Dr. Jessica Elmore, a dynamic scholar-practitioner, and expert in educational advancement and diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB), is dedicated to transforming and elevating the landscape of philanthropic engagement through innovative DEIB strategies. With over a decade of experience, Dr. Elmore's work bridges the gap between cultural community engagement and educational advancement, ensuring that all voices and experiences are heard and valued.

Dr. Elmore joined CASE as the Senior Director of Cross-Cultural Learnings within the CASE OIC: Opportunities and Inclusion Centerᵀᴹ. In this role, she has been instrumental in developing CASE’s first online DEIB course, "The Journey Starts with You: DEIB in Advancement," and delivering bespoke training through CASE@Campus. Jessica is responsible for developing the training and content vision for upskilling, enhancing job performance, boosting organizational culture and contributing to the overall growth of an organization's outreach and engagement with their diverse alumni, donors and stakeholders.   

Previously, the California native relocated to the Midwest and served as the point person and leader for community relationship building and engagement programming for diverse domestic and international alumni and students for the Kansas State University Alumni Association. In Dr. Elmore’s progressive role, she cultivated over $600,000 from diverse donors and organizations; established a successful diverse volunteer leaders board pipeline, executed over 300 cultural-affiliated alumni and student events, garnering national recognition and professional organization industry awards; served as co-editor for the Association’s first diversity-devoted alumni magazine issue, and was a steadfast campus connector who accumulated an immense amount of social capital resulting in successful collaborations with various campus entities including but not limited to, international programs, athletics, and campus administration.

Jessica's expertise lies in creating award-winning external programming and cultivating relationships with domestic multicultural and international alumni and students. She is an interactive trainer and communicator with a proven track record of helping individuals grasp complex concepts through engaging and approachable methods. Her ability to create environments where people feel confident to navigate new spaces and contribute meaningfully sets her apart in the field of educational advancement. Jessica excels in breaking down intricate ideas into easily digestible insights, empowering participants to not only understand but also apply their knowledge in impactful ways.

Dr. Elmore holds a doctorate in educational leadership, a master’s degree in business administration from Kansas State University, and a mass communication degree from Grambling State University. Her diverse educational background equips her with a unique perspective on the interconnection and nuances of educational advancement.

Driven by a vision of inclusive excellence and social mobility, Dr. Elmore believes in the transformative power of education to create equitable opportunities for all. Her approach is rooted in empathy, collaboration, and a deep understanding of the diverse needs of alumni and donor communities.

Sheila Ellis-Glasper is dedicated to helping creative, purpose-driven business owners build and execute winning social media strategies. 

Born and raised in the sunflower state of Kansas, Sheila is a graduate of Kansas State University earning a degree in journalism and mass communications. She ventured off to the east coast to begin her professional career as a reporter for the Associated Press and Roanoke Times. In 2009, she quickly realized the importance of using social media to build relationships and to stay ahead of the competition in her reporting career. She is the former social media manager for Kansas State University. In her role at Kansas State, she built the university’s social media presence to be recognized as a top university on social media in the nation. 

Sheila has served as the social media consultant for the Kansas Small Business Development Center and founded SEG Media Collective LLC in 2016 to provide social media consulting and management services to businesses worldwide. 

Brian Gawor’s focus is research and strategy to help propel both alumni engagement and fundraising results of clients. Brian has 20 years of higher education experience in student affairs, enrollment management, alumni engagement and development.

His efforts supported the achievement of record enrollment at Knox. He then joined the college’s $3 million Knox Fund as a fundraiser. Most recently, Gawor served for four years as director of development for the College of Fine Arts at Illinois State University. He has worked to direct RNL’s fundraising research, providing actionable insights to hundreds of clients each year, for the past six years.

He regularly presents at professional conferences, including CASE and AFP. He also hosts a popular Fundraising Voices podcast, and has regularly been featured in industry publications and webinars, including CASE, NonProfitPro, the Chronicle of Philanthropy and Inside Higher Ed.

Gawor holds a master’s degree from Western Illinois University and is currently completing a doctorate at Illinois State University, where he is studying higher education alumni response, predictive analytics of donor response and industry trends.

Jill Pettibone is the Associate Director of Student Engagement for Alumni Relations and Annual Giving at the University of Florida. She oversees the student membership program, Students Today, Alumni Tomorrow advises their student ambassador group, the Florida Cicerones and manages student philanthropy efforts for Giving Day and My Gift, Our Legacy the senior class gift campaign. Her interest in higher education started during her undergraduate career at Ohio State. After earning her bachelor's degree she was a high school teacher before returning to education for her graduate degree in Student Personnel in Higher Education. Having completed her M.Ed.at UF she is now pursuing her Ed.D. at UF in the Leadership in Educational Administration program. Jill is starting her seventh year at the University of Florida.