2020-21 NACE Board of Directors

Lasater’s service to NACE includes roles as Director-College on the Board and as a member of a variety of NACE teams and committees, including the Face2Face Committee, Member Outreach Team, Ambassador Program Committee, Leadership Advancement Program Committee, and Leadership Development Task Force. She also serves as a facilitator for the NACE Career Coaching Intensive training program, and co-wrote the “Coaching Fundamentals” workshop, which is part of the coaching certification program.

Lasater is frequently tapped by the national media, including U.S. News & World Report and the Chicago Tribune, for insights into career support. In addition, she has been recognized with the Kaplan Way Leadership Award for Continuous Transformation and by TechStars as a mentor and a Kaplan Ed Tech Accelerator.

She graduated from Illinois State University with a B.S. in speech communication before earning an M.A.Ed. in educational leadership from Argosy University. Lasater is certified as a Career Management Fellow through the Institution of Career Certification International and holds a certificate in executive management from University of Notre Dame, Mendoza College of Business.

Ong is active in NACE and has served on a number of committees and task forces, including, most recently, the NACE 2019 Conference Planning Committee, where he served as co-chair. He also served on the Finance and Audit, Sourcing and Nomination, Honors and Awards, and Membership Ambassador committees among others. Ong also served as vice president – employer to the NACE Board from 2014 through 2016. In addition, Ong serves as a NACE mentor, has blogged for the association, and has presented programming at NACE’s annual conference.

This year, on behalf of the NACE Board, he will provide support to the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee and three NACE Affinity Groups: LGBTQ & Allies, Individuals Serving/Recruiting Students With Disabilities; and Hispanic-Serving Institutions.

Ong earned his bachelor’s degree from University of Richmond.

In addition to his work on the NACE Board of Directors, Carlson is active in the association and has served on several committees and teams, including the Graduate Student Member Task Force, Finance and Audit Committee, Future Trends Committee, NACE Conference Committee, Career Readiness Competencies Model Team, and the Career Readiness Toolkit Tiger Team. He also blogs for NACE, has presented workshops on university recruiting at the NACE conference and other events, and serves as a mentor for new professionals. In 2011, he was the recipient of NACE’s Professional Change Maker Award.

Carlson holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Virginia Commonwealth University and obtained his Change Management Advanced Practitioner Certification through Georgetown University. He is currently pursuing a master’s in public administration from Florida Tech.

Cunningham served as a member of the NACE Board from 2016 through 2018 and on a variety of committees, including the Research Advisory, Employer Membership, and Conference Program committees. This year, she will provide support on behalf of the Board to the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee and three NACE Affinity Groups: Liberal Arts, STEM, and Community and Two-Year Colleges.

Cunningham holds a bachelor’s degree from Occidental College and earned a master’s in education from Arizona State University. In addition, she is a senior professional in human resources (SPHR) through the HR Certification Institute.

Guerrero served as co-chair of NACE’s 2015 Conference Committee, co-chaired the Ambassador Program Committee, and was a member of the Sourcing and Nomination Committee and Graduate Student Membership Task Force. In addition, he took part in the Leadership Advancement Committee and is a 2014 graduate of NACE’s Management Leadership Institute. Guerrero was named NACE’s Mentor of the Year in 2015, and earned a NACE Innovation Excellence Award in Global Initiatives in 2010. Additionally, he has co-authored articles for the NACE Journal and regularly presents on a range of topics, including emerging technologies and leadership.

Guerrero earned his doctorate in educational leadership from the University of Southern California, a master’s in higher education administration from NYU, and an undergraduate degree from San Francisco State University.

At AAC&U, she established the association’s national Inclusive Excellence initiative, which advanced AAC&U’s strategic priority: Aim High and Make Excellence Inclusive. In addition, she directed the work of “Preparing Critical Faculty for the Future,” a three-year project funded by the National Science Foundation.

Prior to AAC&U, she held a variety of senior administrative roles at Vanderbilt University, where she conducted more than 20 studies on campus climate for diversity, student retention, and student use and impact of campus student programming and services. In addition, she is co-author of a number of publications, including Making a Real Difference With Diversity: A Guide to Institutional Change and Enacting Diverse Learning Environments: Improving the Climate for Racial/Ethnic Diversity in Higher Education, which focus on practices designed to enhance a climate of diversity, and The Revolving Door for Underrepresented Minority Faculty in Higher Education, which identifies factors that can contribute to successful recruitment and retention of underrepresented minority faculty.

Clayton-Pedersen consults nationally and internationally on a range of higher-education and diversity-related issues, including faculty professional development, program evaluation, and diversity and institutional change.

In her role as a Knowledge-Based Director, Clayton-Pedersen will assist NACE in developing strategies and action plans around practices of excellence to fulfill NACE’s commitment to diversity, inclusion, and equity. In addition she will share her expertise by consulting with the Inclusion Committee and by engaging in the development of quality programming at the NACE conference.

Clayton-Pedersen holds both a Ph.D. and M.Ed. from Vanderbilt University and earned a B.S. from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Fernando’s service to NACE includes participation in the Leadership Advancement Program, and a member of the National Association Strategic Relationships Action Team, the Principles for Ethical Professional Practice Committee and the Research Advisory Committee.

He earned his BA from The Johns Hopkins University and a JD from the Georgetown University Law Center.  He was also a visiting student at the University of Oxford studying politics, philosophy and economics. 

Grubb’s involvement with NACE includes a range of activities. He has served as a member of committees, including Principles for Ethical Professional Practice; NACE Conference Planning; and Inclusion, Equity, and Affinity; and co-chaired the Honors and Awards Committee. He also served as co-lead for the LGBTQ & Allies Affinity Group in 2019-20. Grubb completed the Management Leadership Institute in 2015; that same year, he earned the Rising Star Award. In addition, among other activities, he has presented at the NACE annual conference, authored the Career Counselor’s Guide to Social Media in the Job Search, and served as a NACE ambassador and blogger.

Grubb holds a master’s degree in higher education administration from NYU and earned his bachelor’ degree from Saint Joseph’s University.

She presented at NACE’s inaugural Executive Leadership Symposiums, was a participant in the Management Leadership Institute, served as co-chair on the 2016-17 NACE Honors and Awards Committee, and as co-chair for the 2018 Conference Program Committee. She also contributed as a member of the Diversity and Inclusion Committee, National Metro Programming Committee, and the “Future of We” Task Force.

Helbig earned a B.A. in English from Indiana University, Bloomington and a M.A. in higher education from the University of Arizona.

Howell has presented at the NACE annual conference on recruiting and related topics and received a NACE Excellence Award in Recruiting (Large Employer) for the HARBORS Training Soldiers for Life program, a collaboration between industry and the community college systems in Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama. He will serve as Board adviser to the 2020-21 Career Readiness Competencies Task Force.

Howell holds a Ph.D. in human resource management from Capella University, a master’s in human resource development from Webster University, and a bachelor’s degree in business administration and management from Mercer University.

McDowell-Robinson served on the Inclusion, Equity, and Affinity Committee and as co-lead to the HBCUs Affinity Impact Team. This year, she will support four Affinity Groups on behalf of the Board: HBCUs; Colleges With Population of Students Under 5,000; Women in Career Services and URR; and Veterans.

She is the 2020 recipient of the NACE/Spelman Rising Star Award.

McDowell-Robinson holds a Ph.D. in urban higher education from Jackson State University, where she also earned a master’s degree in clinical mental health counseling. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Tougaloo College. In addition, she is a national certified counselor (NCC).

McQuillan’s involvement with NACE includes serving as co-chair to the URR Leadership for the Future Task Force and as a member of the Honors and Awards Committee. This year, he will support four Affinity Groups on behalf of the Board: Global Talent, Career Services Professionals in Employer Relations Roles, Online Career Services, and Individuals Serving Nontraditional Populations/Adult Students/Online Learners/Alumni.

McQuillan earned his master’s and bachelor’s degrees at Central Michigan University.

Her service to NACE includes participation in the Leadership Advancement Program and leading as co-chair for the 2018-19 Honors and Awards Committee, 2011-12 Diversity and Inclusion Committee, 2014 Conference Committee, Leadership Advancement Program Committee, Membership Diversity Tiger Team and the Member Value Proposition Task Force. She was also a contributing member to the 2016-17 Honors and Awards Committee, 2010-11 Diversity and Inclusion Committee and the 2013 Conference Committee. In 2016 she received the NACE/DirectEmployers Catalyst Award which recognizes excellence in the recruiting field.

Quinn received a BS in Human Resources and Marketing from Boston College.

Service to NACE includes participation in the Leadership Advancement Program and as a contributing member to the Principles for Professional Practice Committee, Membership Diversity and Outreach Team and the Leadership Advancement Program Committee.

Woitkowski earned a BA from North Carolina State University – Poole College of Management.

Prior to joining the NACE staff, VanDerziel was with the Field Museum, where he most recently served as chief human resources officer and as chief of staff for the 85-member Board of Trustees, driving strategic priorities and goals and delivering innovative solutions to enhance the overall museum experience for visitors, nearly 700 volunteers, 500 staff members, and 200 interns. His 23 years with the museum included experiences leading strategy, people, volunteers, marketing, educational programming, and technology functions.

Earlier roles included a corporate recruiting position with Norrell Corporation and a position in higher education as associate director of student enrollment at National Louis University.

VanDerziel also served as a volunteer leader on the NACE Board of Directors, including as vice president-employer (2004 – 2006) and as president-elect, president, and past-president (2008 – 2011). He also contributed to NACE and the membership in other capacities, serving as chair and facilitator for the task force that revised the Principles for Ethical Professional Practice, chairing the inaugural Advocacy Advisory Committee, and facilitating the development of NACE’s strategic plan. In 2014, he was inducted into the NACE Academy of Fellows in recognition of his contributions to the profession.

VanDerziel is a senior professional in human resources through the HR Certification Institute and is a senior certified professional through the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM).