Heidi Pecoraro has been promoted to director of animal resources and attending veterinarian at North Dakota State University. She has served as the university’s interim attending veterinarian for the past 15 months. Dr. Pecarao first joined the NDSU staff in 2018 as a veterinary anatomic pathologist. Prior to her interim appointment, she was director of the NDSU veterinary diagnostic laboratory.
Dr. Pecoraro holds bachelor’s degrees in wildlife science and humanities and literature from the University of Washington. She received her doctor of veterinary medicine degree and a Ph.D. in pathology from Colorado State University. She completed postdoctoral research at the Oregon National Primate Research Center in Portland.
Lauren Grabowski has been named director of discovery for the department of college relations at Mount Holyoke College, a liberal arts educational institution for women in South Hadley, Massachusetts. She has over 15 years of fundraising experience in annual and major giving. In her new role, Grabowski will work to develop relationships with potential donors who are not currently involved with the college.
Grabowski is a graduate of the University of Connecticut.
Dana Gill is the new associate vice president of government relations at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan. Her appointment marks a return to the university, where she previously served as director for state relations. More recently, she led MESH Advisors, a public affairs consultancy she founded to support organizations across health, sustainability, and public interest sectors.
Gill earned both her bachelor’s degree in political science and master of public administration degree from Wayne State University.
Laquetta Jones Bigelow was appointed director of employee relations and equal employment opportunity and affirmative action officer at North Carolina A&T State University. Her background includes extensive experience in strategic planning and organizational development. Previously, she served as director of equal employment opportunity and civil rights for the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Federal Mediation Conciliation Service.
Jones Bigelow received her bachelor’s degree in political science and master of public administration degree from North Carolina Central University. She holds a juris doctorate from Michigan State University.
Alexis I. Ehrhardt is the new vice president for government relations at Virginia Commonwealth University. With over two decades of professional experience, she most recently served as executive director for state government relations and special assistant to the president at the University of Virginia. Earlier in her career, she held academic and administrative positions at Averett University and Danville Community College, both located in Danville, Virginia.
Dr. Ehrhardt is a graduate of Emory University in Atlanta, where she earned bachelor’s degrees in Latin American and Caribbean studies and Spanish. She holds a master’s degree in higher education from the University of Virginia and a doctorate in leadership studies from the University of Lynchburg in Virginia.