Advancing Women in Higher Education |
Amy A. Overman, State Chair
| Yvette Huet, State Chair-Elect
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Dr. Amy Overman is Professor of Psychology and Assistant Provost for Scholarship and Creative Activity at Elon University where she serves as chief research officer. She has secured $1 million in grants from NSF, HHMI, and NIH including serving as PI on Elon’s first-ever funding from the National Institutes of Health. Mentoring colleagues and students is a priority for Dr. Overman and in 2017 she was awarded the College of Arts & Sciences Mentoring Award. She also co-founded Elon’s Neuroscience Minor, and the Women’s Forum, the first women’s group for faculty and staff at Elon. Her disciplinary focus is the neuroscience of memory and aging. Education: B.S. in Neuroscience, Allegheny College; Ph.D. in Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh.
Dr. Huet is Director of the UNC Charlotte ADVANCE Faculty Affairs and Diversity Office and Professor of Kinesiology. She is the UNC Charlotte PI of the 2018 NSF AGEP-NG award. Her current research interests include women of color in the academy and health disparities. She earned B.S. degrees in Human Biology and Microbiology from the University of Kansas; her Ph.D. (with Honors) in physiology from the University of Kansas Medical Center (First Latina graduate and recipient of National Science Foundation Minority Graduate and Ford Foundation Dissertation Fellowships) and a Postdoctoral Fellowship with Monsanto Company. She has served in various other leadership roles including Interim Chair and Graduate Director.Susan Colby, Treasurer
| Melissa G. Robbins-Mann, Secretary
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Dr. Susan Colby is the Director of Faculty Professional Development and professor and former chair in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at Appalachian State University. She is a member of the American Council on Education (ACE) Fellows Class of 2020-2021, Associate Executive Director for the Women in Educational Leadership Symposium, and Past-President for the Consortium for Research on Educational Assessment and Teaching Effectiveness. She earned her Ed.D. from East Carolina University; her M.A. from the University of Colorado, Denver; and her B.S. from the University of Minnesota. In 2002, she was the recipient of the International Council of Professors of Educational Leadership Morphet Dissertation Award.
Melissa Robbins-Mann is the Dean of Business Studies & Emerging Technologies at Piedmont Community College. She has a BS degree in Occupational & Technical Education with a minor in IT from Old Dominion University as well as a MS degree from Liberty University in Educational Leadership. Ms. Robbins-Mann has been an educator for 24 years working in day cares, preschools, K-12, private schools, community colleges, and at the university level. Education is her passion and she loves her job and students! Ms. Robbins-Mann also loves integrating technology into the classroom to engage students and make their learning more fun and more interactive. Jennifer L. Burris, Board Member
| Connie Gores, Board Member
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Dr. Jennifer L. Burris is a Professor and the Chair in the Physics and Astronomy Department at Appalachian State University. She also served as Associate Dean in the College of Arts and Sciences at Appalachian. Burris has served as chair and a member of the board of the North Carolina BRIDGES Academic Leadership Program. She has been honored to receive the 2015 Board of Governors Award for Excellence in Teaching. Burris received her Bachelor of Science degree in Applied Science – Physics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an M.S. and Ph.D. in Physics from Colorado State University.
Dr. Connie J. Gores is Partner in the Success Associates, where she provides executive coaching, leadership training, and consulting for individuals and organizations. She served as President of Southwest Minnesota State University for six years. Connie has a deep and enduring commitment to women’s leadership, including serving as Chair of the national ACE Women’s Network Executive Council, Chair of the Virginia ACE Network Board, and Chair of the Senior Leadership Seminar in Virginia. She earned her B.A. from North Dakota State University, her M.Ed. from Colorado State University, and her Ph.D. from the University of Washington. She is delighted to live near her two adult daughters and three wonderful grandchildren in North Carolina.April Tallant, Board Member
| Roderica D. Williams, Board Member
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Dr. April Tallant is Associate Dean of Brinson Honors College at Western Carolina University, a registered dietitian, and a tenured associate professor of Nutrition & Dietetics. Dr. Tallant combines her passion for access to healthy foods, and service to the region, through research and community engagement. She serves on the Board of Directors for Community Table in Sylva, NC, a non-profit organization that provides nutritious meals to those in need, and Highlands Cashiers Health Foundation, that works to improve health and well-being in western NC communities. She is 2nd vice-president of the Alpha Iota Chapter of NC Delta Kappa Gamma Society that promotes professional and personal growth of women educators and excellence in education. She earned her B.S. and M.H.S. at WCU, and her Ph.D. at the University of Tennessee.
Dr. Roderica Williams serves as the director for the Student Support Services program and adjunct instructor at Mars Hill University. Throughout her teaching career, Dr. Williams has taught various courses including leadership development, and her disciplinary research centers on the relationship between leadership and academic success. Her work is grounded in her commitment to equity in practice, service to others, and dedication to constant growth and development. She is the recipient of several awards and recognition for her work including the Trailblazing Award from Mars Hill University in 2022.Erica Still, Board Member
| Ashley B. Allen, Board Member
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Dr. Erica Still joined the Department of English at Wake Forest University as an Assistant Professor in 2007. In 2018, she became Associate Dean for Faculty Recruitment, Diversity, and Inclusion in the undergraduate College, where she oversees faculty recruitment and hiring practices as well as development and execution of programs to increase diversity and support for inclusivity. She is the author of Prophetic Remembrance: Black Subjectivity in African American and South African Trauma Narratives. Her ongoing research interests include examining the intersection of leadership and gender narratives in contemporary African American Literature. She earned her B.A. at Temple University and her Ph.D. from The University of Iowa.
Dr. Ashley Batts Allen is Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at UNC Pembroke and Associate Professor of Psychology. Her research is in self-compassion as it relates to trauma. She earned a B.A. in Psychology from Wake Forest University and an M.A. and Ph.D. in Social Psychology from Duke University. As Associate Dean of Faculty and Research, she assists faculty evaluation, professional development, research engagement, and external funding. She is passionate in her support of undergraduate research and serves as PI for the REACH program which supports minority students in their pursuit of careers in the professoriate.Heather McCullough, Board Member
| Charlé LaMonica, Board Member
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Dr. Heather McCullough is the Director of Learning and Technology for the University of North Carolina System. She partners with faculty, students, and staff to create change around information services and teaching and learning support. This work is driven by her ability and enthusiasm to shepherd large, complex projects in dynamic environments and with multiple stakeholders. Dr. McCullough is active in numerous professional organizations and is a frequent speaker and writer on a wide range of topics related to higher education, leadership, and learning innovation. She earned a Ph.D. in French Literature from Indiana University and an M.S. in Information Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Charlé LaMonica is the director of UNC World View, a UNC-Chapel Hill program which equips K-12 and community college educators with global knowledge and resources to prepare students for our interconnected world. LaMonica collaborates with more than 90 partners, forges strategic alliances with schools, districts, and community colleges; and represents UNC World View on the national and global stage. LaMonica has worked with the NC China Council of the Asia Society; led professional delegations in Africa, Asia, Latin America and Europe; taught at the middle school, community college, and university levels; and served on the Charlotte Mayor’s International Cabinet. She was a participant in Harvard’s Women in Leadership Program and ACE Regional Women’s Leadership Forum.
| The NC ACE Network thanks and acknowledges the support provided by the UNC System Office of the President. |
