Sarah E. Minnis, Ph.D., Western Carolina University
Program Chair
sminnis@wcu.edu

Sarah E. Minnis, PhD is an Assistant Professor in the MSHR program at Western Carolina University and owner of Anthology Consulting. She has over 25 years of higher education administration, career advising, and organization development experience with 10 years specifically addressing veterans’ transition, career development, and sustainable employment. Sarah is a recognized leader in research and practice to help higher education and employment communities better understand the value, and more effectively utilize the talents, of the veterans they serve. Sarah has published and presented nationally and internationally on her research and practice. With eight years of active involvement with AHRD, Sarah has served as a member of the Scholar Practitioner SIG Steering Committee, Scholar Practitioner SIG Chair, conference submission reviewer, non-refereed track chair, Editorial Board member for Advances in Developing Human Resources, Editorial Board member for International Journal of HRD Policy, Practice & Research, and reviewer for several AHRD journals. Sarah is the second runner up for the 2015 Esworthy Malcolm S. Knowles Dissertation of the Year Award from AHRD. Sarah holds a PhD in HRD from Texas A&M University, an MA degree in student affairs from Western Kentucky University, and an MA degree in psychology from Central Washington University.

Karen R. Johnson, Ph.D., University of North Texas
Proceedings Editor
Karen.Johnson@unt.edu

Karen R. Johnson, PhD, is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Learning Technologies at the University of North Texas. Originally from Jamaica, she graduated from the University of the West Indies with a degree in Psychology. She holds both an MA and a PhD in Work and Human Resource Education from the University of Minnesota. She conducts and publishes research on international human resource development with emphasis on workforce education policy issues. In her research, she also examines factors that influence learning and the outcomes of learning on employee performance specifically in the dynamic tourism and hospitality industry. Karen has been actively engaged as an AHRD member since 2006 in various roles including workplace learning track chair editor, symposium chair, presenter, and reviewer in previously held conferences both in the Americas and Europe. She currently serves as an editorial board member for the journal Advances in Developing Human Resources. Karen is a recipient of the Emerald Literati Network 2016 Awards for Excellence as outstanding reviewer for the European Journal of Training and Development.

Katherine Yeager, Ph.D., Texas A&M University
Associate Proceedings Editor
ldcd2018@gmail.com

Katherine L. Yeager is an Assistant Professor at Abilene Christian University in the EdD Organizational Leadership program. Dr. Yeager is an active member of AHRD, having served as the Leadership Special Interest Group’s Faculty Member-at-Large and a reviewer for HRDQ and HRDR. She also performed as Associate Track Chair for the Workplace Learning track for the 2018 AHRD Conference and has served on the dissertation review committee for the Esworthy Malcolm S. Knowles Dissertation of the Year award since winning second runner-up for her dissertation in 2014. Research interests include leader and leadership identity development and women and leadership.

• Jie Ke, Chair

Jie Ke, Jackson State University
Assessment and Evaluation
jiejke@gmail.com

Dr. Jie Ke, currently an assistant professor of Human Resource Development with School of Lifelong Learning at Jackson State University, obtained her Ph.D. in Human Resource Development from Texas A&M University and MBA from EDHEC in France. Her research interests include Evaluation and Assessment, Diversity Training, International Human Resource Development/Management, Motivations and Needs of Adult Undergraduates, and Effectiveness of eLearning.

• Katsiaryna Matusevich, Chair
• Oliver Crocco, Associate Chair

Katsiaryna Matusevich, Barry University
Critical, Social Justice, Diversity Perspectives in HRD
kmatusevich@barry.edu

Dr. Katsiaryna Matusevich is the Program Coordinator of the Master of Science in Human Resource Development at Barry University. She is an Assistant Professor of Human Resource Development at the Adrian Dominican School of Education and an adjunct professor of Human Resource Management at the Andreas School of Business at Barry University. Dr. Matusevich holds a PhD in Human Resource Development from Barry University, an MA in Community Psychology from Sage Graduate School, and a BS in Teaching and Linguistics with the specialization in the English language and literature from Minsk State Linguistic University. Dr. Matusevich has served as a reviewer for HRDR and AHRD for several years. She also holds a Brain-Based Coaching certificate from the NeuroLeadership Institute (NLI) and is a NLI Results Trained Coach.

Oliver S. Crocco, Ed.D., Louisiana State University
Critical, Social Justice, Diversity Perspectives in HRD
olivercrocco@lsu.edu

Dr. Crocco is an Assistant Professor of Leadership and Human Resource Development at Louisiana State University (LSU). Before coming to LSU, Dr. Crocco was a Lecturer of Human and Organizational Learning at the George Washington University in Washington, D.C. and also served as a Lecturer and Head of International Campus Life at Payap University in Chiang Mai, Thailand. In Thailand, Dr. Crocco collaboratively developed a certificate program in organizational development that was offered to community-based organization workers in Myanmar and along the Thai-Myanmar border. Dr. Crocco’s research focuses on HRD in Southeast Asia, program evaluation, adult development, and enhancing global mindset in university and work contexts. He is the Chair of the Leadership Special Interest Group (SIG) of the Association of Human Resource Development and is an Editorial Board Member for Advances in Developing Human Resources and Industrial and Commercial Training.

• Kibum Kwon, Chair

Kibum Kwon, Texas A&M University-Commerce
HRD Performance and Strategy
kibum.kwon@tamuc.edu

Kibum Kwon is an assistant professor in the Department of Higher Education and Learning Technologies at Texas A&M University-Commerce and teaches graduate courses in the Organization, Learning and Technology program. He holds a Ph.D. in Workforce Education and Development from Pennsylvania State University. He served as an HRD manager for a Fortune 500 company, where he designed the talent strategy and implemented enterprise-wide programs to drive talent development initiatives. His research focuses on human capital investment, organizational innovation, and employee engagement, as well as statistical methods for longitudinal data analysis.

• Dae Seok Chai, Chair

Dae Seok Chai, Colorado State University
International, Global and Cross Cultural Issues
daeseokchai@gmail.com

Dae Seok Chai (Ph.D., G.P.H.R) is an assistant professor in Organizational Learning, Performance and Change at Colorado State University. Before his doctoral journey at Texas A&M University, he was involved in designing and delivering various training programs, including cultural diversity and leadership, for various types of employees in a large Korean conglomerate. During his doctorate, as a subject matter expert and training designer, he consulted private and public sector organizations for the development of several hybrid training programs. Based on his research interests on expatriate effectiveness, international HRD, and indigenous leadership, he has published eight peer-review journal articles, two book chapter, and more than 20 conference presentations.

• Kevin Rose, Chair
• Siham Lekchiri, Associate Chair

Kevin Rose, University of Louisville
Leadership and Career Development
kevin.rose@louisville.edu

Siham Lekchiri, Western Carolina University
Leadership and Career Development
slekchiri@wcu.edu

Dr. Siham Lekchiri joined the Human Services Department Faculty as an Assistant Professor of Human Resources at Western Carolina University. She earned a B.S. in Business Administration with a major in Management and a minor in HRD from Al Akhawayn University in Ifrane (Morocco), and she has an M.S. in Human Resource Development from Indiana State Universtiy. She earned her Ph.D from Indiana State University Consortium in Technology Management with an emphasis on Human Resource Development and Industrial Training. Lekchiri’s teaching background includes courses in strategic HRD, organizational development, consulting and coaching, career development and employee appraisals, and safety for HRD. Prior to starting in academia, Lekchiri was a Human Resources Consultant in Morocco; she has worked on numerous consulting projects in Morocco, Mali and Senegal.

• Rita Kowalski, Chair

Rita Kowalski, Work Life Consulting LLC
Non-refereed Track
ahrdnonreftrack@gmail.com

Rita Kowalski is an organizational development consultant and an adult educator. She is the owner of Work Life Consulting LLC and is an adjunct faculty member at Fairleigh Dickinson University. Her practice and research focus upon human resource development, positive organization development, workplace learning, and collaborative inquiry. She has presented work at academic and professional conferences. She earned a Doctor of Education in Adult Learning and Leadership from Teachers College, Columbia University and a Master of Science in Positive Organizational Development and Change from Case Western Reserve University. She is an editorial board member for Advances in Developing Human Resources.

• Michael Kirchner, Chair

Michael Kirchner, Indiana University Purdue University-Fort Wayne
Organizational Development and Change
mikekirchner0@gmail.com

Michael Kirchner is an Assistant Professor of Organizational Leadership at Purdue University-Fort Wayne. His research explores veteran career transitions, as well as the application of military leader development in non-military organizations. He has current and upcoming publications in several reputable journals including Human Resource Development Quarterly, Advances in Developing Human Resources, New Horizons in Adult Education and Human Resource Development, and Industrial and Commercial Training. Kirchner has a Ph.D. in Human Resource Development and an MA in Administrative Leadership from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

• Rose Opengart, Chair

Rose Opengart, HRDOC
Research Methods and Foundations in HRD Track
RoseOpengart@yahoo.com

Rose Opengart, Ph.D. is owner and President of HR Doctor consulting, and was most recently an Associate Professor of Management. Dr. Opengart has taught a variety of management-related courses and has worked in HR in multiple industries including manufacturing, non-profit, and academia. She holds a PHR, professional human resources certification and has received awards for course development, teaching, and publishing. She earned her Ph.D. in Human Resources & Organizational Development from The University of Georgia. Dr. Opengart’s research interests include emotional and cultural intelligence, women’s career development, mentoring, and authentic leadership.

• Jason Moats, Chair
• Rochell McWhorter, Associate Chair

Jason Moats, Texas A&M University
Technology, E-Learning, and Virtual HRD
jbmoats@tamu.edu

Jason Moats, PhD is the Associate Division Director for the Emergency Services Training Institute / Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service. He currently oversees four programs with a combined annual budget of more than 19 million dollars. He has been with TEEX since 2002. TEEX , a member of The Texas A&M University System, offers hands-on, customized, first-responder training, homeland security exercises, technical assistance and technology transfer services impacting Texas and beyond. As Program Director he is responsible for the emergency medical services, public health and incident management Homeland Security National Training Programs training and technical assistance programs based in the Emergency Operations Training Center.

Rochell McWhorter , The University of Texas at Tyler
Technology, E-Learning, and Virtual HRD
rmcwhorter@uttyler.edu

Rochell McWhorter is currently an Associate Professor in Human Resource Development in the Soules College of Business at The University of Texas at Tyler. Her long-term research agenda includes the study of scenario planning as the development of leadership capability and capacity within virtual environments for the purpose of preparing organizations for times of uncertainty. Her passion for emerging technologies includes the study of virtual human resource development (VHRD) to discover its implications for research and practice in the field of HRD. She utilizes various techniques in the classroom such as visual social media, infographics, digital badges, augmented reality, and artificial intelligence; and, she is a champion of service-learning.

• Caleb Seung-Hyun Han, Chair
• Chang-kyu Kwon, Associate Chair

Caleb Seung-Hyun Han, The University of Georgia
Workplace Learning
calebhan@uga.edu

Dr. Caleb Seung-hyun Han is an Assistant Professor of Learning, Leadership and Organization Development (LLOD) at the University of Georgia. He received his Ph.D. in Human Resource Development from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Master’s degree in Human Resource and Industrial Relations from the Carlson School of Management, University of Minnesota. Research work of Dr. Han uncovers and tests the mechanisms by which individuals learn and develop from others’ expertise and experiences at work. His primary focus is on individual-level learning within organizations by exploring how this learning is influenced by interpersonal relationships and social interactions in organizations.