Commission for Academic Support in Higher Education
Monday, 6 June 2016 - 1:17pm

Name: Kristen Nakamura Wallitsch, Ph.D.

Position on Board: Co-Editor of the CASHE Monograph

Institutions & Job Title: Bellarmine University, Associate Dean of Student Success for Academic Support

How long on the directorate? This is my first term, so two months.

What have been some significant experiences about being engaged/involved in ACPA CASHE? I love that I get the opportunity to engage with dedicated, talented higher education professionals from other institutions.

What is your vision for the directorate and ACPA at large? I believe that the Directorate works to provide opportunities for academic support professionals in higher education to strengthen their professional knowledge and engagement in the field. My vision that the current Directorate leadership grow these opportunities. One way this will happen in the upcoming year is through the publication of the 2016 CASHE Monograph Series.

 

What are your topical areas of interest (within and outside of ACPA CASHE)? Within ACPA CASHE, my topical areas of interest and scholarly research include academic support in tutoring and writing, learning communities, disability services, first-generation programming, assessment, teaching interdisciplinary writing courses, diversity and inclusion, higher education internationalization, and higher education in Southeast and East Asia.

 

What do you do in your free time/ outside of work? I spend time with my family. We have two sons, ages 1 and 7. Now that the summer is here we enjoy going to the pool and the zoo as often as we can. I enjoy eating at new restaurants, trying new craft beer, and practicing yoga.

Tell us one thing no one in ACPA knows about you? I’ve lived in Japan three times, Akita, Nagoya, and Tokyo. I conducted my dissertation research at Waseda University in Tokyo. I also lived in DaNang, Vietnam where I taught at the University of DaNang.

 

What is your favorite quote?

The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe. If you try it, you will be lonely often, and sometimes frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself. –F. Nietzsche