Dr. Hana Lahr is a senior research associate and the director of applied learning at the Community College Research Center, where she leads research on whole-college reforms at community colleges across the country. She has conducted research on the change management process, advising reforms, onboarding students into programs, and the costs of guided pathways reforms. Lahr is interested in how colleges approach the change management process, how colleges adapt reforms to their state and institutional context, and how these reforms change the student experience and impact student outcomes. As the director of applied learning at CCRC, Lahr focuses on translating research into practical guidance that can help support organizational learning and reform. She has a BA in music performance from the University of Florida, an MS in counseling from Shippensburg University (PA), and a PhD in education policy from Teachers College, Columbia University. Prior to joining CCRC in 2011, Lahr worked in student affairs at HACC (Central Pennsylvania’s Community College) and at the Metropolitan College of New York.

Dr. Shelitha Williams serves as the Associate Vice President for Student Affairs at Rochester Institute of Technology. Prior to taking this role, Dr. Williams served as the Vice President of Student and Enrollment Services and the Chief Diversity Officer at Genesee Community College, with over 20 years of professional experience in higher education.  Dr. Williams received her doctorate in Educational Leadership from the University of Rochester, Master of Social Work with a counseling concentration from SUNY Stony Brook University and Bachelor of Arts in Psychology with a minor in Africana Studies from SUNY Potsdam.