2023 Speakers

Vicki Bautista is an Assistant Professor at Creighton University in the Department of Family and Community Medicine in the School of Medicine. She serves as the Assistant Program Director for the online master’s in Integrative Health and Wellness. Additionally, she is a Board-Certified Health & Wellness Coach. Prior to working at Creighton, she was employed in a variety of health promotion settings including, non-profit, medical, government, and research.

Rebecca Campbell, Ph.D., currently serves as Faculty in Residence for the William Conroy Honor’s College at New Mexico State University. Prior to that, she has been a Department Chair, Associate Provost for Academic Administration, Associate Dean and Faculty Senate Grievance Chair. She is also Emeritus Professor of Educational Psychology and President’s Distinguished Teaching Fellow at Northern Arizona University where she taught courses on the theory of teaching and learning in the College of Education for twenty-five years. Her current scholarship is focused on undergraduate course design and course policies.

Russell Carpenter, Ph.D., is Assistant Provost and Professor of English at Eastern Kentucky University. He serves as Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Faculty Development.

Dr. Stephanie Delaney is the Vice President of Instruction at Renton Technical College. Dr. Delaney has a strong background in Guided Pathways and eLearning and she has spoken nationally on issues related to leadership, technology, and effective online teaching and learning. Dr. Delaney earned her PhD in educational leadership in higher education/distance education at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln. She also holds a law degree from the University of San Diego School of Law and a master’s degree in Environmental Law from Vermont Law School. She earned her B.S. at Georgetown University. Stephanie is an avid knitter and rower. She lives in Seattle with her husband and son.

Dr. Gypsy Denzine currently serves as a Professor of Educational Leadership in the School of Education at Virginia Commonwealth University. Prior to her faculty role, she served as Senior Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs at VCU. She joined VCU in August 2018 after having served as Dean of the College of Education and Human Services at West Virginia University. During her time at WVU, she also served as Associate Provost for Community Engagement and Outreach and was a tenured professor in the Department of Learning Sciences and Human Development. Prior to joining WVU, she spent 17 years as a full Professor of Educational Psychology at Northern Arizona University where she served in a variety of administrative roles, including Associate Dean and Dean of the College of Education, and Assistant Vice Provost of the Professional Education Unit. She has conducted research in the area of college student learning and motivation, academic self-efficacy, engineering education, and faculty development in higher education. She completed her advanced coaching training through the College of Executive Coaching and holds a certificate in Conflict Resolution from Cornell University. She provides leadership coaching and conflict resolution services to academic leaders in higher education.

Dr. Uma Gupta is the Director of Business Analytics and leads and directs the graduate program, the Master of Science in Business Analytics, and is the Co-Chair of the Analytics Advisory Board at the College of Business. She was awarded the Change Champion Certificate in 2022 “for leadership in transforming the master’s in business analytics from a small face-to-face evening program into a robust online and hybrid program rooted in experiential learning opportunities” and the State University of New York’s Online Ambassador Teaching Award (2017) “as an exemplary online educator, who is both enthusiastic and effective in online teaching, and who can be a positive and strong advocate for online teaching.” A Fulbright Scholar, Dr. Gupta was selected as the Top Ten Influential Women in Technology in Houston, Texas, was awarded the Women of Distinction Award from the Girl Scouts of Western New York and served on the National Liaison Task Force for STEM for the American Association of University Women. She has won numerous other awards for community engagement and leadership contributions. She is also a seasoned keynote speaker and conducts and leadership workshops for middle and senior executives.

Nathan F. Harris is Assistant Professor of Higher Education at the Warner Graduate School of Education & Human Development at the University of Rochester. His research explores ethical misconduct in higher education, the leadership of academic deans, and senior leadership teams in higher education. His research has been featured in numerous outlets, including New Directions for Higher Education, Planning for Higher Education, and The Chronicle of Higher Education. Prior to earning his doctorate at the Center for the Study of Higher and Postsecondary Education at the University of Michigan, Dr. Harris worked at The Corporate Executive Board and the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Stephanie Hinshaw is the Executive Director of the Butler Beyond Transformation Lab at Butler University. In this role, Stephanie is accountable for leading innovation efforts and collaborating with Butler’s faculty and staff for transformational change. Before joining Butler University, Stephanie served as the Provost at American College of Education for seven years and spent 13 years in multiple roles at other higher education institutions. Dr. Hinshaw was recognized for her leadership skills, earning the United States Distance Learning Association’s 2020 Outstanding Leader Award. Stephanie holds a bachelor’s degree in Journalism from Indiana University, a Master’s in Business Administration from Butler University, and a Doctor of Education in Interdisciplinary Leadership from Creighton University. Her research centers on how leaders influence their teams, especially toxic leaders.

Dr. Bruce C. Kusch became the 13th president of Ensign College in Salt Lake City, Utah, on April 17, 2017. He previously served as the Chief Academic Officer from March 2016 until assuming his current role. Historically a two-year college, during his tenure Dr. Kusch has led significant institutional change and transition, including a new mission statement, the creation of a student-centric learning and teaching framework, an institutional name change, the creation of Bachelor of Applied Science degrees, and the development of a strategic partnership resulting in major enrollment increases. Dr. Kusch began his academic career in August 2002, joining the Business Management Faculty at Brigham Young University-Idaho. While there, he also served as the Associate Academic Vice President for Curriculum, and as Associate Dean for Online Programs. Prior to joining the BYU-Idaho faculty, Dr. Kusch worked in the high technology industry in Silicon Valley, CA. He earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Phoenix, an MBA from the Keller Graduate School of Management, and a PhD in instructional design from Idaho State University.

Dr. Wendy Miller began her career in academia as the Director of the Clinical Laboratory Technology Program at Elgin Community College in Elgin, Illinois. In 2011, she was promoted to Dean of Health Professions, and in 2018 her division was expanded to include the math, science, and engineering departments. Under her leadership, the college now has sixteen health professions degrees and certificates with a seventeenth program in development. Dr. Miller is the author of Strategies for Clinical Teaching in the Health Professions: A Guide for Instructors (Routledge, 2021). She believes in leading by example and focuses much of her time on mentoring her staff and coaching her faculty. Dr. Miller is proud to have served in a leadership capacity at Elgin Community College for the past 30 years, as the college was recently named one of the Aspen top 25 community colleges in the nation.

Gretchen Oltman, J.D., Ph.D., is an associate professor of organizational leadership at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska. She is also an attorney and author with over 25 years working in the field of education. Her work focuses on the practical application of leadership principles to real-world settings.

Dr. Joan Poulsen is the Associate Dean for Academic and Student Affairs at Indiana University-Purdue University Columbus, leading University College, advising, student affairs, and student-success campus-wide since July 2020. She has served as Division Head of Science, and Program Director of Psychology, during which she successfully led these units through transformative curricula and faculty promotion criteria changes. As a social psychologist, her broad interest is in belonging and inclusion in groups, and her scholarly work focuses on inclusivity of marginalized people and groups. As a leader, she strives to apply theories of inclusion and belonging in her daily work and strategy.

Dr. Shannon Scott is an Associate Dean for Academic Affairs in the College of Arts and Sciences at Texas Woman’s University who has leveraged her training in cognitive psychology, positive psychology, and conflict resolution to help audiences employ psychological principles to maximize their success. Through her consulting work (Positive LeadHERship) as well as her funded research (Mothers Leading the Way), Shannon provides practical strategies grounded in research to assist leaders in academia, industry, and non-profits engage in self-reflection and make small changes that have big impacts.

Dr. Tricia Shalka is an associate professor of higher education at the University of Rochester’s Warner School of Education & Human Development. Dr. Shalka’s research primarily investigates the impacts of traumatic experience(s) on college students, particularly in terms of identity development, relationships, and navigating campus environments. Her scholarship also explores how trauma-informed practices can inform the work of both administrators and faculty in higher education. Dr. Shalka’s research has appeared in some of the top journals in higher education and she has won several awards for her research and teaching. Prior to becoming a faculty member, Dr. Shalka spent several years working in higher education administration in areas such as residential life, fraternity and sorority life, institutional assessment, and development and alumni relations. Dr. Shalka holds a PhD from the Ohio State University, a MA from the University of Maryland, and a BA from Dartmouth College.

Sara Zeigler, Ph.D., serves as Provost and Professor of Political Science at Eastern Kentucky University. Her work has appeared in the Journal of Political Science, Feminist Formations, and the Journal of Political Science Education, among others.

Scott Zimmerman is the Instructor of Leadership and Military Studies serving in the School of Business and Technology at William Woods University in Fulton, Missouri since 2018. Prior to joining William Woods University, Scott served 28 years in the U.S. Army as a Military Policeman and military strategist, retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel. He is a full-time faculty member and oversees the Missouri National Guard Show-Me GOLD program at William Woods, and is the coordinator for the Triumph Program, a dual-credit partnership with the Missouri Military Academy. Scott is currently a PhD candidate in Higher Education Leadership and Management at Regent University and is the founder of Zimmerman Strategies, a strategic planning consulting firm.