Co-Editors-In-Chief
Dr. Wendy Bolyard
Dr. Wendy Bolyard currently serves as clinical assistant professor in the School of Public Affairs at CU Denver. She was the founding director of the School’s Bachelor of Arts in Public Service program and was just named academic director for the 2022 Mandela Washington Fellowship. Wendy has worked in higher education for almost 30 years and has been teaching for 18 years. She holds a B.S.J. and M.A. from West Virginia University, and a Ph.D. in Public Affairs from the University of Central Florida. Her teaching interests include leadership and ethics, research and analytic methods, and introducing students to public administration.
Wendy currently serves as a ThinqStudio fellow, Vice Chair for the Alliance of Nonprofit Educators, member of the Nonprofit Leadership Alliance board, and Chair-Elect for the American Society of Public Administration (ASPA) Section on Public Administration Education. Wendy has worked for four public universities, a private urban university, a Fortune 500 company, a small nonprofit organization, she sat on the Nonprofit Advisory Board at the University of Central Florida, and served on the Board of Directors for the Autism Society of Colorado.
Dr. Dennis DeBay
The phrase “teaching and learning” implies that the teaching part of the learning process is where we begin. However, does this lead to an emphasis on the didactic, teacher-centered mode of instruction? I say we consider the work of “teaching and learning” in its entirety under the umbrella of learning. Exploring this involves some reflection. Are we here because we love our content, have a strong content identity, and we wish to impart this knowledge to our students? Or do we want to help students build their own identities within the content? To help them consider themselves scientists, poets, geographers, and mathematicians? My focus is the latter. I believe we are here to create learning environments that have students bring their own lives to our content—to bring wonder and excitement to our work. In short, my focus is to (re)humanize Pre-K through Higher Education learning by pushing the boundaries of what can be (Goffney, Gutiérrez, & Boston, 2018).
Goffney, I., Gutiérrez, R., & Boston, M. (2018). Rehumanizing mathematics for Black, Indigenous, and Latinx students. National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.
Board Members
Christopher Beeson
Christopher Beeson is Program Manager for the Film and Television Department at the University of Colorado Denver where he also teaches film production, editing and digital effects. He received a BFA in Studio Arts from Millikin University and an MA in Critical Theory and Art History from Reed College. His most recent documentary film Hog Haven is available on PBS stations nationwide and through Collective Eye educational distribution.
Nina Buchanan
Nina Buchanan (she/her) is a Clinical Associate Professor for the Ed.D. in Leadership for Educational Equity in Higher Education in the CU Denver School of Education and Human Development. Nina has more than 20 years of experience in academic and student affairs. Her work included many areas, including residence life; summer bridge programs; federal TRIO programs; academic advising; and leadership roles in undergraduate academic support services and the office of the registrar. Much of her work focused on advocacy and belonging for historically excluded college populations. She previously served as an associate professor and coordinator of Higher Education programs at Wilmington University in Delaware.
Nina has been engaged with NACADA: The Global Community for Academic Advising for over 15 years, having served as a conference co-chair and coordinator for the mentoring program for the mid-Atlantic region. She is also involved with ACPA: College Student Educators International, and currently serves on the editorial board for the Research in Brief publication of the Journal of College Student Development. She is also involved with her local chapter of the American Association of University Women (AAUW), which promotes college attendance for women in the United States through civic advocacy and scholarships. Nina holds a Doctor of Education from Widener University in Higher Education Leadership; a Master of Education from the University of Delaware in Student Affairs Practice; and a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Delaware.
Lori Elliott, PhD
Dr. Lori Elliott is a Clinical Associate Professor at the University of Colorado Denver where she teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in the literacy and teacher education programs. Her academic interests include hybrid and collaborative teaching and learning environments. Through her connection with ThinqStudio, she is currently focused on creating a collaborative online space where educators, children, community agencies, and families can share multicultural children’s literature and resources.
Paul Le, PhD
Paul Le is a Senior Instructor in the Department of Integrative Biology. He coordinates the first semester general biology labs and teaches ecology courses. His primary background is in science education, and he focuses on (1) inclusion and access in science classrooms, (2) students’ science identity production, and (3) students’ conceptions of ecological processes. He has been published in various science education and ecology-related journals such as Cultural Studies of Science Education, Northeastern Naturalist, Ecosphere, and CBE-Life Sciences Education. He is also a regular reviewer for CBE-Life Sciences Education. He is an alumni of the University of Colorado Denver and completed his PhD through the Department of Integrative Biology in 2019. Prior to his return to the University of Colorado Denver, he was an Assistant Professor of Biology at Red Rocks Community College.
Jason Machado, MPA, PhD
Dr. Jason Machado is an Instructor at the University of Colorado Denver where he teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in nonprofit management, public policy, and public administration. His research interests include nonprofit board governance, collaborative advocacy, election administration, and comparative public administration. He has been published in the journal Public Administration Review.
Lauren McKown, MA, PhD
Dr. Lauren McKown is an instructor at University of Colorado Denver, where she teaches undergraduate courses in Cultural Anthropology. Dr. McKown’s research interests include: gender, identity, belonging, and religion and she explores these interests as a part of the Imaginator Academy research group based at University Of Colorado Denver. Dr. McKown is also the lead qualitative methodologist for the Denver Center of Innovation for Veteran Centered and Value Driven Care within the Department of Veterans Affairs. She holds a master’s degree in Applied Anthropology and a PhD in Cultural Anthropology from American University in Washington DC.
Elena Sandoval-Lucero, PhD
Dr. Elena Sandoval-Lucero is an assistant teaching professor at the University of Colorado Denver in the School of Education and Human Development. She teaches and advises for the EdD in Leadership for Educational Equity in Higher Education and is the lead faculty member for the new MA in Leadership for Educational Organizations: Leading Change for Student Success in Higher Education concentration. She has over 30 years of experience in both academic and student affairs settings in higher education. Most recently she held senior level leadership positions at community colleges for ten years. She was Vice President of the Boulder County Campus of Front Range Community College. She also served as Vice President of Student Affairs and Dean of Enrollment Management and Student Success at Community College of Aurora, a national leader in equity initiatives. She is a scholar-practitioner who has remained active in research, scholarship, and the higher education profession throughout her career. She serves on the editorial boards for several journals, and as a mentor for local and national higher education leadership development programs.
Emily Wortman-Wunder
Emily Wortman-Wunder is a Clinical Assistant Professor at the University of Colorado Denver; she teaches scientific writing, fiction writing, and writing for engineers. Her short story collection, Not a Thing to Comfort You, won the Colorado Book Award in 2020, and she has recently published essays in Creative Nonfiction, the Kenyon Review, and Guernica. Before coming to CU Denver she was the managing editor of technical publications at the Society for Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration.
