In addition to the feedback and guidance provided by Academy Mentors, Academy institutions receive advice on their projects from Academy Scholars and Senior Scholars, who are experts in the areas of assessment of student learning and student success. They provide responses to project updates in SparQ and facilitate Academy events.

Senior Scholars

The Senior Scholars are responsible for leading the development and improvement of the curriculum for the Academy programs, in addition to providing mentorship to Academy participants. They give presentations on research and best practices in assessment of student learning and supporting student success at Academy and Workshop events and at the HLC Annual Conference.

Janice Denton

Professor and Chair, Department of Chemistry, University of Cincinnati Blue Ash College

Janice Denton is Professor and Department Chair in the Chemistry Department at the University of Cincinnati Blue Ash College. She is a member of her university’s Academy of Fellows for Teaching and Learning and was awarded the Blue Ash College Distinguished Teaching Award in 2001. She served as a mentor in HLC’s Assessment Academy from its inception in 2005, became a mentor in the Persistence and Completion Academy when it started in 2013, took on the role of Scholar for both Academies in 2016, and became a Senior Scholar in 2018. Denton has presented at regional and national assessment and teaching conferences and has worked with faculty on student learning and assessment at many colleges and universities.

Susan Hatfield

Professor Emerita, Winona State University

Susan Hatfield is Professor Emerita in the Communication Studies Department at Winona State University (WSU), where she taught from 1981 to 2015. During that time, she developed and directed WSU’s assessment program, served as a department chairperson, and coordinated the First Year Student Experience. She has recently completed appointments to the Board of Visitors for the Marine Corps University and the Board of Directors of the Joint Review Committee on Education in Radiologic Technology. Susan is currently a Trustee with the Palmer College of Chiropractic.

Scholars

Susan Murphy

Susan Murphy recently retired from Central New Mexico Community College, where she had served as Dean of Arts and Sciences, Vice President for Academic Affairs and Vice President for External Affairs. She has also co-chaired the institution’s work in assessment and effectiveness spanning liberal arts, career and professional degree programs. Murphy consults widely on issues of accreditation and assessment, guiding institutions in developing outcomes, mapping curricula and designing viable institutional assessment plans. She obtained her doctorate in Romance Languages from the University of New Mexico.

Rosemary Niedens

Rosemary Niedens currently serves as the Associate Vice President of Academic Affairs at Newman University in Wichita, Kansas. During her 17-year association with Newman, she has held nine different roles on both the academic and student affairs sides of the institution. At present, Niedens is responsible for the first-year programs, parent programming, the ASC Community Leader Scholar program, persistence programs, concurrent enrollment programming, and academic and student support services including cooperative education, testing services, the probationary and conditional status program, and certified peer tutoring, among others. At the community level, she is a past chair and serves on the board of the Salvation Army, and she is also the co–area coordinator of the Adorers of the Blood of Christ Associate Program.

Jan Smith

Jan Smith is the Assistant Vice President for Institutional Effectiveness at Pittsburg State University in Pittsburg, Kansas. Smith is a peer reviewer for HLC and is a trainer with the Peer Corps. She has conducted numerous webinars and national and regional presentations related to HLC accreditation. Smith has a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology and has 20 years of experience as a professor in the Department of Psychology and Counseling at Pittsburg State. Smith was a long-time mentor for HLC’s Assessment Academy before becoming an Academy Scholar.