My career has focused on leading change within non-profit associations and public higher education systems. During the past decade, I’ve worked primarily within the Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR), first as executive officer (2012-2019), then as a co-principal investigator for a national-model NSF IUSE grant dedicated to changing culture and curricula to create research-centric undergraduate degree programs. During my time at CUR, I fostered substantial growth in membership and programs.

Prior to working with CUR, I served as the founding Assistant Vice Chancellor for Research Initiatives and Partnerships for the 23-campus California State University (CSU) system, the largest baccalaureate degree-granting institution in the nation. During my tenure at the CSU system office (2006-2012), I played key roles in garnering research infrastructure support and initiating system-wide research affinity groups. Before my appointment at the CSU system level, I held several administrative appointments at California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), including Associate Vice President for Research and External Support, Graduate Dean, and Associate Dean in the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics. I was also professor in CSULB’s Department of Geological Sciences.

Overall, I’ve helped obtain and manage more than $60M in grant and contract funds, published more than 40 peer-reviewed papers, book chapters, and books, and made over 150 professional national and international presentations.

My research interests spanned geophysical investigations of crustal and upper mantle structures, geophysical archaeology, STEM student success through undergraduate research, STEM teacher preparation, and higher education cultural and curricular theories of change. Other career highlights included summer faculty fellowships at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a National Science Foundation program officer stint, and volunteer leadership in Sigma Xi.

My varied experiences, both as a faculty member and administrator, provide me with diverse perspectives on how to move change forward creatively and effectively in higher education environments.

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about my grant work and research please see
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