Amy Hawkins
Dr. Amy Hawkins is Assistant Provost of Teaching and Academic Leadership at the University of Central Arkansas. She has directed the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Academic Leadership for over 10 years, offering faculty and leadership development initiatives to strengthen teaching and learning at UCA. She is a highly popular presenter and facilitator at UCA and around the state of Arkansas on topics including difficult conversations, boundaries, and presentation skills. She is also an Associate Professor of Public Relations in UCA’s School of Communication where she has taught for over 25 years. Dr. Hawkins is Accredited in Public Relations (APR) through the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA).
Ryan Specht-Boardman
Ryan Specht-Boardman, Ed.D., partners with and advises colleges and universities across the country on how to build scalable and sustainable competency-based academic programs. Ryan leads C-BEN’s higher education services, a role for which he brings nearly a decade of direct practical experience and scholarship in postsecondary competency-based education (CBE). Ryan co-edited the book, New Models of Higher Education: Unbundled, Rebundled, Customized, & DIY, which won the 2023 Phillip E. Frandson Award for Literature, the top national literature award in the field of continuing, online, and professional education. Ryan is a founding member on the Board of Directors of the Journal of Competency-Based Education Research, published by the University of Kansas.
An adept project manager, adviser, and facilitator, Ryan’s skillset and deep knowledge of the nuts-and-bolts of CBE pedagogy and operations uniquely position him to help colleges and universities as they discover, build, and scale CBE programs. Prior to joining C-BEN, Ryan managed the University of Wisconsin Flexible Option, one of the nation’s vanguard portfolios of competency-based academic programs. In addition to his work in CBE, he has led projects in a range of postsecondary educational innovations, such as online IT boot camps and workforce-partnered microcredentials.
Madeleine Green
Madeleine F. Green is an independent consultant currently serving as Executive Director of the College-in-3 Exchange. Over her 35-year career at the American Council on Education, she served in a variety of positions, including Vice President for International Initiatives, Director of the Center for Leadership Development, and Director of the ACE Fellows Program. Among the projects she launched and oversaw was a five-year program on institutional change involving 26 U.S. institutions and a consortium of researchers. As Vice President for International Initiatives, she founded ACE’s Internationalization Laboratory in 2002. Since its founding, it has worked with more than 200 institutions to help them develop and refine their internationalization strategies. After leaving ACE, Madeleine served as a Senior Program Consultant at the Teagle Foundation, Senior Fellow at NAFSA: The Association of International Educators, as well as Senior Fellow at the International Association of Universities.
Madeleine served as interim president of Mount Vernon College and as a board member at three liberal arts colleges. She is currently past chair and board member at the International Student Exchange Program (ISEP), a global consortium of higher education institutions dedicated to student exchange and education abroad.
Madeleine is the author or editor of five books and numerous book chapters and monographs. She holds a B.A. magna cum laude from Harvard University and a Ph.D. from Columbia University, both in French literature.
Zachary Stine
Dr. Zachary Stine is an Assistant Professor of Computer Science at the University of Central Arkansas where he teaches classes on artificial intelligence and machine learning. His research concerns the use of artificial intelligence in modeling language data in order to conduct large-scale analyses of human sociocultural systems.
Xue Zhou
Professor Xue Zhou is Professor in AI in Business Education at the University of Leicester. A Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, she is a leading voice in AI literacy, digital education, and innovative pedagogy. Xue has led award-winning projects on AI integration in teaching and learning, including staff and student training, curriculum development, and institutional AI policy. She has delivered keynote addresses at national and international conferences, including the Global MOOC and Online Education Alliance Conference and the Advance HE Artificial Intelligence Symposium.
Des Robinson
Des Robinson, an Associate Professor of Psychology at Tarrant County College, is serving in his third year as Co-Chair of the American Psychological Association’s (APA) Committee on Associate and Baccalaureate Education. The committee focuses on developing and promoting quality teaching and learning principles within established APA guidelines, with a primary focus of integrating AI literacy into the national psychology curriculum. He has multiple presentations and publications on the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, and has served on several national task forces for the Society for Teaching of Psychology and as Co-Chair for the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board’s Psychology Field of Study. He is also a 9-year department chair and the recipient of the 2021 Chancellor’s Award for Exemplary Teaching.
Khiela Holmes
Dr. Khiela J. Holmes is a licensed clinical psychologist, educator, and consultant dedicated to healing, resilience, and transformation. She earned her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Alabama-Tuscaloosa, specializing in children, and completed a two-year postdoctoral fellowship in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Michigan. As the owner of Shalom Wellness Services, LLC, Dr. Holmes provides therapy for individuals ages 6 to 25, focusing on trauma, anxiety, mood disorders, and emotional wellness. She extends her impact beyond psychotherapy by consulting with senior leaders and organizations in early childhood education, pediatric healthcare, and faith-based settings, guiding them inbuilding trauma-informed systems that promote safety, connection, and healing.
Dr. Holmes is also the founder of Birthing the Gifts, a nonprofit organization that nurtures the social-emotional wellness of youth and families, creating safe, compassionate spaces where individuals can grow, heal, and step into their God-given purpose through educational retreats, resources, and community engagement.
An Adjunct Professor at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS), Dr. Holmes focuses on the intersection of mental health, trauma, and faith. Her leadership extends to national and state psychology organizations, such as the Society for Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology LEAD planning committee, Arkansas Psychological Association, and the Arkansas Association of Black Psychology Professionals. Passionate, strategic, and mission-driven, Dr. Holmes is committed to empowering individuals, transforming organizations, and creating lasting change in the communities she serves.
Kamra Mays
Dr. Kamra Mays is a licensed clinical psychologist currently serving as remote psychologist for Ironwood Pain Clinic through Behavioral Health Integration at Southern Arizona VA Healthcare System (Tucson, AZ) and CEO/Psychologist of Tranquility Behavioral Health since 2008. Her theoretical orientation is primarily Cognitive Behavioral. Generally, the biopsychosocial model is utilized in the treatment of the whole person experiencing physical and emotional pain. She graduated from the University of Memphis in 2005, where as a National Institutes of Health Scholar her research focused on biobehavioral factors and bone health. She completed her pre-doctoral internship in Health Psychology at the Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare Systems in Little Rock. She has experience in weight management, tobacco cessation, suitability psychological evaluations for bariatric procedures and transplants, psychoeducational assessments, compensation and pension evaluations for veterans and Social Security Administration, and sports medicine consultation. Her most recent accomplishment includes completing 200 hours of teacher training program in the VariYoga style certified as a CYT 200. She serves as treasurer of Arkansas Psychological Association (2022-present) and was past president of Arkansas Psychological Association (2020). Additionally, she is a member of the American Psychological Association and Arkansas Association of Black Psychology Professionals.
Dr. Mays enjoys outdoor activities like softball, swimming, walking, and playing with her Chow Chow Kamress and Labrador Retriever Jersi Diamond. She is married to Fess Thompson. They have nine individually unique children perfectly designed: Lekevious, Kiara, Fess Chanel, Kam’ron, Nykayla, Konnor, Tyson, Caleb, and Jeremiah.
Patricia Poulter
Dr. Patty Poulter most recently served as the Provost and Executive Vice President of the University of Central Arkansas. Dr. Poulter also served as Dean of the College of the Arts at Kennesaw State University, one of the largest schools of the arts in Georgia at one of the 50 largest universities in the United States. At Eastern Illinois University, Dr. Poulter served in a variety of roles, including professor of music, department chair in the College of Education, and Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Humanities. Her career has centered on creating a culture of possibility and support wherein individuals and groups can achieve their goals, both personal and professional.
Dr. Poulter has served on the Executive Board of the International Council of Fine Arts Deans. She was the Council’s representative to the Americans for the Arts, a national legislative advocacy organization. In that capacity, she assisted in writing the official Call to Action position paper regarding funding for the National Endowment for the Arts and artists. The document urged Congress to support the NEA budget requests, thereby preserving citizen access to the cultural, educational, and economic benefits of the arts and advancing creativity and innovation in communities across the United States.
Dr. Poulter is frequently invited to speak on the topics of Higher Education Leadership, Arts Advocacy, Women in Leadership, and the role of the Arts in Community. She has given numerous presentations at national conferences and international conferences on the topics of disruptive leadership, incorporating high impact practices into curriculum for student success, dealing with controversial issues in the arts on a university campus, and making your campus a cultural center.
Dr. Poulter also has a long career as a church musician, serving as conductor of choirs and chamber orchestras. As a member of the seven-member vocal ensemble “Choragos,” she toured frequently throughout Europe performing music of the Renaissance, specifically from the manuscripts of Petrus Alamire.
Dr. Poulter earned the Doctoral degree in Education in Music from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. In addition, Dr. Poulter holds a Bachelor of Music in Music Education, and a Master of Music in Choral Conducting, both from Eastern Illinois University. She has taught public school music, primarily at the Middle and High School level, in both Illinois and Minnesota.
In addition, she is a pianist, bluegrass musician, blogger, world traveler, art collector, (with a special interest in outsider artists), birder, gardener, and an intrepid explorer and photographer of abandoned spaces and buildings. She has two daughters and three grandsons who bring her great joy.
“Patty Poulter has an unusual combination of vision, wisdom, grace, and strategy that make her one of the most effective and respected leaders I know. Added to this is her extraordinary curiosity, sense of adventure and wonder, and sincere humility. She’s a leader to learn from and a human to emulate.” (Crystal Williams, President, Rhode Island School of Design)
“Dr. Poulter was my first true partner in student success work. Her dedication, persistence, and creativity are unmatched, especially when the goal is to help students thrive. She is a tremendous collaborator and leader in student success. She always finds a way through, and she always leaves a place better than she found it. In Hawai’i we refer to the North Star as Hōkūpaʻa. Working with Patty Poulter has always helped me steer the canoe in the right direction and find partners to help me paddle. (Dr. Bonnie D. Irwin, Chancellor, University of Hawai’i at Hilo.)
“If you want to hear from someone who is an innovative thinker, a principled leader, and a brilliant fundraiser with deep financial management skills then Patty Poulter is your person. She is a wonderful storyteller and creative practitioner who can transfix you while teaching you lessons you didn’t realize you needed to learn.” (Dr. Renee T. White, Sociologist, Mellon Foundation Fellowship, Yale University, Provost Emeritus, The New School.)