundation team in 2014 as the Director of Women’s Philanthropy. She directs the Women’s Philanthropy program in partnership with IU’s First Lady, Laurie Burns McRobbie, and members of the Women’s Philanthropy Leadership Council. Michele began her professional career as Director for Chapter Services for Alpha Gamma Delta Women’s Fraternity in Indianapolis after working as a consultant while pursuing her master’s degree at The Ohio State University. She earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Duquesne University. Before moving back to Indiana, Michele held the position of the Director of the Rice Annual Fund at Rice University and prior to that as Associate Director for the Dartmouth College Fund at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire. Prior to joining the development team at Dartmouth in 2000, she served as the Executive Director for the Alpha Gamma Delta Foundation. She also held the position of Assistant Administrator/Training Coordinator, Circle K International, a division of Kiwanis International.
Tom has over 20 years of experience working in higher education. Since 2001, Tom has held various leadership positions within Strategic Enrollment Management (SEM) at UMUC where he helped establish and lead the original student recruitment and academic advising departments in SEM. As one of the largest public universities in the United States, these departments continue to serve civilian, military and veteran adult online learners at all points of the academic life cycle. Tom is also a certified call center manager where he helped establish a Quality Assurance department and performance management model that measures advising service levels to students. Currently, Tom creates and implements strategic and innovative retention initiatives with the purpose of increasing re-enrollment growth and driving student success through the use of data and predictive analytics. He has presented to national and international audiences on the strategic use of data and the prescriptive nature of student advising. Prior to his career in strategic enrollment management, Tom completed his undergraduate degree in Biology with a focus on molecular biology. Tom is now in the process of completing his Masters of Science in Project Management at UMUC.
