Avila Now

Shawna Pena-Downing ‘12 is the Coordinator of Career Services at Avila. Her favorite thing about returning to campus in this job is “building and cultivating student relationships that focus on their lifelong and professional development.”  “It’s interesting coming back as an employee. One thing it means is reconnecting with why I am here, and it...

“I was an award-winning participant in the Greater Kansas City Science and Engineering Fair back when I attended Shawnee Mission West High School in the 1980s,” said Avila Professor Karin Gastreich, Ph.D. “That was the experience that launched my career in science.” At Avila, Gastreich mentors students to help launch their science careers by inviting...

“Adults over the age of 25 represent roughly 40 percent of enrollment in U.S. higher education. That’s nearly 8 million learners,” (Gallagher, It’s time to reboot our thinking about adult learners in a digitally transformed world – EdSurge news 2021).  When the pandemic hit in 2020, enrollment dropped sharply due to economic hardship, changing roles...

On April 6th, 2022, Emilia Filby: Professional Health Science (Pre-Med/Pre-Pharm), Alexis Bates: Kinesiology, Michael Pinzino: Kinesiology, and Samantha Smith Professional Health Science (Pre-Occupational Therapy), were inducted into Alpha Epsilon Delta (AED). Alpha Epsilon Delta serves as an honor society and a service organization. Membership is based on each student’s scholastic achievement. By joining AED, students...

“Social Workers and nurses work closely in any medical setting and we felt it would be useful for them to better understand each other’s roles when it came to caring for patients.  We also saw this as an opportunity to apply knowledge and increase team-building skills,” said Avila Assistant Professor and Director of Field Education,...

Two Avila University psychology graduate students, Eleanor Dick and Lindsay Wing won awards at the 2022 Great Plains Students Psychology Convention held on March 15 & 16 in Emporia, Kansas. This convention brings psychology students together to exchange ideas, discuss relevant topics, and gain experience presenting their research. Avila Professor of Psychology Jordan Wagge, Ph.D.,...

Marie Payne, MSOD ‘18 is Director of Talent Management and Innovation and leads a team of Organizational Development Practitioners at Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City. She is a certified Change Management Practitioner and holds two leadership coaching certifications from UC Berkeley and the Kansas Leadership Center, as well as an ACC credential from the...

The sense of community is one of the first things you feel when stepping foot on Avila’s campus. The Avila Care Team (ACT) is one of the support layers that provide that sense of community at Avila. Made up of Avila faculty and staff, ACT is dedicated to ensuring the campus community’s needs are met...

Sharon Purnell is the Chief Human Resources Officer at Streamland Media. Previously, she worked as an HR executive for companies like Verde Associates, Riddell, and UL Corporation. Purnell earned her Master of Science in Organizational Development from Avila in 2008. Would you please share your career journey? “When I was in the MSOD program, what...

Brandi Riggs, MSOD ‘06 is a Vice President of Human Resources at McCownGordon Construction. She has worked as an HR professional and executive at UGA Finance and Spencer Reed. Recently, she was awarded the 2021 LEAD Award by the Missouri SHRM Chapter. Riggs earned her MSOD from Avila University in 2006 and is a member...