Educational Leadership Friends, Mentors, and Support
Scholar-practitioners across the country serve as mentors for our doctoral students. These individuals are giving their own time - to give back - and contribute to addressing inequity in our educational systems.
Danielle Morgan Acosta (she/her), PhD is a passionate and collaborative student affairs practitioner and leadership educator of more than 15 years, focused on facilitating change, social justice, and student and staff development. She currently serves as the associate dean of students for Engagement and Belonging at Clark University, where she oversees orientation, student leadership and programming, identity student engagement and access, and wellness education programs and services. Acosta has also worked at Florida State University as the interim-director of Student Engagement and director of Student Governance & Advocacy at Florida State University, where she supported student government, the identity-based student unions, the Allies & Safe Zones program, and the strategic vision and crafting of a vibrant and inclusive undergraduate student experience. In Residence Life at Salem State University, she supported RHA and student programming, student leadership development and training, and the first-year experience.
A first-generation college graduate, Acosta earned her undergraduate degree at Clark University, holds masters’ degrees from Clark University and Salem State University and received her PhD from Florida State University, where she conducted a phenomenological exploration of how female undergraduate student leadership is influenced by divorce during childhood. She has taught undergraduate courses in leadership and change and prepared dozens of trainings regarding leadership, inclusion, systemic change, and student voice. She has written and presented on governance and funding structures, leadership and change, cross-cultural advising, social capital and Twitter, first-year experience programs, and university inclusion efforts.
Her professional involvement expands to ACPA-College Student Educators, International, where she has served in formal roles, including the Standing Committee for Graduate Students and New Professionals chair, ACPA Foundation trustee associate, Phyllis Mable Emerging Leaders Institute faculty member, convention chair, and three-time member of the Governing Board, most recently concluding her ACPA presidency in 2022.
Kelly Brochu (she/her), EdD, currently serves as assistant to the president for special projects at Regis College. In this role, Brochu works across divisions to scaffold offerings that serve adult learners and post-traditional learners, while bolstering institution partnerships and leading the University Enrollment Working Group. She has also served as an adjunct faculty member for master’s-level and doctoral-level coursework in leadership and higher education disciplines. Brochu previously served in leadership roles for Regis College’s COVID-19 testing and vaccination compliance policies and procedures, pre-college programming, and residence life initiatives. Outside of Regis College, she has served the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) in various leadership roles for several years, including as chair of the Adult Learner and Students with Children Knowledge Community. Brochu’s doctoral research, titled “Wearing Multiple Hats towards the Graduation Cap: Navigating Role Conflict through a Master’s Degree in Higher Education” was also recognized by NASPA as a recipient of the 2021 Orientation, Transition, and Retention Knowledge Community Research Award.
Brochu was a first-generation college student who received her doctorate in Higher Education Leadership at Regis College. She received her bachelor’s degree in English Communications, with minors in Psychology and Theology, at Emmanuel College and then her master’s degree in Higher Education and Student Affairs from Salem State University.
Tiffani Curtis, EdD, serves as an adjunct for the Springfield College Educational Leadership doctoral program. Currently, Curtis serves as the interim assistant superintendent of public schools in Bloomfield, Conn.
Curtis joined the education profession in 1992 as a Teach For America corps member in Los Angeles, Calif. She has served as a middle and elementary school teacher, an instructional coach for preschool and elementary school teachers, the founding principal of an elementary school in Las Vegas, Nevada, and a turnaround principal in Albany, N.Y. As a school leader, she was charged with creating sustainable school systems that supported teacher retention, practitioner development, school-based leadership, and diverse learner populations. She recently lead the Office of Talent Management at Hartford Public Schools and she served as a school supervisor and chief of schools for a public school district in Massachusetts.
Curtis holds a Bachelor of Science in Business from the University of Southern California (USC). She continued at USC and earned a Master of Arts in Teaching and Doctor of Education from the Rossier School of Education where she studied K-12 educational leadership with a focus on urban school settings.
Damita A. Davis, PhD, serves as the chief diversity officer at SUNY Brockport. In this role, Davis
serves as the advisor to the president on initiatives and issues related to equity, diversity, inclusion, and campus climate as well as provide consultation, support, and advice to deans, senior leaders, and supervisors. Additionally, she provides vision and leadership to effectively integrate inclusion into the work of SUNY Brockport and facilitates the prioritization of equity, diversity, and inclusion efforts at the university.
Prior to arriving at Brockport in 2021, Davis was the associate director for Diversity and Inclusion in the Office for Institutional Diversity at Boston College. In this role, she coordinated the University Affiliates Program, designed the curriculum, and facilitated the Cultural Competence Engagement Modules training program. Davis was responsible for education and training for all faculty and staff.
In her, 20-plus years in higher education, Davis developed diversity education programs and initiatives for students, faculty, and staff; drafted policy; and designed an international travel course. Additionally, she served as a guest lecturer, instructed a doctoral-level course, presented at regional and national conferences, and presented more than 100 trainings and workshops.
Davis received both her bachelor's (1997) and master's (2002) degrees from The University of Rhode Island. She also earned her doctorate in Higher Education from the University of Massachusetts at Boston in 2023. Her research focused on the leadership approach of Black women college presidents at four-year PWIs.
Kevin S. Piskadlo, Ph.D. (he/him) currently serves as the associate vice president for Student Affairs and dean of students at Stonehill College in Easton, Mass. As a senior leader in the division, Piskadlo directly oversees the departments of Community Standards, Counseling Services, First-Year Experience & Leadership Development, Residence Life, and Student Engagement.
Committed to the field of student affairs, Piskadlo has been intimately involved with several longitudinal projects centered on the experience of new professionals in the field. This collaboration with student affairs scholars and practitioners across the country has resulted in several national presentations and authored chapters in two books on this important topic.
Since 2011, Piskadlo has taught aspiring student affairs leaders in a variety of graduate courses, most regularly an introductory course in student development theory, as a visiting professor in the Higher Education in Student Affairs program at Salem State University and as an adjunct instructor at Merrimack College. Additionally, he has served as a mentor and job coach for dozens of new professionals and has managed graduate students in a variety of practicums.
Before arriving at Stonehill in 2012, Piskadlo spent nine years at Bentley University (2003-2012) serving as the assistant dean of Academic Services and director of the Undergraduate Academic Advising Center after starting his career in the Mendoza College of Business at the University of Notre Dame (1999-2003). He has a Doctor of Philosophy in Higher Education from the University of Massachusetts Boston, a Master of Science in College Student Personnel from Miami University, and a Bachelor of Arts in Politics from Catholic University.
David Rudder, PhD, dean of Professional Studies at Regis College, is responsible for building and coordinating the systems of integration between our employer partners, departments across the college, and educational vendors to deliver workforce development certifications and online bachelor completion degree programs. Previously, he served as the associate dean for the School of Social Work and Professional Studies at Springfield College. His tenure as a senior administrator provided him with a wealth of opportunities and knowledge management in curriculum/program design and evaluation, working with faculty and students on scholarly research, and financial oversight for campus operations.
His research interests focus on the integration and welfare of marginalized groups to navigate and excel in educational and social service systems. Rudder has more than 20 years of providing technical assistance and serving on boards and committees in nonprofit organizations. He served as a board member on multiple charter schools and the YMCA Resource Center of Delaware. During his time in western Massachusetts, he has volunteered for the Holyoke Safe Initiative, Holyoke Hub, YMCA of Springfield, Providence Ministries, and as a Department for Children and Families community representative for foster care review. Rudder resides in Springfield with his wife and two daughters.
Sara Scribner, PhD, is a former inclusive special education educator with a passion for creating more just educational experiences for all students, including students with disabilities. As a public school teacher, she co-taught across a variety of grade levels for students with complex support needs. Her research utilizes a critical lens and her interests include inclusive best practices, the intersections between "disability" and other forms of marginalization in schools, supporting students with challenging behavior in general education classrooms, classroom community and membership, and preparing inclusive social justice-oriented teachers. Scribner formerly served as an assistant professor of Special Education at Springfield College and is now an assistant professor of Special Education and the Special Education graduate program coordinator at Plymouth State University. Alongside her work with emerging educators, she also collaborates with families and/or school districts to evaluate current special education services and provide recommendations for ways to create more inclusive learning environments.
Scribner holds a Doctor of Philosophy in Inclusive Special Education, a Certificate of Advanced Studies in Disability Studies, a Master of Science in Inclusive Special Education-Multiple/Severe Disabilities and a Bachelor of Science in Inclusive Elementary and Special Education, all from Syracuse University. When not working, she loves to spend time outside: hiking, stand-up paddleboarding, kayaking, snowshoeing, and many other activities, usually with her two large dogs.
Charmaine L. Wijeyesinghe, EdD, is an educator and author who has worked with colleges, universities, and organizations on issues of social justice, racial and social identity, intersectionality, and conflict resolution for more than 35 years. Her professional background reflects 13 years in student affairs and positions such as staff associate to the vice chancellor of student affairs and assistant ombudsperson at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and dean of students at Mount Holyoke College. Wijeyesinghe received her Doctor of Education from the School of Education at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and her 1992 dissertation on multiracial identity produced one of the earliest ecological models of racial identity development. This tool was adopted into the anti-bias curriculum of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL).
Wijeyesinghe's writing explores a range of social justice topics, most notably racial identity development and intersectionality. She served as editor or co-editor for five volumes, including Enacting Intersectionality in Student Affairs (2017), Multiracial Experiences in Higher Education: Contesting Knowledge, Honoring Voice, and Innovating Practice (2021), and The Complexities of Race: Identity, Power, and Justice in an Evolving American (2021). Her writing mirrors the arc of her thinking, meant to expand knowledge while also questioning it. Wijeyesinghe’s scholarship has been recognized by awards given by the National Conference on Race and Ethnicity in American Higher Education (NCORE) and ACPA.
Wijeyesinghe has presented more than 150 sessions at NCORE, ACPA, ISPRC, the Teachers College Round Table, NAME, and AAC & U. Currently, her seminars focus on intersectionality, rethinking core concepts within identity and racial identity development, and using writing and publishing to promote social justice. She enjoys engaging current and emerging scholars, practitioners, and students in the exploration of questions that will support what she sees as “our wandering and our wondering” for years to come.
