Talking Stick - July/August 2011 - 16

TRANSITIONS

Prior to joining SIUC, Dr. Payne-Kirchmeier served in various student affairs leadership roles at the University of Southern Indiana in Evansville; Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas; and at Texas A&M University in College Station. During her administrative tenure, she has been highly involved in professional associations, including ACUHO-I, the Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education, the Association of Student Conduct Affairs, the National Orientation Directors Association, and the Southwest Association of College and University Housing Ofﬁcers. Her involvement also includes serving as the conference host and president of the Great Lakes Association of College and University Housing Ofﬁcers. Dr. Payne-Kirchmeier also teaches the Student Development Theory course for the SIUC College Student Personnel program. Dr. Payne-Kirchmeier is the recipient of the ACUHO-I Herstory Award, and her current research

explores the job search experience of women seeking the role of senior student affairs ofﬁcer.

University of South Florida Tampa, Florida
Michelle Hopper is the new assistant director for residence life, South Campus. She comes from Eastern Illinois University in Charleston where she was a complex director. Hopper earned her bachelor’s degree in English from Eastern Illinois University and her master’s degree in college student personnel from Western Illinois University in Macomb. An area of expertise for Hopper is conducting workshops on female aggression that help staff learn to identify victims and bullies as well as to provide support for residents in such relationships.

RETIREMENT ANNOUNCEMENTS

University of Iowa Iowa City, Iowa
Dicta Schoenfelder, manager of contracts and assignments, retired on June 3, 2011, after 32 years of service to the department of housing.

University of South Florida Tampa, Florida
Kelly Best, associate director of housing for facilities and maintenance, retired after over 35 years on the Tampa campus. Best arrived at the University of South Florida in 1970 and served his ﬁrst role as a student assistant. After completing his bachelor’s degree, he went on to become a food service manager, food service director, and business manager before joining the housing and residential education staff. During his time at USF, Best oversaw the hardware installation of housing’s ﬁrst computer, supervised hundreds of students and staff, and contributed his expertise to the construction or total renovation of 10 building complexes.

Johnson received his doctorate and master’s degrees from the University of Missouri-Columbia and his bachelor’s degree from Southern Colorado State University in Pueblo. He has held regional, national, and international ofﬁces in several professional associations, including serving as president of ACUHO-I and two terms as president of the Upper Midwest Region Association of College and University Housing Ofﬁcers. Johnson is a member of the Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education and the American College Personnel Association. On the WIU campus, Johnson is a member of the Community-University Partnership Program, Auxiliary Facilities Committee (chair), the Western Athletic Club, and the Council on the Quality of Campus Life Committee (co-chair), and he has served on numerous campus committees throughout his tenure at Western. Johnson received the ACUHO-I Parthenon Award (2009) and the ACPA Diamond Honoree Award (2008), and he was inducted into Phi Kappa Phi, Blue Key Honor Society, and the National Residence Hall Honorary. He also received the Distinguished Service Award from the Upper Midwest Region Association of College and University Housing Ofﬁcers, as well as the Great Lakes Association of College and University Housing Ofﬁcers.

Western Illinois University Macomb, Illinois
W. Garry Johnson, vice president of student services at Western Illinois University in Macomb, retired on June 30, 2011, after 31 years of service.
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Talking Stick - July/August 2011

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