Zhewei Dai was named the Charles A. Dana Professor at Alma College in Michigan. Dr. Dai, a professor of mathematics and computer science, has been an Alma faculty member for more than two decades. She was chosen for the Dana Professorship for her innovation in teaching, program formulation, and engaging students and colleagues in academia.
Dr. Dai is a graduate of Wuhan University in China. She earned her master’s degree in statistics and Ph.D. in applied mathematics from Michigan State University.
Brooke Maslo is the inaugural Joanna Burger Endowed Legacy Professor at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey. Dr. Maslo is an associate professor and associate extension specialist in the department of ecology, evolution, and natural resources. In her research, she studies the complex interactions between environmental change and species’ evolutionary, behavioral, and physiological characteristics.
Dr. Maslo holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering from the University of Maryland and a Ph.D. in ecology and evolution from Rutgers University.
Holly Kuzmich was named the Michael L. Smith Managing Director of the Wilson Sheehan Lab for Economic Opportunities at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana. With extensive experience in venture philanthropy, national policy, and organizational leadership, Kuzmich most recently served as managing director at the Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation. Earlier, she was executive director of the George W. Bush Institute. Kuzmich has also held senior roles with the U.S. Department of Education and the White House Domestic Policy Council.
Kuzmich earned her bachelor’s degree from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois.
Julia Hellwege is the inaugural Diane Jones Meier Distinguished Professor in Gender and Public Policy at the University of South Dakota. Dr. Hellwege, who teaches in the university’s department of political science, also serves as director of the Allene R. Chiesman Center for Democracy. Her research examines institutional behavior, legislative politics, gender politics, and race and ethnicity politics.
Dr. Hellwege is a graduate of what is now Colorado Mesa University, where she majored in political science. She received her master’s degree and Ph.D. in political science from the University of New Mexico.