Leadership Symposium Speakers

Diane Brennan, DBH, MBA, Assistant Vice President at the University of Arizona

Diane Brennan DBH, MBA serves as Assistant Vice President within the Division of Human Resources at the University of Arizona. She is passionate about strengthening leaders and teams to create a culture where people and organizations thrive. Prior to joining the University, she was president of Brennan Associates, a coaching and consulting company working with leaders and teams in higher education, healthcare, aerospace, engineering, and technology organizations internationally. Additionally, she has over 20 years of experience as a senior executive in private and publicly traded healthcare organizations.

Dr. Brennan received a bachelor’s and master’s degrees in business administration from Bloomsburg University in Pennsylvania and a Doctorate in Behavioral Health from Arizona State University. She holds the Master Certified Coach credential with the International Coach Federation, and served as president of the global organization in 2008. She is co-author of Back Pocket Coach: 33 Effective Communication Strategies for Work & Life, and co-editor of The Handbook of Knowledge-Based Coaching and The Philosophy and Practice of Coaching.

Teresa Costantinidis, WACUBO Board President

Currently serving as the University of New Mexico’s Senior Vice President for Finance & Administration, Teresa Costantinidis is responsible for the units that provide financial, administrative, and other support functions to the UNM main campus including the Office of Planning, Budget, & Analysis, Human Resources, Information Technologies, UNM Police Department, Financial Services Division, Safety & Risk Services, and Institutional Support Services. Teresa works closely with senior leadership, including the President, Provost, Chancellor for Health Sciences, Deans, Regents, and the UNM Foundation.

Teresa has higher education budget, financial, and administrative management experience spanning over 30 years. Prior to this position, Teresa was the University of California, San Francisco’s Vice Chancellor and Chief Financial Officer. At the UC Berkeley campus Teresa served as the Assistant Vice Chancellor for Budget & Resource Planning and Senior Assistant Dean and Chief Operating Officer for the Haas School of Business.

Teresa is an active presenter and board member of the Western and National Association of College and University Business Officers. She holds an MBA degree from UC Berkeley, a BS degree in Biological Sciences from UC Davis, and is an active and contributing board member to industry and community organizations.

Diza Sauers University of Arizona

Diza Sauers has taught leadership and managerial communication in its various practices at Eller College of Management for the past 15 years. Diza works as a communication consultant across many industries to help facilitate more effective communication and planning in any enterprise from global clients (Robertet, DP World, BP Billiton, Intel, Microsoft) to more niche or localized entities ( Phoenix Children’s Hospital, Sunquest, VA, City of Tucson.)

A certified Hogan coach, Diza’s expertise also resides in providing individual and team coaching to arrive at more collaborative and productive work environments. The recipient of over twelve awards for teaching, leadership, mentorship, and innovation, Diza collaborates and delivers rigorous curriculum for executives and MBA students, and leaders at all levels. As an Academic Director and consultant, Diza regularly works in industry to provide customized training and coaching that resides at the nexus of neuroscience, leadership communication, and the complexities that reside at the heart of any human communication exchange. In addition to her academic work, Diza frequently works with a variety of enterprises to facilitate strategic planning and evaluation of communication strategies. This includes facilitating strategic planning sessions, professional coaching (team or individual). She has years of training large and small groups for driving transformation and culture shift in organizations - whether it is managing difficult conversations (individual), communicating change (organizational), or harnessing the power of teams (teams), her trainings are collaborative and customized to any organization.Whether working with larger venues, mid-size enterprises, or small start-ups, Diza is skilled in facilitating conversations that result in vision setting, managing challenges, and communicating change. Diza has taught courses in organizational communication, diversity and inclusion, growth mindset, crisis management, public relations, investor relations, virtual team communication strategies, small group communication, leadership communication. Diza has numerous publications in a variety of journals and her work remains focused on putting the most strategic communication tools into the hands of anyone who wishes to become more effective in the work place.

Carina Celesia Moore, Director, Talent Management and Development, University of California, Davis

Carina Celesia Moore, MA, SPHR, CPLP, ACC, is Director of the University of California - Davis HR: Talent Management and Development, and is responsible for learning and development strategies for over 30,000 employees at the University of California - Davis campus and the UC Davis Health campus in Sacramento. She oversees professional development, leadership development, training administration, worklife, and career coaching and counseling.

Carina has over 25 years of experience in human resources and enjoys transforming organizations into places where people contribute their best work. Since 2004, she has engaged in several volunteer roles with the Western Association of College and University Business Officers (WACUBO) including board member, conference speaker, faculty at the Business Management Institute, and chair of the Mentoring Program. Carina currently serves as adjunct faculty at the University of the Pacific Benerd School of Education, Master’s program in Organizational Learning & Effectiveness.

Arch Asawa, Vice President for Finance and Administration, Chief Financial Officer & Chief Investment Officer, Soka University of America

Arch Asawa joined Soka University of America in March 1998. Asawa’s responsibilities include the overall management of the University’s operations, including budget, finance, endowment, information technology, development, community relations, facilities and landscape management, mail room, purchasing, environmental health and safety, security, events, contracts management and auxiliary businesses. He currently serves as the University’s chief investment officer, managing a $1.3 billion endowment.

He is active in the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO), currently on the NACUBO Board of Directors. He is also serving on the Board of the Western Association of College and University Business Officers (WACUBO) and is the immediate past President of WACUBO. He is also active in the US – Japan Council and serves a member of their Audit Committee. Prior to joining the university, Asawa worked as a management consultant to Fortune 500 corporations, universities and public sector agencies since the 1980s. He also served as Special Advisor to the Mayor and Manager of Special Projects for Mayor Richard J. Riordan, City of Los Angeles. Asawa received his BA in Economics from Yale University and attended the doctoral program in management at UCLA’s Anderson Graduate School of Management, focusing on strategy and organization.

Doug Freer, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, California State University, San Bernardino

Dr. Doug Freer has served as Vice President for Administration and Finance and Chief Financial Officer at California State University, San Bernardino since 2014. His responsibilities include leading human resources, budget and accounting, facilities management, capital planning and construction, campus auxiliaries, procurement, risk management, environmental health, audit services, police, parking, and emergency services. Prior to this appointment, he served at Cal Poly Pomona for 24 years, including eight years as their Vice President for Student Affairs and Enrollment Management.

A tireless advocate for students and services to support them for over 30 years, Dr. Freer attributes his long tenure in higher education to his experiences simultaneously implementing enrollment management, student success, business, and capital planning strategies that significantly broaden the appeal of the university to a wide range of student populations. In total, he has led over $650 million in capital expansion projects at both CSUSB and Cal Poly Pomona that have dramatically transformed those campuses and enhanced student and faculty/staff engagement. Dr. Freer has been recognized with the Scott Goodnight Award for outstanding performance by a student affairs vice president by the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (Region VI), the Excellence in Educational Administration award from the Inland Valley News, and the American College Personnel Association, along with Diverse Issues in Higher Education, named his organization as one of the “Top 30 Most Promising Places to Work in Student Affairs.” Dr. Freer holds an Ed.D. (Educational Leadership) from UCLA, an MBA (Management) from Cal State Long Beach, and a bachelor’s degree (Biology) from Adelphi University in New York.

Lisa Rulney, Senior Vice President for Business Affairs and Chief Financial Officer, University of Arizona

Lisa Rulney was appointed Senior Vice President for Business Affairs and Chief Financial Officer in April 2019, having served in the role as interim starting in October 2018. In this position, Lisa serves as the UA’s senior business and financial officer with responsibility including financial services, human resources, institutional equity, procurement, contracting, auditing, facilities management, parking, transportation, planning, design and construction of facilities, real estate management, Arizona Public Media, risk management, systems control, and the university police. As a member of the President’s senior leadership team, Lisa provides strategic leadership to, and direction of, the university finance and administration functions.

Since joining the UA in 2001, Lisa has held a number of financial positions, most recently serving as the Vice President for Financial Services. She also served as Assistant Dean for Finance and Administration for the College of Engineering; Assistant Dean for Finance and Administration for the College of Education; and Assistant Director, Finance and Administration for the Arizona Research Laboratories. A member of National Council of Research Administrators (NCURA) since 2001, Lisa has served on regional and national levels and was a NCURA Traveling Faculty member. She is a 2004 graduate of the NCURA Leadership Development Institute. Lisa received her Bachelor of Science from James Madison University and Master of Business Administration from the Eller College of Management at the University of Arizona.

Jean Vock, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Jean Vock is the Senior Vice President, Business Affairs and CFO University of Nevada Las Vegas. Jean has been with the University of Nevada Las Vegas since 2017 and her responsibilities include oversight of the controller’s office, financial services, administrative services, facilities management, planning, construction, real estate and human resources. Jean holds both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Accounting, is a CPA and has been involved in higher education and governmental accounting, technology and business administration for over 30 years.

Jean is passionate about professional development and organizational effectiveness, and is committed to helping organizations grow strategically, and find innovative solutions to achieving efficiency, effectiveness and simplicity of business operations. Jean is actively involved in professional associations and served as President for the Western Association of College and University Business Officers (WACUBO) for the 2016-17 program year and as a member of the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) board of directors from 2015-2018. 

Taffany Lim, Senior Director, Center for Engagement, Service & the Public Good, California State University, Los Angeles

Taffany Lim has served as the Senior Director of Cal State LA's Center for Engagement, Service, and the Public Good for the past five years where she oversees the University's community and engagement initiatives. Her diverse portfolio includes service learning, preschool literacy and kindergarten readiness programs (Jumpstart), and the only bachelor's degree program for incarcerated students in the state of California. Prior to joining Cal State LA, Taffany provided consulting and facilitation services to nonprofits and local government organizations for more than a decade.

Crystal Miller, Director of Leadership Development, The California State University, Office of the Chancellor

Dr. Crystal Miller currently serves as the CSU Systemwide Director of Leadership Development and as a lecturer at San Diego State University's Fowler College of Business. With over 10,000+ hours in executive coaching and training, she has provided leadership and organizational development for organizations like Nike, the U.S. Marine Corps, the Ken Blanchard Companies, and U.S. Bank.

Crystal holds a Ph.D. in Organizational Leadership from the University of San Diego, several tool and assessment certifications, and a yoga teacher and meditation certificate. Her content areas span: human development, group relations, inclusive leadership, implicit bias, women in leadership, mindfulness, coaching, and global leadership. Her work is grounded, socially conscious, and has been recognized by Forbes and the International Leadership Association.

Ahren Crickard, Strategic Academic Initiatives, University of California San Diego

Since 2001, Ahren has worked with the Office of the Executive Vice Chancellor and Chancellor on various strategic academic initiatives, including international and technology strategy. Her skills in continuous improvement, process efficiency and change management are utilized to examine business processes, as well. By trade, she is an attorney, but she is also a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt and has a background in Prosci Change Management and Project Management coursework.

Colleen Rozillis, Senior Manager, Moss Adams LLP 

Colleen has been advising local, state, and tribal governments and not-for-profits on improving their operations and efficiency since 2005. She helps clients assess their organizational and program effectiveness, and assists them with developing and refining their performance and level-of-service measures. Colleen works collaboratively with clients to understand their goals and objectives; develop policies, processes, and tools; and define organizational and programmatic changes to better equip and position them to achieve their goals and objectives. Her areas of expertise include strategic planning, organizational assessment, policy development, performance metric development and reporting, business process reengineering, strategic communications and reporting for decision makers, and best practices benchmarking.

Mark Steranka, Partner, Moss Adams LLP 

Mark has over 30 years of experience working with higher education institutions, governments, and not-for-profit organizations. He helps organizations to improve performance and take their organization and people to the next level. He is a regular speaker on organizational performance at national conferences.