ALAMOSA — The Graduate Student Success Center at Adams State University would like to invite students, faculty, staff, and the community to a Higher Education Hot Topics 2018 programming series; Graduate Student Success Chronicles: Friday February 16. The events on Friday February 16 are opportunities for students, faculty, staff and the community to participate and focus on leadership topics in general, as well as through the perspectives and journeys of five leaders: Jonathan Macias, Erica Holmes-Trujillo, Lia Carpio, Alfredo Burciaga, and Donna Griego. These panelists are leaders from institutions of higher education, public service, and institutions that work to promote diversity, making this an event that is versatile for any person interested in heightening their leadership foundation.

The second day of this event will be open exclusively to graduate students of ASU featuring keynote speaker Dr. Sydney Freeman.

Schedule: Friday February 16th (Carson Auditorium)

10 am - 12:30 pm Leadership Living Room Interviews

12:30 pm – 1:30 pm Working Lunch Conversations* (SUB 309)

1:30pm - 2:30pm Unpack readings and questionnaire

2:30 – 4 pm Panel Discussion: Global Leadership Perspective

*Lunch will be provided

Jonathan Macias ’12 HEAL alumni, is the executive Vice President of Incite Consultancy— a Startup based out of El Paso, Texas with a national footprint that provides strategic and fund development support to Nonprofits and Municipalities in the five focus areas of; Civic Engagement, Healthcare, Education Reform, Economic Development, and Social Justice. Prior to joining Incite, Jonathan worked at the University of Texas at El Paso with Grant and Research Administration. He is well versed with budget formation, proposal development, and the life cycle of grants and other externally funded projects. In 2009, he was selected for the Hispanic Association of College and Universities’ (HACU) Capacity Building Fellowship. A program which provided skills development through intensive workshops and collaborative meetings in San Antonio, Texas and on site at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) campus in Bethesda, MD. Jonathan was later selected as The United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) E. Kika De La Garza Fellow in 2012, which offered the opportunity to work collaboratively with the USDA to gain insight and strengthen working relationships with Hispanic Serving Institutions. In addition to championing Hispanic Serving Institutions, Macias holds three degrees from them: He earned his Associate of Arts degree at El Paso Community College, his Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration at UTEP, and his Master’s Degree in Higher Education Administration and Leadership from Adams State University.

Erica Holmes Trujillo, a native of Nashville, Tennessee, currently resides in Taos, NM. As the Academic Advisement Specialist at the University of New Mexico-Taos, Erica oversees all academic advisement for UNM Taos’ Associate degree, Certificate and workforce credentialing programs. A two time graduate of Adams State, Erica earned her Bachelor of Arts in Sociology, Social Welfare emphasis, and her Master of Arts in Higher Education Administration and Leadership. She may be part of the Lobo Pack now, but she’ll be a Grizzly for life! Erica has completed the Global Career Development Facilitator training and has published work in Women in Higher Education. She has experience in several aspects of student success including admissions, orientation, enrollment, mentoring, developmental education, dual enrollment, first year engagement, retention and persistence, transfer programming, instruction, Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society and academic advising. Erica is passionate about providing not just access to enrollment, but access to the support necessary for successful completion, for all students. In her downtime, Erica enjoys her weekly road trips to Colorado with her husband, to cheer on their son at his basketball and soccer games and track and cross country meets. And, although she loves going back home to Tennessee, she knows she’ll never find another sunset like the ones in Taos.

Lia Carpio, a dedicated introvert with over 20 years of experience in leadership development, believes everyone has a capacity for leadership, and a responsibility to their community to be a leader. She has spent nearly a decade as the Education Director of the Colorado Lorenzo de Zavala Youth Legislative Session for the National Hispanic Institute, a national and international organization that fosters future community leaders for the expanding Latino community. She also serves on their Board of Trustees. Lia holds a bachelor’s degree in Social Sciences from The Florida State University and a master’s degree in Higher Education Administration and Leadership (HEAL) from Adams State University. Previously, she supported equity and access in higher education in her six years working with the HEAL program at Adams, two as the program director. She was recently tapped to help develop and lead the Bridging Borders program in the San Luis Valley, a fellowship program for young women to promote building a strong self identity. Free time includes spending time with family, reading, and imagining future Halloween costumes.

Alfredo (Freddy) Burciaga, holds Bachelor of Arts in Communication and a Master of Arts in Higher Education Administration & Leadership. He serves as the Director of Outreach and Financial Education for College in Colorado, a division at the Colorado Department of Higher Education. Freddy manages a team that assists Coloradoans by educating students, families and education professionals on the affordability of and ways to increase access to higher education for all students by exploring pathways, breaking down barriers to postsecondary attainment and creating individualized plans to promote future postsecondary and workforce success. He believes in the work that he does because it is pivotal to the future of Colorado’s economy; of which has made him into a success story himself. Freddy’s work allows him to contribute to the success of youth and adults in transition by building and maintaining a strong team of staff that ensures that Colorado citizens are presented with choices as he once was. He has worked in higher education for over eighteen years and enjoyed the opportunities and challenges presented over that time. His passion has always been to serve as an advocate to students and their families. Freddy’s background began in financial aid and has grown from working at a smaller state schools to working for the State flagship institution, University of Colorado, and now at the Colorado Department of Higher Education. He is passionate about growing as a mentor and sharing his philosophy with others. Freddy considers his ability to provide effective guidance as having set the foundation for his work in the field and he continues to act as an advocate for students and a mentor for staff, providing them with the tools that they need to educate students on their postsecondary options. His roots are in rural Colorado, he enjoys spending time cooking with his mother and exploring with his brother and father when time allows. Freddy loves camping, off-roading with his friends and Siberian husky (Azul). When not with family Freddy’s favorite place to be is on a mountain road exploring ghost towns and mines.

Donna Griego, received her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration Management in 2003 from Adams State University and her Master of Arts in Higher Education, Administration and Leadership (HEAL) in 2012 also from Adams State University.  After having worked at Adams State for almost 30 years, Donna retired to care for her elderly parents.  She was the Manager for the Counselor Education Online Master’s Plus and Doctoral Programs at Adams State University. Recently, Colorado Governor Hickenlooper appointed Donna to the Adams State University’s Board of Trustees. She was the executive assistant to the senior vice president and provost.  For many years, she worked in various academic departments assisting department chairs, deans, vice presidents, presidents, and campus staff in fulfilling the academic mission of the institution. Donna served on the Colorado Humanities Board of Directors, and was selected as a Fellow and Leader for the Center for Equity in Learning and Teaching.  Donna was the cofounder of the SLV Chapter of the Blue Star Mothers of America that provides support for mothers who have sons and daughters in active duty in the United States Armed Forces. She also taught Academic Achievement Strategies, a freshmen experience course. She is a first generation Latina, non-traditional student, and a native of Alamosa.  Donna and her husband Joe have four children, two grandchildren, three granddaughters, and Cisco-their Corgi.  In their free time, they enjoy going to car shows and collecting classic cars.

Sydney Freeman, Jr., Ph.D., is an associate professor of Adult, Organizational Leadership, and Learning Department at the University of Idaho, where he specializes in higher education as a field of study, higher education executive leadership preparation, faculty development and HBCUs. He is an affiliate of the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for Minority Serving Institutions and is a Learning Resources Network (LERN) Certified Faculty Developer (CFD) and Certified Online Instructor (COI). He is a prolific author with over 30 peer reviewed journal articles and book chapters. His work has been featured in the Chronicle of Higher Education and Diverse Issues in Higher Education and his co-edited volume, Advancing Higher Education as a Field of Study: In Quest of Doctoral Guidelines (Stylus, 2014) was recognized by the Graduate School at Auburn University in 2015. Nationally, he serves on the Board of Directors of the American Association of University Administrators and was named their 2015 Emergent Leader of the Year. In addition to serving as the managing editor of HBCU Research + Culture, he is also the founder and Senior Editor-in-Chief of the Journal for the Study of Postsecondary and Tertiary Education (jspte.org).