New Administrative Appointments for Seven Women at Colleges and Universities

Joan Williams was appointed associate vice president for diversity and inclusion and chief diversity officer at Salisbury University in Maryland. Williams has served as the director of diversity and institutional equity at the University of North Alabama since 2013.

Williams is a graduate of the University of Mississippi, where she majored in business administration. She holds a master’s degree in community counseling from the University of North Alabama.

Elysia Lash is the new senior assessment coordinator at Shaw University in Raleigh, North Carolina. She was associate and interim director of university life assessment at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia.

Lash holds a bachelor’s degree in business management from Cazenovia College in New York. She earned an MBA in marketing and market research at the Rochester Institute of Technology in New York.

ShaRonda Cooper has been named director of the Department of Multicultural Services and Programs at the University of Georgia. She had been serving as interim director since July 2019. Previously, she led the University Health Center’s student success and training efforts.

Dr. Cooper is a magna cum laude graduate of Fort Valley State University in Georgia, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology. She holds a master’s degree in mental health and rehabilitation counseling and a doctorate in higher education from Ohio University.

Shelly Brandenburger has been named director of nursing student services at South Dakota State University. She had been serving as a graduate faculty associate professor and academic advisor for virtual nursing students at Presentation College in Aberdeen, South Dakota.

Dr. Brandenburgr is a graduate of the University of Minnesota. She earned a doctorate of chiropractic medicine degree from Northwestern Health Sciences University in Bloomington, Minnesota. She also holds master’s and doctoral degrees from South Dakota State University.

Sarah Olejniczak was named Title IX and compliance coordinator at St. Norbert College in De Pere, Wisconsin. She has been serving as vice president for student affairs and Title IX coordinator at Mount Mary University in Milwaukee.

Dr. Olejniczak is a graduate of Luther College in Decorah, Iowa, where she majored in business management and communication studies. She holds a master’s degree in college student personnel administration and a Ph.D. in educational policy and leadership from Marquette University in Milwaukee.

Davida Loren Haywood was appointed vice president for student affairs at Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte, North Carolina, effective July 1. Currently, she is vice president for student affairs and enrollment management at Alabama State University.

Dr. Haywood earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Johnson C. Smith University. She holds a master’s degree in higher education and student affairs and a Ph.D. in educational administration and higher education from Ohio State University.

Amy Shivvers was named regional manager for strategic partnerships for Western Governors University. She has spent the last decade serving as the managing director of executive education and events for Crain’s Chicago Business.

Shivvers holds a bachelor’s degree in apparel merchandising and business from Indiana University.