Slated Position: 2027-2028 N&E Committee Member Candidate
Position Statement
I am drawn to the opportunity to serve as part of the Nominations and Elections Committee because it carries direct responsibility for shaping the future of AACRAO. Whom we invite to lead, how we vet candidates, and how transparently we present that slate to the membership all influence the trajectory of our association for years to come. I want to help carry that responsibility carefully.
A meaningful part of my motivation is rooted in my friendship and professional partnership with the late Dr. Whitney N. West, with whom I collaborated extensively across AACRAO venues. Our joint work includes a 2023 article in the SEMQ Special Issue on Equity and SEM addressing holistic disability inclusion, sessions at the 2022 SEM Conference and the 2023 Annual Meeting in Aurora, a co-appearance on the AACRAO H.E.A.R.D. podcast, and our contributions to the first AACRAO Disability Access Task Force. These interactions with fellow ‘AACRAO-bats’ have sharpened my instincts for the work this committee does, helping shape a leadership pipeline that reflects the full membership.
The specific charges of this committee align closely with the kind of service I have built my volunteer record around: reviewing nominations, confirming a slate, and counting votes when results are uncertain at the Annual Business Session. As Treasurer of CAPACRAO (2024-present), following service as Treasurer-Elect, and as a continuing member of the CAPACRAO Audit Committee and Executive Board, I have spent years working in roles where accuracy, confidentiality, and procedural soundness are not optional. I have exercised the same discretion and careful judgment throughout my career, including in senior administrative roles and on hiring and search committees at the institutions where I have served.
Within AACRAO, I currently serve as Chair of the Student Access and Equity PAC in Group V (2025-present), having previously served as Vice Chair beginning in 2022. My time interacting with members of previous Nominations and Membership Committees, both through this work and through attendance at Annual Leadership meetings over the past three years, I’ve gotten the useful inside view of how the association cultivates leadership talent. My earlier service on the AACRAO Accessibility Task Force, together with sessions at Annual Meetings, has connected me with members across institution types, regions, and career stages. Those relationships are exactly the kind a Nominations and Elections Committee member draws on when considering whose names should be in front of the membership.
My institutional path has also been varied. Working at one of the largest community college systems in Chicago, the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth, The Institute of World Politics, and now the University of Maryland, College Park has given me perspectives from a community college, a public research university, a nonprofit academic center for high-achieving K–12 students, a small specialized graduate institution, and a large flagship campus. That range matters when assessing whether a slate truly reflects the association we serve. My ongoing work as a Middle States peer reviewer has likewise sharpened my instincts for evaluation that is rigorous, evidence-based, and respectful of every party involved. The same disposition this committee asks of its members.
If selected, I will participate actively in committee meetings, engage carefully with each nomination under review, help draw nominations from across the full breadth of our membership, and support the AACRAO office in delivering an elections process that members can trust. Thank you for your consideration. It would be a privilege to serve.
Higher Education Has a Problem: Holistic Disability Inclusion and Belonging
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