SUWF: Meet The Board

Jillian Amodio is a licensed social worker, LMSW and founder of Moms For Mental Health. She is a graduate of Salisbury University. She regularly writes and presents about LGBTQ initiatives, women’s right, suicide prevention, anti-bullying efforts, implicit bias, and other mental health issues, and teaches yoga, mindfulness, and empowerment. Her work includes facilitating group therapy programs which use a mindfulness-based approach to working with children on the autism spectrum. Her work has been featured in Psychology Today magazine, Psych Central, U.S. News & World Report, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Shape, and more.

Jillian Amodio’s work in progress, Powerfully Prepared: An Informational Guide to Understanding Your Body, is an inclusive, accepting, honest approach to empowering young girls and those assigned female at birth by arming them with knowledge and understanding of their bodies.

Vanice Antrum is a native of Bowie, MD where she spent most of her childhood with her parents and three older siblings. In 2008, she made her way to Salisbury, MD to attend Salisbury University. Vanice was very active on campus serving as a Peer Mentor in Powerful Connections, President of the Union of African American Students (now known as BSU) for 2 years, Orientation Leader, Phonathon Caller, and more. She graduated from Salisbury in 2012 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Information Systems. Vanice’s passion for working with college students was sparked during her senior year of college after spending her undergraduate career involved in campus life and watching how the staff in various departments had a major impact on her and the students around her. It would be those campus life experiences that would lead Vanice to stay at Salisbury to pursue a Master’s Degree in Education and serve as a graduate assistant in the student activities office. She graduated from her Master’s program in May 2014.

During her graduate and professional careers thus far, Vanice has worked in multicultural affairs, student activities, student leadership, new student orientation, and more. In August 2014 she became the Coordinator of Multicultural Programs in the Office of Multicultural Student Services at Salisbury University. There she worked with students from diverse backgrounds through the Powerful Connections Program, the Multicultural Alliance of Organizations, and much more. Working at her alma mater was truly a rewarding experience. In 2017, Vanice accepted a position at Georgetown University in Washington, DC. There she served in multiple roles including Program Coordinator for Student Success and Assistant Director for Student Success & Multicultural Programming in the Center for Multicultural Equity and Access and the Associate Director in the Center for Student Engagement at Georgetown. Her passion for working with college students and helping them succeed is what drives her work. She returned to work at her alma mater, Salisbury University in 2022 as the Director of Multicultural Affairs in the Office of Diversity and Inclusion. She loves the bonds that she is able to build with students and watching them grow and flourish during her time working with them and beyond.

Vanice currently lives in Delmar, Maryland and loves to spend time with her family and friends. She is also very active in her community through her membership in Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. Service to others and pushing people to the next level has always been her passion.

Cristina Cammarano emigrated from Italy to the United States, where she is an associate professor of philosophy at Salisbury University and Director of the Bellavance Program in the Honors College. R She likes to think of philosophy as an education for all human persons. Her research interests include historical conceptions of inquiry and travel in relation to education, the public dimensions of philosophy (especially but not only philosophy in schools), and the experience of migrants in multicultural societies. Cristina leads a program of Philosophy in Schools in collaboration with the county public schools. In joining SU Women’s Forum, Cristina wants to work so that all women and girls have equal rights in life and in the work place.

Mou Chakraborty is the Director of External Library Services for SU Libraries. Mou holds an MA in English from University of Calcutta, India, and a Masters in Library and Information Science from the University of Missouri-Columbia, USA. Her professional interests include, but are not limited to, distance learning, information literacy, copyright, customer service training and issues, international students and education. She hails originally from Calcutta, India but has been in the United States for many years. Mou is a classical Indian dancer; she has directed and choreographed numerous programs in India as well as in the United States. She also enjoys reading, traveling, watching selected TV programs, listening to music, and spending quality time with her daughter and son. Mou enjoys the sisterhood and camaraderie of SUWF and tries her best to make meaningful contribution to the group to further the mission.

Kaynabess Freda is an Assistant Professor in the School of Nursing. She has practiced as a certified medical/surgical nurse since 2007 in Washington DC and the Eastern Shore of Maryland. She has been at SU since 2011. Her research interests include writing preparation for nursing students, genetic disorders, and lactation rights for women. She is a self-proclaimed “lactivist” and is very proud to have been a part of the implementation of a “Mother’s Room” in the Academic Commons. Her best days are spent with her two amazing children, Reverdy and Valentina.

Eileen has been teaching full-time in the SU Social Work department since 2008. Prior to this she was the Executive Director of the Richmond Virginia, Ronald McDonald House, a home away from home for families whose children are being treated for cancer and other serious illness. She has also worked as the Public Education Coordinator for the YWCA’s Women’s Advocacy Program, a crisis center for raped and battered woman. Her teaching and service is informed by what she has learned from the individuals and families she has worked with. She looks forward to working with the SUWF and assisting with special events.

Candace Henry is the Director of the Disability Resource Center at Salisbury University. Candace holds a MS in Counseling and Human Services and a BA in Psychology from Grambling State University. Candace is passionate about social justice, access, equity, inclusion, education, and advocacy. She utilizes the social adapted and empowerment model of disability to promote self-advocacy, leadership, and inclusion for all students. This Fall, Candace will begin the Doctor of Education program at Salisbury University in Contemporary Curriculum Theory and Instruction: Literacy. Candace enjoys reading, watching football and basketball, listening to music, and spending quality time with her husband, daughter, and son. Candace joined the Women’s Forum at SU because she wants to be a role model to her daughter and other young girls in the local community.

Check back soon for a bio.

Hannah Prouse is a Student Accessibility Specialist in the Disability Resource Center at Salisbury University. Hannah holds a MA in Conflict Analysis and Dispute Resolution and a BA in Conflict Analysis and Dispute Resolution, both from Salisbury University. Hannah is currently completing a Post-Baccalaureate Certificate in Higher Education at Salisbury University. Hannah’s area of interest is providing academic skill-building services to students with disabilities. Hannah enjoys reading, yoga, and spending time with her dog, family, and friends. Hannah is excited to join the SU Women’s Forum to help support initiatives for all who identify as female.

Carolina Bown, Secretary of the SU Chapter of the Women’s Forum, is originally from Chile and she teaches all levels of Spanish language, Spanish for Business, and Spanish for Heritage Speakers through the Department of Modern Languages. Carolina is also the Campus Director of the Nonprofit Leadership Alliance and Director of the SU winter study abroad program in Ecuador. Her research interests focus on female leadership in Andean indigenous communities and on language heritage learners. In these fields, Bown has published in prestigious journals and presented papers at regional and international conferences.

Lt Sandra Bradley has served as a member of the Salisbury University Police Department since 2010. A lifelong resident of and the longest serving female police officer in Wicomico County, Lt Bradley earned her Bachelor of Science degree (Criminal Justice) and Master’s degree (Human Resource Management) from Wilmington University. A 2017 graduate from Northwestern University’s School of Police and Staff Command, Lt Bradley strives to ensure that her agency delivers responsive and professional public safety services to all campus community members. In 2014, she received the university’s Employee of Year award. As a member of the Women’s forum, she hopes to assist with enhancing the role of women and diversity in general at SU.

Kimberly Brown is a Senior Political Science Major with a Minor in Marketing Management at Salisbury University. She is an Intern for the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, and a liaison for the Salisbury University Women’s Forum. Kimberly is very involved on campus. She is a sister of the Alpha Sigma Tau Sorority where she previously held the position of Director of Philanthropy. This position allowed her to do community outreach for women around the Salisbury community. She is also a Campus Host and Orientation Leader. Kimberly is thrilled to be assisting the SUWF with their programs and initiatives.

Chin-Hsiu Chen is an Associate Professor in the Department of Early and Elementary Education at Salisbury University. She received her Ph.D. in Early Childhood Education from University of Victoria, Canada. In addition to her faculty position, she serves as the Executive Director of Eastern Shore Child Care Resource Center. Chin-Hsiu's rich cultural background has provided her the opportunity to work in various early childhood education settings in the U.S., Canada, and Taiwan. Through a socio-cultural lens, she investigates children’s play as learning. She is dedicated to ensuring high quality teacher education programs that are nationally accredited. She is a strong advocate for equity in early childhood education for both students and caregivers. Thus, Chin-Hsiu is excited to join the SUWF to create a more attractive and secure working environment for all women.

Louise Detwiler is a Professor of Spanish at Salisbury University. She holds a Ph.D. in Hispanic literature, with a gender studies minor, from Indiana University Bloomington, where she studied under a former director of the Kinsey Institute. She has published widely on a subgenre of Latin American literature called “testimonio.” Her co-edited collection of scholarly essays , Pushing the Boundaries of Latin American Testimony, foregrounds 21st-century manifestations of these urgent and contestatory life narratives. She was drawn to this field in part because of its rich theoretical history regarding gender and genre. At her previous institution, she was a founding member of the Women’s Caucus there. She is thrilled to continue this work on the ground at SU as a new member of the SUWF board!

Dr. Chrys Egan is a Professor of Communication and Director of the Youth Innovation Academy. In the summer of 2020, she steps down from her role as Co-Director of the Office of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity to begin serving as Associate Dean of the Fulton School of Liberal Arts. She has 35 academic publications and 50 popular press articles on communication, leadership, and culture. She was President of the Popular Culture Association in the South, and is the 2020 President of the International Leadership Association’s Women and Leadership Member Community. She has taught over 40 different university subjects, mentored more than 100 research students, and delivered 100 conference presentations. She earned SU awards for President’s Diversity for Faculty, Student Government Association Outstanding Faculty, Alumni Faculty Appreciation, Outstanding Research Mentor, President’s Faculty Award, and Distinguished Faculty. In the state, she has been honored with the University System of Maryland Board of Regents Excellence in Mentoring, Maryland Top 100 Women, and Leadership Maryland. She has two wonderful sons.

Heidi Fritz is an Assistant Professor in the Psychology Department at Salisbury University. She received a Ph.D. in health psychology from Carnegie Mellon University in 1998, which was followed by a postdoctoral fellowship researching women’s health at the University of Pittsburgh in the department of Cardiovascular Behavioral Medicine. She has a long-standing interest in the social and psychological factors that promote resilience in the face of stressful events, and her early research career examined factors that facilitate successful coping among adults facing the diagnosis of a chronic illness. In 2003, she unexpectedly became a member of a highly stressed population that has received little empirical attention: Parents of children with disabilities. Her interests have since turned to understanding the unique stressors and obstacles to health encountered by parent-caregivers, and her current research investigates the extent to which humor use, positive reframing, and social support may mitigate stress among parents of children with disabilities. She is drawn to the mission of the SUWF because the bulk of caregiving work has historically been shouldered by women, and understanding the nature of the obstacles to caregiver health may help facilitate a cultural shift toward gender equality.

Alexandra Ginta Martin is an adjunct lecturer in the Conflict Analysis and Dispute Resolution Department at Salisbury University and a senior research collaborator and practitioner at the Bosserman Center for Conflict Resolution since 2016. Alexandra’s professional interests gravitate strongly around teaching, as well as organizational conflict resolution, fair practices, diversity and inclusion.

Alexandra is originally from Sibiu, Romania. Her academic background is in International Relations and European Studies, with a distinct focus on diplomacy and foreign affairs. Alexandra has a full professional and academic proficiency in English, French, Spanish and Romanian, and intermediate proficiency in German and Italian. While living and working in Europe, she was involved in outreach initiatives and information campaigns directed at underrepresented ethnic minorities and social groups.

Annette Johnson joined Salisbury University as the new Diversity & Inclusion Specialist in April of 2019. Annette’s mission is to work collaboratively with students, faculty, and staff to create an overarching diversity framework focused on connecting diversity and inclusion throughout SU and the regional community.

Annette is married and has two daughters, a son-in-law, and a grand-dog.

Angeline is a Research & Instructional Librarian at Salisbury University, liaising to Sociology, Political Science, Psychology, and Theatre, Music, and Dance departments as well as the Honors College, and the Institute for Public Affairs and Civic Engagement (PACE). She also serves as the diversity coordinator for the Library. Her research interests include information literacy advocacy and comics. Angeline received her AB in Drama from Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, NY and her Master in Library Science, Certificate in Special Collections, from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She is an avid fan of the Manchester City Football Club, bookmaking, and fountain pens.

Molly is the Administrative Assistant at Salisbury University’s Center for Extended & Lifelong Learning. She manages marketing and program coordination for the Center’s diverse slate of lifelong learning offerings, and is part of the team the directs the Girls Innovation Academy at SU (GIA), a successful innovation, leadership and communication program for middle school aged girls.

Before coming to Salisbury University she spent many years in the software industry, working on implementation projects and in SaaS operations. Molly, a Pennsylvania native, is a transplant to the Eastern Shore, deciding to turn a vacation destination into a home for her, her husband and three children.

Elsie Walker is the founding Chair of SUWF and led the group from 2016-2023. Along with being Professor of Film Studies in Salisbury University’s Department of English, she edits SU’s international journal Literature Film Quarterly. She has authored three books on film soundtracks with Oxford University Press. Her books prioritize the significance of listening as a meaningful action, and this resonates with her commitment to social justice. She is also the proud mother of two strong children: Charlie Hope and Dorothy Jane. Elsie joined the Women’s Forum at SU because she wants to be a good role model for her daughters.