Universities Announce the Hiring of Seven Women to High-Level Administrative Posts

Dannette Gomez Beane has been named vice president for enrollment management and strategic communications at Radford University in Virginia. For the past three years, Dr. Beane served as assistant vice provost for enrollment management and strategic initiatives at Virginia Tech.

A native of Texas and a first-generation college student, Dr. Beane earned a bachelor’s degree in communication studies at Hollins University in Roanoke. Virginia. She received her master’s degree and Ph.D. in counselor education from Virginia Tech.

Tracey Dodenhoff is the new vice president of entrepreneurship and innovation at Arizona State University. Most recently, she served as CEO of digital therapeutics for Medly Therapeutics Inc., as well as a commercialization advisor for robotics-as-a-service company Avendly.

Dodenhoff is a graduate of Rhode Island College, where he majored in industrial technology. She holds a master’s degree in ergonomics from the Pratt Institute in New York and an MBA from Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts.

Joy Milfort was appointed vice president of campus services and chief financial officer at Howard Community College in Columbia, Maryland. Prior to joining Howard Community College, she served as the assistant vice president for finance and administration for campus life at American University in Washington, D.C.

Milfort is a graduate of American University, where she majored in health promotion and biology. She holds an MBA from Bay Path University in Longmeadow, Massachusetts.

Tabitha R. Oman has been promoted to the position of vice president and general counsel at Pennsylvania State University. She was serving as chief ethics and compliance officer at the university. Earlier, Oman served as vice president, deputy general counsel, and chief compliance officer at Axalta Coating Systems.

Oman earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Colorado Boulder and a juris doctorate from George Washington University Law School.

Yolanda Pollard is the new director of Swain Center for Executive Education and Economic Development at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. She had a 25-year career at Entergy Corporation. Earlier, she led the customized corporate training function for the University of New Orleans.

Dr. Pollard earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Louisiana State University and a master’s degree in management from Troy University in Alabama. She also holds a doctoral degree in executive leadership from the University of Holy Cross in New Orleans.

Áine McCarthy has been named director of The University of New Mexico Women’s Resource Center. She has served as interim director since March 2022.

McCarthy holds a bachelor’s from Wesleyan University in Connecticut. She is an ordained Buddhist chaplain with a background in working with women in prison.

Cindy Graffeo has been hired as director of innovation and economic development for the Office of Research and Creative Activity at North Dakota State University in Fargo. Graffeo most recently served as executive director of the Downtown Community Partnership in Fargo. Earlier, she was chief of staff for the Dakota Medical Foundation.

Graffeo holds a bachelor’s degree in marketing and a master’s degree in marketing management from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire.