MBI - Key Persons


Alex Kreit

Job Titles:
  • Director, Center for Addiction Law & Policy / Assistant Professor of Law

Ambassador Patricia L. Herbold Dean

Job Titles:
  • Ambassador
  • Professor of Law

Amber Onorato

Job Titles:
  • Associate Professor

Amy Halbrook

Job Titles:
  • Associate Dean for Experiential Learning / Children 's Law Center Clinic Director

Amy Wright - Founder

Job Titles:
  • Founder
  • Member of the Advisory Board
  • Owner

Andrea Whalen

Job Titles:
  • Director of Recruiting & Employee Development / Burke, Inc. Cincinnati, OH

Angela Calhoun

Job Titles:
  • Title Associate University Registrar

Ashley Siemer

Job Titles:
  • Director of Student Affairs and Enrollment Management

Barnes Denning

Job Titles:
  • Member of the Advisory Board

Beth Kidwell

Job Titles:
  • Coordinator of Admin. Operations

Beth Lackey

Job Titles:
  • Business Officer

Beth Vasquez

Job Titles:
  • Title Coordinator, Document Imaging and Curriculum

Betty Russell

Job Titles:
  • Lecturer

Bobby Wehrle

Job Titles:
  • Lab Coordinator

Brad Sieve

Job Titles:
  • Senior Lecturer

Brad Steffen

Job Titles:
  • Veterans Discharge Upgrade Review Clinic Director

Brian Berning

Job Titles:
  • Member of the Board
  • Partner / RSM US LLP

Brittan Grubb

Job Titles:
  • Member of the Advisory Board
  • Owner

Catie Shelton

Job Titles:
  • Assistant Professor

Charlisa Daniels

Job Titles:
  • Associate Professor

Chase Connect

Job Titles:
  • Partner

Chris Bukas

Job Titles:
  • Advisor
  • Lecturer

Chris Carle - CEO, President

Job Titles:
  • CEO
  • Member of the Board
  • President
  • President and CEO of St
Chris Carle currently serves as the President and CEO of St. Elizabeth Healthcare's Physician Hospital Organization and is also responsible for Business Health and leads the Patient Experience for the St. Elizabeth Healthcare System. He previously was Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer for St. Elizabeth Healthcare and was responsible for both the Florence and Grant Facilities. Chris also held the role of Administrator for St. Elizabeth Grant and Vice President of Physician Services. He has 38 years of experience in the healthcare industry with 28 of those being at St. Elizabeth.Mr. Carle obtained a Master of Science in Health Care Administration & Planning in 1986 and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics in 1984, both from the University of Cincinnati.Chris has served on multiple Boards including the Greater Cincinnati Health Council (Chairman), Kentucky Hospital Association, HealthPoint (Chairman), Area Health Education Committee, Diocesan Catholic Children's Home (Chairman), Women's Crisis Center (Chairman), Grant County Foundations for Higher Education, Grant County Chamber of Commerce (Chairman), NKU Foundation as well as the NKU Board of Advisors for the Business School, and Master Provisions.Chris was also a High School football coach for 12 years. Chris is married to Toni and has a daughter, Kirsten. The family enjoys spending time together at Lake Cumberland and other outdoor related activities.

Christine Yankovsky

Job Titles:
  • Academic Coordinator

Christopher Muzzo

Job Titles:
  • Small Business & Nonprofit Law Clinic Director

CoB Names Catherine Glover

Job Titles:
  • Director of the Small Business Development Center / College of Business Revamps Executive Leadership Program

Corey Hawthorne

Job Titles:
  • Director of Player Relations & Promotional Events

Dan Groneck

Job Titles:
  • Retired President / U.S. Bank / Covington, KY
Groneck served as the Northern Kentucky President of U.S. Bank from August 2001 until December 2016. During his more than 49-year career in banking, Dan held several integral roles at U.S. Bank, including vice president of residential lending, senior vice president and director of commercial real estate and senior vice president of corporate community development. Actively involved in the community, Groneck holds positions on several local boards, such as vice chair of St. Elizabeth Hospital Foundation, Diocese of Covington Finance Council, Catalytic Development Funding Corp. of Northern Kentucky, Square 1, Inc., the Faith Community Pharmacy, and NKY Education Council.

Daniela Tomusko-Yoder

Job Titles:
  • Vice President of the Advisory Board

Danielle Lewis

Job Titles:
  • Director of Trial and Appellate Advocacy Programs / Interim Director of Field Placement Program

Darrin Redus

Job Titles:
  • Executive Director
  • Member of the Advisory Board

Dave Knox

Job Titles:
  • Executive Director
  • Member of the Advisory Board

David Bond

Job Titles:
  • Title Assistant Registrar, Systems

David MacKnight

Job Titles:
  • Associate Dean for Advancement

DEAN AND

Job Titles:
  • ASSOCIATE DEANS

Denzil Carter

Job Titles:
  • Title Assistant Registrar, Service and VA Certifying Official

Dick Bloss


Dino Lucarelli

Job Titles:
  • Director
  • Member of the Advisory Board

Dr. Abdullah Al-Bahrani

Job Titles:
  • Associate Dean, Graduate Programs
  • Named Next Center Representative for the National Association of Economic Educators ( NAEE )

Dr. Bill Oliver

Job Titles:
  • Professor Emeritus and ACS Fellow
Dr. Bill Oliver joined NKU in 1972. He earned his Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry at Iowa State University in 1969 and worked at Procter and Gamble three years before moving to Northern. He taught organic chemistry, general chemistry, biochemistry, physical organic chemistry, physiological chemistry, and chemistry and society. He became the first chair of the chemistry department when it was formed in 1988 and served 16 years in that position. He retired in 2007.

Dr. David Schneider

Job Titles:
  • Dr. David Schneider As the Director of the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship
  • Entrepreneur in Residence
Dr. Schneider served as the CEO of Rem Brands, Inc., a technology incubator of high performance patented chemistries and proprietary formulas before joining NKU as the CIE Director. Spanning a 30-year career, he brings a wide variety of business experience to the CIE, from launching startups as an entrepreneur to guiding established public and private companies as the president/CEO. He has extensive experience negotiating and executing contracts in multinational environments including North America, Asia and Europe. Dr. Schneider is also the inventor on 29 granted patents as well as several pending patents and has leveraged this technical expertise to help other entrepreneurs pursuing intellectual-based businesses in the region. NKU Announces Dr. David Schneider as the Director of the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship

Dr. Jim Niewahner

Job Titles:
  • Professor Emeritus
Dr. Jim Niewahner began his career at NKU in 1970 as an academic counselor and financial aid officer after receiving his Ph.D. from Colorado State University. He taught mostly general chemistry in addition to organic chemistry, inorganic chemistry, physiological chemistry and chemistry and society.

Dr. KC Russell

Job Titles:
  • Department Chair

Dr. Kevin Kirby

Job Titles:
  • Dean of the College of Informatics

Dr. Robert Kempton

Job Titles:
  • Regents Professor Emeritus
Following two years as a postdoctoral student at University of Illinois, Dr. Robert Kempton started teaching organic chemistry at NKU in 1976. He received his Ph.D. from Fordham University in 1975, M.S. from Auburn in 1969 and B.S. from St. Peter's College in 1966. Kempton has been the leader in establishing undergraduate research on campus and still works with students. He taught organic chemistry, spectroscopy and advanced organic synthesis and received the honor of Regents Professor in 1993.

Dr. Vinay Kumar

Job Titles:
  • Professor Emeritus
Dr. Vinay Kumar began teaching general chemistry in the fall 1970 and holds the distinction of being the first chemistry faculty hired by NKU (then Northern Kentucky State College). Kumar received his M.S. from State University of New York at Oswego in 1967 and his Ph.D. from the University of Cincinnati in 1970. Kumar taught analytical chemistry, instrumental analysis, chemistry and society and introduction to chemistry.

Eric Avner - VP

Job Titles:
  • Member of the Board
  • Senior Program Manager
  • Vice President

Frey Municipal

Job Titles:
  • Member of the Advisory Board

Garrett Frey

Job Titles:
  • Member of the Advisory Board
  • Senior Product Manager

Gary Darna - CEO, Founder

Job Titles:
  • CEO
  • Founder
  • Member of the Advisory Board

Greg Herrin

Job Titles:
  • Vice President - Cincinnati Region / Messer Construction Co. Cincinnati, Ohio

Gwen Fields

Job Titles:
  • Senior Lecturer

Isabelle Lagadic

Job Titles:
  • Associate Professor

Jack Harrison

Job Titles:
  • Director, Center for Excellence in Advocacy
Jack Harrison Director, Center for Excellence in Advocacy Professor of Law: David and Nancy Wolf Chair in Ethics and Professional Identity Nunn Hall 525 859-572-5884 harrisonj4@nku.edu BIO

Jack Wyant

Job Titles:
  • Director, Center for Law and Entrepreneurship

James Monton

Job Titles:
  • Retired Global Director / Procter & Gamble Company / Montgomery, Ohio
Bio Mr. Monton joined P&G in 1968 in Research and Development. He holds one of P&G's key beauty care patents. He led a number of successful projects including the launch of Pantene Pro V, which has become the world's largest beauty care brand. His project management and organizational leadership skills allowed him to continually advance into higher management positions.Mr. Monton's background is unique as he managed large global organizations while living and working in many countries. He worked in Europe from 1979 to 1982, where he laid the foundation for P&G becoming the most successful health and beauty care company in Europe. As a Director in P&G's Latin American organization from 1984 to 1988, he managed projects in the health, beauty, cleaning, and food industries. He worked at P&G's Asian headquarters in Kobe, Japan, from 1996 to 2001 leading much of P&G's Asian Beauty Care organization and serving on the China Hair Care Management Leadership Team. Beginning in 2001, Mr. Monton led a Global Beauty Care External Relations Department involved with Influencer Marketing. In 2005 Mr. Monton retired from P&G where he was honored for 37 years of outstanding service.Mr. Monton has served on the Board of Directors of a small Florida biosciences company. He serves on the NKU COB Advisory Board and has been a member of the Greater Cincinnati Foreign Policy Leadership Council. He is a frequent speaker at business seminars and gives guest lectures to business schools. He also consults for companies on product development, innovation, and strategic management.

Jeannine Lambert

Job Titles:
  • Executive Director of Centers and Programming

Jeff Varrone

Job Titles:
  • Assistant Director
  • Assistant Director for the Center for Innovation
Jeff Varrone is the Assistant Director for the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, and serves as a faculty member in Entrepreneurship. He also works with students on various events and academic programs to prepare them for business opportunities and to help create awareness of entrepreneurship across campus and in the community. He joined the Entrepreneurship Program while completing his Master's Degree with a focus on Entrepreneurship at NKU.

Jennifer Garnder

Job Titles:
  • Director, Center for Student Excellence

Jessica Ferguson

Job Titles:
  • Director, Academic Advising

Jill Snider

Job Titles:
  • Advisor
  • Lecturer

Jim Nedderman

Job Titles:
  • Title Coordinator, Systems

John Bickers

Job Titles:
  • Associate Dean for Faculty Development / Professor of Law

John C. Pauly

Job Titles:
  • Retired Founder & CEO

John Farrar

Job Titles:
  • Associate Professor

John Zurborg

Job Titles:
  • Member of the Advisory Board
  • President and CEO / Skilcraft LLC

Josh Reid - CEO, Founder

Job Titles:
  • CEO
  • Founder
  • Member of the Advisory Board

Joshua Chandler

Job Titles:
  • Title Coordinator, Service and VA Certifying Official

Julia Yang Bedell

Job Titles:
  • Emeritus Faculty
In 1992, Julia Yang Bedell joined the department as a lecturer. She earned her M.S. from Duke University in 1987. Julia taught various classes including discovering chemistry with laboratory, introduction to chemistry, and general chemistry labs. In addition to teaching, Julia served as the master advisor and retention specialist for the department starting in 2014. She received NKU's Outstanding Academic Advising Award in 2019.

K. C. Russell

Job Titles:
  • Department Chair
  • Professor & Chair

Karla Boldery

Job Titles:
  • Member of the Advisory Board
  • Cincinnati Market General Manager / La Mega Media, Inc.

Kathy Kelly

Job Titles:
  • Assistant Director of Career Development

Kayla Robles

Job Titles:
  • Advisor
  • Lecturer

Kebede Gemene

Job Titles:
  • Associate Professor

Kerry Klumpe - CCO

Job Titles:
  • Director of Communications

Kevin Gessner

Job Titles:
  • Vice President, Surgical Svs, Operations / Cincinnati Children 's Hospital / Cincinnati, Ohio
Bio Kevin started his career with Cincinnati Children Hospital Medical Center in 1998, working as a Budget Analyst in the Research Foundation. In the subsequent four years, he grew into Business Director positions in numerous divisions including Psychology, Psychiatry, Every Child Succeeds and Hematology/Oncology.In 2002, he moved to the Department of Patient Services as the Director of Finance. The experience he gained working with direct care providers in this role inspired him to focus his next opportunity on operations. In 2004, Kevin was appointed Executive Director of the Department of Radiology, where he combined his financial education and experience with his interest in hospital operations in a departmental leadership role.In addition to the radiology role, in January 2009, Kevin assumed business and operational leadership of the Clinical Laboratories and was promoted to Vice President of Operations.Since July 2011, Kevin has been Vice President of Surgical Services and responsible for the business and operations of all of Cincinnati Childrens' surgery divisions. In addition to that role, Kevin has led CCHMC's proton therapy initiative from strategic concept to operational implementation. The proton therapy center will provide advanced radiation treatment for the patients of our Cancer and Blood Diseases Institute when it opens in the fall of 2016.In addition to his career at Cincinnati Children's, Kevin teaches Corporate Finance in the MBA curriculum at Ellis College. Prior to his work at Ellis, he taught finance courses at the New York Institute of Technology, Cardean University and Northern Kentucky University at the undergraduate and graduate levels.Kevin is involved in the community, serving on boards at the Brighton Center, Life Center, the Northern Kentucky University Foundation, and the Northern Kentucky University, College of Business Dean's Advisory Board. He also participates in numerous fundraising activities in our community.

Kim Banham

Job Titles:
  • Member of the Advisory Board
  • Partner / Connetic Ventures

Lawrence Rosenthal

Job Titles:
  • Associate Dean for Academics / Professor of Legal Writing

Lili Ma

Job Titles:
  • Professor

Lin Delfino

Job Titles:
  • Academic Coordinator

Lisa Moore

Job Titles:
  • Director of Career Development

Majid Samarghandi

Job Titles:
  • CEO / Triton Services Inc. Mason, Ohio

Maria Llambi

Job Titles:
  • Assistant Director of Admissions and

Matt Frey

Job Titles:
  • Named Exec. Dir. of KY Financial Empowerment Commission / Governor 's School for Entrepreneurs Increases Program Participation

Michael Guy

Job Titles:
  • Associate Professor

Michael J.Z. Mannheimer

Job Titles:
  • Kentucky Innocence Project Coordinator / Professor of Law

Michelle Browning-Coughlin

Job Titles:
  • Director, W. Bruce Lunsford Academy for Law, Business Technology / Assistant Professor of Law

Monica Egger

Job Titles:
  • Senior Vice President, Finance / Convergys Corporation / Cincinnati, Ohio
Bio Monica graduated with honors from Northern Kentucky University with a B.S. in Accounting and a Masters in Business Administration. Throughout her 20+ years with Convergys, she has held various positions in Internal Audit, Finance, and Account Management. In her current role, she is responsible for a Global Team of more than 900 Finance and Workforce Management professionals. She remains active in the community serving on various non-profit boards and on the Investment Committee for 3CDC in Cincinnati. In addition to her professional life, Monica lives in Piner, Kentucky with her husband Jeff and is an avid horseback rider.

Mr. Brent Cooper

Job Titles:
  • President & CEO / Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce / Fort Mitchell, Kentucky
  • President & CEO of the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce
Bio Brent Cooper is President & CEO of the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce. The largest business organization in Northern Kentucky, representing over 1,400 businesses and 200,000 employees. A University of Kentucky graduate, Brent has over 25 years of experience as an entrepreneur and business owner. Brent is very active in the community (Leadership NKY 2005 & Leadership Cincinnati 2016) and currently serves on a number of Boards including the Kentucky State Chamber Board, Baptist Health Board, NKU Foundation Board, NKY Convention Center Board, and Strive Partnership Board. Brent is also an active "Community Columnist" for the Kentucky Enquirer, NKY Tribune and the River City News. A "Past Chair" of the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce (2011-2012) and the Northern Kentucky Workforce Investment Board (2007-2009), Brent has received a number of awards over the years including the Covington Education Foundation's "Person of the Year" (2017), Kentucky Board of Education's Joseph Kelly Award (2016), Children Inc's "Charity in Action" Award (2015), 4C's Champion for Children Award (2014), the NKY Chamber's Unity Award (2014), the Boy Scouts Trailblazer Award (2013), the Kenton County Library Mary Ann Mongan Award (2012) and the Northern Kentucky Area Development District's Community Leadership Award (2005). In 2006 he was named one of Cincinnati's "40 under 40".

Nicolette Meade

Job Titles:
  • Assistant Director

NKU Hosts

Job Titles:
  • Governor 's School for Entrepreneurs Demo Day

Nunn Hall


Olena Pilyayeva

Job Titles:
  • Director, Recruitment & Retention

P.J. Ball

Job Titles:
  • Senior Lecturer

Patrick Hare

Job Titles:
  • Professor

Paula Seta

Job Titles:
  • College Business Officer

Randy Kowolonek

Job Titles:
  • Title Service Specialist

Sally Allen

Job Titles:
  • Administrative Assistant

Sean Donovan - Founder

Job Titles:
  • Co - Founder
  • Member of the Advisory Board

Sean Foley

Job Titles:
  • Associate Dean, Undergraduate Program

Shauna Ryan

Job Titles:
  • Title Service Specialist

Stephanie Biggs

Job Titles:
  • Title Coordinator, Scheduling / Catalog

Stephanie Hughes

Job Titles:
  • Member of the Advisory Board
  • Co - Founder / CHN Analytics, LLC

Stuart Oehrle


Tarita Preston

Job Titles:
  • Chief
  • Coach
  • Member of the Advisory Board

Tobe Liebert

Job Titles:
  • Assistant Director
  • Interim Director
Tobe Liebert Interim Director of the Law Library Assistant Director of User Services Assistant Professor of Law Library Services Nunn Hall 205 859-572-6485 liebertj1@nku.edu BIO

Vern Hicks

Job Titles:
  • Professor Emeritus
In 1972, Vern Hicks began his career as NKU's first and only Physical Chemist and remained as such until his retirement in 2010. In addition to Physical Chemistry, Vern also taught general chemistry, chemistry and society, introduction to chemistry and his beloved quantum mechanics. He received his B.S. in 1965 from Emory and Henry College and his Ph.D. from Vanderbilt in 1974. Hicks was named 2008 Cincinnati Chemist of the Year by the Cincinnati section of the American Chemical Society. His other honors include: NKU Outstanding Professor Award in 1993, the KSTA Outstanding Science Teacher Award for Post-Secondary Teachers in 2000, and the prestigious Acorn Award in 2010.

W. Allen Cole III

Job Titles:
  • Title University Registrar

Will Weber

Job Titles:
  • Member of the Advisory Board
  • President and CEO / Southbank Partners

William T. Hoover

Job Titles:
  • Investment Specialist / Lifetime Financial Growth, LLC

Zac Strobl

Job Titles:
  • Director
  • Director of Northern Kentucky University 's Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship
Zac Strobl is the Director of Northern Kentucky University's Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship and an Entrepreneurship professor. Zac has played a major role in the success and growth of a multitude of university programs, businesses, and community initiatives. He co-founded and grew the INKUBATOR, a pre-seed stage accelerator, into one of the top five university business accelerators in North America. Under his leadership, teams have raised $7.3 million in outside funds, created 64 jobs, and launched 37 businesses. Zac's background also includes launching multiple ventures, working at a start-up company, running/selling a family business, and consulting with start-ups/small businesses through the Small Business Development Center.

Zach Briggs

Job Titles:
  • Special Advisor to the Law Informatics Institute