Archive | June, 2009

Bridget Keegan

Dean of Arts and Sciences, Creighton University

Bridget Keegan was appointed Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Creighton University in 2015, after serving two years as Interim Dean. Now in her twenty-third year at Creighton, she has held a variety of positions, including chairing the English department as well as the department of Modern Languages, serving a term as Associate Dean, and directing the university’s office of scholarships and fellowships. Dr. Keegan is deeply committed to the transformative power of a liberal arts education and led the team that brought a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa to Creighton’s campus in 2012. More recently she was instrumental in the design and launch of Creighton’s Kingfisher Institute for the Liberal Arts and Professions, which will support innovative, interdisciplinary research and curriculum. As a faculty member and now as dean, she is dedicated to creating a strong, institution-wide commitment for high-impact practices, most notably undergraduate research. She is equally passionate about student advising and mentoring and has recently begun a four-year comprehensive advising program for students that draws its foundation on the principles of discernment and service expressed by the founder of the Society of Jesus, St. Ignatius of Loyola.

Dr. Keegan received her A.B. in Literature from Harvard University and her Ph.D. in Comparative Literature from the State University of New York at Buffalo. Dr. Keegan’s areas of scholarly and teaching interests include eighteenth-century British literature, environmental literature and Catholic writers. She has written and edited numerous books and published over 40 essays, many devoted to the work of laboring-class authors. She serves as a grant reviewer for the NEH and the National Humanities Center as well as a reviewer for numerous journals and university presses.

Michelle Mattson

Provost, Wittenberg University

Michelle Mattson is presently the Provost at Wittenberg University. Prior to joining Wittenberg she served as Associate Vice President of Academic Affairs for Institutional Effectiveness at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee. She received her doctorate in German Studies and Humanities from Stanford University. After that she held faculty positions at Princeton, Columbia University, Iowa State, and Rhodes College. Dr. Mattson gradually increased her administrative responsibilities beginning at Iowa State and continuing at Rhodes College as department chair, special assistant to the Dean of the Faculty, and Associate Dean of Academic Affairs before taking on her current responsibilities.

As a scholar, Dr. Mattson’s research has covered such diverse topics as contemporary German drama, political representation in German television, questions of immigration and diversity in Germany today, issues of political subjectivity, and post-war women’s literature. In the summer of 2019, she will take on a new role as Provost at Wittenberg University in Springfield, Ohio.

Brian Peterson

Vice President for Academic Affairs, LaGrange College

Brian Peterson is vice president for academic affairs and professor of business and accountancy at LaGrange College in LaGrange, Georgia. He also serves as Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Initiatives at LaGrange. Brian has a BBA in economics from University of Dayton, and an MA and Ph.D. in economics from Indiana University-Bloomington. Prior to his time at LaGrange, he spent 18 years as professor of economics and academic administrator at Central College in Pella, Iowa.

As a faculty member, Brian taught courses in economic research and quantitative methods, principles- and intermediate-level microeconomics, public finance, and environmental economics. He has published articles on economics education, advising, and faculty governance. He is currently a guest editor for the Journal of College Teaching.

Feng-Ling Johnson

Dean of University College and Associate Vice President for Student Success, St. Cloud State University

Feng-Ling currently serves as the Dean of University College & Associate Vice President for Student Success at St. Cloud State University in St. Cloud, Minnesota. In this role, she leads university-wide retention and student success initiatives, leveraging technology and analytics (e.g., EAB Navigate) to support student success and leading the Belonging work. She oversees academic support services in the University College which include Advising & Student Transitions, Academic Appeals and Probation, Department of Academic Support, Financial Aid, First-Year & Transfer Experiences, Honors Program, Student Accessibility Services and Testing and Scoring Services. She is a member of the Equity and Inclusion Council and of the subcommittee on Enrollment and Recruitment in the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities System Office.

Prior to joining the team at St. Cloud State University, she had served as Professor of English as a Second Language Education & Linguistics, Program Coordinator of ESL Education, Chair of Department of World Languages, Chair of Department of Interdisciplinary Studies, and Senior Dean of Academic Administration at University of Northwestern-St. Paul in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Feng-Ling has served as an HLC (Higher Learning Commission) Peer Reviewer since 2016, passionate about assessment, quality assurance, teaching and learning, and accreditation. Her research focuses on the education of culturally and linguistically diverse learners, language acquisition and identity, and sociolinguistics. After a 5-week Group Study Exchange in West Africa in 2003 through Rotary (an international service organization), she has been active with Rotary, serving as President of New Brighton/Mounds View Rotary Club in 2014-15, chair of various committees in the local club and in Rotary district 5960, and volunteer in many local and global Rotary service projects in the past 18 years. Feng-Ling enjoys reading, yoga and outdoor activities such as gardening, hiking, kayaking, mountain climbing, snowshoeing, and walking.

Courtney Smith

Dean, School of Diplomacy, Seton Hall University

Dr. Courtney B. Smith is Dean of the School of Diplomacy and International Relations and Vice Dean of the School of Law at Seton Hall University. His areas of study include international organizations, the United Nations, and peace studies. His book, Politics and Process at the United Nations: The Global Dance, was published by Lynne Rienner. Additional scholarship on the United Nations has focused on the relationship between the UN and the United States, Security Council reform, the Secretary-General, and peacekeeping.

Dr. Smith is the main representative for the University’s NGO affiliation with the UN Economic and Social Council and the UN Department of Global Communications. He also developed and directs the United Nations Intensive Summer Study Program. He serves as Vice President for the Academic Council on the United Nations System, and as a board member for the American Conference of Academic Deans.

Kim Davis

Dean, Arts and Humanities

Dr. Kim Davis, a 2023 ACAD Fellow, is the Dean of Arts and Humanities at Harford Community College (HCC) in Bel Air, Maryland. Prior to joining HCC, she served in a variety of roles at Oakland Community College, Michigan, that include English faculty member, program coordinator, interim associate dean, and finally Associate Dean of Communication, Arts and Humanities. Dr. Davis was also an English faculty member at Georgia Gwinnett College and Saginaw Valley State University. Before transitioning to higher education, she spent 10 years in corporate America in finance, public relations and marketing.

Dr. Davis’s teaching, research, conference presentations, and publications focus on student preparedness and success. Throughout her career in higher education, Dr. Davis has implemented data-driven initiatives that have helped students become college ready and achieve their academic goals. She earned her B.A. degree in Economics with honors from Rutgers University and received both her M.A. and Ph.D. in English from Wayne State University.

Sarah Tuskey

Dean of Faculty

Dr. Sarah Tuskey serves as Dean of Faculty at Miami Dade College’s Wolfson Campus. With a career at Miami Dade College spanning several years, she has served across multiple positions, from Associate Dean of Academic Affairs to Department Chairperson for Business at the Kendall and Homestead Campuses. Her academic leadership has been marked by a commitment to the enhancement of academic programs, pedagogical innovation, and the elevation of student success metrics resulting in the advancement of program offerings and an improvement in student persistence and academic achievement.

In addition to her administrative roles, Dr. Tuskey has contributed to the field of management through numerous publications and conference presentations. Her research, focusing on the intersection of technology, human resource management, and organizational behavior, has garnered widespread recognition and accolades, including prestigious awards at the Academy of Management Annual Conference. Beyond her scholarly and leadership endeavors, Dr. Tuskey is invested in community and professional service, holding key positions on several local educational and professional boards.

Dr. Tuskey’s academic credentials include a Doctor of Philosophy in Business Administration from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, a Master of Business Administration from Florida International University, and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a major in Management Information Systems from the University of Central Florida.

Pamela MacRae

Assistant Provost and Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, University of Maine at Augusta

Pamela S.D. MacRae was appointed Assistant Provost in January 2022, after her initial appointment as Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Maine at Augusta in July 2021. In her new role she over sees UMA’s Early College Program, Prison Education Partnership, Senior College Office, and co-chairs the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Council. Previously she was the Distance Education Dean of Environmental Conservation and Research at Unity College, Maine. Previously she served as the Dean of the School of Biodiversity Conservation for four years, was the Director of the Honors Program for 5 years having joined the faculty at Unity College in 2013. She earned a Ph.D. in Oceanography and Coastal Sciences from Louisiana State University, a M.S. in Zoology from the University of Toronto and B.S. in Biology from Saint Mary’s University in Nova Scotia. She conducted her post-doctoral research at Florida State University on the long-term patterns of fish population density in Florida springs, ponds and tidal marshes and she has published in scientific journals including Ecology, Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences and Copeia among others.

Pamela is a field-based fish community ecologist and her research has focused on exploring the links between fish community structure and environmental variables in marine, freshwater and estuarine habitats. She has over a decade of teaching field based ecology, fisheries and marine science classes. She has a record of including undergraduate students in her research and was awarded the Undergraduate Research Mentor Award just one year after beginning her faculty position at Unity College. Prior to joining the faculty at Unity College, she served as an Assistant Professor Biology and Coordinator of the Environmental Science Technology Program at Tallahassee Community College, Florida. Additionally, she has worked in the private industry serving as a Senior Environmental Scientist with the Engineering firm Post, Buckley, Schuh and Jernigan and as a Fisheries Biologist with the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources.

Elaine Carey

Dean, College of Arts & Sciences, Oakland University

Elaine Carey is the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Oakland University. She is also a historian of Mexico, crime, social movements, and gender. Formerly, she was professor and chair of the History Department at St. John’s University and the Dean of the College of Humanities, Education, and Social Sciences at Purdue University Northwest.

She is the author of over seventy articles, both scholarly and popular, and the books Plaza of Sacrifices: Gender, Power, and Terror in 1968 Mexico (2005) and the award-winning Women Drug Traffickers: Mules, Bosses, and Organized Crime (2014). She also co-edited Smugglers, Brothels, and Twine: Transnational Flows of Contraband and Vice in North America (2011) and the textbook Protests in the Streets: 1968 Across the Globe (2016). She has held appointments and research affiliations with the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (National Autonomous University of Mexico), El Colegio de México, and Universidad Iberoamericana (Iberoamericana University). From 2013-2016, Elaine served as the Vice President for the Teaching Division of the American Historical Association (AHA). Over her career, she has been a contributor to many areas of importance in higher education such as collaborative leadership to develop and advance strategic plans; community relations and outreach; faculty and staff recruitment, retention, and mentoring; grant and resource generation; student recruitment and engagement; and curriculum development and assessment.

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