October 26 - November 1, 2024
13th Annual ATIXA Conference

Erin Agidius brings over 10 years of comprehensive experience in Title IX, Civil Rights, and Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity compliance and investigations in higher education.

Prior to joining TNG, Agidius led the Office of Civil Rights and Investigations at the University of Idaho where she coordinated and monitored institutional federal compliance under Title VI, Title VII, Title IX, and ADA/504. She managed a strong team, conducted comprehensive civil rights investigations, and customized programming on related topics for audiences with varying skills, knowledge, and expertise. She’s also guided multiple committees and task forces on topics of threat assessment and management, security and compliance, DEI initiatives, and more.

Prior to her role as director, she built connections as the Interim Director and Deputy Director of the Human Rights Access and Inclusion office. Through those relationships she successfully campaigned for the university to invest in professional investigators and reorganize existing offices to create a more sustainable and effective culture of compliance. Her experience as a student conduct administrator forged her foundational understanding of relational connection and throughout her tenure in higher education, she’s raised awareness of resources by relying on those strong relationships to enhance university policies, practices, and programs.

Agidius is dedicated to advancing community-wide programs to prevent, reduce, and remediate all forms of discrimination. When not working tireless for equity at work, she does so in her spare time as a member of the Moscow Human Rights Commission, the Latah County Coordinated Community Response Task Force, and the Alternatives to Violence of the Palouse board of directors. She is a certified Greet Dot and Stop the Hate trainer and holds a certification in civil mediation from the Northwest Institute for Dispute Resolution. Compliance and equity are core to her ethos.

Agidius holds a J.D. from the University of Idaho College of Law and a B.A. in Criminal Justice from the University of Idaho with minors in Sociology, Business, and Spanish.

Kayleigh Baker is a Consultant with TNG and has extensive experience overseeing Title IX compliance and Civil Rights investigations. Baker has served in interim management roles for both higher education and K-12 institutions and frequently works with clients in need of short-term or long-term crisis management services.

Baker routinely delivers training to Title IX practitioners in the field while also managing her own caseload as an external Investigator and Decision-Maker for TNG clients. Prior to her work in higher education, Baker was an Assistant District Attorney and regularly instructed law enforcement officers on civil rights issues. Baker has continued to collaborate with law enforcement and District Attorneys on the intersection between their obligations and Title IX regulations.

Prior to working with TNG, Baker served as a Title IX Investigator at The University of Alabama and as the University of North Alabama’s first full-time Title IX Coordinator. While there, Baker served on the university’s CARE Team and Clery Committee while also being heavily involved in the institution’s transition to NCAA Division I athletics. In that role, Baker was responsible for primary prevention programming and has facilitated training opportunities for thousands of students and employees on Bystander Intervention, reporting obligations, consent, and more.

Baker holds a B.S. in Political Science and Business Economics from Ball State University in Muncie, IN, and a J.D. from The University of Alabama School of Law.

Amelia Barbadoro brings over 15 years of experience working in the field of civil rights, with extensive knowledge related to Title VII and Title IX investigations, ADA compliance, and alternative dispute resolution in K-12 and postsecondary schools. Her passion for equal rights was sparked by a law school internship at the New York City Commission for Human Rights, followed by a second legal internship at the New York State Division of Human Rights, in their Office of Sexual Harassment Issues. Those experiences laid the foundation of her career.

Prior to joining TNG, Barbadoro served as the Director of Equity and Compliance at SUNY University at Albany, as well as the Title IX Coordinator, Clery Officer, and Domestic Violence Agency Liaison. She has also served as Assistant Legal Counsel at Cambridge College, Assistant Commissioner of Equal Opportunity and Diversity Development, and ADA Coordinator at the New York State Office of Children and Family Services. Before moving to Albany, NY, Barbadoro held several positions within the New York City Department of Education, including Investigator and Training Unit Chief in the Office of Equal Opportunity and Diversity Management, Assistant Director of the Office of Special Investigations, and Chief of Staff to General Counsel.

Barbadoro has taught graduate and undergraduate-level courses at SUNY University at Albany, Northeastern University, Salve Regina University, and Brooklyn College. Courses have included Higher Education Law; Urban Education; Culture, Equity, Power & Influence; Education Law, Policy & Finance; and labor relations. She has also presented to thousands of students, faculty, and staff on topics related to Title IX and Title VII compliance.

Amelia was raised in Western Massachusetts, spent over a decade living in Brooklyn, NY, and is now settled in Albany, NY, with her husband and two children.

Dr. Frazier Benya directs the Action Collaborative on Preventing Sexual Harassment in Higher Education. From 2016 to 2018, she served as the study director for the National Academies consensus study report Sexual Harassment of Women: Climate, Culture, and Consequences in Academic Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. Dr. Benya holds a B.A with honors in Science, Technology and Society from the University of Puget Sound, and a M.A. in Bioethics and Ph.D. in History of Science, Technology, and Medicine from the University of Minnesota. Dr. Benya was elected a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Sciences in 2017.

Dr. Sharon Perry Fantini is a Partner at TNG. She serves on the Advisory Board for ATIXA (The Association for Title IX Administrators). Dr. Perry Fantini is an experienced administrator with more than 20 years of service in higher education, with expertise in the areas of Title IX, diversity, equity, and inclusion. Her progressive leadership experience and strategic planning for diversity, equity, and inclusion have aided her in creating campus-wide programs for prevention, awareness, bystander intervention, investigation, and response to discrimination, harassment, and sexual misconduct. Additionally, she has worked on initiatives related to Section 504 and ADA compliance and policy development.

Dr. Perry Fantini has experience speaking, training, and consulting with local, regional, and national organizations regarding many diversity and inclusion topics and best practices. She has accepted invited speaking engagements, training, and consulting opportunities in diversity and inclusion, implicit bias, gender-based violence, cultural awareness, and Title IX. She has facilitated education and training aimed at Title IX coordinators, Civil Rights investigators, and educators teaching multicultural students.

In 2023, she presented at the Association of Public Land-grant Universities meeting on connecting and embedding diversity, equity, inclusion, and research, and how to establish relationships to build capacity to thrive, not just survive. In 2022, she was selected to serve as a panelist for the Chronicle of Higher Education and University Innovation Alliance (UIA), to discuss socioeconomic burdens that can result in derailed college careers. In 2022, she was an invited speaker at an internal Congressional briefing on Title IX for the Association of Title IX Administrators. She was selected to present at the Ohio Department of Higher Education Statewide Title IX Coordinator Meeting, January 2021, on “Exploratory Look at Balancing the Current Era of Title IX: 34 CFR Part 106.45(b)(5)(vi).” She previously served as a Title IX expert for the College and University Professional Association in Higher Education (CUPA). In this role, higher education professionals can seek advice related to Title IX compliance and the impact on their respective campuses. She was selected by the Ohio Department of Higher Education to serve on the Chancellor’s Special Committee to review RFP proposals as it relates to services around the annual campus climate survey for colleges and universities in the State of Ohio to have the opportunity for campuses to focus in on underrepresented or marginalized communities on their campus. Dr. Perry Fantini served on the public policy committee of the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education, which is affiliated with the American Council of Education, and in this role submitted a briefing to Congress on the Fisher vs. University of Texas case.

She excelled in collaborating on prevention programming and cultural celebrations efforts with the Office of Athletics, including working with the Student Athletic Association Committee (SAAC), aided in earning an honorable mention during the 2021 Award for Diversity and Inclusion from the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and Minority Opportunities Athletic Association (MOAA) for Creating a Culture of Shared Responsibility with Bringing in the Bystander training; student forums; revising the Peer-to-Peer Ambassador training and programming including Implicit Bias and Understanding Cultural Differences and for Creating a Culture of Shared Respect with Awareness Campaigns including These Hands Don’t Hurt, Spread the Word to End the Word, Black Lives Matter, Safe Zone training, Critical Conversations and Unheard Voices for a Cause Silent March.

Prior to joining TNG, she served as Vice President for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Iowa State University. As leader of the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, she worked to foster unity and collaboration, modeled the university’s Principles of Community, and prepared students to thrive in a global community. She also served as the liaison between Iowa State and the University Innovation Alliance, the leading national coalition of public research universities committed to increasing the number and diversity of college graduates in the United States. She served as a member and the secretary of the Big 12 Conference Chapter of Diversity Officers, Inc. Prior, to joining Iowa State, she held several faculty and administrative positions at Tiffin University. Following a faculty appointment in the School of Business, she served as Tiffin’s inaugural Chief Diversity Officer and subsequently was named Tiffin’s Vice Provost for Equity, Access, and Opportunity and Title IX and 504 Coordinator. In that position, her primary responsibility included overseeing compliance related to Title IX, Title VI, VAWA, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, and the Office for Disability Services. She also provided oversight to Deputy Title IX Coordinators, a team of Civil Rights investigators, the Civil Rights Advisory Council, and the Diversity Celebrations and Prevention Education Committee. In collaboration with the Office for Advancement & Public Affairs, aided in earning several grants which aided in the ability to foster a welcoming and safe environment, including a grant for assistive technology to help students with disabilities in the amount of $37,800.00; a grant in the amount of $116,500.00 to provide trauma-informed counseling, advocacy, and support services to student victims of sexual violence, dating violence, domestic violence, and stalking; and a grant in the amount of $300,000.00 to aid with strategic programming regarding sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking.

Alma Figueroa has a diverse background working in the non-profit sector and public education in the state of Indiana. Most recently, she began as the Case Manager for a new program supporting pregnant and parenting students with Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS) called Stronger Tomorrows. As the pioneer for this program and through the Title IX Office of IPS, Alma helped the program by cultivating relationships with community partners while managing a caseload of student referrals. Alma’s previous position with IPS helped bridge the communication to facilitate implementing necessary processes within the schools. In her role as the IPS ENL College and Career Readiness Coordinator she worked with and led efforts for English learners in the district. These efforts resulted in supporting a graduation rate increase in the district for English learners from 82% in 2018 to 94% in 2023. Alma is passionate about public education and helping students secure a higher quality of life by obtaining their high school diploma and having post-secondary plans. A proud IPS graduate herself, Alma is employed in the very district she grew up in. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Indiana University-Bloomington and today is a bilingual professional known for working with vulnerable populations in the district.

Dan Fotoples is the Director of Content Development for TNG with deep, extensive experience in both law and higher education. His expertise leverages both fields and centers on compliance and Title IX. His professional experience spans student affairs, Title IX, case management, residence life, training and development, and enrollment coaching in higher education.

Fotoples draws on his broad multi-disciplinary experience to create impactful, engaging content. He aims to make complex legal and compliance concepts as comprehensible as possible to those industry professionals and students without a legal background. Fotoples seeks to synthesize relevant, practical, and actionable takeaways in his writing and training to help readers and trainees overcome the compliance and equity challenges they face in their roles.

Fotoples earned his B.A. in history and philosophy from John Carroll University, his J.D. from the University of Notre Dame, and his M.A. in Student Affairs Administration from Michigan State University.

Dr. Eva Goldfarb, Ph.D., Professor of Public Health, Montclair State University, earned her Ph.D. in Educational Leadership in Sexuality Education from the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education. A leader in the field of sex education, Dr. Goldfarb’s research focuses on effective sexuality education methods, frameworks, and curricula; and best practices in sex education, including teacher preparation and training.

In 2021, Drs. Goldfarb and Lieberman published a seminal paper on three decades of evidence for comprehensive sex education. Since its publication, it has remained the most highly cited paper in the Journal of Adolescent Health. This led to a Guest Editorial in the NY Times and a wide range of presentations to state, national, and international organizations on school-based sex education and teacher preparation needs.

Heidi Goldstein’s professional and personal advocacy work is centered in creating environments, systems and processes that support people in recognizing and pursuing their full potential.  She is a vigorous advocate for gender and economic equity. In 2014 she collaborated with students at Berkeley (CA) High School to found the grassroots advocacy group BHS Stop Harassing (BHS SH), whose work to support targets of sexual harassment, state and local policy change, and education and empowerment of students to improve school climate has been recognized by awards and grants from national organizations including Equal Rights Advocates and Futures Without Violence.  In addition to serving as an Adult Advisor to BHS SH, she has been an active member of the Berkeley Unified School District (BUSD) Sexual Harassment Advisory Committee since 2014 and was appointed by the CA Superintendent for Public Instruction in 2016 to serve as the neutral appointee to the BUSD Personnel Commission.  Her human capital development consulting practice includes pro bono support for youth-oriented and social justice organizations.

Mandy Hambleton is an educator with over a decade of progressively responsible behavior management experience, including roles in student conduct and academic integrity, behavioral intervention and case management, and Title IX compliance at multiple higher education institutions.

She has extensive experience in policy and process development including both public-facing policies and internal standard operating procedures, templates, and forms. She often teaches courses on informal resolution, DEI, and the intersection of BIT and Title IX, as well as those with an approach based on applied learning.

Hambleton is also frequently sought by her peers for her creativity in training curriculum development, applied learning exercises, and facilitation. She has a breadth of experience in alternative dispute resolution/conflict resolution processes and practices and is a highly skilled informal resolution facilitator and trainer for all types of complaints, including those falling under Title IX. An accomplished writer, content developer, editor, and facilitator, she serves as the TNG Director of Content Development responsible for managing and contributing to the development and refinement of print publications, training materials, new course development, and member resources for TNG, ATIXA, and NABITA.

Prior to joining TNG, Hambleton served as the Title IX Director at Florida State University where she managed Title IX compliance strategies and programs for three domestic and four international higher education sites, as well as a K-12 charter school district. Hambleton has a proven capacity for developing new and restructuring existing staff teams and offices for building trust in people and processes, increasing effectiveness, and establishing brand recognition.

She holds a B.A. in English – Professional Communication from Winthrop University and an M.S. in Higher Education from Florida State University.

Alisha Carter Harris is a Senior Consultant with TNG and has extensive experience in civil rights/equal opportunity compliance and implementing diversity and inclusion initiatives. Her experience is based primarily in higher education but Carter Harris is also well-versed in the financial services industry.

Prior to her arrival at TNG, Carter Harris served as an Employee Relations Partner at J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. where she investigated employment-related complaints made by employees of all levels across the firm. She has also served as Associate Director of Equal Opportunity/Deputy Title IX Coordinator at the University of North Texas (UNT) in Denton, Texas. As Associate Director, Carter Harris assisted with the administration of the nondiscrimination program for UNT, most notably by conducting workplace and education investigations of alleged discrimination and harassment. As Deputy Title IX Coordinator, she assisted with Title IX compliance through policy development, oversight of student investigations, training, and advising faculty, staff, and administrators on matters related to sexual misconduct. Carter Harris has held similar administrative positions at the Community College of Allegheny County in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and California University of Pennsylvania in California, Pennsylvania.

Carter Harris holds a B.S. in Criminal Justice and an M.S. in Legal Studies from the California University of Pennsylvania. She also holds a certificate in alternative dispute resolution from the University of North Texas.

Haven L. Hart is the Supervising Consultant & Director of Client Success at TNG. She serves as a liaison between Consulting and Content, Marketing, and Business Development to assess and address client needs. She also develops systems to ensure efficiency and effectiveness and oversees the quality review process upon engagement completion. Her areas of expertise include strategic planning, teaching/training, continuous improvement, program and project management, individual and organizational risk management, threat assessment, and student success.

Hart is a career higher education professional with more than 30 years of experience in student affairs administration. She most recently served as Assistant Vice President for Student Development at Auburn University where she oversaw Career Services and Cooperative Education, Greek Life, Health Promotion and Wellness Services, the Office of Accessibility, Auburn Cares, and Student Conduct. She also chaired the Bias Education and Response Team and coordinated the Title IX Process Advisor program.

Prior to her time at Auburn, she served as Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students at Coastal Carolina University, Dean of Students at Converse College, and Assistant Director of Student Life at the University of Alabama. At Coastal Carolina, an award was created in her honor to recognize the impact she had on students.  She also received the Paul P. Fidler Award for academic partnerships for the state of South Carolina, the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) Region III Bob E. Leach Award for Outstanding Service to Students, the Joseph O. Nixon Award for Outstanding Chief Student Affairs Officer and the Outstanding Student Organization Advisor at both the University of Alabama and Converse College. In 2019, she was presented with the Woman of Distinction Award at Auburn’s Women’s Leadership Conference.  

Hart’s research interests include women’s leadership, student sense of belonging, sorority/fraternity housing, and retention of marginalized students. She is actively engaged in professional associations, serving on the NASPA Fraternity/Sorority Life disciplinary process task force and as a faculty member for the Southern Association of College Student Affairs (SACSA)/NASPA Region III New Professionals Institute. She is also the former president of the South Carolina College Personnel Association.

She earned a Ph.D. in Administration of Higher Education from Auburn University and two degrees from Clemson University – an M.Ed. in Guidance and Counseling and a B.A. in Secondary Education.

Michelle Issadore, M.Ed., CAE is the Chief Operating Officer for TNG, the former Senior Associate Executive Director for the Association of Title IX Administrators (ATIXA), and the former Executive Director of the School and College Organization for Prevention Educators (SCOPE). She works with the leaders of TNG’s membership associations and training offerings, ATIXA and NABITA, as well as the team responsible for our communications to the field, to continually offer our members and clients the most engaging communities, best-in-class professional development, and real-time information.

Issadore spent five years as Assistant Director of the Women’s Center at Lehigh University where she coordinated sexual violence prevention and response, including annual and ongoing trainings and programming for faculty, staff, and students. She advised Lehigh’s peer educator group and hotline, which was the 2009 recipient of NASPA’s Silver Excellence Award for Violence Education and Prevention, Crisis Management and Campus Security. She also instituted an online anonymous reporting system for sexual violence, with the support of related departments. Issadore was responsible for management of the staff advocate program, which provided confidential crisis and options counseling to victims. She created a writing-intensive sexual violence course and taught in the Women’s Studies program. She completed 40 hours of advocate training in Pennsylvania’s Northampton and Lehigh counties.

Issadore has served as co-chair of the National Women’s Studies Association’s Women’s Centers Committee, as a member of the Clery Center for Security on Campus Advisory Board, and as part of the Futures Without Violence Campus Policy Advisory Board. She has presented many online trainings, certification courses, and conference sessions, as well as written for several publications.

Nicole L. Johnson, PhD (she/her) is an Associate Professor of Counseling Psychology at Lehigh University. Her research is dedicated to the exploration and implementation of prevention programming for gender-based violence (e.g., rape, intimate partner violence, violence against individuals with marginalized sexual and gender identities) and the understanding and eradication of rape culture. Dr. Johnson is the coordinator of The Resistance Lab at Lehigh University. She is also a licensed psychologist whose clinical work focuses on the empowerment of survivors of gender-based violence through feminist approaches to counseling.

Kim has 10 years’ experience as a paralegal involved in law related to children, currently in the Office of General Counsel as Paralegal & Title IX Coordinator for Indianapolis Public Schools, the largest public school district in Indiana. In that role over the last 2 years she developed new reporting protocols, revised policy, trained over 2,500 school based staff in mandatory and Title IX reporting, and successfully partnered with community organizations. Most of the IPS funding for Title IX prevention initiatives and education efforts have come from those community partner organizations.

Kim joined IPS as paralegal in February 2015 during a time that the district was facing some difficult Title IX matters that made national news.  Those matters became the impetus to make extensive district changes in staff training, reporting, investigating, and documenting and closely related mandatory reporting. Kim assumed the Title IX responsibilities in Jan 2018.

During her paralegal career she served children as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) for 3 years, giving her strong insight into Child Protective Services reporting requirements gained while working alongside Division of Children’s Services.  Kim was the Guidance Director for a private charter school in Indianapolis for over 6 years before receiving her AS in Paralegal Science, giving her understanding of K12 administration responsibilities and complexities.  

An ATIXA member since 2018, she has served as a member of ATIXA’s K12 Advisory Committee for over a year.  IPS, under Kim’s leadership, hosted a successful ATIXA K12 Conference in Fall 2019. ATIXA published her Top Ten Tips for K12 Title IX Coordinators in 2019.

W. Scott Lewis, J.D. is a Managing Partner with TNG, LLC. (“TNG”), a national multidisciplinary risk management consulting and law firm with more than 5,000 education-sector clients, 35 executive and support employees, and a roster of 25 attorneys and consultants who are at the forefront of the field in their areas of expertise. He is a co-founder and advisory board member of the Association of Title IX Administrators (“ATIXA”) the leading industry association for Title IX compliance, with over 5,000 active school and college members. In 2009, Lewis co-founded The National Association for Behavioral Intervention and Threat Assessment (“NABITA”), an organization of 1,200 members dedicated to school and campus violence prevention, intervention, and mental health resources. and was president of ASCA.

Lewis has worked with the Department of Justice’s Office of Violence Against Women and the Department of Education’s Offices of Civil Rights as a trainer and consultant, training staff and investigators. He was a consultant to the Office of the Vice President and the White House Task Force on issues of Sexual Misconduct, as well as a core member of the United States Olympic Committee’s Task Force that proposed and created the United States Center for SafeSport, both of which he consults with and trains. He also consults with and trains numerous sports organizations and governing bodies at all levels from High Schools to Olympic Level athletes, trainers, coaches, and staff, including working with the NCAA and NJCAA.

Dr. Lisa Lieberman, Ph.D., Professor and Chair of Public Health, Montclair State University, received her Ph.D. in Health Behavior and Health Education from the University of Michigan. Her scholarly work includes mixed-methods research and evaluation of sex education programs, campus sexual assault, and policy approaches to sex education and reproductive health.

In 2021, Drs. Goldfarb and Lieberman published a seminal paper on three decades of evidence for comprehensive sex education. Since its publication, it has remained the most highly cited paper in the Journal of Adolescent Health. This led to a Guest Editorial in the NY Times and a wide range of presentations to state, national, and international organizations on school-based sex education and teacher preparation needs.

Mikiba W. Morehead is a consultant with TNG and has extensive experience in Student Affairs as a Student Conduct practitioner specialized in the areas of Title IX, crisis management, and student advocacy.

Her expertise centers on cyber sexual abuse, informal resolution processes, specifically mediation and restorative justice, policy revision, and ADA/504 compliance. Morehead has developed and delivered numerous trainings for investigators, decision-makers, hearing boards, appeal officers, and support persons across public, private, and health science/medical education institutions. She provides effective and sustainable solutions for colleges, universities, and schools to care for the needs of students and campus communities with an eye towards social justice. She has served as an interim Title IX Coordinator for a college client.

Prior to joining TNG, Morehead served as Title IX Coordinator and Director of Student Disability Services at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, Director of Community Standards at the University of Texas at Arlington, and Program Coordinator for Student Conduct at Texas A& M University.

Morehead holds a B.A. in Communication and an M.A. in Higher Education Administration from the University of Louisville, and an Ed.D. in Education, Ethical Leadership from the University of St. Thomas – Houston.

Kim Pacelli is a Partner with TNG who possesses substantial experience with the day-to-day challenges facing colleges, universities, and schools. She provides practical advice that empowers institutions to confidently manage high-risk issues on their campuses. Her practice includes:

• Policy and procedure development and consultation;
• Program review, assessment, and compliance consultations; and
• Tailored on-site training programs, among others.

She regularly trains and advises on Title IX policy and procedures, Clery Act reporting and compliance, student mental health interventions and policies, FERPA and student privacy issues, free speech issues for both public and private institutions, and student conduct issues, among others. She has also served as an invited speaker at regional and national conferences.

Ms. Pacelli’s solution-oriented approach to her work stems from her extensive experience as a student affairs practitioner. Kim served as Senior Associate Dean of Student Affairs at Bowdoin College, where she provided leadership, operational, budget, and personnel oversight to many central offices of the college, including the Dean’s office, Health Services, Counseling Services, Residential Life, and other student support offices. She also served as Associate Dean of Student Life for Harvard University.

Elexandria Reese is a Title IX & EEO Investigator at Auburn University, specializing in investigating sex-based misconduct and ensuring civil rights and equal opportunity compliance. Her experience is based primarily in higher education and human resources, but Reese is also knowledgeable in technical recruiting.

Prior to joining Auburn University, Reese served as a Human Resources Partner at Amazon, where she trained employees, resolved workplace disputes, and investigated employment-related complaints. She also worked as a Technical Sourcing Recruiter for Amazon Web Services, supporting the development and implementation of DEI talent acquisition initiatives for Software Development Engineers. Reese began her career in Student Affairs at Mercer University, where she served as a housing professional, student conduct decision maker, and Title IX investigator.

Reese holds a B.A. in Sociology from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and an M.S. in Adult Education from North Carolina A&T State University.

Ms. Schuster is a recognized expert in preventive and civil rights law for education, notably in the fields of harassment, discrimination and sexual misconduct and violence, ADA and disability issues and the First Amendment. 

Ms. Schuster has extensive experience and expertise in, and routinely advises clients on, the First Amendment and campus access issues; risk management and liability; behavior intervention and threat assessment; student discipline and campus conduct; intellectual property and employment issues. Ms. Schuster provides assistance nationally to both public and private educational schools and colleges in policy development, faculty handbooks and employee manuals, and training for state and federal compliance. She has provided extensive consultation to and training for the U.S. Justice Department, Office of Violence Against Women, the White House Task Force on Sexual Assault and the Futures Without Violence organization. She also provides litigation consultation, expert witness support, and conducts civil rights-based investigation for educational institutions. She provided contraceptive support and rape crisis counseling and served on the Board of Directors of Planned Parenthood of Butler County.

Dr. Shah is a board-certified gastroenterologist and geriatrician who has focused his career at the intersection of adult learning, QI, and patient safety. Brijen’s leadership roles have included serving as the Chief Medical Officer and Vice President of Medical Affairs for Mount Sinai Queens. Brijen’s current work focuses on developing a culture of safety and professionalism, creating systems to enhance provider performance, and working with leadership to better integrate advanced practice providers into the health care system. He serves as a consultant for Mount Sinai International collaborating on safety and quality projects in China and Guyana. Brijen serves as a QI coach for the VA GeriScholars program to teach QI to rural health care providers. He is a graduate of GNYHA’s Clinical Quality Fellowship Program. Brijen is a graduate of the Warren Alpert School of Medicine, Beth-Israel Deaconess Medical Center Internal Medicine Residency, and the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai/Mount Sinai Hospital GI Fellowship program.  Outside of work, Brijen enjoys traveling, cooking, and hiking and lives with his husband in New York City.

Brett Sokolow is the Chair of TNG, LLC (“TNG”), a national multidisciplinary risk management consulting and law firm with more than 5,000 education-sector clients, 50 executive and support employees, and a roster of 25 attorneys and consultants who are at the forefront of the field in their areas of expertise. Sokolow founded TNG, then known as The National Center for Higher Education Risk Management, in 2000.

Sokolow is recognized for his national leadership on systems-level solutions for safer schools and campuses, and is widely considered to be one of the foremost Title IX experts in the nation. He has served as an Expert Witness in more than 75 significant lawsuits affecting college, university, and school liability.

In addition to his role with TNG, Sokolow served as Executive Director of the Association of Title IX Administrators (“ATIXA”) from 2012-2017 and now serves as Chair of the Advisory Board of ATIXA (www.atixa.org), the leading industry association for Title IX compliance, with over 9,900 active school and college members. TNG provides consulting services to more than 400 campuses and schools each year. TNG has provided services to over 5,000 school, college and university clients, including training programs for campus and school district administrators, faculty and staff training, sexual assault and Title IX case management, risk management for fraternities and sororities, workshops and seminars. TNG also provides expert witness services, and lobbying efforts for campus crime and sexual assault-related legislation.

Melissa serves as a strategic partner on the leadership team in the Office of the Provost developing and implementing strategic plans for the University, academic human resources policies, and negotiating academic labor contracts. She collaborates with leadership across the university to improve the organizational culture of the working and learning environment with college, school, department, and unit leaders across the university on all academic human resources-related functions for 5,700 faculty, academic staff, and executive management. Prior to coming to MSU, she worked at the University of Michigan as the Associate Director of Academic Human Resources. Melissa holds a B.A. in English and Communications from Western Michigan University and an M.A. Degree in Higher, Adult, and Lifelong Education from Michigan State University.

Kait Spear is a Program Officer with the Action Collaborative on Preventing Sexual Harassment in Higher Education. Before joining the National Academies in 2022, Spear was a Senior Research Associate at NORC at the University of Chicago, where she engaged in many IPV-related, policy-oriented projects. Spear received her Master in Public Policy from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, along with two certificates in Health Disparities and Health Inequality, and Population Health. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Medicine, Health, and Society; Psychology; and Women’s and Gender Studies from Vanderbilt University.

Lauren is a consultant with TNG who is passionate about solving problems and supporting clients. She has experience with Title IX and Civil Rights investigations and compliance. Lauren’s experience is wide-ranging, but primarily based in Title IX compliance in higher education, including in dual enrollment, nursing and allied health programs, and pregnant and parenting. Lauren also has experience with Section 504/ADA and Clery Act compliance.

Lauren enjoys training at every level. She has experience creating and presenting custom trainings on Title IX compliance, mandatory reporting, and Section 504/ADA compliance.

Prior to joining TNG, Lauren served as the Director of Institutional Equity at South Texas College, as well as the college’s Title IX Coordinator and Section 504/ADA Coordinator. During her tenure at South Texas College, Lauren served on the college’s Clery Committee, participated in Behavioral Intervention Team meetings as the Title IX and 504/ADA Coordinator, and served as a member of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board’s Negotiated Rulemaking Committee.

Before joining the higher education world, Lauren practiced law as a commercial litigation associate at Husch Blackwell, LLP. At Husch Blackwell, Lauren litigated a variety of cases ranging from breach of contract, trade secret disputes, and class action defense. Lauren also had a significant pro bono practice, representing clients in adoptions, post-conviction relief, and victims of human-trafficking. Before pursuing a legal career, Lauren taught middle school English at a private K-12 school.

Lauren holds a B.A. in English from Washington and Lee University. At W&L, Lauren was also a college-athlete all four years of her undergrad, competing as member of the women’s swim team. Lauren has a J.D. from the Tulane University Law School where she was an active member of the school’s moot court team and the domestic violence clinic. 

Daniel Swinton is Chief Consulting Officer and Partner with TNG. Daniel consults frequently with colleges, universities and K-12 on issues of Title IX, the Violence Against Women Act and sexual violence, alcohol and other drugs, behavioral intervention, bystander intervention, student conduct policies and procedures, hearing board training, mediation and legal issues in education. Daniel often serves institutions as an external investigation support provider for issues of sexual misconduct and other complex student conduct matters as well as employment concerns, retaliation and harassment. He also serves as an expert witness in cases of sexual assault, Title IX, negligence, academic integrity and civil rights. He has authored a number of peer-reviewed articles and book chapters on topics ranging from student conduct to civil rights investigations. Daniel is also a frequent presenter and invited speaker at national and regional conferences.

Prior to his work with TNG, he served as Assistant Dean and Director of Student Conduct and Academic Integrity at Vanderbilt University.

Daniel serves on the Advisory Board of NABITA (National Association for Behavioral Intervention and Threat Assessment). He has also served on the Board for the Association for Student Conduct Administration (ASCA), having served as its President in 2011-2012.

He has also been interviewed and/or featured by The Chronicle of Higher Education, The New York Times, USA Today, Inside Higher Ed, Student Affairs Today, and the Washington Post, as well as other publications and sources.

Karen Truszkowski is President and Senior Counsel of Temperance Legal Group, PLLC. Her practice focuses solely on Title IX cases at the secondary and post-secondary levels. The media have most recently reported on the successful cases she has settled for survivors at MSU and Holland Christian Schools, among several others.

Karen began her career as a staff attorney for the United Auto Workers (UAW) Legal Services. Thereafter, she went into private practice where she handled personal injury matters, other civil litigation, and municipal defense for the City of Flint, MI. Her teaching career began in 1999 immediately following graduation from law school; her focus was Elder Law at the graduate school level. Karen achieved her dream of becoming a faculty supervisor in the Sixty Plus Elderlaw Clinic at Western Michigan University Cooley Law School where she had interned as a law student. In addition, Karen served as a District Court Magistrate in Oakland County, MI. In addition to holding schools accountable to Title IX, Karen continues her advocacy work in elder law and elder abuse prevention.

Joseph Vincent is a Partner at TNG, LLC (“TNG”), a national multidisciplinary risk management consulting and law firm with more than 5,000 education-sector clients, 35 executive and support employees, and a roster of 25 attorneys and consultants who are at the forefront of the field in their areas of expertise. TNG was founded in 2000.

Joe rose to prominence as a civil rights trainer, investigator, and educator began when he served as a Title IX Coordinator for a graduate healthcare professions university system.  In 2018, TNG recruited Joe as a consultant because of his track record as an effective leader, trainer, and administrator. He contributes unique insight and valuable experience that is rooted in his “boots on the ground” work as a Title IX Coordinator and civil rights investigator.  His expertise includes employment matters, broad policy development and implementation, and specialized experience in the dynamics that bear on healthcare education and power differentials.

In 2019, Joe developed and launched TNG’s Mentorship in Professionalism and Appropriate Conduct (MPAC) program to help support schools’ efforts to educate and train employees subject to school sanctions for discriminatory and/or harassing misconduct. Consistent with his prior campus-based experience, Joe continues to serve as an external investigator and adjudicator and an advisor for policy development and implementation. He frequently contributes as an expert witness in lawsuits affecting college, university, and school liability.

Sarah I. Vincent, Attorney, Husch Blackwell, helps clients proactively address labor and employment matters, creating an inclusive and welcoming culture for their employees. Sarah came to the practice of law after working as a high school teacher in an underserved community—an experience that left her longing for a career that would provide a stronger voice for advocacy work. She focused first on immigration law, externing with the Department of Justice and the Executive Office of Immigration Review. However, a summer at a labor and employment defense firm demonstrated to her how powerful the practice area was, with its many opportunities to help companies effect positive change for their employees. As a labor and employment attorney, Sarah counsels national employers on a range of issues, with a specific focus on DEI and how to cultivate inclusive hiring and retention practices, especially for justice-impacted individuals. Sarah is certified in DEI from Cornell University, is an alumnus of the Fair Chance Corporate Cohort, and received the 2024 Young Alumni of the Year Award from Pepperdine University for her work in DEI. 

Erik S. Wessel, D.Ed., (he/him) is the Director of the Office of Student Conflict Resolution (OSCR) at the University of Michigan. OSCR is a multi-disciplinary office which employs a spectrum model of restorative resolution pathways for campus community conflict and accountability. It is in this role that he has collaborated on the development and effective implementation of Adaptable Resolution pathways for Sexual and Gender-based misconduct, as well as building effective psychoeducational intervention tools responsive to sexual and gender-based educational needs. Erik holds a Doctor of Education degree in Higher Education Administration from Penn State University with specialization in Counselor Education. Prior to joining the OSCR team in 2015, Erik served as the Director of the Office of Student Conduct at Ferris State University and worked in student conduct and Residence Life at Penn State University. He is co-editor of  Applying Restorative Justice to Campus Sexual Misconduct: A guide to Emerging Practices published in 2023 from Routledge.

Quinn Williams has served as General Counsel for the University of Wisconsin System since December 2017. Quinn graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2002 with a B.A. degree and earned his law degree from Marquette University Law School in 2006. Quinn served as a Staff Attorney at the Department of Natural Resources from 2007 to 2012, then as an Attorney Section Supervisor from 2012 to 2015, and finally as a Chief Counsel from 2015 to 2017. Quinn has a wide area of focus, including the statutory and constitutional framework and federal and administrative regulations applicable to the operation of public agencies, litigation management, employment, real estate, trademark, copyright, intellectual property, ethics, contract and procurement, public records, open meetings, risk management, disability, discrimination, bankruptcy and collections.

Kaaren M. Williamsen, PhD, is Director of PEAR (Prevention, Education, Assistance & Resources) in the Equity, Civil Rights, and Title IX Office at the University of Michigan.  PEAR is a relatively new office focused on providing prevention and policy education for all employees, as well as by providing assistance to all 19 schools and colleges as they holistically respond to sexual misconduct in their communities.  Kaaren has also served as Director of SAPAC (Sexual Assault Prevention and Awareness Center) at the University of Michigan.  Prior to U-M, she served as the Title IX Coordinator at Swarthmore College, and was the founding director of the Gender and Sexuality Center at Carleton College, where she also served as a Deputy Title IX Coordinator. Kaaren has a Phd in organizational leadership, policy, and development from the University of Minnesota, and her dissertation addressed the limitations of the traditional response to sexual misconduct and the possibilities of restorative justice.  She co-founded Campus PRISM (Promoting Restorative Initiatives for Sexual Misconduct) and is a restorative justice facilitator trainer and consultant. She is co-editor of the Applying Restorative Justice to Campus Sexual Misconduct: A guide to Emerging Practices published in 2023 from Routledge.