I believe in collaborative leadership that values the knowledge and experiences of all constituents — faculty, staff, students, community partners, and alumni — to move institutions towards their highest values and aspirations. I am a strategic thinker and pragmatic problem-solver who develops win-win-win scenarios that advance the institutional mission while stewarding resources effectively and efficiently.

Associate Dean, College of Arts & Sciences at Bowling Green State University

I currently serve as an associate dean in the College of Arts & Sciences at Bowling Green State University. My areas of focus include faculty development, graduate studies and funding, and student experiential learning activities (including internships and other work-integrated learning, study abroad, research and creative work, residential learning communities, and community-based learning). I also have experience with advancement and fundraising, undergraduate scholarships, and cultivating interdisciplinary collaborations.

Accomplishments include:

• Oversaw annual budget of more than $12 million dollars in graduate allocation, used to provide scholarships for tuition and fees and stipends for graduate assistantships across the College.
• Managed more than $1.2 million in undergraduate scholarships and overseeing selection and disbursement of more than 200 separate scholarship funds for the College of Arts & Sciences.
• Oversaw graduate education for 14 different doctoral programs and 37 master’s programs, including face-to-face, hybrid, and online modalities.
  • Coordinated with Associate Dean for Curriculum to revise graduate curricula.
  • Managed graduate student services, including curriculum exceptions, add/drop forms, leaves of absence, etc.
  • Led A&S’s “Blue Sky for Graduate Education” efforts to reimagine and optimize graduate curriculum and graduate funding models for the 21^st century.
  • Aligned siloed processes relating to student degree progress, graduate allocation, graduate contracting, and curriculum reform to be more student-centric and efficient.
  • Piloted new select admissions program for high-achieving current undergraduates to seamlessly enter BGSU master’s degree programs.
• Oversaw faculty mentoring and development programs in the College.
  • Reimagined New Faculty Development Program for tenure-track and qualified-rank faculty in their first three years at BGSU to align with NCFDD best practices and university policies.
  • Created mid-career mentoring professional development series.
  • Provided individualized support for faculty on performance improvement plans.
• Researched and developed pilot programs for experiential learning and career readiness opportunities.
  • Created assessment processes for all students registered for internship and co-op courses in the College.
  • Served as academic lead on Work-Integrated Learning Accelerator project team, sponsored by Arizona State University, JP Morgan, and Strada Foundation.
• Collaborated with Associate Dean for Research Development to improve faculty mentoring of graduate students.
  • Created a graduate handbook template for all programs in the College of Arts & Sciences.
  • Was certified as a facilitator for “Entering Mentorship” curriculum from the Center for the Improvement of Mentored Experiences in Research (CIMER).
• Coordinated space planning and renovation to create new collaborative workspaces.

Director, Institute for the Study of Culture and Society (ICS)

As Director of the Institute for the Study of Culture and Society (ICS) at Bowling Green State University (2016-2023), I transformed an internally-focused research institute into a public humanities center with national scope. Signature initiatives include:

• Created and hosted the BG Ideas Podcast, which featured conversations with BGSU faculty, visiting speakers, students, and alumni whose research, creative work, or activism seeks to address important social issues. The podcast was featured in Volt magazine on a list of “11 Must-Listen Higher Ed Podcasts, June 24, 2020). I hosted seasons 1 through 9 of BG Ideas, which are available on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Spotify, or wherever you get your favorite podcasts.
• Led a yearlong strategic planning process to engage with stakeholders and constituents, increase awareness and access, create new programs, and revise programs for greater alignment and efficiency.
• Revised the governance and advisory structures to broaden representation and build relationships across campus and into the community, including the creation of executive board seats for leaders of community organizations.
• Contributed to three successful National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) grant applications, worth more than $500,000.
• Developed fund-raising opportunities and donor programs to support new and ongoing initiatives. Through fundraising, sponsorships, cost-sharing, grants, and in-kind donations, I brought in up to $15,000 per year to supplement our annual operating budget.
• Created a competitive Team-Teaching program to support innovative, interdisciplinary curricula that prepares students for 21st-century life.
• Inaugurated a student internship program to connect academic coursework to professional contexts, with meaningful mentorship and career planning support. Over seven years, I mentored more than 45 undergraduate students from at least 15 different majors/programs) working in internship tracks such as: Graphic Design, Public Relations and Social Media, Research & Curriculum Development, Video and Audio Production, and Project Management and Event Planning.

Other administrative experience includes:

• Oversaw all aspects of Institute operations, including budgeting, programming, event planning, supervising employees, shared governance, and more.
• Wrote governance and policy documents, market research, and other reports.
• Led strategic planning and visioning.
• Created marketing and public relations materials.
• Participated in a statewide consortium convened by Ohio Humanities to bring together university-based public humanities centers and institutes.

Publications about Higher Education Leadership

I believe in putting ideas into practice, and in sharing lessons from leadership challenges with other academic administrators. I regularly collaborate with fellow higher education leaders to write and present on effective campus leadership practices. Examples of this include:

• W. John Koolage, Lisa Hanasono, Mary-Jon Ludy, M. Elise Radina, Jerry Schnepp, and Jolie A. Sheffer, “Academic Leadership from 10,000 Feet or Under a Rock? Finding the Right Elevation through Empathy.” The Department Chair, (forthcoming in Winter 2026).
• Elise Radina, Jerry Schnepp, Jolie Sheffer, Mary-Jon Ludy, John Koolage, and Lisa Hanasono, “Reframing and Reclaiming ‘Dirty Words’ of Academic Leadership.” The Department Chair, vol. 36, no. 1, Summer 2025, pp. 7-10.
• Jerry C. Schnepp, Lisa K. Hanasono, W. John Koolage, Mary-Jon Ludy, M. Elise Radina, and Jolie A. Sheffer, “What’s Next? Navigating Inflection Points along Your Leadership Journey.” The Department Chair, vol. 35, no. 3, Winter 2024, pp. 1-3.
• Mary-Jon Ludy, Lisa Hanasono, W. John Koolage, M. Elise Radina, Jerry Schnepp, and Jolie Sheffer, “Leadership Doesn’t Have to Be Lonely: Building Community Through Co-writing,” The Department Chair, vol. 34, no. 2, Fall 2023, pp. 5-7.
• Jolie Sheffer, Lisa Hanasono, et. al, “Puzzle Pieces: The importance of shared governance.” Liberal Education, Winter 2022, pp. 21-29.
• Mary-Jon Ludy, Elise M. Radina, and Jolie A. Sheffer, “Recognizing Our Humanity: How the Pandemic Helped Us Value Each Other.” AAC&U Liberal Education (online), February 16, 2023.
• Jerry Schnepp, W. John Koolage, M. Elise Radina, and Jolie A. Sheffer, “Deltas, Not Pipelines: A More Organic Way to Develop Academic Leaders.” AAC&U Liberal Education (online), October 20, 2022.
• Jolie A. Sheffer, Ana Brown, Lisa K. Hanasono, Mary-Jon Ludy, Jennifer Q. McCary, Sheri Wells-Jensen, and M. Elise Radina, “A Moonshot for Diversity and Accessibility.” AAC&U Liberal Education (online), July 21, 2022.

Leadership Training & Awards

In July 2022, I participated in the HERS Summer Leadership Institute, the premier leadership development program for women in higher education, in Philadelphia.

In 2022, I was awarded the Faculty Mentor Award from Bowling Green State University’s Faculty Senate.

In 2019 I was awarded the David Hoch Memorial Award for Excellence in Service for my work with ICS. This award recognizes outstanding work in service-learning and/or civic engagement at 42 Ohio member institutions of Campus Compact.

In 2018-19, I served as a fellow in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Academic Leadership Development Program.