Faculty

Mrs. Heather Davenport
VP Human Resource Operations 
Carillion Clinic   
Mrs. Davenport received her B.S. from Longwood University and MBA from Liberty University. She is currently Vice President for Human Resource Operations at Carilion Clinic and an Adjunct lecturer at Roanoke College      

Mrs. Terri Fox, PMP
CIO  
Roanoke College
Mrs. Fox received her B.S. in Computer Science and Statistics from Roanoke College. She has served in many positions within Roanoke College's Information Technology Department during her career and was recently promoted to Chief Information Officer, overseeing all personnel, projects, strategy and budget for the department.

Mrs. Sharon C. Gibbs, CPA  
Director of Academic Advising          
Associate Professor  
Roanoke College   
Mrs. Gibbs received her B.S. and M.A. in Accounting from Virginia Tech. Prior to her joining Roanoke College in 2002, she was employed by the Norfolk Southern Corporation. Her research interests are pedagogical developments in active learning. She teaches Accounting and Leadership courses at Roanoke College.

Dr. Alice Louise Kassens  
John S. Shannon Professor of Economics           
Roanoke College           
Dr. Kassens is a Research Fellow with the Federal Reserve Bank, St. Louis; Senior Analyst with the Institute for Policy and Opinion Research; Director of the Center for Economic Freedom; a former member of the Governor’s Joint Advisory Board of Economists; and a past President of VAE. Her book, "Intemperate Spirits: Economic Adaptation During Prohibition," was published in August 2019. Dr. Kassens earned her B.A. in economics and history from William & Mary and her Ph.D. in economics from North Carolina State University. Her areas of specialty are labor and health economics. 

Mrs. Meghan Jester
Director of Career Exploration
PLACE     
Roanoke College                                                       
Mrs. Jester received her B.A. in History from Virginia Tech and M.Ed., in Educational Leadership from the University of Lynchburg. She is a Gallup-Certified Strengths Coach. Mrs. Jester has served in several roles in the field of career development. In her current role at the Center for Purpose, Life And Career Exploration (PLACE), she implements programs, services and resources to support students as they explore and prepare for their career paths.

Dr. Arnica Mulder, CMA, CFE  
Lecturer  
Roanoke College 
Dr. Mulder received her B.A. at Hogeschool Utrecht, MBA with a concentration in Finance and M.S. in Accounting from Old Dominion University, and Ph.D. in Advanced Accounting from North Central University. She is a Certified Managerial Accountant and a Certified Fraud Examiner. She is currently working on her Ph.D. in Advanced Accounting. Ms. Mulder previously worked as a Senior Accountant at Luna Innovations, Inc., and as a Finance Manager at Nuvotronics, LLC. She teaches Accounting and Finance courses.

Dr. Alice Obenchain-Leeson    
Assistant Professor     
Roanoke College   
Dr. Obenchain-Leeson received her B.B.A. from Roanoke College, M.B.A. from Averett University and D.B.A. from Nova Southeastern University. She has worked in higher education as both faculty and administration since earning her master’s degree. Dr. Obenchain-Leeson teaches undergraduate courses in Buyer Behavior and Marketing  Research and a graduate course in Strategic Marketing.

Dr. Elizabeth Parkins
Visiting Assistant Professor  
Roanoke College                             
Dr. Parkins received her B.A. from Washington & Lee University, M.S. from Syracuse University and D.B.A. from Johnson & Wales University. She teaches undergraduate courses in  Business Connections, Organizational Behavior & Management and Communications in Leadership. She also teaches in Roanoke College's MBA program. 

Dr. C. Michael Smith      
Assistant Professor    
Roanoke College                  
Dr. Smith received his Ph.D. in Resource Management and MBA from Virginia Tech. He obtained his B.B.A. from Roanoke College. He currently teaches courses on Leadership, Investments, and Personal Finance and recently completed the second edition of his textbook on investing.

Mr. Randy Stubstad 
Associate Chief Information Officer
Roanoke College                         
Mr. Stubstad received his B.S. in Computer Information Systems from Roanoke College. He is a 2015 TMI alumnus. He holds certifications from VMware and Microsoft, and he manages the core systems and infrastructure at Roanoke College.

Dr. Johanna Sweet  
Associate Professor
Roanoke College                              
Dr. Sweet received her Ed.D. in Human & Organization Learning from the Executive Leadership Program at The George Washington University, MBA from East Carolina University, and B.A. from UNC-Wilmington. She is a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR, SHRM-SCP). Her research interests are focused on psychological capital, self-authorship, and learning organizations. Dr. Sweet teaches Human Resource Management, Organizational Behavior, Authorship of Your Life, and Training and Development as well as teaches in the MBA program.