ODI Staff

José A. Villalba is the Vice President for Diversity and Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer. Prior to his current position, José served as Senior Associate Dean for Faculty, Evaluation, and Inclusivity in the Office of the Dean of the College. He also is a professor of Counseling. He has been affiliated with the Department of Counseling since arriving at Wake Forest in 2011. Prior to arriving at Wake Forest, he was an associate professor of counseling at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, as well as an assistant professor of counseling at Indiana State University.

He teaches courses in multicultural counseling, school counseling, and health and human services. His research interests include health disparities in Latina/o youth, as well as Latina/o access to and completion of higher education options.

Over the past 4 years, since arriving in the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, he has facilitated diversity and inclusion efforts for staff, faculty, and students, in an effort to address issues of access and equity across campus.

Shannon is an educator and facilitator whose work and expertise meet at the intersection of diversity and inclusion and leadership development. Her passion is to connect and develop individuals in order to create inclusive and equitable spaces. As the Senior Associate Director, she oversees the development and facilitation of workshops, trainings, and programming centered around cultural competence development and inclusive practices to students, faculty, and staff.

She brings a decade of experience in diversity and inclusion, campus activities, leadership development, college access, and nonprofit management. Her professional activities include holding volunteer leadership positions with the National Association for Campus Activities and has presented at conferences across the country. Additionally, she serves as a Co-Lead Facilitator for the LeaderShape Institute.

Shannon earned her Bachelor of Science in Journalism (Public Relations) from Ohio University and a Master of Education in Higher Education Administration & Student Personnel from Kent State University and holds a Certificate of Nonprofit Management from Case Western Reserve University.

Eliese is the Administrative Assistant in the Office of Diversity and Inclusion. She is a graduate of East Carolina University where she earned her B.A. in English in 2019. Since graduating from ECU, she has worked in both primary and higher educational settings in various capacities.

Eliese was raised in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and has a passion for helping students have the best experience possible throughout their time in University.

Savannah serves as the Program Coordinator for the Intercultural Center. She is a proud graduate of Wake Forest and earned her B.A. in English and Politics & International Affairs.

Savannah is passionate about advocating for students of color and increasing cultural competency within institutions of higher education. A native North Carolinian, she is excited to explore Winston-Salem and be a member of the community.

TaShaun began her career in secondary education in 2003 and has worked in higher education institutions since 2008 with positions in academic and student affairs.

She joined Wake Forest University in 2014 and worked in the Human Resources Department before joining the Office of Diversity and Inclusion in 2015. She is a part of the Diversity and Inclusion Leadership Team and serves as the business manager with financial reporting and budget oversight. She works closely with the Vice President to develop and enhance strategies to strengthen business practices and research while innovating successful projects to improve office support. She works closely with the Network for Inclusive Leadership and Engagement (formally CID) and the North Carolina Diversity & Inclusion Partners Council. Her work also includes extending communication efforts for the Office of Diversity and Inclusion through the management of the ODI website, newsletter, and social media channels.

Elliott received a master’s degree in Adult and Higher Education with a concentration in Student Personnel Services from North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University and her bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Management from Winston-Salem State University.

Kayla serves as the Inclusive Practice Manager in the Office of Diversity and Inclusion.

Kayla is passionate about leveraging education and personal development opportunities in concert with organizational strategies to drive structural change related to diversity, equity, and inclusion, and they have explored this work through multiple avenues. Professionally, prior to moving into the Inclusive Practice Manager role in 2022, Kayla spent a decade in LGBTQ+ support and inclusion work within higher education. Most recently, they worked with the WFU LGBTQ+ Center for six and a half years where they created the Developing Empowering and Affirming Communities (D.E.A.C.) Allies program, supported students in their identity and leadership development, and fostered an inclusive community for Deacs of all gender identities and sexual orientations. They also served on the executive board for the Consortium of Higher Education LGBT Resource Professionals.

Additionally, Kayla graduated from the Wake Forest University Master of Business Administration program in fall 2021; during their studies, they focused on organizational behavior, DEI strategy, and leadership development.

Prior to joining the WFU community, Kayla earned their Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology from the University of Alabama and their Master of Education in Higher Education and Student Affairs from the University of South Carolina.

Dr. AJ Mazaris is the founding director of the LGBTQ+ Center at Wake Forest University, where they also teach in the Department of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies.

Dr. Mazaris serves as part of the university’s Diversity and Inclusion Leadership Team, and is committed to creating an institution that welcomes, supports, and engages everyone to their fullest potential.

Dr. Mazaris has a Ph.D. in American Studies from Brown University in Providence, R.I., where they were honored to hold a Jacob Javits Fellowship from the U.S. Department of Education. Their teaching and research focus on LGBTQ history, queer theory, public history, and gender studies. At Brown they served as the first Coordinator of the LGBTQ Resource Center, and as Graduate Proctor at the Sarah Doyle Women’s Center. They were also a member of Brown’s Diversity Advisory Board, where they worked specifically on issues related to first-generation students and social class. While in Providence, they served on the board of the Equity Action Fund, Rhode Island’s fund for LGBTQ initiatives. Before coming to Wake Forest, Dr. Mazaris served as a Presidential Management Fellow at the Internal Revenue Service and the National Park Service.

Dr. Jonathan A. McElderry has served as the Assistant Dean of Students and the Executive Director of the Intercultural Center at Wake Forest University since June 2016. Additionally, he serves as an affiliate faculty member in the University’s Department of Counseling.

His research has sought to raise awareness of the experiences of underrepresented students at predominantly White institutions and provide strategies to increase their academic and social success. His professional activities include holding several leadership positions within the American College Personnel Association (ACPA); serving as a Co-Lead Facilitator for the LeaderShape Institute; interning with the Social Justice Training Institute (SJTI) and a standout scholar-practitioner, who has authored/co-authored research articles, book chapters, and mainstream resources. Most recently, Dr. McElderry was elected as the Director of Equity and Inclusion for the ACPA Governing Board and was named a 2020 Annuit Coeptis Emerging Professional by the association.

Dr. McElderry holds a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis from the University of Missouri, an M.Ed. in College Student Personnel from Ohio University, and a B.S. in Administration of Justice from George Mason University.

Courtney Milhouse is the Administrative Assistant at the Intercultural Center.

Before coming to Wake Forest, she spent 11 years as the Front Office Secretary at North Point High School in Waldorf, MD. Courtney, a lifelong learner, attended Virginia State University and is currently continuing her studies in Office Management and Human Resources.

Raised in southern Maryland, she is excited to bring her passion for helping students realize their full potential to Wake Forest.

Malika is the inaugural Assistant Vice President of Inclusive Practice.

Prior to this role, she served as the inaugural Director of Wellbeing at Wake Forest University, leading the development, institutionalization and collective impact of Thrive – Wake’s comprehensive approach to wellbeing.

Malika has extensive experience integrating research and practice, creating behavior change interventions, developing strategic plans that guide culture change, and defining assessment tools to ensure research and practice effectiveness. Prior to returning to Wake Forest, she served on the faculty of the UNC-Chapel Hill School of Medicine, and as an administrator and faculty lead with the NC Translational and Clinical Sciences Institute (NC TraCS). In these capacities, Malika was on the investigative team for 10 federally and institutionally funded projects and centers in the areas of health equity and community engagement. With her training and outreach expertise, she provided consultation and technical assistance to collaborative efforts among students, community members, and faculty.

Malika is a Wake Forest alumna and holds a PhD in Public Health (Health Behavior and Health Education) from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In addition to her role as AVP of Inclusive Practice, she has an appointment in the Department of Health and Exercise Science.

Antayzha serves as the Program Coordinator for the LGBTQ+ Center and the Women’s Center. She earned her B.A. in History from Wake Forest, where she served as a student assistant in the LGBTQ+ Center and a campus-wide advocate for inclusion.

Antayzha was raised in Lenoir, North Carolina, and has a passion for developing and supporting intersectional programming and equitable practices.