Office of Human Resource Services

E-Mail: training@ufl.edu
Phone: (352) 392-4626
Fax:  (352) 392-1055
Mail:  PO Box 115006, Gainesville, FL  32611

M.A., Mass Communication, University of Florida
B.A., Berea College, Kentucky

As assistant vice president for HRS, Jodi oversees UF Training and Organizational (UF T&OD) Development, Classification and Compensation and HRS Communications.

As the former director of UF T&OD, Jodi was responsible for overseeing a comprehensive training and organizational development program, serving approximately 65,000 participants via instructor-led and online training annually.  She is experienced in strategic program development and assessment. 

With more than 20 years of related experience, Jodi regularly serves as a change management engagement manager for high-level institutional changes and routinely speaks to local, regional, and national groups about teamwork, management and leadership, and communication strategies.

Ph.D., Religious Studies, Boston University
Master of Divinity, Yale University
B.A., Northwestern University

As director of Training & Organizational Development (T&OD), Dr. Parks works with the T&OD team to create a significant competitive advantage for UF through great leadership, team effectiveness and individual employee excellence. He has worked at UF as a trainer and OD consultant for more than ten years. Before joining UF, he taught or trained in both university and corporate environments for more than five years.

In his current role, Dr. Parks facilitates several of UF’s Leadership Development programs as well as courses in the Managing at UF certification program. He also provides strategic planning and other organizational development services to departments and work units across campus.

He has lived in Chicago, Jacksonville, New Haven, Providence and Boston—and now lives in Gainesville with his wife, son and daughter.

Scott Blades
myUFL Training Manager

M.Ed, Curriculum and Instruction, University of Florida College of Education
B.A., Secondary Education English, La Salle University

As the myUFL Training Manager, Scott brings over ten years of teaching, educational technology, and instructional design experience to his role.  Prior to joining T&OD, Scott served as the Coordinator of Instructional Design for UF’s College of Pharmacy for five years. As the chair of UF’s Collaborative Software Committee, he led the campus-wide effort to select and implement Elluminate Live, a virtual classroom application.  Scott has also worked in the corporate world as an instructional designer, most notably for Regeneration Technologies, Inc. in Alachua.  Scott began his career teaching high school English for three years in Pennsylvania. 

Steve Slater
Grants Training Manager

B.A., Telecommunications, University of Florida

As the Grants Training Manager for T&OD, Steve Slater is responsible for training all aspects of the grants lifecycle.  An instructional designer with more than 12 years experience, Steve has planned, written and produced computer-based and classroom instruction covering a wide variety of subjects.  Steve worked for 8 years as an instructional designer at Sage Software, creating training for Medical Practice Management and Electronic Health Records software.  He also served for 5 years at LearnitCorp, a company that was the official provider of interactive training for Microsoft Press.  Finally, Steve has more than 10 years experience as a video producer. 

Irma Alvarez

M.B.A., Human Resources, George Washington University
B.A., Economics and French, Wellesley College

Irma returns to HRS to support the Training and Organizational Development team as facilitator and trainer.  Her human resources experience includes ten years as a generalist with involvement in recruitment, compensation, benefits and training.  Irma moved to Gainesville from Washington, DC where she was employed by the Meridian International Center, Unisys Corporation and the Inter-American Development Bank.  She first joined HRS in 1993 as a member of the Employee Relations staff at both the IFAS and PPD Satellite Offices.  Irma is an active community volunteer and currently serves on the Board of the Alachua County Youth Orchestra.

Angie Brown

B.A., Journalism, University of Oregon

Angie Brown joined HRS in 2001 as its communications coordinator. She produces HRS's electronic and print communications and is editor of HRS's monthly InfoGator newsletter.

Angie brings nearly 20 years of higher education public relations experience to her role, having previously served as coordinator of college relations for Penn State University’s College of Communications and a publicity coordinator for Oregon Health Sciences University in Portland, Ore.

Jamie Cooke

B.A., Sociology, University of Florida
A.A., Brevard Community College, Florida

Jamie's role on the Training and Development team focuses on compliance training on campus.  In this role, Jamie is a contact for identifying how best to track compliance training, conducted by various UF providers, in the myUFL system to provide comprehensive employee training records.  Prior to joining T&OD, Jamie was an Airport Customer Service Representative for Atlantic Southeast Airlines in Gainesville. In addition to being responsible for ticketing, gate operations and ground security, she was also a member of ASA’s City Development Team.

Jamie grew up on Florida's Space Coast, but now calls Gainesville home. As a recent graduate of UF, she spends her free time cheering on the Florida Gators and enjoying all the cultural opportunities that are offered in the local area.

Angela Gould

M.F.A, Painting and Drawing, Florida State University
B.F.A., Painting, University of Florida

As Communications Coordinator, Angela is responsible for the design and content of the Human Resource Services website, and produces electronic and printed publications for Human Resources Services.

Angela joined T&OD in 2008 with over nine years of graphic design and public relations experience. Prior to joining T&OD, she served as an Assistant Professor of Fine Arts, teaching university level drawing, painting, and photography courses in the United States and in Italy.

Cynthia Mendoza

M.A., English Literature, University of Florida
B.A., English Literature, University of Florida

Cynthia serves in a new role within UF Training and Organizational Development that focuses on professional development phases of the university's Gator Business Administrator Services (GBAS) initiative. 
In this role, Cynthia serves as a trainer, instructional Designer, and  organizational development consultant in support of GBAS and related programs including the Pro3 series.

Cynthia began her career teaching at the University of Florida and has also spent time training in the corporate environment.

Ronda Mitchell

M.Ed., University of North Florida
B.A., Liberal Studies, Thomas Edison State College

With more than 12 years of technology and professional development training experience, Ronda is an accomplished trainer in the arena of higher education with a passion for educational technology and distance learning development.

Ronda works with the elearning program, assists with organizational and professional development initiatives throughout campus, and facilitates several instructor-led courses on leadership and communication.

Ronda lives in the Alachua area with her husband and two young sons.

Courtney Moon

B.A., History, University of Florida

Courtney is a professional skills trainer for the Training and Organizational Development team. In her role she is responsible for development and facilitation of business communication and management skills training aimed to improve the performance of the University of Florida faculty and staff. Prior to joining T&OD, Courtney was a Human Resource Manager with a Fortune 500 company.

Courtney is a native Floridian and Alumnus of the University of Florida.

Karen Navitsky Brake

With more than 20 years at the University of Florida, Karen brings a wealth of experience that includes software testing, web and graphic design, and computer hardware maintenance, as well as more than 15 years of training experience that provides a unique blend of instructional design, technical experience, and end-user support. As a member of the myUFL system training team, Karen’s familiarity with the university’s legacy systems and completion of PeopleSoft Educational Programs provides her with a range of experience and expertise.

Karen’s professional awards and accomplishments include a 2010 Davis Productivity Award, 2003 Superior Accomplishment Award, 2003 Golden Gator Nominee, 2002 Golden Gator Award, and a 1999 Davis Productivity Award.

Marianne W. Preisler

M.A., English, University of Florida
B.A., English, University of Florida
B.A., French, University of Florida
A.S., Computer Programming and Applications, Santa Fe Community
College
Certificate of Educational Technology: Online Teaching and Learning, COE, University of Florida

Marianne has developed training materials for the myUFL system since its implementation at UF. She develops online and classroom training and is also an instructor for two of our Business Communication courses.

Marianne's experience on campus includes working at the George A. Smathers Libraries and UF Enterprise Systems. Her attention to the end-user experience stems from previous work at the call center at Atlantic.Net Internet and developing software for students and faculty as a programmer at Information Technology Services at Santa Fe College.

Jessica Tubbs

M.S.S., Human Resource Management, Utah State University
B.A., Apparel and Textiles, Utah State University

Jessica joined the Training and Organizational Development team in July 2008, bringing with her more than eight years of administrative experience in both the non-profit and university environments. As the program assistant for T&OD, she is the primary contact for the organization, fielding inquiries from faculty and staff and working with instructors from T&OD and outside organizations to ensure training runs smoothly.

An Idaho native, Jessica has lived throughout the northwestern U.S. with stops in Logan, UT; Seattle, WA; and Boise, ID. She now resides in Gainesville with her husband.

Michelle Vargas

Michelle joined the Training and Organizational Development team in Fall 2012 as the new Communications Assistant, bringing three years of public relations education to the role. Her responsibilities include providing support for communication efforts as editorial assistant for the monthly InfoGator newsletter and making updates to the Human Resource Services website.

Michelle is currently pursuing a B.A. in Public Relations. She has lived in Honduras, her native country, and in Miami, Florida, and has called Gainesville home for three years.

Kenya Williams

Kenya currently is our Education/Awards Coordinator. She joined Training and Organizational Development in the summer of 2009.  In this role, Kenya coordinates the employee educational benefits including Higher Education Opportunity Scholarship, Employee Education Program, and many of the employee awards programs managed by HRS.

Kenya has spent the last 10 years of her career focused on benefits and brings a wealth of HR knowledge and diversity to the team. She is currently enrolled at Santa Fe College in the Business Administration program. Kenya is a Gainesville native and lives here with her daughter.

Business Affairs

Sherry Adams, Accounting Coordinator 3, Asset Management

Duane Bowman, Accounting Coordinator, Asset Management/Property Services

Dianna Covington, Accounting Coordinator 3, Disbursement

Lisa Deal, Director, Purchasing

Jim Ferrer, Assistant Vice President, Budget & Finance, Office of the Vice President and CFO

Karen Frank, Associate Director, Purchasing

Tammy Frost, Accounting Coordinator 3, Disbursements

Ted Griswold, Assistant Controller, General Accounting

Mike McKee, UF Controller

Elnora Mitchell, Assistant Director, Faculty Development

Linda Orfield, Assistant Controller, University Payroll Services

Suzanne Sindledecker, Treasury Management

Brett Wallen, Senior Administrative Assistant, UF Travel Office

Maxine Word, IT Expert, Treasury Management

Human Resource Services

Mary Alice Albritton, Director, Benefits and Retirement

Kate Burch, Manager, Recruitment and Staffing

Sonja Burns, Leave Administration

Kevin Clarke, HR Manager, Health Science Center

Melissa Curry, Director, Recruitment and Staffing

Kim Czaplewski, Director, Employee Relations

Lisa Hodges, Assistant Director, Benefits

Jacque Howerton, Leave Administration  

Eric Kegley, Coordinator, University Retirement

Anita Kelly, Program Assistant, Academic Personnel

Keather Kiesel, Recruiter, Recruitment and Staffing

Jennifer Kingswell, Manager, Leave Administration. 

Janet Malphurs, Assistant Director, Academic Personnel

Brook Mercier, Associate Director, Classification and Compensation

Gloria Penrod, HR Representative, Workers’ Compensation

Christina Perez, Staff, Health Science Center

Wanda Santana, Benefits Manager

Paulene Shindelbower, Staff, Health Science Center

Don Stevenson, Coordinator, University Benefits

John Sun, Recruitment Manager

Ricky Whitney, Staff, Processing and Records

Desiree Williams, Classification and Compensation

Other Departments

Debra Anderson, Coordinator, International Center

Martine Angrand, Associate Director, International Student Services

Sheri Austin, Assistant Vice President, Budget & Finance, Office of the Vice President and CFO

Kathy Bergsma, UF Information Security Manager, Office of Information Security and Compliance

Susan Blair, Director, UF Privacy Office

Karen Bradley, Associate Director, Graduate School

Kat Carter-Finn, IFAS Sponsored Programs

Beree Darby, Psychologist and Psychoneuroimmunologist

Candice DeBose-Tyson, Document Preparation Specialist, International Center

Gann Enholm, Coordinator, Graduate School

Stephanie Gray, Director, Division of Sponsored Research (DSR)

Donna Kolb, Assistant Director, Office of Student Financial Affairs

Dr. Angel Kwolek-Folland, Associate Provost for Academic Affairs

Derrius Marlin, IT Security Engineer, Computing and Networking Services

Helda Montero, Counselor, Employee Assistance Program

Stephanie Nielsen, Budget Coordinator II, Office of CFO

Everall A. Peele, Coordinator, UF Privacy Office

Victoria Peprah-Asante, Accounting Coordinator 3, Payroll and Tax Services

Ethel Porras, Document Preparation Specialist, International Center

Beckie Preston, Office of the Registrar

Anna Prizzia, Director, Office of Sustainability

Tonya Lewis, Engineering, Contracts and Grants

Tiffany Schmidt, Assoc Director, CG-CAMPUS, CG-ENG, and CG-IFAS

Brian Sevier, Assoc Director, UF/SHANDS Cancer Center, Clinical Trials Office

Renato Squindo, Payment Card Coordinator, Treasury Management

Steve Thomas, Finance and Accounting

Barbara Welsch, PhD., Employee Assistance Program

Amber Wuertz, Recruiter, Recruitment and Staffing

Colin K. Yokomi, Assistant Registrar for Course Handling and Curriculum, Office of the University Registrar