Contributors
Kris L. Baack is the Associate Director of Leadership, Involvement, and Community Engagement at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She has been teaching at the university for 43 years. With her BS in Speech Pathology and Audiology, her MA in Speech-Language Pathology with an emphasis in Language and Learning Disabilities, and a PhD in Organizational Management and Leadership. Kris teaches the Chancellor’s Leadership Class, one section of ALEC 102, co-teaches a leadership class for the Raikes Program, directs the Certificate of Civic Engagement Program and does around 100 leadership workshops a year. Kris loves empowering students to find and live their passion. Being a trustee of her community is important to Kris. She is the past president of several non-profit boards for the city of Lincoln, the state of Nebraska, and one international board. Presently, Kris is serving on the board of directors for Boys and Girls Club, Friendship Home, Lincoln Public Schools Foundation Board, and the Country Club of Lincoln. In her free time, Kris enjoys her dogs and cats, traveling, and reading.
Sarah A. Bush holds a PhD in Agricultural Leadership and Community Education from Virginia Tech. She is currently an Assistant Professor of Agricultural Leadership Education in the Department of Agricultural Education and Communication at the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida. She researches and teaches classes related to leadership and change with a focus on community development through collaborative problem-solving. What she loves about her work is watching a student really “get it” and make connections in their own lives and work. She also enjoys working with communities to increase their capacity to generate solutions to complex issues. In her free time, she loves spending time outdoors, traveling, and watching live music.
Helen Abdali Soosan Fagan holds a PhD in Human Sciences with a Leadership Studies specialization from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She is currently an Assistant Professor of Practice in the Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education, & Communication at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and the Program Coordinator for the Rural Fellowship program of Rural Prosperity Nebraska at University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She is a practitioner and scholar in diversity and inclusion, having worked in the field for numerous years before entering academia. She teaches, coaches, and consults in developing inclusive leaders. Her passion for this started through personal experiences as an immigrant from Iran at the height of the Iranian hostage crisis that culminated in expanding her purpose of helping students and leaders become inclusive. Her book, Becoming Inclusive: A Worthy Pursuit in Leadership was published by Information Age Publishing in 2021. In her free time, she loves to play and laugh with her grandsons, her puppies, and her favorite human (aka spouse).
Heath E. Harding holds a PhD in Human Sciences with a Leadership Studies specialization from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. He is currently a faculty member at the Federal Executive Institute, U.S. Office of Personnel Management in Charlottesville, Virginia. He works with high-level federal public servants to improve their leadership skills. Since he helps public servants across 52 different agencies and sub-agencies improve their leadership in serving the American people, he sees it as a way to serve his country. He specialized in adult development, personal change, and leading in complexity. When he is not working, he is hiking the Rocky Mountains with his dog. Dr. Harding wrote his chapter as a private citizen.
Lindsay J. Hastings holds a PhD in Education Leadership in Higher Education from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She currently serves as the Clifton Professor in Mentoring Research and Research Director for NHRI Leadership Mentoring (formerly known as the Nebraska Human Resources Institute). She teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in leadership theory and leadership development, and her research focuses on leadership mentoring, community leadership development, and youth leadership. The most cherished part of her work is developing her students’ capacity as leadership learners and scholars. In her free time, she loves to ride horses with her kids and walk her dog.
Jaclyn S. Marsh holds a PhD in Interpersonal and Family Communication from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She is currently a visiting Assistant Professor in the Department of Communication Studies at Ashland University. She teaches all different types of classes in communication studies, and her research focuses on how our family communication influences our overall health and wellbeing as individuals. What she loves most about her work is watching students have their “ah ha” moments in her classes. She loves to hear how her classes have influenced her students’ lives in positive ways. In her free time, she loves spending time with her family, consisting of husband, James, and sons, Johnny and Jett, hanging out at the beach, taking hikes, and traveling.
Kate D. McCain is a Collegiate Assistant Professor with the Department of Agricultural, Leadership, and Community Education at Virginia Tech. She has a PhD in Human Sciences with a specialization in Leadership Studies from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. At Virginia Tech Dr. McCain enjoys teaching leadership courses for undergraduate and graduate students and teaches a special course on the dark side of leadership, exploring toxic leadership narratives. Her scholarship explores the power of storytelling and its role in creating leader identity, socialization, and coping with complex leadership challenges. Outside of teaching and research, she enjoys traveling and spending time with her family.
L.J. McElravy is an Associate Professor of Leadership in the Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication and Associate Dean of Graduate Student Professional Development within Graduate Studies at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. He earned his PhD in Human Sciences with a specialization in Leadership Studies at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. His research and extension efforts are focused on leader and leadership identity through the lifespan and leadership training and development using a positive psychological lens. What L.J. loves most about his work is bringing people together to create spaces of learning and development. In his free time, L.J. enjoys spending time with his family (partner and two kids), and he enjoys his curling league.
Jeni McRay is the Assistant Provost of Internationalization and Strategic Initiatives & Associate Professor of Leadership Studies at Fort Hays State University in Hays, Kansas. She holds a PhD from the Division of Educational Leadership with an emphasis in Adult, Occupational, and Continuing Education from Kansas State University, earned in 2005. Dr. McRay (Dr. J to students!) is an enthusiastic educator with three decades of experience in higher education. She loves working with adult learners and emerging leaders in any setting and especially enjoys working with diverse, international audiences. She has extensive experience in professional development, continuing education, adult learning and development, online pedagogy, and higher education administration. Dr. McRay has delivered multiple workshops and classes on leadership development, personality styles, team collaboration, professional development, emotional intelligence, and conflict management over the past 15 years, both in corporate and higher education settings. Her research interests include transdisciplinary graduate education, nontraditional populations in higher education, online pedagogy, and learning outcomes assessment.
Linda D. Moody holds a PhD in Administration, Curriculum, and Instruction with a specialization in Leadership in Higher Education from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She is an Assistant Director – Emeritus in the Center for Civic Engagement and is currently Program Leader for the Tax Credit Campaign of Nebraska located in the university’s Center on Children, Families, and the Law. Her interests are in experiential learning, specifically service-learning. She enjoys connecting students to relevant social issues while meeting community identified needs. Currently, she is assisting Nebraska families in receiving all of their eligible tax credits through free income tax preparation and providing tax credit literacy clinics. In her free time, she enjoys her time with family, improving her golf swing, and reconnecting with production agriculture by growing alternative crops.
Donnette Noble, who holds a PhD in Human Sciences with a specialization in Leadership Studies from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, was tenured faculty at Roosevelt University in Chicago before landing her dream job and moving with Addi, “the tiny dog with the huge personality”, to the dusty, rugged plains of northwest Kansas. She is the Voss Distinguished Professor of Leadership Studies at Fort Hays State University, where she also serves as the Director of Civic Learning and Engagement. She is affiliated faculty at Creighton University (Omaha, NE) and is a past President of the Association of Leadership Educators. She enjoys spending precious time with her kiddos, grandbabies, and friends. When she’s not with them, you can find her on her yoga mat, running, walking her pup, gardening, and just being silly and laughing (a lot!). Her best advice? Life is short – embrace every moment. Practice gratitude. Have fun. Be kind. Spread joy.
Herb L. Thompson III holds a PhD in Human Sciences with a Leadership Studies specialization from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. He is currently an Assistant Professor in the School of Communication at the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO). Dr. Thompson’s research priorities are inclusive communication and leadership practices, mentorship, and intergroup dialogue. He is active on his campus in the work of diversity, equity, access, and inclusion (DEAI), including his recent efforts to pioneer a thriving new faculty mentorship program at UNO. In his free time, he enjoys reading books with his daughter and listening to his growing vinyl records collection.
Colette M. Yellow Robe is a member of the N. Cheyenne Tribe and holds a PhD in Educational Studies from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Dr. Yellow Robe is an Assistant Professor of Indigenous Education in the School of Education at Bishop’s University in the Eastern Townships of Quebec, Canada. She says, “I strive to honor our Tribal Nations/Indigenous Peoples ways of knowing as stewards to the land—past, present, and future. My inquiries and research projects focus on collaborative, Indigenous Nations and community action in Indigenous education and Indigenous Futurism. There are so many dimensions of my life, career and work which remind me to walk in gratitude. The love source from my walk in life is driven by living purposely to leave a better future for our next generations. In those fleeting moments of free time, I like to spend time with my family, hike, and create photo projects.”
Ashlee K. Young holds an MEd in higher education administration from the University of Missouri-St. Louis. She is currently completing a PhD in Human Sciences with a specialization Leadership Studies, with a focus on first-generation leadership development beyond undergraduate experiences in the Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education, & Communication at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Based in greater Washington, D.C., she currently serves as the Associate Director for First Scholars Initiatives® in the Center for First-generation Student Success, an initiative of the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) and The Suder Foundation. Prior to joining NASPA, Ashlee spent the majority of her career working in comprehensive college transition and access programs for at-promise students. In her free time, she co-founded an online handcrafted jewelry company, enjoys trying new restaurants, and loves to support arts and culture.
