Student Ambassadors

Gerald Corporal (he/him)

Preferred Name: Gerald

Hometown: Olympia, WA

Prior Education: BA, University of Washington, M.Ed., University of Southern California

Bio:

 I am a second-year doctoral student in the Educational and Organizational Learning and Leadership (EOLL) Program. I identify as Filipino and a first-generation college student. I was born in Guåhan and has lived around the US and the world, being part of a military family. Professionally, I have worked over ten years in higher education, including academic advising, career services, alumni relations, and university advancement across USC, University of California, Los Angeles, and Seattle University; and have also been involved with numerous professional associations, including Council for Advancement of Support of Education (CASE), a Lawrence S. Preo Fellow with the Council for Alumni Association Executives (CAAE), and is extensively involved with that National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) and its Asian Pacific Islander Knowledge Community. In his free time, he enjoys traveling, running, learning photography, and is an avid sports fan.

Why Seattle University? I decided to pursue my Doctorate of Education at Seattle University because of the institution’s social justice focus, and specifically chose the College of Education and the EOLL program because of the collaborative nature of the curriculum, the applicability of the program objectives to the workplace, and the inter-disciplinary composite of its students.

Upon completing my doctoral degree, I intend to continue working in higher education administration, while leveraging the EdD to be engaged in research and publishing, and to teach undergraduate and graduate level courses.

Haripurkh Khalsa

Preferred name: Haripurkh Khalsa (She/Her)

Hometown: Los Angeles, CA

Prior Education: BA Journalism & Communications, University of Oregon; MA Communication & Leadership Studies, Gonzaga University

Bio: Haripurkh is a strategist and operator driven to advance societal wellbeing and address global challenges through the development of conscious capitalism at scale, cross sector innovation, and stakeholder-centric solutions. As an entrepreneur and intrapreneur, she brings 20 years of experience building strategy and programs at the intersections of social impact innovation, digital transformation, product and services development, go-to-market strategy, and marketing communications across a dozen industries. Currently, Haripurkh is a Strategy Director for Social Impact at Futerra, a global change agency.

What excited you about being a student in the EOLL Doctoral Program?

What excites me the most about being a student in the EOLL program is the cohort model that incorporates a breadth of professional sectors, the focus on social justice and community-led solutions, and the opportunity to grow, learn, and apply research-based practices in real-time.

Why did you choose Seattle U’s EOLL Program?

I chose the EOLL program because of the emphasis on transformative social change, practitioner-scholarship and applied research, and the flexibility to complete the degree while working full time.

Shawna Freeman Lane

Preferred name: Shawna Freeman Lane 

Hometown: San Francisco, CA 

Prior Education: Master of Business Administration from Augusta State University; Bachelor of Arts in Communications (Journalism), Minor in Spanish from Augusta State University 

Bio: Shawna Freeman Lane is the interim associate dean for student learning and success at Highline College. Prior to her current role, Shawna served as a tenured faculty member and the department coordinator for the Highline College Business department. She earned a bachelor’s degree (BA) in Communications Journalism in 2011 and a master’s degree in business administration (MBA) from Augusta State University in 2013. In her free time, Shawna enjoys traveling, cooking and spending time with her husband, Eric, their daughters, Mary Sophia, and Kennedy and newborn son, James. 

What excites you about being a student in the EOLL Doctoral Program? The most appealing and exciting aspect of being a student in the EOLL Doctoral Program is being able to consistently apply what I am learning to my current work. The value I have received already as a student only excites me more for what I will continue to learn from the program, as I know the tools and strategies I hone will be used by me as a leader for the rest of my life. 

Why did you choose Seattle U’s EOLL Program? I chose the EOLL program because it appeared to offer a hands-on program that would allow me to continue my career in the field, while also helping me learn how to use the experience I have accumulated to become a better leader (with a social justice emphasis) in higher education. 

La Monte B. Marshall, Sr.

Preferred Name: La Monte B. Marshall, Sr. 

Hometown: New Orleans, LA

Prior Education: Associate of Arts in Management; Bachelor of Arts in Social Psychology; Master of Arts in Organizational Leadership 

Bio: La Monte is a military veteran with over 20 years of leadership experience in various roles and sectors. During his tenure in the military, he traveled extensively and lived in five continents (excluding North America), which enabled him to become ingratiated with multitudinous cultures. Consequently, those exposures profoundly contributed to honing and refining his leadership skills as well as his personal and professional development. La Monte is an experienced leader and manager with a background in assorted disciplines including, strategic planning and communication, international relations, project management, organizational development, behavior health counseling, and business consulting. He also brings many years of corporate and nonprofit/public service experience to the EOLL Doctoral Program. 

Additionally, he has collaborated with numerous public relations agencies and industry-leaders that are devoted to eradicating social disparities and institutional biases by promoting social justice through direct engagement and activism. Currently, La Monte is a full-time employee with the Department of Defense, an athletic director, and a coach. Furthermore, some of his responsibilities, hobbies, and interests are as follows: parenting, networking, community service, social justice advocacy, volunteering, stewardship, sports, and traveling.

What excites you about being a student in the EOLL Doctoral Program?

I am truly excited about being a part of an entity that is wide-ranging, which has a profound reputation for organizational learning and leadership and creating a pervasive and transformational impact on those associated with the program. One of my main goals is to enhance my theoretical learning and leadership practices through the EOLL Doctoral Program. I am very confident that this program will help prepare me to become the best version of myself as well as be an inspiration to others who may aspire to serve and lead actively. I am also ecstatic to realize that this program can help provide me with the educational tools to potentially help navigate meaningful change in underserved communities by incorporating innovative strategies, building coalitions and alliances, and demonstrating effective teamwork. 

Why did you choose Seattle U’s EOLL Program? I enrolled into Seattle U’s EOLL Doctoral Program for the purposes of maximizing my leadership skills and to help administer positive change in our society that will promote equality and justice for all. Additionally, I chose this doctoral program because it directly pertains to all my years of training, learning, and leading others during my professional career and personal aspirations. As a progressive leadership practitioner-researcher, I take pleasure in knowing that the cohort-based model of the EOLL Doctoral Program provides a unique learning experience that will enable me to gain differing and intuitive insights from fellow members to enhance my academic growth. It also emphasizes the importance of teamwork within organizations and collaborative efforts amongst community members that are required for desired change and shared prosperity. Thus, this program will promote my unwavering passion for experiential learning, future endeavors, and ambitions as an evolving leader by enabling me to gain applicable knowledge that will allow me to accept and exceed domestic and global leadership challenges that exist in our world today and beyond.

Laura Nicole Walker

Hometown:  San Antonio, Texas

Prior Education: Bachelors in Elementary Studies, Master of Arts in Teaching, Elementary Education K-8, Master of Science, Special Education, K-12, Western Governors University

Year in program/Cohort: 3rd year, Cohort 45

Bio: Laura is a certificated teacher within the Clover Park School District. She has been teaching for 11 years and began her career in private school settings. She has focused her career on working with students with delays and that required academic and behavioral support. She has worked within Resource rooms, was a reading and math interventionist, and is currently teaching in a self-contained Life Skills program.She chose Seattle University because of the group dissertation option.  She truly believes that teams have a better approach to research since every person can bring complementary strengths to the process. Seattle University also has a reputation for being a leader within social change and she wanted to be a part of this endeavor.After graduation, she plans to continue her schooling by obtaining an administrator credential to move into a principal role within her district.  There are very few principals that specialize in special education, and she would like to focus on schools with a high needs student population.