SPEAKERS & SESSIONS
Chelsea Hayes - Keynote Speaker
Chelsea C. Hayes, SPHR is the CEO & Principal Consultant of The Coaching Factory LLC. Based out of Los Angeles, she leads an innovative Corporate Training & Development firm specializing in experiences for Fortune 500 Companies on Leadership, Influence and Inclusion.
Clients include Eli Lilly, Genentech, General Mills & Turner Construction. Prior to founding The Coaching Factory, Chelsea was the Director of HR at the LA Sparks after launching her career reporting directly to the Chief Diversity Officer at General Electric (GE).
Chelsea earned two Bachelor's Degrees from Purdue University in Public Health Promotion & Public Relations and a Master’s Degree in Corporate Communication from Northwestern University. Chelsea was named 1 of 2 of Purdue University’s Outstanding Alumni under 35 and is a proud member of Northwestern University’s Council of 100-an invitation only group of Northwestern’s top female alumnae executives. Most recently, her company went global-she just returned from speaking to 150 employees at a private bank in Nassau, Bahamas and is ELATED TO BE HOME AT MORTAR BOARD!
TJ Boisseau - Breakout Speaker
Dr. TJ Boisseau is an associate professor of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies with the School of Disciplinary Studies in the College of Liberal Arts at Purdue University. A historian of American women and transnational feminism, she holds a courtesy appointment in the Department of History, is an affiliate of the American Studies Program, and is an ally of the LGBTQ Center. Boisseau arrived to Purdue in 2012 and directed the WGSS Program from 2012-16 during which time she welcomed over 60 feminist faculty from across the campus to affiliate with the program, and oversaw a change in the name of the program from “women’s studies” to “women’s, gender, and sexuality studies”—indicating a broadening of the program’s mission at Purdue. She oversaw the establishment of Purdue’s first LGBTQ Studies minor, and an LGBTQ Studies learning community which added the first gender-inclusive residential community on the Purdue campus in 2018. During her time at Purdue, she has served as faculty advisor to eight student organizations, including Feminist Action Coalition for Today (F.A.C.T.)—the leading feminist activism student organization on campus, and Gamma Rho Lamda (G.R.L.)—an inclusive multi-cultural sorority centering the experiences of LGBTQ students. She has served as inaugural faculty advisor to three new student organizations and initiatives on campus including Students Against Rape and Violence (SARA-V) which pushed for the establishment of the Center for Advocacy and Response and Education (CARE)—Purdue’s first and only unit dedicated to advocating for survivors of sexual violence and abuse. She currently serves as faculty advisor and helped found the Purdue’s inaugural Chapter of Iota, Iota, Iota (or Triota—a national honor society for WGSS) and The Period Project (TPP) which just saw a major victory in moving the university to make menstrual hygiene products freely available across campus In 2017, upon her return from a Fulbright Senior Scholar Award teaching feminist theory at the United Nations University and Gender-Equality Studies Training Centre in Iceland, she was appointed the inaugural Amelia Earhart Faculty-in-Residence—an immersive position at Windsor Hall where she lives fulltime, with her family, engaging and interacting with students and hoping to follow the example of Amelia Earhart who sought to inspire, guide, and mentor students to be leaders at Purdue and beyond.
Women’s leadership, intersectional feminist consciousness, and activism likewise serves as the central focal point of Dr. Boisseau’s historical research and scholarship. Boisseau has produced a monograph involving research on three continents; published a critical edition of an 1892 text; co-edited two collections of essays, both considered foundational in their respective subfields of exposition history and feminist legal history; co-edited a special issue of the National Women’s Studies Association Journal on the experiences of women during Hurricane Katrina; published ten refereed book chapters; eleven articles in top refereed journals spanning half a dozen subfields of feminist studies; twenty book reviews; three encyclopedia entries; and made over a dozen published contributions to alternative media. Most recently, National Geographic filmed Boisseau teaching a class on women’s leadership at Purdue and featured her in the documentary, Search for Amelia—which premiered on October, 2019, simulcasted in 172 countries in 43 languages.
Breakout Title: How to Inspire Unique Leadership: One Woman's Tale
Social science on women’s leadership will tell you that internalization of unconscious barriers to self-esteem are what keep women from asserting themselves in male-dominated careers and as leaders in their communities. Feminist historian and Associate Professor of Women’s, Gender & Sexuality Studies at Purdue, TJ Boisseau, provides a historical explanation for the production of women’s self-confidence, enabling women to “lean-in” even when the deck is stacked against them.
Kelsey Chapman - Breakout Speaker
Program Coordinator
Pronouns: She/Her/Hers
Schleman Hall of Student Services, Rm. 230
Phone: 765-494-3676
Email: chapma21@purdue.edu
Kelsey is the Program Coordinator of the Purdue University Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ) Center. She has over four years of experience in LGBTQ student affairs, with specializations in educational programming and international learning.
A Lafayette native, Kelsey attended Purdue University and received her B.A. in History in 2018. While a student at Purdue, Kelsey was the President of AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power Purdue (ACT UP Purdue), the only recognized college chapter of ACT UP in the world, and was a student intern at the Purdue LGBTQ Center. She also co-facilitated the Sex, History, and the Cities study abroad program with Lowell Kane and Dr. Yvonne Pitts.
Beyond her professional interests, Kelsey enjoys traveling, video games, and spending time with her partner.
Breakout Title: LGBTQ Center and Inclusion
At the conclusion of the breakout session, rising leaders on Purdue's campus will walk away knowing strategies to be inclusive to peers belonging to the LGBTQ community through student organization recruitment, leadership, and overall student organization culture.
Zenephia Evans - Breakout Speaker
Zenephia Evans received a Ph.D. in Cell and Developmental Biology from Purdue University in West Lafayette.
Dr. Evans was a former honorary member of the Barbara Cook Chapter of Mortar Board, Iron Key and Alpha Delta Lamda Phi Eta Sigma Honor Society. Throughout her time at Purdue, she has served as the advisor for Association of Multicultural Science Students (AMSS), Barbara Cook Chapter of Mortar Board, Black Graduate Student Association (BGSA), Caribbean Student Association (CSA), LYNX, Rotaract, Upsilon Chapter of Omega Phi Chi and the Zeta Theta Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. Currently she serves as the Senior Faculty Fellow in Earhart Hall.
Dr. Evans has been honored with the Special Boilermaker Award, Helen B. Schleman Gold Medallion, One Brick Higher Award, Title IX Awardee, The Black Graduate Student Association (BGSA) Distinguished Service Award, BGSA Engagement Award and two time recipient of The Black Caucus of Faculty and Staff - Staff member of the year Award.
Dr. Evans is the treasurer for the Black Caucus of Faculty and Staff (BCFS) after serving as Chair, Vice Chair, social chair, parliamentarian, interim treasurer, fiscal planner and chair or co-chair the Annual Awards Programs for undergraduates for 7 years. She was the first African-American women to serve as Convener for the Council on the Status of Women (CSW) at Purdue and was instrumental in putting the presence of CSW into the new faculty welcome. Dr. Evans was also the first African-American to serve as President of the Lafayette, Indiana Daybreak Rotary Club. While a member of the Rotary club, she served as Vice-President, President Elect, chair of International Projects, Local Service Projects, Programs and Member Orientation, Rotary Reads, Lafayette Urban Ministry (LUM) meals to feed the homeless and advisor to Interact at Central Catholic High School. While serving as Rotary President, the club initiated the Rotary Reads project at Miller Elementary School, Murdock Elementary and currently at Tippecanoe Child Daycare at Wabash Landing. She served as a member of the Rotary District 6560 World Community Service Foundation. She is an inaugural board member of the Greater Lafayette 100+ Women Who Care, happily prepares and serves meals for the night guests at Lafayette Urban Ministry, a proud member of the Presidents Council and the John Purdue Club. and current President of the Greater Lafayette Art Museum Board.
In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with family and friends, reading, listening to music, attending sporting events, traveling, watching tennis and helping those in need.
Breakout Title: When You Feel That You Do Not Belong
Imposter Syndrome – when you feel that you do not belong, how does this impact your interactions and your work performance? Can you validate what you are feeling and move on to the place of belonging? Will you be able to find the place of belonging? Who will you ask to assist you as you navigate the belonging terrain?
Melissa Gruver - Breakout Speaker
Melissa (mel) Gruver serves as associate director for Civic Engagement & Leadership Development at Purdue University where she supervises a team of individuals committed to designing experiences for Purdue students to develop their leadership and civic identities. mel defines leadership as a process of creating positive change in one’s environment by influencing the decisions of others while maintaining respect for their freedom. She models this through her commitment to mutually beneficial community partnerships and an assets-based approach to communities.Breakout Title: Social Change: Developing a Coalition
A coalition is a collaboration in which a group of organizations work together to address issues beyond the scope of a single organization. This workshop will equip you with the tools to identify potential partnerships, generate a common vision, and create change through cooperative action.
Jesus Romero - Breakout Speaker
Jesus Romero is the Coordinator for Leadership Development in where he provides opportunities for students to develop their leadership capacity through workshops, courses, and retreats. He enjoys having conversations with students about practicing group-centered leadership and recognizing that everyone has something to contribute to the leadership process. Jesus is a Gallup Certified Strengths Coach and currently serves as the Staff Co-Chair for the Latino Faculty & Staff Association (LaFaSA).
Breakout Title: Social Change: Developing a Coalition
A coalition is a collaboration in which a group of organizations work together to address issues beyond the scope of a single organization. This workshop will equip you with the tools to identify potential partnerships, generate a common vision, and create change through cooperative action.
Allison Maldonado-Ruiz - Breakout Speaker
Allison works as a Student Affairs Specialist with Student Activities and Organizations. She received her B.S. in Sociology and Psychology from Florida State University and her M.Ed. in Higher Education and Student Affairs from the University of South Carolina. Allison is also a member of the Greater Lafayette’s Younger Women’s Taskforce, and a board member of the Latino Center for Wellness and Education. This year Allison will serve as the chair of the Tippecanoe Latino Festival.
Breakout Title: So I've Got This Idea. What's Next?
SAO will present on the logistics and best practices of planning events on campus and utilizing the resources that SAO has to offer to student leaders at Purdue.
Joe Rust - Breakout Speaker
Rust is proud of his rural roots in Seymour, IN. He grew up in a large family developing a passion and genuine interest for all people. In May of 2014 he graduated from Purdue University with a degree in Agribusiness Management. While at Purdue, Joe served in a variety of leadership roles including Student Body President. After graduation, Joe worked for KSM Consulting through the Orr Fellowship, a two year leadership development program based out of Indianapolis. In the spring of 2017 Joe was challenged by a mentor to pursue his dreams and travel to India to start a non-profit in honor of his late older brother Captain Alex Rust. Since then Joe has continued his passion in helping people and is a freelance consultant managing projects in industrial hemp, egg products, and farmland.
Jason Ware - Breakout Speaker
Jason Ware, Ph.D. is a Clinical Assistant Professor in Purdue University’s Honors College. He centers community well-being in his research, and investigates the impact and educational effect of developing quality-of-life indicators with communities at the neighborhood and city levels. Jason’s research also includes exploring the effect of undergraduate research on students’ ability to think analytically as well as their propensity to address problems from varying disciplinary perspectives.
Breakout Title: Centering Humanity through Transformative Leadership
Leadership is about influence. In this session Dr. Ware will discuss the potential of leveraging our agency as leaders to unite our collective human effort towards a self-determination, co-determination, and solidarity that obtains human-centered results.