Christine C. Thomas, Ph.D.
Associate Vice President for Institutional Effectiveness
215 Councill Hall 
(334) 229-4742
ccthomas@alasu.edu

Dr. Christine C. Thomas is the Associate Vice President for Institutional Effectiveness and the Southern Association for Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) Institutional Liaison at Alabama State University. She has more than 25 years of combined experience in teaching, assessment and evaluation, and accreditation. She is an innovative higher education administrator who serves as an advocate for continuous improvement. Dr. Thomas has secured the establishment of funded initiatives that focus on faculty development, research, and teaching practices, and her pragmatic leadership style has advanced institutional compliance with accrediting agencies and evidence based decision making.  

Her formal education includes a Ph.D. from the University of Missouri-Columbia, an M.B.A. from William Woods University, an M.S. in Leadership Studies from Troy University, and a B.S. in Business Administration from Alabama State University (ASU). Dr. Thomas has completed post-doctoral study at Harvard University Graduate School of Education’s Institute for Women in Leadership (WIL). She annually participates in national and international programs that focus on advancing organizations and transformational leadership.

Research Interest and Projects
Christine’s research and teaching interests focus on pathways to student success, first generation, students, adult education, and exploring the interplay of higher education policies and practices and the critical role these domains play in continuous improvement and institutional advancement. Her research also explores assessment and evaluation, regional and specialized accreditation.

Professional Expertise
Experienced accreditation evaluator, accountability in higher education, and the development of institutional policies and procedures.

 

 

Stephanie Alexander-Sampson
Grant Research Specialist III
Kilby Hall, Suite 1
(334) 604-9059
salexander@alasu.edu

Stephanie serves as Grant Research Specialist III in the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs, where she is responsible for a variety of pre and post award functions as it relates to grant management, tracking, monitoring, and processing.  Stephanie works closely with the Director of ORSP to ensure the University follows the state and federal mandates.  Prior to this position, she served several years as Accreditation Specialist for the university. 

Prior to coming to ASU, Stephanie worked for more than 10 years with Macon County Schools and over three years for Attorney Fred D. Gray and the Gray Law Center, Tuskegee, AL.  Mrs. Alexander-Sampson also worked many years as a Planning Commissioner for the City of Shorter, Alabama where she worked closely with the Mayor in City Ordinance Planning.  

Stephanie holds a BA in Business Administration from Faulkner University.

 

 

Bryn Bakoyéma
Assistant Vice President for Planning & Strategic Analysis
205 McGehee Hall 
(334) 604-8005
bbakoyema@alasu.edu

Bryn Bakoyéma began serving as the Director of Institutional Research at Alabama State University in 2017. She recently transitioned into the role of Assistant Vice President for Planning & Strategic Analysis where her primary focus will be in managing the strategic goals of the university as well as the Assessment initiatives in accordance with SACSCOC. She has over 15 years of experience in data management, research, and evaluation for higher education, non-profit, and governmental organizations. She has been instrumental in leading the development and implementation of systems and processes to support continuous improvement and achievement of outcomes. Bryn has a B.S. in Agronomy and a B.A. in Multidisciplinary Studies from North Carolina State University, and an M.A. in Cultural Anthropology from Indiana University. This eclectic educational background, along with diverse work experiences, provides Bryn a broad and holistic perspective to quickly assess organizational needs and contribute to strategic goals. Bryn has experience conducting educational and social service program evaluations, and her research interests focus on higher education administration, policy, and workforce connections.

 

 

Raymond Green
Assessment Specialist 
125 Life Science Building
(334) 604-9144
ragreen@alasu.edu

Mr. Green is a 2018 graduate of Alabama State University with a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Information Systems.  He has over 20 years of managerial experience in the hospitality industry. As a QEP/Assessment Specialist, his primary responsibilities include providing support to the functions of student learning outcomes and student success relative to the University’s SACSCOC approved Quality Enhancement Plan.  He also assists in the administration and collection of assessment data and the institutional planning and evaluation process.

 

 

Rolanda S. Horn, Ph.D.
Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) Coordinator
122 Life Science Building
(334) 229-8351
rhorn@alasu.edu

Dr. Rolanda Horn is a two time graduate of Alabama State University, receiving her Bachelor’s degree (2000) in Therapeutic Recreation and more recently her, Doctorate degree (2019) in Educational Leadership, Policy, and Law. She is a first generation college student from Clarke County, Alabama who traveled the world as a military dependent. She began her tenure at Alabama State University 6 years ago and currently serves as the Institution’s Quality Enhancement Plan Coordinator. She is a published author who has conducted research in the area of African American women in leadership. She is passionate about leadership and mentoring that are transformative and developmental in nature and rewarding at all stages of the career trajectory. Furthermore, her a passion extends to academia and the academic achievement of students that directly and indirectly impact institutional goals. Her goal is to ensure that marginalized students and professionals receive equitable opportunities to maximize their potential.

 

 

Pernell Jenkins
Director, Office of Research and Sponsored Programs 
Kilby Hall, Suite 1
(334) 604-9058
pjenkins@alasu.edu

Pernell L. Jenkins is the Director for the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs at Alabama State University.  Mr. Jenkins has more than 18 years of Banking and Finance experience.  Mr. Jenkins has served as an Assistant Vice and Vice President with several local and National Banks. Pernell also served as an Adjunct Instructor at South University in the School of Business.  He has served as an advocate for small businesses and worked as a Small Business Counselor with the Small Business Development Center of Alabama.  Mr. Jenkins’ formal education includes an MBA from Auburn University Montgomery, a Bachelor of Science in Human Resource Management and an Associates degree in Psychology from Troy University, Montgomery.  Mr. Jenkins has completed over 40 hours towards the Doctorate in Business Administration with an Entrepreneurship focus from Walden University.

 

 

LaTonya Kennedy
Institutional Research Analyst I
205 McGehee Hall
(334) 229-6859
lkennedy@alasu.edu

Ms. LaTonya Kennedy is a graduate of Troy State University in Montgomery with a Bachelor’s degree in Finance. She has over 20 years of experience as a financial professional in the banking and mortgage industry. She has been employed with Alabama State University since 2010, working in the areas of Institutional Effectiveness and Institutional Research.

As the Institutional Research Analyst, Ms. Kennedy assists with data collection, data analysis, external and internal data requests for college leadership, academic support units, state and federal agencies, and other stakeholders. She is the Qualtrics survey software  administrator, co-facilitator of survey trainings, assigns survey access and provide administrative support to the campus community. She assists with the annual office publications, assessment reports, federal Title III reports, and other projects as assigned. She updates and maintain the Institutional Research webpage and project management system. Additionally, she serves on various committees and assists in the areas of continuous improvement as required by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC).  

 

 

 

 

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Anwarul Siddiqui
Institutional Research Analyst II
205 McGehee Hall
(334) 604-9068

Anwarul Siddiqui has many years of experience in data management, analysis and reporting in the private sector. He has worked in Higher Education as an Academic Data and Operations Consultant for 7 years. His expertise and primary interest are in data management and data quality improvement.

 

 

Cynthia Swain, Ph.D.
Testing Center Coordinator
105 McGehee Hall
(334) 229-4864
cswain@alasu.edu

Dr. Cynthia D. Swain is the Testing Center Coordinator at Alabama State University. Dr. Swain’s professional experience is more than 15 years as a system evaluator, testing specialist, and coordinator. Her leadership expanded the certification role for several testing agencies throughout the United States as a Testing Center Administer (TCA), and the university administrator for College Board. Dr. Swain currently serves on the Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education (CAS) representative for the National College Testing Association (NCTA) committee. She also volunteers with the NCTA membership committee. With her leadership role as the Testing Coordinator, she participates in annual professional development activities, including but not limited to ACT, College Board, and NCTA conferences with the focus on maintaining knowledge and awareness of effective student success, student support, and providing first-year freshmen students with a streamline Accuplacer assessment. Her steward leadership is driven by the Testing Center mission-critical areas of the Institutional Effectiveness (IE) organization. Leaders in other divisions such as the Student Affairs, College of Education, and College of Liberal Arts and Sciences are often relied upon for student support services from the Testing Center. 

Dr. Swain’s formal education includes a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership, Policy & Law, with a Masters of General Counseling, and a Bachelor of Science, all from the Alabama State University. She annually completes certifications with several testing agencies to maintain updated status compliance for the Testing Center. In addition, she is responsible for revenues generated by the Testing Center and establishing procedures to ensure high standards of educational integrity that meet the needs of our students, faculty, administration, and the community. Lastly, Dr. Swain was a former Board member with the Alabama Association of Testing Professionals, and she served on the Educational Leadership, Policy and Law Doctoral Program newsletter committee.

Research Interest and Projects

Swain’s research and future teaching interests are to engage students with successful best practical testing experiences in secondary and post-secondary education and continue to provide helpful and valuable resources for ASU students and the community. To expand my interest in adult education with an emphasis on assessments.

Professional Expertise
Knowledgeable in testing certifications, assessments specialist, financial QuickBooks, and the improvement of Testing Center’s procedures.

 

 

Stacey Timmons
Grant Research Specialist II
Kilby Hall, Suite 1
(334) 604-8034
stimmons@alasu.edu

Ms. Timmons is an Alabama State University graduate who received her Bachelor’s degree in Business Management.  Ms. Timmons worked with ASU in the Testing Center for over 20 years, offering college entry services, exam administration to students interested in graduate school, virtual testing and faculty test development.  She received her Lean Six Sigma Green Belt Certification in 2018 and she uses the tools and strategies to help develop the area’s processes.  She was promoted to a Grant Research Specialist II in the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs (ORSP) in 2022, where her primary duties include promoting adherence to federal and state compliance, while assisting PIs and Co-PIs.  She is responsible for optimizing the grant administration process, data reports, data archival, dispersing and reviewing grant proposals during the pre-award and post-award phases. 

 

 

Krystal Trone
Grant Research Specialist I
Kilby Hall, Suite 1
(334) 604-8078
ktrone@alasu.edu

Ms. Krystal Trone is an Alabama State University graduate who received a Bachelor's degree in English Literature with a minor in Political Science. Krystal serves as Grant Research Specialist I in the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs (ORSP). Her primary duties include tracking time and effort, maintaining grant files, and providing technical support to principal investigators and the ORSP Director in the development, review submission tracking. set-up and closeout of all aspects related to grant contract proposals. She brings to Alabama State University five years of management and over 10 years of customer service experience. 

 

 

Avis Wheeler
Learning and Development Officer
Suite 2C Kilby Hall
(334) 604-6882
awheeler@alasu.edu

Mrs. Avis Wheeler is an alumnus of Huntingdon College and Troy State University, Montgomery from which she earned a Master of Science in Management.  She is certified in Training and Development by the University of Alabama and Lean Six Sigma through the Six Sigma Global Institute. Her experience includes conducting needs assessments, career coaching, training development and facilitation. Mrs. Wheeler's expertise lies in soft skills training facilitation including the following topics: Civility in the Workplace, Customer Service, and Team Building.  She holds memberships with the Association for Talent and Development and the Society for Human Resource Management.

 

 

George Williams
Testing Center -  Assessment Specialist
105 McGehee Hall
(334) 604-9036
gwilliams@alasu.edu

Mr. George Williams serves as an Assessment Specialist for Alabama State University.  He earned his Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Faulkner University.  He has over fifteen years combined experience in Project Management, Data Collection and Analysis.  As an Assessment Specialist, Mr. Williams will assist in the administration and collection of QEP surveys/assessments, data and provide support in the institutional planning and evaluation process. 

 

 

Jowaune Williams
Senior Statistician
205 McGehee Hall
(334) 604-9054
jawilliams@alasu.edu

Jowaune Williams is a graduate of Alabama State University with a Bachelor's degree in Psychology and a Master's degree in General Counseling. He has been employed with ASU since 2008. His primary responsibilities are performing a wide range of statistical analyses on research projects and studies according to the mission, vision and strategic plan of the University.  He provides a compilation of institutional data necessary for the completion of various data reports required by state, federal, and off-campus agencies as well as internal ad-hoc requests. Mr. Williams serves as the Tableau software administrator that oversees the Tableau data visualizations on the ASU website. He also performs administrative and support activities as it relates to the Tableau software. He proudly serves as the SGA Advisor, the Commencement Marshall, and on various committees on campus.