Nine Women Who Have Been Assigned New Administrative Duties in Higher Education

Shefali Mookencherry is the new chief information security officer at the University of Illinois Chicago. Since 2020, she has been the chief information security officer at Edward-Elmhurst Health.

Mookencherry holds a master’s degree in management information systems and a master of public health degree from Benedictine University in Lisle, Illinois.

Misha G. Cornelius was appointed director of public relations in the Office of University Communications at Howard University in Washington, D.C. Cornelius has been a member of Howard University’s public relations team for over four years, serving in roles of increasing responsibility since 2018, most recently serving as the interim director of public relations.

Cornelius earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from San Francisco State University. She is currently a doctoral student in political science at Howard University.

Christina Castillo has been named director of the Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center at South Dakota State University. She has worked at Daktronics since 2011, most recently in event management and marketing operations. She also serves on the board of directors of the Prairie Repertory Theatre.

Castillo is a graduate of South Dakota State University, where she majored in communication studies and theatre and completed a minor in dance.

María Carla Chicuén is the new executive director of cultural affairs at Miami Dade College in Florida. For the past five years, she has been the executive director of CasaCuba at Florida International University. She is the author of the book Achieve the College Dream: You Don’t Need to Be Rich to Attend a Top School (Rowman & Littlefield, 2016).

Chicuén is a graduate of Harvard University, where she majored in history. She holds a master’s degree in international relations from the London School of Economics and Political Science.

Anne Edwards was named director of the Black Cultural Center at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana. She was director of the Center for Black Studies at Northern Illinois University. Previously, she served for six years in the Office of Career Services at Northern Illinois University.

Dr. Edwards holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in hospitality management from Purdue University. She earned an MBA at Valparaiso University in Indiana and a Ph.D. in educational psychology from Northern Illinois University.

Susan Davis will be the next vice president for student affairs at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. She has been serving as the senior associate vice president for student affairs at the University of Virginia. She joined the staff there in 1999.

Davis is a graduate of Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire. She earned a juris doctorate at Temple University in Philadelphia.

Gena Brodie Robbins was appointed director of galleries at Brenau University in Gainesville, Georgia. She will oversee the university’s five exhibition spaces and its collection of more than 3,500 works of art. She co-founded and directed the Hollingsworth Gallery in Palm Coast, Florida.

A native of Macon, Georgia, Robbins earned a bachelor’s degree in art education from Valdosta State University in Georgia and a master of fine arts degree in painting from the Savannah College of Art & Design.

W. Rebecca Brown is the new chief financial officer and vice president for finance and administration at Florida A&M University. Brown has been on the staff at the university for 24 years, serving most recently as assistant vice president for finance and administration in charge of business and auxiliary services.

Brown is a graduate of Florida A&M University.

Ashtin Lizanich as the inaugural director of alumni relations for the College of Science at Clemson University in South Carolina. She most recently served as director of alumni relations for Presbyterian College in Clinton, South Carolina.

A native of Bloomington, Illinois, Lizanich received a scholarship to play volleyball at Presbyterian College. There, she earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration and management.