ASPA Spring Conference 2020 - Speaker Biographies

speakers spring 2020

Christy Baily-Byers serves a dual role as the Director of Education Services for the Accreditation Review Council on Education in Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting (ARC/STSA) and Education and Accreditation Resource, LLC (EdAccred) where she is responsible for the development and delivery of accreditation-related education programs and outreach activities. The ARC/STSA accredits more than 400 programs. EdAccred provides support and resources to assist educators in the development, administration and assessment of their programs. Christy has led site visit development and evaluator training for three accreditors, staffed hundreds of site visits, and has served as a site visitor for two others. She worked in higher education as a faculty member and university administrator for over 20 years at Southern Methodist University, Texas Woman’s University, the University of Hartford, the University of Memphis, and Nova Southeastern University.

Scott Cheney is Credential Engine’s first Executive Director where he leads the organization’s efforts to bring transparency to credentials and reveal the marketplace of credentials. Scott has over 25 years of experience in and brings a multi-faceted perspective to, developing the skills of the U.S. workforce to meet the needs of the economy. Prior to Credential Engine, he served as the Policy Director for Workforce, Economic Development, and Pensions for Senator Patty Murray and the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee. He led the reauthorization of the country’s central workforce development legislation, the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act.

Judith S. Eaton is president of the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA), the largest institutional higher education membership organization in the United States. She has served as CHEA’s President since shortly after its founding in 1996. Prior to her work at CHEA, Dr. Eaton served as chancellor of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities, as president of the Council for Aid to Education, the Community College of Philadelphia and the Community College of Southern Nevada and as vice president of the American Council on Education. She has held teaching positions at Columbia University, the University of Michigan and Wayne State University. Dr. Eaton has authored numerous books and articles on higher education and accreditation-related topics and addresses accreditation and quality assurance at conferences and meetings in the United States and internationally.

Julie Horvath serves as the Committee for Veterinary Technician Education and Activities (CVTEA) Accreditation Manager/Coach within the AVMA Division of Education and Research. She is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the CVTEA accreditation process and working with developing the accreditation management system. Her primary role is ensuring that the Assistant Directors travel relentlessly to site visits, prodding CVTEA volunteers to work evenings and weekends, and responding to panicked program directors about their accreditation issues. The CVTEA accredits more than 200 veterinary technology programs nation-wide. Julie earned a BS in Business and Marketing from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She is a member of the National Association of Veterinary Technicians in America and is a lifetime honorary member of the Association of Veterinary Technicians in America. She has been with the AVMA for 23 years.

ASPA Spring Conference 2020 - Speaker Biographies

speakers spring 2020

Debra Humphreys serves on the executive team of Lumina Foundation (Vice President of Strategic Engagement) and oversees the foundation's strategic communications work as well as its efforts to mobilize a broad array of stakeholders to advance postsecondary attainment levels. She also provides direction and coordination for all of Lumina's substantive work on postsecondary educational quality. Debra began her tenure at Lumina Foundation in October 2016 and had more than 25 years of prior experience in higher education, communications, public policy, and faculty and curriculum development in undergraduate education. Humphreys received her BA from Williams College and her Ph.D in English from Rutgers University. Immediately prior to joining Lumina Foundation, Humphreys served as the senior vice president for academic planning and public engagement at the Association of American Colleges and Universities.

DoQuyen Huynh is a Family Nurse Practitioner with a decade of primary care experience, programmatic development and business strategies. She specializes in Nurse Practitioner residencies and fellowships, with expertise in adult learning and clinical education. In 2015, Dr. Huynh was appointed to the board of the National Nurse Practitioner Residency and Fellowship Training Consortium (NNPRFTC), and now chairs its Accreditation Commission. She is the Principal Consultant at Bridgestone Consulting where her clients include academic institutions and healthcare systems. Outside of healthcare, she is an entrepreneur with15 years of experience in real estate investment, wedding and entertainment industry services and restaurant development. Dr. Huynh received a BA from the University of Washington before earning her BSN, MSN and DNP in Systems Leadership from Seattle University.

Mary E. Kiersma, PharmD, PhD is the Assistant Director of Professional Degree Program Accreditation at the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE). Dr. Kiersma’s roles include engaging professional degree program stakeholders, leading site visits, designing and conducting research, and speaking about ACPE activities at training sessions and professional meetings. Prior to joining ACPE, Dr. Kiersma was the Director of Assessment and Assistant Professor of Pharmacy Practice at Manchester University College of Pharmacy in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Dr. Kiersma received her PharmD from Purdue University. After working as a community pharmacist, she returned to Purdue to pursue MS and PhD degrees, with a focus on evaluation and assessment in pharmacy education.

Gretchen Lohman serves as a Senior Associate Director for the Division of Academic Affairs at the Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) where she oversees the degree-granting unit, leading dual credit compliance, overseeing the approval and review of programs for all degree-granting institutions, and managing institutional closures. Since 2016, the IBHE has provided support for and responded to the closure of 41 degree-granting institutions. In addition, she has worked with the community college system and the IL board of education on collaborative projects related to dual credit and teacher credentialing. Before joining IBHE, Gretchen served in a variety of administrative roles at Georgetown College in Kentucky. Gretchen has a bachelor’s in personnel/ human resource management (University of Northern Iowa), a master’s in counseling education (University of Iowa), and a doctorate in higher education administration from Bowling Green State University.

ASPA Spring Conference 2020 - Speaker Biographies

speakers spring 2020

Sarah Marino, PhD, has served as the Executive Director of the Medical Assisting Education Review Board (MAERB) since January 2014. MAERB is a Committee on Accreditation (CoA) under the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Programs (CAAHEP), and MAERB conducts the processes and procedures for CAAHEP accreditation of medical assisting programs. Dr. Marino works directly with the MAERB Board, represents MAERB at a variety of CAAHEP meetings and events, and oversees the ongoing accreditation processes at MAERB. Prior to joining MAERB, Dr. Marino was Vice President of Academic Support Services at TCS Education System, working with institutional and programmatic accreditation and student support services. She also served as Assistant Vice President of the Peer Corps at the Higher Learning Commission.

Heather Maurer, with 25 plus years of professional experience working in a variety of industries including nonprofit, accreditation, healthcare, legal, financial services, and higher education, Heather has a professional background which includes expertise in business development, marketing, communications, educational seminars/webinars, nonprofit leadership/management, finances, board governance, and staff leadership development. Heather Maurer is the first executive director for the Accreditation Commission for Midwifery Education (ACME) and has served in this role for over six years. She has conducted a full criteria review for her agency, as well as a successful renewal for recognition with the U.S. Department of Education. Heather lives in Northern Virginia with her husband, three children, and three poodles. She enjoys early morning runs and time in her garden.

Kathleen Megivern has been the Executive Director of the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) since July 1998. She is a graduate of the Columbus School of Law-Catholic University of America and a member of the District of Columbia Bar Association from 1979 to 2002. She was Executive Director of the Association for Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired, Alexandria, VA from 1981 to 1998. She served as a member of the Board of Director of the Association of Specialized and Professional Accreditors from 2007 to 2013 and Vice Chair of the Board from 2008 to 2012. She was the recipient of the Distinguished Service and Achievement Award from the Association of Schools of Allied Health Professions in 2006 and the National Distinguished Service Award from the American Council of the Blind in 1997. Ms. Megivern lives in Clearwater, Florida with her husband, James Mecklenburger.

Lori Schroeder, Vice President for Recognition Services, joined CHEA in April 2019. Most recently, she served as Director of Accreditation Services for the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE). Prior to her tenure at CCNE, she served as Associate Director of the Accreditation Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine and as Director of Accreditation Services for the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs. Earlier in her career, she worked for Goodwill Industries International and was a special education teacher at the secondary level.

ASPA Spring Conference 2020 - Speaker Biographies

speakers spring 2020

Tracey Richardson is a tenured, Associate Professor of Project Management in the College of Business at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University – Worldwide. Dr. Richardson is the college’s Assistant Dean for Performance Excellence and Accreditation and previously served as the Chair, Department of Management Science, and the Program Chair, Master of Science in Project Management Program. Her research focus is primarily on academic accreditation and assessment; project management competencies as they align to major sectors; and she is currently studying the alignment of project management competencies to the United States military competencies. Tracey’s work has been published in the Journal of Modern Project Management, The Journal of Organizational Project Management, International Journal of Business and Management, Online Learning: Official Journal of the Online Learning Consortium, and others.

Amy Roberts has a diverse management background resulting from over 35 years of employment in multiple industries and joined AACSB International (AACSB) in March of 2005. Amy is currently Manager, Accreditation Operations and Implementation. She, along with two staff members, is charged with putting together nearly 200 accreditation peer review teams that visit institutions throughout the world every year. This includes coordinating visit communications, visit documentation, and management of profile information related to visited institutions and the volunteers who serve as reviewers. She is also the accreditation liaison working with AACSB’s IT group on current and upcoming AACSB technology initiatives.

Karen J. Solomon joined the Higher Learning Commission in 2003 and serves as Vice President for Accreditation Relations and Director of the Standard Pathway. Since 2016, she has been leading HLC’s future-focused grant initiatives on innovation and student success. Dr. Solomon presently serves as a public representative for the Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education (CAS) and is a past chair of the WCET Executive Council. Previously, Dr. Solomon was the founding Executive Director of Illinois Campus Compact and served in various roles at ACT, Inc and higher education institutions. She holds an Ed.D. in Adult and Continuing Education from Northern Illinois University with a focus on adult learners and educational technology.

Amanda Stefan is currently a Quality Analyst for the Commission on Accreditation for Health Informatics and Information Management (CAHIIM). Amanda joined the CAHIIM team in April of 2018. As a Quality Analyst for CAHIIM, she manages the accreditation site visit process and conducts site visits as the CAHIIM staff liaison for Health Information Management programs across the country. Amanda serves as a CAHIIM staff representative on both the Health Informatics Accreditation Council (HIAC), and the Health Information Management Council (HIMAC). Amanda received a Bachelor of Science in Health Informatics and Information Management, as well as a Master of Health Informatics from Louisiana Tech University. Amanda earned her Registered Health Information Administrator (RHIA) credential in 2015.

ASPA Spring Conference 2020 - Speaker Biographies

speakers spring 2020

Joseph Vibert has been Executive Director of the Association of Specialized and Professional Accreditors (ASPA) since 2011, representing programmatic accrediting organizations in the US. Previously, he led the Canadian Alliance of Physiotherapy Regulators, responsible for testing competency for entry-to-practice through a licensing examination and credential assessment of foreign-trained professionals. He chaired the Canadian Network of National Associations of Regulators, the federation of organizations responsible for protecting the public through self-regulation of professions and occupations. He directed a physical therapist assistant program, has held several administrative positions in hospital settings and served on the board of a foreign credentialing commission.

Jan Winn is the Executive Director of the Joint Review Committee on Educational Programs in Nuclear Medicine Technology (JRCNMT). Prior to this position Ms. Winn served 17 years as program director of the nuclear medicine technology program at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. During this time she was a volunteer on-site evaluator and board member of the JRCNMT. She currently serves on the ASPA board as Chair.