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VU Cares Fellowship

The VU CARES Fellowship equips faculty with the knowledge and tools needed to recognize student well-being concerns, respond effectively, and strengthen a culture of care and support across Vanderbilt.

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About

This fellowship is an opportunity for faculty to become a VU CARES Fellow and learn about topics such as:

  • Helping students in distress
  • Behavior intervention strategies
  • Creating a sense of belonging in the classroom
  • Suicide prevention certification
Participants will receive an $1,000 stipend (subject to tax)

VU CARES Fellows

  • Summer 2025 Inaugural Cohort

    Blair School of Music

    • Daniel Taylor, Assistant Professor, Instrumental Music Education
    • Dashon Burton, Assistant Professor, Music
    • Isidora Miranda, Assistant Professor of the Practice, Musicology and Ethnomusicology
    • Molly Barth, Associate Professor, Flute
    • Tyler Nelson, Associate Professor, Voice

    College of Arts and Science

    • Adeana McNicholl, Assistant Professor, Religious Studies
    • Justin Quarry, Principal Senior Lecturer, English
    • Mark Sanchez, Assistant Professor, Asian Studies
    • Meredyth Wegener, Senior Lecturer, Neuroscience (DUS)
    • Antonia Kaczkurkin, Assistant Professor, Psychology
    • Ashleigh Maxcey, Senior Lecturer, Psychology
    • Gretchen Selcke, Principal Senior Lecturer, Latino and Latina Studies
    • Jaime Bruce, Senior Lecturer, Medicine, Health, and Society
    • Juan Andres Gannon, Assistant Professor, Political Science
    • Rena A.S. Robinson, Professor, Chemistry
    • Thomas Clements, Senior Lecturer, Biological Sciences
    • Susan Dine, Senior Lecturer, History of Art and Architecture 
    • Brian Bill, Senior Lecturer, Biological Sciences

    Peabody College

    • Andrea Capizzi, Associate Professor of the Practice, Special Education (DUS)
    • Kimberly Marble, Assistant Professor of the Practice, Psychology and Human Development

    College of Connected Computing

    • Bryan Ward, Assistant Professor, Computer Science, Electrical and Computer Engineering
    • Julie Johnson, Professor of the Practice, Computer Science (DUS)
    • Tyler Derr, Assistant Professor, Computer Science

    School of Engineering

    • Allison Pereira, Assistant Professor of the Practice, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
    • Amanda Lowery, Professor of the Practice, Biomedical Engineering (DUS)
    • Lori Troxel, Professor of the Practice, Civil and Environmental Engineering (DUS)
    • Tom Withrow, Associate Dean and Professor of the Practice, Mechanical Engineering
    • Walter Collett,  Professor of the Practice, Electrical and Computer Engineering
    • Ghina Absi, Assistant Professor of the Practice, Civil and Environmental Engineering
  • May 2026 Cohort

    College of Arts and Science

    • Anna Marra, Assistant Professor In The Practice Of, French and Italian
    • Corey Herrmann, Assistant Professor of the Practice, Anthropology
    • David Gonzalez, Senior Lecturer, Biological Sciences
    • Denis Zhernokleyev, Senior Lecturer, German, Russian, and East European Studies
    • Elisabeth Sandberg, Senior Lecturer, Psychology
    • Hannah Housden, Senior Lecturer, Mathematics
    • Huidong Li, Research Assistant Professor, Earth and Environmental
    • Joel Rodrigue, Associate Professor, Economics 
    • Jonathan Rattner, Associate Professor, Cinema and Media Arts
    • Katie Clements, Senior Lecturer, Chemistry
    • Sarah Delassus, Principal Senior Lecturer, Spanish and Portuguese
    • Silke Schade, Assistant Professor of the Practice, German, Russian, and East European Studies
    • Stacy Clifford Simplican, Principal Senior Lecturer, Gender and Sexuality 
    • Susan Verberne-Sutton, Principal Senior Lecturer, Chemistry  

    Blair School of Music

    • Jennifer McGuire, Principal Senior Lecturer, Collaborative Piano

    College of Connected Computing

    • Gina "Rui" Bai, Assistant Professor of the Practice, Computer Science
    • Meiyi Ma, Assistant Professor, Institute for Software Integrated Systems 

    Divinity School

    • David "Dave" Michelson, Associate Professor, Divinity School 

    School of Engineering

    • Eugene "Gene" LeBoeuf, Professor, Civil Engineering
    • Leon Bellan, Associate Professor, Mechanical Engineering 
    • Sanjiv Gokhale, Professor of the Practice, Civil Engineering

    Owen Graduate School of Management

    • Daniel Yang, Assistant Professor, Owen School of Management 

    Peabody College

    • Andrew Hostetler, Professor of the Practice, Teaching and Learning
    • Catherine McTamaney, Professor of the Practice, Teaching and Learning
    • Jenni Dunbar, Senior Lecturer, Psychology and Human Development
    • Maria Osina, Senior Lecturer, Psychology and Human Development
  • June 2026 Cohort

    College of Arts and Science

    • Amy Crockett, Senior Lecturer, Economics
    • Elizabeth Covington, Principal Senior Lecturer, English
    • Greta Galeotti, Assistant Professor, History of Art and Architecture
    • Henry Chan, Senior Lecturer, Mathematics
    • Lily Claiborne, Associate Professor of the Practice, Earth and Environmental
    • Sheri Shaneyfelt, Assistant Professor of the Practice, History of Art and Architecture
    • Sophie Bjork-James, Assistant Professor, Anthropology    

    Blair School of Music

    • Stan Link, Associate Professor, Office of the Dean
    • Sun-A Park, Assistant Professor, Piano 

    College of Connected Computing

    • Graham Hemingway, Professor of the Practice, Computer Science
    • Mohammad Kavousi, Assistant Professor of the Practice, Computer Science

    School of Engineering

    • Brian Sierawski, Research Associate Professor, Institute for Space and Defense Electronics 
    • Jason Mitchell, Assistant Professor of the Practice, Mechanical Engineering  
    • Jeremi London, Associate Professor, Mechanical Engineering 

    Peabody College

    • Brian Kissel, Professor of the Practice, Teaching and Learning
    • Eleanor Hancock, Assistant Professor of the Practice, Special Education 
    • Heather Lefkowitz, Lecturer, Human and Organizational Development
    • Molly Collins, Associate Professor of the Practice, Teaching and Learning
    • Andrea Henrie, Associate Professor of the Practice, Teaching and Learning 
  • July 2026 Cohort

    College of Arts and Science

    • Anna Castillo, Assistant Professor, Spanish and Portuguese 
    • Annie Klyce, Assistant Professor of the Practice, Earth and Environmental
    • Christina Karageorgou Bastea, Professor, Spanish and Portuguese
    • Christoph Zeller, Professor, German,  Russian, and East European Studies
    • Elizabeth Haynes, Assistant Professor of the Practice, Theatre
    • Gilbert Gonzales, Associate Professor, Medicine, Health and Society
    • Kent Dolezal, Senior Lecturer, Economics
    • Mariah Kramer, Senior Lecturer, Cinema and Media Arts
    • Patrick Murphy, Principal Senior Lecturer, Spanish and Portuguese
    • Pengfei Li, Senior Lecturer, Asian Studies
    • Ruppi Saggi, Principal Senior Lecturer, Economics 
    • Sasha Crawford-Holland, Assistant Professor, Cinema and Media Arts    

    Blair School of Music

    • Emelyne Bingham, Principal Senior Lecturer, Music Theory and Cognition 

    School of Engineering

    • Dave Berezov, Professor of the Practice, Engineering Science and Management
    • Ken Frampton, Professor of the Practice, Mechanical Engineering
    • Ranjana Sahai, Assistant Professor of the Practice, Mechanical Engineering 

    Peabody College

    • Emily Pendergrass, Professor of the Practice, Teaching and Learning
    • Eric Wilkey, Assistant Professor, Psychology and Human Development
    • Jonathan Seiden, Assistant Professor, Leadership Policy and Organization
    • Meaghan Mundy, Senior Lecturer, Human and Organizational Development 

Eligibility & Requirements

  • Eligibility
    • Each of 3 cohorts will be limited to 30 faculty member,
    • Faculty must be full-time (tenure stream or continuing track),
    • Preference will be given to faculty who primarily teach undergraduate students
  • Requirements

    participants must be able to:

    • Attend one full-day, in-person training (May 12, June 1, or July 13, 2026),
    • Attend one 2-hour, in-person follow up meeting in Fall 2026,
    • Complete all relevant pre- and post-assessments, and
    • Facilitate a pre-prepared 5-10 min presentation within their home department.

Nominate

Interested or know a colleague who is deserving of this opportunity? 
(Self-nominations accepted)

Nominations for the 2026 cohort have closed. 

Contact Us

Please email with StudentCareNetwork@vanderbilt.edu with any questions.

Fellowship developed in collaboration with Student Care Network, The Office of Faculty Development and AdvancED.

Additional Resources

Faculty Mental Health/Wellbeing Resources