AAUA National Conference
October 14-16, 2024
Featured Speakers
Dr. Nasser Paydar, Assistant Secretary of Education for Postsecondary Education in the U.S. Department of Education.
Dr. Nasser H. Paydar joins the U.S Department of Education as Assistant Secretary in the Office of Post-Secondary Education in 2022 after most recently serving as chancellor of Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) and executive vice president of Indiana University (IU). An IU faculty member for more than 36 years, he has held various administrative and executive leadership positions at the university. Paydar joined IUPUI in 1985 as an assistant professor of mechanical engineering. From 1989 to 2003, he held a number of positions in the school, including chair of the Department of Mechanical Engineering, associate dean for graduate programs, associate dean for academic programs, and executive associate dean. From 2004 to 2007, he served as vice chancellor and dean of Indiana University–Purdue University Columbus. Paydar was appointed chancellor of Indiana University East in 2007, serving in that role until he returned to IUPUI in 2012 when he was named the campus’s executive vice chancellor and chief academic officer. He became IUPUI’s fifth chancellor in 2015. As an IUPUI faculty member, he has served as principal and co-principal investigator on research grants from federal and state agencies and private companies, including Cummins Electronics, DePuy, the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Army, and the U.S. Naval Air Warfare Center. His research in the area of solid mechanics, with applications in biomechanics and electronic packaging, has been published widely in scientific journals. Paydar earned bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in mechanical engineering from Syracuse University.
Cynthia Jackson Hammond, Ed.D. President Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA)
Dr. Cynthia Jackson Hammond became the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) President on August 1, 2020. CHEA is a non-profit organization that serves its members, students, and society through advocacy for the value and independence of accrediting organizations and commitment to quality in higher education.
She has been a member of the higher education community for more than 30 years. Her professional career has included tenured and administrative positions in universities including the University of Louisiana Monroe, California State University Dominguez Hills; Delaware State University; University of North Carolina Charlotte, Winston-Salem State University; and Coppin State University and president of Central State University in Ohio.
She has served on national boards of directors including the Thurgood Marshall College Fund; NCAA Division II Presidents Council; and the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education and has appeared multiple times on Capitol Hill. Dr. Jackson Hammond serves on the Fulbright Council for International Exchange Scholars (CIES) Advisory Board; the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges (AGB) Council for Student Success, and as an AGB Commissioner for Higher Education Strategic Assets. Dr. Jackson Hammond was also appointed as a Commissioner for the Biden Administration’s Presidential Scholars program.
She earned her Bachelor’s and Education Specialist degrees in Counseling from Grambling State University, her Master’s degree in Education from the University of Louisiana at Monroe, and her Doctorate in Education from Grambling State University.
She is an ardent advocate for quality assurance and transparency in higher education and is committed to the advancement of higher education success, equity, and integrity in higher education.
Felicia Martin, Senior Vice President of Inclusion, Education and Community Engagement NCAA
In March 2022, Felicia Martin was named senior vice president of inclusion, education, and community engagement. Internally, she leads all inclusion operations and leadership development programming and supervises national office staff in inclusion, education, and community engagement. She serves as a national office ambassador to member organizations, promoting the NCAA’s core values of service, diversity, and inclusion.
Martin became the vice president of the NCAA Eligibility Center in February 2017. In that role, she was responsible for the Eligibility Center’s strategic direction and oversaw a staff that annually certified academics and sport participation credentials for Division I and II prospective student-athletes.
In addition to her regulatory affairs experience, Martin has a campus background. Martin was a senior associate director of athletics for academics, student services, and sports administration at Texas Tech from 2008 to 2017. From 2003 to 2008, Martin served as the assistant executive director at the Division 1A Athletic Directors’ Association. Martin is a member of the National Association of Academic and Student-Athlete Development Professionals, where she held various leadership roles, including president from 2017-18. She is a member of the Minority Opportunities Athletic Association, the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics, Women Leaders in College Sports, and the Indy Chamber. Martin also serves on the NCORE National Advisory Council. Martin is credited as a co-founder of the Lauro Cavazos & Ophelia Powell-Malone Mentoring Program (Mentor Tech).
Martin earned her bachelor’s degree in educational psychology and master’s degree in counselor education from Mississippi State.
Dr. Vistasp Karbhari, Professor in the Departments of Civil Engineering, and Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the University of Texas at Arlington.
Vistasp M. Karbhari is a Professor in the Departments of Civil Engineering and Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the University of Texas at Arlington where he served as President from 2013 to 2020. Dr Karbhari recently has written an article on The Implications of Generative AI for Higher Education II: Concerns.
Prior to joining UTA, he served in administrative, teaching, and research roles at the University of Alabama in Huntsville, the University of California, San Diego, and the University of Delaware.
An internationally recognized researcher, President Karbhari is an expert in the processing and mechanics of composites, durability of materials, infrastructure rehabilitation, and multi-threat mitigation and has authored/co-authored over 460 papers in journals and conference publications and is the editor/co-editor of 6 books.
Professor Karbhari earned a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering and a master’s degree with a specialization in structures, both from the University of Poona in India, and a Ph.D. with a dissertation in composite materials from the University of Delaware.
He is a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors; ASM International; the International Institute for Fiber-reinforced Polymers in Construction; the International Society for Structural Health Monitoring of Intelligent Infrastructure; the American Society of Civil Engineers; and the ASCE’s Structural Engineering Institute, in addition to being an elected member of the European Academy of Sciences and Arts
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