2017 Annual Meeting

Joe Garcia

2017 Forum Annual Meeting Speaker, Past WICHE president (2016-2018)

James Lang

2017 Forum Annual Meeting Speaker, Assumption College (MA)

James M. Lang is a professor of English and director of the Center for Teaching Excellence at Assumption College in Worcester, Massachusetts. He is the author of Small Teaching: Everyday Lessons from the Science of Learning (2016) and Cheating Lessons: Learning from Academic Dishonesty (2013). He writes a monthly column on teaching and learning for the Chronicle of Higher Education. He has a B.A. from the University of Notre Dame, an M.A. in English from St. Louis University, and a Ph.D. in English from Northwestern University.

Pat Hutchings

2017 Forum Annual Meeting Speaker, National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment

Pat Hutchings is a senior scholar with the National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment (NILOA). Her work has focused on a variety of strategies for creating a campus culture of teaching and learning: student learning outcomes assessment, assignment design, integrative learning, the peer collaboration and review of teaching, and the scholarship of teaching and learning. Prior to her work with NILOA she was senior scholar and vice president at The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. She received her B.A. from Northwestern University and a Ph.D. in English from the University of Iowa.

Natasha Jankowski

2017 Forum Annual Meeting speaker, National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment

Natasha Jankowski is director of the National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment (NILOA) and a research assistant professor with the department of education policy, organization and leadership at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She has served NILOA in one role or another since its formation in 2008 and previously worked with the Office of Community College Research and Leadership (OCCRL). Jankowski received her B.A. in philosophy from Illinois State University and an M.A. in higher education administration from Kent State University. She received her Ph.D. in higher education from the University of Illinois.

Linda George

2017 Forum Annual Meeting speaker, Portland State University (OR)

Linda George is a professor of environmental science and management department at Portland State University. Her research and teaching interests involve the modeling and measurements of urban air pollutants and the intersection of environmental justice, gender and class as it influences policy in air quality and climate science. She has been active in shared governance throughout her career, serving on many faculty senate leadership committees. Currently, she is the chair of the newly formed faculty senate academic quality committee. George received her B.S. in chemistry from Loyola University of Chicago and her Ph.D. in environmental science/chemistry from Portland State University.

Norman Jones

2017 Forum Annual Meeting speaker, Utah State University

Norman Jones is professor of history at Utah State University and chair of the Utah Regents’ Task Force on General Education. He is senior fellow of the Association of American Colleges and Universities, the chair of the College Board Advanced Placement Higher Education Advisory Council, and a member of the Lumina Foundation’s Degree Qualifications Profile/Tuning Advisory Group. He is the former director of general education and curricular integration at Utah State University, where he was head of history for eighteen years. For nineteen years he has organized the Utah System of Higher Education’s “What is an Educated Person?” conference on general education issues.

Debra Daniels

2017 Forum Annual Meeting speaker, University of Utah

Debra Daniels, LCSW, has been the assistant vice president for Women’s Enrollment Initiatives since 2014 while concurrently serving as the director for the Women’s Resource Center since 2003, both at the University of Utah. She is responsible for overseeing all operations while creating innovative partnerships that positively impact the full range of experiences for women as they pursue their educational and professional goals. Prior to that, Daniels was executive director of client services at the Rape Recovery Center and director of prevention services at the YWCA of Salt Lake City. Daniels has spent a number of years working on issues related to women, non-violence and social justice both in the community and academic setting. An activist and advocate, she continues to be a voice for those who have been marginalized in political, educational and social justice dialogue.

Luz María Gordillo

2017 Forum Annual Meeting speaker, Washington State University Vancouver

Luz María Gordillo is associate professor and program leader in the department of critical culture, gender, and race studies at Washington State University Vancouver. She’s the author of Mexican Women and the Other Side of Immigration: Engendering Transnational Ties. Gordillo collaborated in publishing Three Decades of Engendering History: Selected Works of Antonia I. Castañeda. Gordillo’s current work investigates gendered assumptions during the tenure of the Eugenics Record Office, 1910-1939. Gordillo received her B.A. in film and photography from Brooklyn College, an M.A. in media studies at the New School, and a Ph.D. in history from Michigan State University.

A. James Hicks

2017 Forum Annual Meeting Speaker, National Science Foundation

A. James Hicks is program director at Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation (LSAMP) at the National Science Foundation (NSF). Prior to becoming the LSAMP Program Director, Hicks served as chairperson and professor of biology, and later dean of the college of arts and sciences at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. In recognition of his commitment to scholarly excellence for minorities, the South Carolina-LSAMP program (in 2006) established the A. James Hicks Leadership Award in his honor. He received his B.S. degree in biology from Tougaloo College, earned the Ph.D. in botany at the University of Illinois-Urbana and received postdoctoral training, at the Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis.

Demarée Michelau

President, WICHE

303.541.0201dmichelau@wiche.edu

Demarée K. Michelau is the president of the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE). Located in Boulder, CO, WICHE was established through the Western Regional Education Compact and works to share knowledge, create resources, and develop innovative solutions that address some of society’s most pressing needs. From promoting high-quality, affordable postsecondary education to helping states leverage their technology investments and addressing behavioral health challenges, WICHE improves lives across the West through innovation, cooperation, resource sharing, and sound public policy. As WICHE’s president, Dr. Michelau serves as the chief executive officer of the organization and at the pleasure of the 48-member, gubernatorially-appointed WICHE commission. Prior to serving as WICHE’s president, Dr. Michelau was WICHE’s vice president of policy analysis and research, a role in which she managed WICHE’s Policy Analysis and Research unit and oversaw externally-funded projects. The author of numerous reports and policy briefs, she has experience in a variety of higher education policy issues, including those related to equity and attainment, governance, strategic planning, adult learners, transfer, accelerated learning options, affordability, and workforce. She currently serves on the board of directors for the Consortium for North American Higher Education Collaboration (CONAHEC) and the National Council for State Authorization Reciprocity Agreements (NC-SARA). Previously, she held positions with the National Conference of State Legislatures and with former Colorado Congressman David Skaggs. Michelau received her bachelor’s degree in public law from Northern Illinois University and her master’s degree and Ph.D. in political science from the University of Colorado at Boulder.

Alison Gammie

2017 Forum Annual Meeting Speaker, National Institutes of Health

Alison Gammie is the director of the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) Division of Training, Workforce Development, and Diversity (TWD) at the National Institutes of Health. TWD is the focal point for NIGMS programs aimed at developing a strong and diverse biomedical research workforce. Formerly, she was a senior lecturer at Princeton University. While at Princeton, in addition to teaching, mentoring and running a research laboratory, she served as the director of diversity programs, an academic advisor and an associate member at the Cancer Institute of New Jersey.  She received a B.A. from Reed College, a Ph.D. from the Oregon Health & Sciences University, and did her postdoctoral work as a Jane Coffin Childs Fellow at Princeton University.

Dror Ben-Naim

2017 Forum Annual Meeting Speaker, Smart Sparrow

Dror Ben-Naim is the founder and CEO of Smart Sparrow, a recognized pioneer in personalized, adaptive education technology, with offices in Sydney and San Francisco. Previously, Dror led a research group in Intelligent Tutoring Systems and Educational Data Mining at The University of New South Wales — the groundwork for Smart Sparrow. Today, he is an adjunct lecturer at UNSW, where he obtained his B.S. in physics and computer science and Ph.D. in artificial intelligence and education, a professor of practice at Arizona State University, and associate director of its Center for Education Through eXploration.

Jane Hunter

2017 Forum Annual Meeting Speaker, University of Arizona

Jane Hunter is the director of academic resources and special projects at University of Arizona whereby she is responsible for coordinating campus-wide efforts to promote strategies that improve student learning. She plays an important role in the University of Arizona Learning Initiative which is designed to enhance and support student learning through integrated initiatives for faculty and students. Hunter oversees efforts to develop new collaborative learning spaces on the UA campus and leads efforts to ensure that faculty and their instructional teams are prepared to take advantage of the unique learning environments that collaborative learning spaces provide. Hunter spent many years in industry working with technology-based firms in engineering and leadership positions. She earned her B.S. in mechanical engineering and her Ph.D. in higher education from the University of Arizona.

Kim Nawrocki

Assistant Director, Events and Programs, WCET

303-541-0231knawrocki@wiche.edu

Kay Hulstrom

Associate Director, Operations and Program Implementation, Programs and Services

303.541.0294khulstrom@wiche.edu

Kay Hulstrom serves as WICHE’s associate director of operations and academic leadership initiatives. She works on a variety of projects including the Western Academic Leadership Academy, the Western Academic Leadership Forum, and the Western Alliance of Community College Academic Leaders. The latter two are membership organizations for the chief academic officers of WICHE-region two and four-year institutions and system offices. She holds a B.S. in finance from Colorado State University.