As someone who has previously served, albeit not for an extended period of time, I do have historical organizational knowledge. I’ve had the opportunity to build relationships and understand the strengths of the incredible women around me. Having served as President and VP of large volunteer based boards previously, I am aware of the unique challenges of leading a group of volunteers who may or may not have limited capacity to control their time or budget.

Dr. Tonya Jackson-Lopez is an accomplished higher education leader, STEM educator, and advocate for student access and success. She currently serves as Associate Dean of Instruction for STEM at Mohave College, where she leads a multidisciplinary team of more than 80 faculty members across eight academic disciplines serving students throughout rural northwestern Arizona. In this role, she oversees strategic planning, curriculum development, dual enrollment initiatives, and student support services while helping shape innovative pathways in STEM education.

Dr. Jackson-Lopez began her career in private research and development before transitioning into higher education, where she discovered a passion for teaching, mentorship, and academic leadership. Since joining Mohave College in 2014 as biology faculty, she has become widely recognized for her work in instructional innovation, student engagement, and open educational resources. Her teaching philosophy emphasizes curiosity, discovery-based learning, and real-world application, with experience spanning ground, hybrid, online, and synchronous instructional modalities. 

She holds a Doctor of Education in Curriculum and Instruction from Capella University, where her dissertation explored mindfulness meditation and student stress and anxiety. She also earned a Master of Science in Biology with a focus in cellular biology from University of Nebraska at Kearney and a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Truman State University. 

A passionate supporter of equity and access in higher education, Dr. Jackson-Lopez has become a regional leader in the Open Educational Resources (OER) movement and frequently presents on innovative teaching practices, leadership, and student-centered learning. She has contributed to numerous conferences and statewide initiatives, including collaborations with Arizona Women in Higher Education, regional OER organizations, and NSF-supported STEM development programs. Her work has earned recognition including the Online Learning Consortium Digital Learning Innovation Award and participation as a co-principal investigator on NSF-funded STEM initiatives. 

Beyond academia, Dr. Jackson-Lopez serves as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) for children in the Arizona Superior Courts, reflecting her deep commitment to advocacy, literacy, and community service. She is also an avid reader, outdoor enthusiast, and lifelong believer in the transformative power of education to change individual lives and strengthen communities.

I have more than 10 years of experience with event planning and can help plan next year’s conference. I also love presenting and am happy to present at upcoming lunch and learns or conferences. I’m motivated and dedicated, and I want to bring that passion to an organization I have fallen in love with!

Erin Englund serves as the Director of Recruitment for the College of Agriculture, Life & Environmental Sciences at the University of Arizona, where she has worked for the past eight years in progressively advancing recruitment and outreach roles. Beginning as a Recruitment Coordinator and later serving as Senior Coordinator of Recruitment & Outreach, Erin has spent the past five years in supervisory and leadership positions supporting enrollment growth and student engagement initiatives. With more than 12 years of experience in higher education, Erin specializes in building meaningful partnerships, creating innovative student engagement strategies, and connecting students with opportunities in STEM, agriculture, and life science fields.

Throughout her career, Erin has developed strong collaborations with high schools, community colleges, industry leaders, and community organizations to strengthen student pipelines and support enrollment growth. During her time with CALES, incoming student enrollment increased by 24% between 2018 and 2023 through expanded outreach efforts, strengthened partnerships, and student-centered recruitment strategies. She also oversees large-scale recruitment programming, manages significant recruitment and marketing budgets, and leads a team focused on student outreach and yield initiatives.

Prior to joining the University of Arizona, Erin held recruitment and admissions roles at the State University of New York at New Paltz and Tucson College. Her professional background spans admissions, public speaking, event planning, marketing, and relationship management, with a passion for helping students discover pathways to success.

Erin earned a Master of Science in Human Resource Management from Stony Brook University and a Bachelor of Science in Biology from SUNY New Paltz. Originally from New Jersey, she now proudly calls Arizona home. Outside of work, Erin enjoys spending time with her two boys and cheering them on in all of life’s adventures.

I have a unique perspective in that I’ve worked for 20 years in education and non-profit leadership. My early career was in K-12 education as a teacher and administrator, and for the past 7 years, I’ve worked as a lecturer for undergraduate and graduate programs. I would bring a collaborative, thoughtful, and people-centered leadership approach to the board. Professionally, my work focuses on leadership development, organizational behavior, communication, and team dynamics, which has given me experience facilitating conversations around leadership, culture, motivation, and professional growth.

I also bring strong communication and facilitation skills through my experience teaching, mentoring students, designing leadership programming, and leading workshops for faculty, staff, and administrators. I enjoy creating engaging and inclusive spaces where individuals feel comfortable contributing ideas and building connections.

Finally, I value collaboration, reliability, and service-oriented leadership. I am someone who is organized, engaged, willing to contribute where needed, and excited to support both strategic initiatives and hands-on work. I would bring enthusiasm, creativity, and a genuine commitment to supporting women and strengthening higher education communities.

For over 20 years, Erin Paradise has served as a teacher, mentor, and leader. Dr. Paradise teaches at The University of Arizona’s Eller College of Management and the Honors College, leading courses in management, organizational behavior, and
leadership. Dr. Paradise is passionate about education and strives to create a classroom environment where students can take risks, challenge themselves, and build professional skills. As a leader, she has worked with a variety of stakeholders to adopt change initiatives that promote student success and positive workplace culture.

Dr. Paradise’s service work focuses on culturally-responsive curriculum development, promoting leadership initiatives within the Honors College and as an HSI Fellow for the university, and serving as an Institutional Representative for AWHE.  She was named a 40 Under 40 Honoree in 2023 by The Tucson Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and was voted most Engaging Faculty Member by Eller undergraduate students in Fall 2023. She was also awarded the Eller Undergraduate Faculty Member of the Year for the Upper Division in 2024, and Outstanding Business Management Faculty in 2025 and 2026.

Prior to joining the University of Arizona faculty, Dr. Paradise was the Head of School for BASIS Tucson North, one of the nation’s top-ranked public, charter schools. She served as a mentor for leaders across 27 schools within the BASIS network and provided professional development training and ongoing coaching. In addition to working at the Eller College of Management, Dr. Paradise is involved in several community organizations in leadership, theatre arts, athletics, and service, and she is one of the founders of 520 Running & Riding, one of southern Arizona’s largest community-based running and cycling groups.

With over 8 years of experience in higher education and more than 20 years in human resources, I bring a strategic, people-centered perspective and a strong commitment to mentorship, leadership development, and advancing women in higher education. My background includes HR leadership roles across public and private higher education, healthcare, and private industry.

Throughout my career, I have partnered with organizational leadership to enhance employee engagement, strengthen compliance, and advance equitable compensation and career development practices. My experience spans the full scope of HR—from developing employee handbooks and planning engagement initiatives to building and leading high-performing HR teams.

I’m a strategic HR leader who’s passionate about building strong workplace cultures, developing people, and helping organizations grow. Over the past 20+ years, I’ve led HR initiatives across higher education, healthcare, and private industry, with expertise in organizational change, employee relations, talent development, compliance, and leadership coaching. I especially enjoy helping organizations move HR from a transactional function to a true strategic business partner.

At Yavapai College, I worked closely with the CHRO to transform the HR department into a more strategic, service-oriented team by recruiting strong HR business partners, modernizing processes, strengthening leadership partnerships, and focusing on employee engagement and workforce planning.

Earlier in my career, I helped launch and grow the northern Arizona wine industry as Business Manager for Page Springs Cellars and Arizona Stronghold Vineyards, helping build the operational foundation that contributed to Arizona Stronghold becoming a nationally recognized wine brand.

Today, I serve in senior HR leadership at The University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix. I hold an MBA from Belmont University and maintain SPHR and SHRM-SCP certifications. Outside of work, I enjoy running, hiking, Tae Kwon Do, and spending time with my son on road trips and at Diamondbacks games.