PAU Welcomes New Academic Leaders and Faculty
Palo Alto University is pleased to welcome two new academic leaders and four new faculty members this fall. Each individual offers a unique perspective and an impressive career background, as well as a strong commitment to student-centered education. Their contributions will undoubtedly elevate PAU to the next level. Let’s celebrate our new academic leaders and faculty!
New Academic Leaders:
Stephanie Storms
Stephanie Storms, EdD, is the new Assistant Provost of Faculty Affairs, Development and Diversity. Dr. Storms joins us from Fairfield University where she was the Associate Dean and Associate Professor of Multicultural Education in the School of Education and Human Development. She holds an EdD in Social Justice Education from the University of Massachusetts, an MEd in Community Counseling, and a BA in Psychology from Kent State University. Her research and scholarly interests include educational outcomes of social justice education, social justice issues in faculty mentoring and peer evaluation, and assessing student readiness for social action engagement. Dr. Storms co-authored two books published in 2020: Breaking Down Silos for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI): Teaching and Collaboration Across Disciplines and Teaching through Challenges for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI). Dr. Storms is a former board member of the National Association for Multicultural Education and recently chaired the New England Conference on Multicultural Education, which promotes equity and justice in education. Additionally, she has participated in the Read Aloud program through the School Volunteer Association in Bridgeport, Connecticut for more than 10 years and is a member of the Connecticut State Advisory Committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. As a teacher educator who focuses on multicultural/social justice education, action research, and community-engaged learning, Dr. Storms is the program director for the EdD program in Educational Leadership for Teacher Leaders that launched in the fall of 2021. She is also co-director of STEP (Student and Teacher Empowerment Partnership), a collaboration between Fairfield University and Cesar A. Batalla Elementary School in Bridgeport, Connecticut, which has a goal of improving literacy outcomes for children in kindergarten through fifth grade. In June 2021, the National Coalition of 100 Black Women (New Haven Metropolitan Chapter), selected Dr. Storms for the Candace Education Leadership Award for her work in promoting educational equity. Dr. Storms recently added entrepreneur to her list of accomplishments as co-founder of Educators 4 Equity and Justice (E4EJ), which provides social justice education through online webinars and courses for educators and community members. At PAU, Dr. Storms will be an integral member of the Provost’s office, responsible for shaping the composition and experience of the PAU faculty. In her role, Storms will lead faculty affairs and policy, faculty development, lead efforts to promote diversity and inclusion of the faculty, as well as work closely with the University Center for Educational Excellence to strengthen PAU’s teaching excellence.
Julia Aggreh
Julia Aggreh will join PAU in the Registrar’s Office as the new Assistant Vice President of Registration and Student Records, also known as the University Registrar. Aggreh was most recently the Dean of Academic Records and Registrar at Vanguard University. She holds an MEd in Music Education from Illinois State University and a BA in Music from the University of Lagos. Aggreh comes to PAU with 18 years of registrar experience and a strong background in providing leadership and oversight in developing office policies and procedures to continuously improve services provided by the University Registrar’s Office. As the PAU University Registrar, Aggreh will oversee the systems and processes of academic records and the conferral of degrees and academic awards, ensuring the overall academic integrity of the institution. She will also work directly with the Office of the Provost and Academic Affairs working with faculty on class scheduling, course registration, the academic catalog, academic standing, and degree candidacy. As part of the Enrollment Management Leadership Group, Aggreh will also work closely with the Office of Financial Aid, Office of Admissions, Bursar, and Institutional Research to evaluate, prepare, and accurately report statistical data, such as student enrollment, persistence, and graduation rate statistics, to meet internal and external requirements and reconcile data to ensure departmental processes are in compliance with appropriate federal, state, statues and executive orders related to students, including Title IV and FERPA requirements. Aggreh’s commitment to students, strong administrative skills, and vast knowledge of student information systems are in line with PAU’s mission and values.New Faculty Members:
Charlotte Beard
Charlotte Beard, PhD, is a new Assistant Professor in the Psychology Department. Dr. Beard specializes in the intersection between mental health and technology. She has received training from institutions including the University of California, San Francisco, the University of Texas Health Science Center, and Palo Alto University, where she was previously a Visiting professor. Dr. Beard’s research is focused on Gaming Disorder as an emerging mental health concern, and her aim is to create interventions and wellness initiatives that are developed for a community of gamers, including partnerships with esports and the application of advanced statistical methods. She has more than 20 international publications and has been an invited speaker for gaming disorders and the role of technology in mental health. Dr. Beard is also involved in consultation with mental health start-ups and therapists in tech, with a focus on new approaches being developed in Silicon Valley.
Samantha Kountz Edwards
Samantha Kountz Edwards, PhD, is a new Assistant Professor in the Psychology Department. Dr. Kountz-Edwards earned her BA in Psychology from Chapman University before obtaining her MS and PhD in Clinical Psychology with an emphasis in Child and Family from Palo Alto University. During her graduate training, her main interests were working with children and families, trauma, and health psychology. This led her to serve youth with multifaceted needs in outpatient clinics, various homeless shelters throughout the Bay Area, an elementary school, and within an integrated health care setting at Kaiser Permanente. She also worked in the Stanford Cognitive and Systems Neuroscience Lab where she administered neuropsychological assessments to children and adolescents with ADHD and ASD. Her research at PAU focused on the psychosocial family impact that chronic illnesses can have on family members. Dr. Kountz-Edwards completed her pre-doctoral internship at Community Health Awareness Council in Mountain View, California, and her post-doctoral fellowship at Kaiser Permanente, Santa Clara in the Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Department where she went on to work as a full-time psychologist. She also served as a supervisor at PAU’s Gronowski Center for two years. She currently has a full-time private practice in San Jose, California where she specializes in treating depression, anxiety, and ADHD in children and transitional-aged youth. Dr. Kountz-Edwards has taught at Palo Alto University for the last six years as a Visiting Professor.
Mikael Rubin
Mikael Rubin, PhD, is an Assistant Professor in the Psychology Department. Dr. Rubin received his PhD in Clinical Psychology from the University of Texas, Austin. From studying virtual reality in the arts to conducting virtual reality exposure therapy, Dr. Rubin is curious about how we make meaning out of our lived experiences. He specializes in research and interventions related to anxiety and post-traumatic stress. His research has used a wide range of approaches, including eye tracking, neuroimaging, and network analysis. At Palo Alto University, Dr. Rubin directs the Transdiagnostic Attention Intervention (TRAIN) Lab and is especially interested in using virtual reality and eye tracking methods to evaluate, enhance, and widely disseminate mental health interventions.