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Duesenberg Recital Hall
1709 Chapel Drive
Valparaiso, Indiana, 46383
United States

Ayah Chehade

Spoken Word Poet

Ayah Chehade is a recent graduate from UIC (University of Illinois at Chicago) where she studied English and International Studies. Born to Moroccan and Lebanese parents, Ayah was raised in a tight-knit community in Chicago known as "Little Palestine". Currently, she runs Women of Islam, a spiritually-conscious online platform for and by Muslim women. As an award-winning spoken word poet, she loves to write and perform about critical issues of identity, human rights, and spirituality. In her career, Ayah plans on pursuing documentary journalism and continuing to advocate for intercultural understanding and justice through research, art, and community building.

Carolina Herrera

Carolina was born and raised in Mexico. Shortly after graduating from Law School, she was appointed to a position at the Consulate General of Mexico in Chicago. For the past 17 years she has worked in the language service industry as a translator, interpreter, trainer, and project manager. Carolina loves language and is obsessed with stories. A few years ago, she decided to become a writer and in 2016, she achieved her dream of publishing her first novel #Mujer que piensa (El Beisman Press). She is part of ‘Ni Barbaras, Ni Malinches´, an anthology of Latino female writers in the US (Ars Comunis Editorial, 2017). Her story is featured in Vol. 4 of Today’s Inspired Latina, Life Stories of Success in the Face of Adversity (May 2018). She is a member of El BeiSMan dot com’s Editorial Board and contributes to the magazine regularly. She lives in Naperville, Illinois.

Chad Chenowith

Chad is currently a Latin and Etymology teacher in Fort Wayne, Indiana. He graduated from Valparaiso University in 2005 with majors in Classics and Secondary Education. He went on to earn an MA in Educational Psychology from Ball State University and also holds an Indiana High Ability License. In his fifth year as a teacher, he was awarded the Light of Learning Award from the Fort Wayne-South Bend Diocese and in 2017 was recognized as an Indiana Academic All-Star Influential Educator. Chad has served as a presenter for such organizations as the Indiana High School Forensics Association and the Indiana Association for the Gifted. An experienced public speaker and oratory coach, he has lead numerous students to state and national competition as his school’s Speech Team coach. While attending Valparaiso he met his wife Kristen with whom his has two children: Ethan and Harper.

Charles Carter Jr. and Cody Cotton

Chuck is a Co-founder and the President of A Greater Good Foundation (AGGF). He earned a Bachelors of Arts in Sports Promotion and Wellness, with a minor in Psychology from Valpo. While studying at VU, he also played 2 years of football. In March of 2016, he felt a profound desire to develop the minds and hearts of young men from adverse circumstances. Chuck oversees day-to-day operations and works with AGGF leadership to establish and implement the organization’s strategic vision. He is responsible for AGGF’s educational atmosphere; interaction, dialogue, feedback, and effectiveness. He works tirelessly to ensure that our impact cannot only be seen but felt by our students, their families, and communities. Charles was born in the Roseland area of Chicago, IL and raised in Gary, IN. In his spare time, he loves to read, work out, and he is a sports enthusiast. Cody K Cotton is the Co-founder of A Greater Good Foundation and Vice President of Communications. He acquired a Bachelors of Arts in Criminology, with a minor in communications from Valparaiso University. While attending Valpo, he was heavily involved in campus organizations such as Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Male Empowerment, and a founding father Pi Kappa Alpha. His perseverance in character was fostered by 4 years of Division-1 football, as he adopted a role for leadership and also an ambitious drive to become more. Following graduation in May, that same month Cody was blessed to start working on the foundation immediately along with his business partners/brothers. As V.P. of Communications, he handles community involvement, oversees relationships, and help structure ways for mentees and volunteers to become a part of AGGF. Cody was born and raised in Maywood, IL. In his spare time, he likes to travel, read, and spend time with family.

Christopher Drapeau

Christopher W. Drapeau is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Education at Valparaiso University. He received his Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from Ball State University and completed a Clinical Psychology Postdoctoral Fellowship at Mississippi State University. Christopher’s research aims to increase understanding and awareness about why people think about and engage in suicidal behavior, with specific emphasis on the contributions of pain, sleep, and social learning. His research also focuses on understanding the course of suicide loss for those left behind and how technology can assist in mental health promotion. Christopher also co-founded the East Central Indiana Suicide Prevention Coalition and served as Chair from 2012-2014. Christopher is a Master Trainer for an evidence-based suicide prevention training called QPR (Question, Persuade, and Refer) and has experience training community members, university administration/faculty, psychologists, religious leaders, school districts/crisis response teams, and pre-service teacher trainees in suicide prevention and postvention response.

Daina Mueller

Daina Mueller is a senior marketing major with a communication minor from St.Louis, Missouri. She is involved with Enactus, PRSSA, and Kappa Kappa Gamma. She has served as Vice President and is currently Co-President of Enactus. Daina served on Kappa’s Standards Committee and Membership Chairman, Girl’s Academy Chairman, and Nomination Committee Chairman. Additionally, Daina works in the Student Organization Suite and interns at BKD CPA & Advisors. She was previously a residential assistant for two years. She loves all dogs, but especially her dog Zackie. Leadership is something she has always valued and has learned a lot through her leadership experiences from high school and into college. Daina’s favorite leadership position she has held was in robotics club in high school where she was the Marketing and Welding lead. One of the biggest things she has learned is that just because you do not have a title for leadership does not mean you are not a leader.

Faisal Kutty

Faisal Kutty is a lawyer, professor, writer and public speaker. He is currently an associate professor of law and director of the International LL.M. program at Valparaiso University Law School and serves as an adjunct professor at Osgoode Hall Law School of York University in Toronto. He also serves as counsel to KSM Law, a Toronto-based law firm which he co-founded. Faisal's research and teaching interests include legal reasoning and writing, legal journalism, Islamic law, Islamic finance, religion and law, international law, human rights, comparative law, and national security. He has published numerous academic articles and more than 350 opinion pieces in publications around the world including The Toronto Star, Middle East Eye and Al Jazeera. For the past eight consecutive years he has been included in The Muslim 500: The World's Most Influential Muslims compiled by the Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre based in Amman, Jordan.

Han Suk Lee

Han Suk Lee, Ph.D. is a Marketing professor who has visited more than 20 countries and spent his time understanding international business and globalization. His main research interest is empathy in the online environment, psychological processes that influence consumer motivation in cyber network, especially in emerging markets. He believes in humanity for peace, the innate desire for the better world, and the power of a peaceful effort. He is an Assistant Professor of Marketing at Sangmyung University in Korea and is currently residing in the U.S as a visiting scholar at Purdue University Northwest. During his stay, he has observed increased tensions between North Korea and the U.S. He wants to send a message to the world from a South Korean perspective. Han Suk earned his Ph.D. degree in Marketing from Seoul National University. He is an amateur boxer and member of Calumet Toastmasters club.

Katherine Matthews

Katherine Matthews is a fourth year student who studies Music Education at Valparaiso University. Primarily a keyboardist, she developed Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and Tendinitis in her sophomore year. This peaked her interest in injury preventative keyboard technique. When attending a seminar on the topic, she was introduced to the Alexander Technique, a system for changing habits. Her study of injury prevention and the Alexander Technique has helped her to amend her practice habits and personal outlook, and to relearn to play music at the college level. She is a native of Oswego, Illinois and a graduate of Oswego High School.

Kristine Tarmann

After graduating Valparaiso University in 2016 with a B.S. in Psychology, Kristine Tarmann moved to Milwaukee, WI to study Art Therapy at Mount Mary University, where she is currently in her second year. She has held art therapy internships at Milwaukee Catholic Home, Aurora St. Luke’s Hospital, and internationally in El Caimito, Nicaragua. Kristine currently works at the University as a Graduate Assistant for Student Leadership and is the Artist-in-Residence at Milwaukee Catholic Home, a retirement community and health care center for the elderly. Kristine believes in the power of the arts in community and utilizes this to facilitate both peer-to-peer and intergenerational relationship building.

Philip Woodward

Dr. Woodward is assistant professor of philosophy at Valparaiso University. His intellectual interests include, among other things, the ways that pressing social and political concerns inform and are informed by the big worldview questions studied by philosophers. He teaches courses on human nature, the philosophy of mind, the theory of knowledge, and logic.

Suzanne Kawamleh

Suzanne Kawamleh is both a PhD student in Philosophy and an MA student in History at Indiana University-Bloomington, as well as the Higher Education Program Director at Promise for Relief and Human Development. She is interested in scientific models, error propagation, and Bayesian decision theory. When not thinking about philosophy, Kawamleh is working on providing higher education opportunities to internally displaced populations in war-torn Syria. She is currently working on developing a long distance education program for Syrian students, expanding the current colleges to include a College of Engineering and a College of Health Sciences, and replicating the success of Hope Underground. Hope Underground is a collaboration with Valparaiso University and SAMS to establish the Ghouta Medical Institute, a 2-year laboratory and anesthesia program to train medical teams for field hospitals in Eastern Ghouta.