Staff
The Division of Student Affairs is committed to the success of all students at SRU. Our work focuses on advocating for students so that they can achieve their goals in college and beyond.
Dr. David Wilmes, Vice President of Student Affairs
Dr. Wilmes provides leadership and strategic direction for Student Affairs through management, strategic planning, and assessment of the subdivision. Reporting to the President, he advocates for institutional and policy changes that enhance student retention and persistence at SRU.
Stacy Bluedorn, Administrative Assistant
Mrs. Bluedorn provides assistance to the departments that comprise Student Affairs in regard to budgetary expenditures, travel requests and human resources. She also provides administrative support for the Chief Student Affairs Officer.
Leadership Team:
Karla Fonner
Dean of Students
Karla Fonner is the Dean of Students, Title IX Coordinator and the Chair of our campus Care Coordination & Behavioral Intervention Team. Karla received both her BS in Public Health and MA in Student Affairs and College Counseling from SRU and has been an employee on campus for 21 years. In her role as Dean, Fonner oversees two assistant deans and initiatives in Disability Services, Student Support and Personal Integrity. In addition to her degree programs, Karla is certified in Critical Incident Response, Higher Education Case Management, Suicide Prevention/Intervention and Postvention and Bystander Intervention.
Dr. Natalie Burick
Assistant Dean of Students/Director of Disability Services & Rock Life Program
Dr. Burick provides access and support to students with disabilities across the campus setting. Her office also provides support for students, faculty, and staff through programming and trainings related to disability matters. Dr. Burick and her staff are strong advocates for all students with disabilities.
Scott Irlbacher
Assistant Dean of Students/Personal Integrity
Mr. Irlbacher reports to the Dean of Students and is responsible for the administration of the University Student Code of Conduct. He partners with campus and community stakeholders to see students are fairly and evenly held responsible for alleged violations and when necessary provides educational sanctions to ensure student learning and success.
Dr. Brian Mortimer
Director of Campus Recreation
Promotes wellness through recreation! Offers recreational and wellness programs utilizing state of the art facilities and equipment. This is a list of facilities and programs offered through campus recreation. Facilities include the Aebersold Student Recreation Center (ARC), McFarland Outdoor Recreation Complex (MAC), Ski Lodge, Disc Golf Course, Campground, High Rope, Low Rope and Leadership Reaction Courses. Examples of programming include personal training, group fitness, outdoor adventures, aquatics, intramurals, sport clubs, and REACH programming (high rope and low rope elements). Website: www.sru.edu/arc; Twitter: @srucampusrec; Instagram: @srucampusrec; Facebook: SRU Campus Recreation-The ARC
Daniel Brown
Director of Housing & Residence Life
Mr. Brown provides leadership to a dedicated team of four professional staff in the Office of Housing, within the Office of Housing and Residence Life. The primary focus of the Housing team is providing secure and comfortable on-campus accommodations for the residential population. Areas of oversight include: on-campus housing agreements, room selection/assignment processes and occupancy management; residential card access and welcome desk operations; contracted custodial services in residence halls; serves as liaison with facilities staff as needed to support and assist with coordination of special maintenance needs, service outages and renovation projects.
Patrick Beswick
Director of Student Engagement & Leadership
Under Beswick's purview is the leadership development of our students and all of the programmatic endeavors. This is inclusive of Fraternity/Sorority Greek Affairs, the student government association, association for residence hall students, community and resident assistant training, development, and recruitment, student clubs and organizations, the university programming board, and our residential curriculum for the residence halls. Beswick has worked at SRU for nearly 16 years, and working with our student leaders is beyond rewarding.
Ivory Dunlap
Director of Inclusive Excellence
Under Ms. Dunlap’s guidance, the Office for Inclusive Excellence (OIE) and its staff are dedicated to fostering a supportive and inclusive campus environment through education, advocacy, and empowerment of SRU students. OIE is grounded in and understanding of diversity that welcomes, respects and celebrates all people and their intersectional identities. The office consists of student transitions programs, multicultural development, the Price Center, Veterans Center and the Women’s Center, and provides programming, mentorship and a space for students to find a sense of belonging. Ivory has worked at SRU since 2021 and in higher education since 2007. She is continually motivated by her students and finds great joy in assisting them in their academic and social growth.
Jenny Kawata
Director of Global Engagement
Jenny is responsible for developing and maintaining global exchanges and partnerships and for sending students, faculty and staff abroad. She received her Bachelors of Science in Business Administration from Slippery Rock University and her Masters of Art in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages from Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Her first experience abroad was studying Japanese at Kansai Gaidai University, one of Slippery Rock's partner institutions. From there, her global journey began. She became involved in the field of international education and has traveled to over 23 different countries for both work and fun. Loves learning new languages, exploring new cultures and trying new foods.