Meet the Team
Paul Lazarony
Associate Vice President, Undergraduate Studies
Dr. Paul Lazarony joined the faculty at California State University, Northridge in 1997 and is currently serving as the Associate Vice President of Undergraduate Studies. He previously served as Associate Dean of the David Nazarian College of Business and Economics for seven years, as Chair of the Department of Accounting and Information Systems for six years, and as Associate Chair for five years.
Dr. Lazarony is an advocate for justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion on campus as evidenced by his work with the CSUN Pride Center, by becoming a National SEED (Seeking Educational Equity and Diversity) Facilitator, and his service on the Educational Equity Committee, Emergency Housing Committee, and Basic Needs Advisory Committee. He is the recipient of the 2023 CSUN Excellence in Diversity & Inclusion Award. Dr. Lazarony is a champion for student success and strives to see each student he works with as the amazing, unique individuals they are and provide them with the resources and support they need to have an equal opportunity to be successful. He supports the CSUN and CSU-wide communities by teaching professional development workshops on topics including "Emotional Intelligence for Your Wellbeing," and "Discovering Your Essence and Defining Your Core Values."
Dr. Lazarony joined the faculty in the Department of Accounting and Information Systems in 1999, attaining the rank of Professor in 2010. He earned his B.S. in Business Administration with an option in Marketing, and M.A. and Ph.D. in Computer Technology and Business Education all from The Ohio State University.
Jill Mejia
Director, Undergraduate Studies
Jill Mejia is the Director of Undergraduate Studies. Prior to joining UGS, Jill served the CSUN community in the offices of Admissions & Records and Undergraduate Degree Services. She earned her B.A. in Speech Communication from CSU Long Beach, and her M.A. in Educational Administration from CSUN. Jill has been an advocate for student success and has helped countless students break through barriers to reach their academic goals. In her role she provides guidance on academic policy and procedures supporting student success, retention and graduation goals while identifying and addressing administrative barriers and systemic inequities.
Whitney Scott
Director, Faculty Development
Dr. Whitney Scott is an expert faculty developer and conflict resolution specialist with nearly two decades in higher education cultivating spaces for transformation and connection. Her craft of employing dynamic workshops through empathetic facilitation has bestowed her with awards such as CSUN’s Distinguished Teaching Award; provided unique experiences like serving as a California certified superior court Conflict Mediator; and leadership roles such as the CSU President of Faculty Development Council. But serving the CSUN faculty through the office of Faculty Development has been a career highlight. As a tenured Professor in the Child & Adolescent Development Department, her educational mastery is rooted in human development (PhD in Education, UCSB) and communication theory (BA in Communications).
Marcy De Veaux
Associate Director, Faculty Development
Dr. Marcella “Marcy” De Veaux is Associate Director of Faculty Development, a tenured Professor for the Department of Journalism at CSUN and a Depth and Liberation Psychologist.
She facilitates workshops for building equity in the classroom as well as creates strategies around diversity-related initiatives, including approaches to eradicate unconscious bias.
Shally Dhiman
Administrative Analyst
Shally Dhiman started her career at CSUN in Academic Resources and Planning and then transitioned to a position in the Office of Undergraduate Studies. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Business Management and Master’s in Educational Administration from CSUN. She works very closely with students, assisting them with understanding different academic policies and procedures. In her role, she tries to make a positive impact on students by actively listening and guiding them with various resources on campus. In her spare time, she is passionate about her quilling: paper-art work. She has quite a display of her artwork in her office.
Rachel Guerra
Articulation Officer
Rachel Guerra was born and raised in Southern California. She started her career at CSUN in the Developmental Math Program and moved on to a position in Faculty Development. She provided program leadership, analysis, and support for all Faculty Development programs and events. In her new position, as the Articulation Officer, she is responsible for coordination of the undergraduate course articulation process. She manages articulation agreements between CSUN and California Community Colleges, other CSU campuses and maintains articulation records and data. She also maintains the ASSIST, TES (Transfer Evaluation System) and CSUN Roadmaps.
Julie Hunter
Curriculum Specialist/Catalog Editor
Julie Hunter is the editor of the University Catalog. She is a proud CSUN alumna, holding a B.S. degree in Business Administration (’06). In addition to the catalog, she helps facilitate the undergraduate curriculum review process, oversees the OnBase Curriculum Review Workflow, maintains the department’s websites, and mentors student assistants and interns. She participated in the CSUN Shine from Within 2015 cohort, and is presently the recording secretary for the Educational Policies Committee and a member of the Staff Service Awards Committee. Prior to Undergraduate Studies, Julie served as assistant to the associate dean in the David Nazarian College of Business and Economics from 2006-2014.
Hillary Kaplowitz
Senior Instructional Designer, Faculty Development
Hillary Kaplowitz is the Senior Instructional Designer for Faculty Development at California State University, Northridge (CSUN). She leads campus efforts to meet the needs of faculty using technology in their teaching and collaborates on programming focused on evidence-based engaging teaching practices. Hillary came to CSUN in 2008 as an Instructional Designer in Academic Technology and served as Lead for Instructional Design and Multimedia Services for the Faculty Technology Center from 2012-2019. In addition, she has concurrently served as a faculty lecturer at CSUN. Formerly teaching in the Multimedia Production option in Cinema and Television Arts for 8 years, she’s joined the Masters in Instructional Design program to develop and teach the "Introduction to Instructional Design" course. Prior to coming to CSUN, Hillary spent 14 years producing multimedia medical education for Zephyr Medical Enterprises, leaving as the Director of Educational Projects. Hillary holds a PhD in Instructional Design and Technology from the Darden College of Education & Professional Studies at Old Dominion University.
Sue Magdziarz
Instructional Designer, Faculty Development
Sue Magdziarz joined the Faculty Development department as an instructional designer in November 2022. In her role, she finds it rewarding to support faculty as they strive to create positive and effective learning environments for CSUN students. She grounds her work in evidence-based practices and learning sciences research as she manages projects, contributes to strategic planning efforts within the department, and coordinates the informal programming that takes place in FacDev Commons, which is a space for faculty located in the University Library.
Prior to joining the team at CSUN, Sue had a 25-year career in the field of science education in informal settings. During that time, she worked for nonprofits that focus on marine science education in out-of-school settings in California and Chicago. She draws on what she learned throughout her career and from earning her B.A. in Marine Biology (UC Santa Cruz), M.S. in Science Education with a focus on informal science education (CSU Long Beach), and M.A. in Learning Engineering (Boston College) to support faculty as they continue in their teaching, scholarship, service, and leadership journeys at CSUN.
Kristy Michaud
Director of Special Projects, Faculty Development
Kristy Michaud, PhD, is a professor of Political Science at CSUN. She joined Faculty Development as the Associate Director in 2015. From 2016-2018 she served as the Director of the Office of Student Success Innovations, where she worked with faculty, staff, and students to develop innovations to close the equity gaps among our students. She re-joined FacDev in 2021 as the Director of Special Projects.
Christian Reyes
Instructional Designer, Faculty Development
Christian Reyes in an Instructional Designer with Faculty Development. He supports FacDev programming by promoting inclusive and equitable teaching strategies that support CSUN students of all backgrounds and abilities. He previously worked as an instructional designer with the EPIC Program at UCLA and taught English and composition for several years in classrooms around the world. He earned his Ph.D. from the UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information Studies where his research focused on how children of Central American immigrants create networks of belonging on social media. A proud native of Chicago, he currently lives in Los Angeles with his wife and two children.