The Dean and Administrative Staff
- College leadership
- Science communication
Maya Tolstoy is a marine geophysicist specializing in seafloor earthquakes and volcanoes and the Maggie Walker Dean of the University of Washington College of the Environment.
Administration
Stephanie is responsible for the administration and internal business operations of the College and serves as the chief of staff to the Dean. Primary areas of responsibility include operations strategies and policies, research administration, government relations, health and safety, infrastructure and facilities (including field stations and research vessels), IT, business analysis tool development, and public record requests.
Andrew provides broad administrative assistance and executive support to the Associate Deans of Administration and Research. When not working, he can be found frequenting local bookstores and plant nurseries.
- Research Opportunities
- Science Support
- Executive Support
Everett provides executive support to the Associate Deans for Administration and Research. He helps review grant proposals, connect PIs with research opportunities, and assist in the implementation of new research safety measures. In his free time, he enjoys immersing himself in nerd culture, sports, and exploring outdoors with his fiancée.
Academic Affairs
- Expanding academic programming
Julia is responsible for academic policy, supporting and facilitating unit-based and interdisciplinary academic programming and expanding experiential learning opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students throughout the College.
- Teaching and learning
- Executive support
- Special projects
Jane provides executive, administrative and project support to the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. She helps manage the Associate Dean’s initiatives, grant-funded efforts, cross-unit teams, and events. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, cross-country skiing, and baking.
- Prospective Student Advising
- Pre-major Advising
- Undergraduate Student Services
As the pre-major academic adviser for the College, Meghan helps prospective and current undergraduates who are exploring environmental majors find the best fit. She serves as the College's liaison to central campus student services units including Admissions, First Year Programs, Minority Affairs and Diversity, Undergraduate Academic Advising and the Career Center. She enjoys reading a good book, diving into a new podcast, and dog watching at parks.
- Student services administration
- Academic policy
- Curriculum administration
Michelle directs the Academic Affairs student services team and coordinates recruitment, retention and advising efforts of the student services staff across the College. She is the point person for academic policies and manages the College Curriculum Committee and the review process for new courses and academic programs. She also manages career services initiatives, including the Career Opportunities page and the Environmental Career Fair.
- Career Programming
- Alumni Relations
- Employer Recruiting
Dan supports students in crafting their career pathways in collaboration with UW staff, faculty, alumni, and employers. He is the point person for undergraduate and graduate student career services efforts. Dan loves to cook, play board games, and get out of Seattle to go camping with his family.
- Diversity and Inclusion
- Professional Development
- Program Management
- Interdisciplinary majors and minors
- Academic advising
- Data analysis
Joe provides academic advising and program coordination for multiple interdisciplinary undergraduate programs in the College. This includes advising for minors in marine biology and quantitative science, and promoting undergraduate course and student research opportunities at Friday Harbor Labs. Joe also supports data analysis related to undergraduate student recruitment and retention, and statistics of course offering and evaluation.
- Graduate Students
- Postdoctoral Scholars
- Programming Support
Brandon facilitates programming for graduate students and postdoctoral scholars across the college, building community across departmental boundaries. He helps connect students with resources throughout the university and manages several of the College’s scholarship and awards programs. Outside of work, he enjoys hiking, learning French with his daughter, and singing.
Advancement
- EXECUTIVE SUPPORT
- DAILY OPERATIONS
- BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
Nova oversees the day-to-day management of the Advancement team’s operations and is the Associate Dean’s assistant. She is the principal liaison between the Associate Dean and other College of the Environment and University Advancement colleagues as well as senior university officials, faculty, staff, alumni, donors, and volunteers. Prior to the College of the Environment, she provided administrative support to teams and executives in healthcare.
- Donor Relations
- Individual Giving
- College Priorities
James is passionate about building and sustaining relationships with individuals to raise private support for the College of the Environment. In his role, he serves as the advancement liaison to the School of Oceanography, Department of Atmospheric Sciences, Program on Climate Change, and Program on the Environment. As a Husky alumnus himself, James has worked at UW Bothell Advancement since 2015 and joined the College of the Environment in autumn 2019. When he’s not working, he can be found cooking, reading or traveling.
- Donor relations
- Corporate relations
- Foundation engagement
Danna comes to UW from the Seattle Aquarium, where she served as Corporate Relations Officer building out a robust corporate relations program. She holds a master’s degree in conservation biology from the University of Queensland and a bachelor’s in marine biology from UCSC. In her role at UW, Danna is responsible for working with academic leaders, volunteers and others to develop and implement strategies for corporate and foundation support that align with departmental and College priorities.
- Event planning
- Event management
- Event design
Monica oversees special events (in-person, hybrid, and virtual) for the College of the Environment Advancement team. She specializes in designing experiences that support fundraising, alumni engagement, and awareness building. She provides full-service event management, from concept to day-of-event services. Outside of work, you can find Monica spending time with family or exploring Seattle’s vibrant restaurant, theater, and art scenes.
- Donor relations
- Endowments
- Stewardship reports
Zanne's work focuses on donor acknowledgments, recognition and accountability, compliance and fiduciary responsibility, impact reporting, and engagement and loyalty. When not at work, you can find her singing with the Seattle Symphony Chorale at Beneroya Hall.
- Donor Relations
- College Priorities
- Stewardship
Eryn is a UW alumna and lifelong Husky who is dedicated to helping donors create meaningful impact through support of College of the Environment priorities. She supports the Department of Earth and Space Sciences and the School of Environmental and Forest Sciences, including the UW Botanic Gardens. When not at work, Eryn enjoys exploring the outdoors with friends and family.
- Donor relations
- Fundraising
- Stewardship
Ben builds relationships and secures philanthropic commitments with major donors investing in School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences and Marine and Environmental Affairs. He collaborates on setting strategic goals with the Senior Director for Advancement, academic leaders, and our community of supporters measurably impacting the important work at UW College of the Environment. Through identification, cultivation, and stewardship of relationships with major donors, Ben drives individual philanthropy to create transformative change. He is a fierce advocate for centering the environment and people furthest from equity as we build a just, sustainable future for all of us.
- Corporate Relations
- Foundation Engagement
- College Priorities
Joaquín builds and develops Corporate and Foundation relations in support of UW College of the Environment priorities. As a life-long and curious learner he enjoys thinking big and is driven by the principle that success and scale bring broad responsibility to do better for future generations and the planet. In his free time, he is relentlessly delighted by spending time with family, outdoors in Seattle parks, and enjoying world cuisine/football with friends.
- Donor Relations
- Fundraising
- Stewardship
Kathleen develops and executes strategies to solicit significant gifts of impact to support the College of the Environment and leads the major gift fundraising team. She collaborates with the Associate Dean for Advancement, academic leaders and volunteers, and is a key partner in designing and implementing development programs to sustain significant gift identification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship. Outside of work, you can find her exploring local hiking trails or experimenting with new recipes in the kitchen.
- Fundraising
- Stewardship
- Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Kearstin is passionate about building and sustaining connections amongst donors to raise private support for EarthLab. She is a proud UW and College of the Environment alumna from the School of Environmental and Forest Sciences, and has worked within University Advancement since 2019. In her free time, Kearstin enjoys running, hiking, and recreating in the great outdoors of Washington state.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
- Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
- Broadening Participation
Corey supports DEI initiatives across the College’s academic, research, administrative and outreach units. This includes the implementation of DEI initiatives to recruit and retain students, postdocs, staff and faculty. He also develops external partnerships and secures external resources to further the development of an inclusive College environment.
- Teaching and learning
- Executive support
- Special projects
Jane provides executive, administrative and project support to the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. She helps manage the Associate Dean’s initiatives, grant-funded efforts, cross-unit teams, and events. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, cross-country skiing, and baking.
Finance
As a resource for college finance staff and unit administrators, Erika oversees financial resources including planning, monitoring, reporting, research administration, and fiscal policy. She leads the technical and change management aspects of the planning, implementation and stabilization of UW’s new financial system Workday for the College. Outside of work, she is known in her neighborhood for inflatable holiday dinosaurs.
Toni is a Finance Manager in the College of the Environment’s Financial and Accounting Service Team (eFAST). Toni works closely with the Director of Finance to manage fiscal activities for research projects and review ProCard transactions. Outside of work hours, Toni is a publishing poet, photographer, and mixed media artist who is looking forward to international travel for new creative inspiration.
Jean is a Fiscal Specialist in the College of the Environment’s Financial and Accounting Service Team (eFAST). Jean supports procurement operations including Ariba/WorkDay processing, travel and ProCard purchasing across the College units currently supported by Environment’s Procurement and Supply chain (ePAS) team. When not providing eFAST services, Jean enjoys time with her family and friends, embracing all that life has to offer.
- Finance
- Procurement
- Supply Chain
Dawn is a Fiscal Specialist in the College of the Environment’s Financial and Accounting Service Team (eFAST). Dawn supports procurement operations including Ariba processing, travel and ProCard purchasing across the College units currently supported by Environment’s Procurement and Supply chain (ePAS) team. Outside of work, Dawn enjoys spending time with her high-maintenance house plants, baking and traveling to sunny places.
- Finance
- Accounting
- Reconciliation
Tram is a Fiscal Specialist I in the College of Environment’s Financial & Accounting Service Team (eFAST). Tram supported by the Environment’s Financial Reporting & Close team. Outside of work, Tram enjoys spending time with her husband and two boys, watching movies and loves to eat.
- Finance Reconciliation
- Accounting
Amanda is a analyst in the College of the Environment’s Financial and Accounting Service Team (eFAST). She helps develop and implement policies and procedures to ensure compliance, efficiency and customer service for shared service team. She is responsible for the financial reporting and month end closure and procurement and supply chain. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with family and friends, traveling, watching movies and is a foodie.
Human Resources
Margaret provides strategic Human Resources leadership, oversight, and consultation to the College of the Environment Dean's Office, and is responsible for all matters related to human resources. She oversees successful human resources operations and advisement across the College of the Environment to UW HR, Academic Human Resources, ISC and Shared Services. Margaret provides advisement and consultation on complex faculty, staff, and organizational issues affecting the employment, engagement, appointment, and retention of all members of the College of the Environment impacting the success of the college's research, teaching, and service mission.
Jackie is the Senior HR Business Partner for the College of the Environment, Dean’s Office. She works closely with the Director of Human Resources to carry out professional human resources duties to ensure comprehensive management of staff and faculty human resources operations.
Mox is the HR Business Partner for the College of the Environment, Dean’s Office. They provide Shared Services business process consultation, manage Workday activities, and assist with visa processing requests. Mox is passionate about incorporating diversity, equity, and inclusion in the workspace. Outside of work, they enjoy playing PC games, sitting by the water, and playing with their dog.
Information Technology
- Technology support
- Technology strategy
Michael leads the College’s Information and Technology team and is also the Director of Computing for the School of Aquatic & Fishery Sciences. He started his technology career more than 30 years ago as an undergraduate and has worked in various information technology positions throughout the UW, including the School of Business, UWIT, Radiology, and Aquatic & Fishery Sciences. When he is not working, he loves to fish, be outdoors, and spend time with his wife and three children.
Michael supports the information technology needs of the UW College of the Environment. He is passionate about making technology work for people. In his free time, he enjoys amateur radio, cycling, gardening, and trying to revive ancient computers.
- Technology Support
- Special Projects
- InfoSec Policy Compliance
Mat provides information technology support for the College of the Environment. He is passionate about improving technology experiences through education, process refinement and steady iteration. When not at work, he can be found reading about whatever has piqued his current interest, spending time with friends, exploring new places, or trying to improve his photography skills.
Marketing and Communications
- Marketing and communication strategy
- Brand leadership
- Science communication
John leads the College’s Marketing and Communications team and science communication program. He focuses on the College’s brand and marketing strategy, and helps College units and scientists better tell their stories and showcase the impact of their research to key audiences. When not in the office, he is out exploring shorelines and mountains on foot or building something in his basement workshop.
- Web development
- User experience design
- Web tools
Drew builds and supports the College’s website along with the 20+ other sites within the College’s web framework. Drew is the point person for technical support with Trumba event calendars, Marketo emails and WordPress training. He enjoys the whizzing of bike spokes, a fully trimmed sail and exploring the splendor of the Pacific Northwest.
- Online marketing strategy
- Project management
- UX design and research
- Web development
Joe leads digital communications and web strategy for the College, and manages projects and web design/development for the College website and the 20+ sites in the College unit website framework. He also helps manage the College's email marketing program in Marketo, and works with units across UW Environment to engage online audiences and promote the work of students and faculty. In his time off, Joe watches lots of movies, sees a lot of shows, reads comics, and explores Seattle with his partner, and intrepid Chihuahua Charlie.
- Marketing strategy
- storytelling
- media training
Michelle leads the College’s marketing plans and overall strategy, with the goal of elevating its reputation among key audiences. Michelle also writes stories and helps manage the team’s multimedia, social media and graphic design work. Michelle has a background in media relations and crisis communications, and enjoys working with researchers on interview practice. In her free time, Michelle loves cross-country skiing (yes, uphill) with her dog and exploring the mountains.
- Strategic Planning
- Media Relations
- Crisis Communications
Will coordinates the College's strategic marketing and communications efforts and serves as a liaison between the College and the University Marketing and Communications team. He's always looking for new opportunities to tell compelling stories to current and prospective donors, state-level influencers, members of the media and internal university audiences. In his free time, Will loves exploring the Cascades, writing fiction and playing with his cats.
- Social Media
- Multimedia Communications
- FieldSound Podcast Host & Producer
Sarah is the host and producer of FieldSound, the official College of the Environment podcast. She also manages the voice of the College on social media channels, and in multimedia communications. She formerly supported marketing and communications for NASA's STEM on Station and the International Space Station Program, and with NASA's flagship social media team. Sarah loves traveling, especially with her adventure cat, Jack.
- Graphic Design
- Visual Communications
Zoe designs digital and print media for the College’s websites and marketing materials and manages the photo archive. In her spare time, she draws pictures and hangs out with her dog.
Research
- RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES
- SCIENCE SUPPORT
Shuyi supports faculty, graduate students and postdocs at the College in all spheres related to research. She coordinates and tracks research activities within the College, seeks out opportunities for new interdisciplinary research and promotes the College's research portfolio within UW, as well as at the state and federal levels.
Andrew provides broad administrative assistance and executive support to the Associate Deans of Administration and Research. When not working, he can be found frequenting local bookstores and plant nurseries.
- Research Opportunities
- Science Support
- Executive Support
Everett provides executive support to the Associate Deans for Administration and Research. He helps review grant proposals, connect PIs with research opportunities, and assist in the implementation of new research safety measures. In his free time, he enjoys immersing himself in nerd culture, sports, and exploring outdoors with his fiancée.