About Us

Eliza Mathew

Senior Program Coordinator of Education Initiatives

Responsibilities

Eliza leads the Duke Office of Durham and Regional Affairs (DARA) in its partnership with Durham Public Schools. She collaborates closely with nine partner schools near Duke campus on ideating and coordinating projects and programs that align with district and school goals. Eliza also supports Triangle nonprofits that are connected to DARA’s education vision, and she represents the office by participating in new and ongoing early education initiatives in Durham.

Background & Experience

Eliza joined the Office of Durham and Regional Affairs (DARA) in August of 2016 after serving as the office’s A.J. Fletcher Community Engagement Fellow. Before working at Duke, she fostered community and encouraged engaged citizenship as an elementary teacher in Durham Public Schools. Eliza graduated from Elon University with a degree in Elementary Education.

E-mail eliza.mathew@duke.edu
Phone (919) 668-1033

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Donna Hubert

Executive Assistant

Responsibilities

Donna serves as the senior budget and personnel/Human Resources officer for the Office of Durham and Regional Affairs (DARA) as well as the Office of Public Affairs and Government Relations.

Background & Experience

Donna took on her current role with the Office of Public Affairs and Government Relations in December 2002 and extended her work to DARA in July 2008. Her previous experience includes 18 years with the following Duke departments: Office of the Executive Vice President, FAST Track Project, Facilities Planning and Management, and the Central Payroll Office. Donna is a graduate of East Carolina University.

E-mail donna.hubert@duke.edu
Phone (919) 668-1780

Channa Pickett

Senior Program Coordinator

Responsibilities

Channa leads the office’s outreach to and partnerships with Durham’s Hispanic/Latino community, coordinates the Enlaces and Visions programs, and manages the grant-making side of the Doing Good in the Neighborhood employee giving campaign.

Background & Experience

Channa began working in the office in October 2008. She previously managed a branch office of an environmental consulting company. Channa studied at Durham Technical Community College and Duke, and she holds a degree in Environmental Science and Policy from Duke.

E-mail channa.pickett@duke.edu
Phone (919) 684-6296

Lou Rollins

Director of Special Projects

Responsibilities

Lou manages special projects as assigned by the vice president. Her biggest ongoing projects include overseeing the office’s fundraising efforts and managing the Duke Regional Spelling Bee.

Background & Experience

Lou began working in the office in January 2008, after 17 years with the state’s community colleges and with more than 25 years of administrative and fundraising experience. She holds degrees from Campbell University and Duke and serves on several local non-profit boards and committees.

E-mail lou.rollins@duke.edu
Phone (919) 684-3679

Phail Wynn, Jr.

Vice President for Durham and Regional Affairs

Background & Experience

Dr. Wynn was born in Wewoka, Oklahoma and received his undergraduate degree from the University of Oklahoma before serving in the United States Army. He holds a Master’s degree and doctorate from the College of Education and Psychology at N.C. State University and a Master of Business Administration degree from UNC-Chapel Hill.

Dr. Wynn served as President of Durham Technical Community College for 28 years before retiring in December 2007, when the Board of Trustees named him President Emeritus.

Dr. Wynn has served as Vice President for Durham and Regional Affairs at Duke since January 2008. For more about Dr. Wynn and his thoughts on movies, superpowers and the Duke-Durham relationship, see his interview with Duke Today.

E-mail phail.wynn@duke.edu
Phone (919) 684-3676

April Dudash

Senior Program Coordinator of Communications

Responsibilities

April creates communications plans, writes stories, takes photos and video, updates websites and social media, and more as the communications point person for the Office of Durham and Regional Affairs. She also serves as co-manager for the annual Duke Doing Good in the Neighborhood employee giving campaign.

Background & Experience

April started working at Duke in 2014 as a writer with the Office of Communication Services, where she contributed to the Working@Duke employee print publication and the Duke Today website. She is a former higher education reporter for The Durham Herald-Sun and military reporter for The Fayetteville Observer in Fayetteville, N.C. She received her bachelor’s in journalism from the University of Florida. April currently lives in Durham with her husband, who also works at Duke, and loves talking about improv comedy and her beagle, Nickel.

E-mail april.dudash@duke.edu
Phone (919) 668-1967
Campus Mail Box: 104352

Sam Miglarese

Assistant Vice President and Director,
Duke-Durham Neighborhood Partnership

Responsibilities

Sam oversees the Duke-Durham Neighborhood Partnership (DDNP) and community engagement efforts for the Office of Durham and Regional Affairs. He is also Duke’s liaison to six neighborhoods and the non-profits of Northwest Central Durham, with a special emphasis on the Walltown and Crest Street neighborhoods. Sam works closely with Duke professional schools and departments as well as student engagement initiatives to connect them to the work and mission of the DDNP.

Background & Experience

Sam came to Duke and Durham in August of 1999 from South Carolina, where he had served for 28 years in full-time church ministry. He is an adjunct member of the Religion Department and the Program in Education. Sam recently served as co-editor for The Long Shadow of Vatican II, a book that will be released in September 2015.

E-mail sam.miglarese@duke.edu
Phone (919) 668-6275

David Stein

Senior Educational and PepsiCo Program Coordinator

Responsibilities

David works closely with school officials and staff at the eight partner schools to develop strategies and mobilize Duke educational technology resources to address their needs. He also directs initiatives such as Schools Days and the John Hope Franklin Young Scholars Program that help encourage local students to excel.

Background & Experience

David came to Duke in 2000 after serving for nine years as the community liaison for the N.C. School of Science and Mathematics. He scouted and marketed inventions for Harvard University for six years and before that was a community planner in Newark and San Francisco. David is a licensed secondary social studies teacher with a degree from Antioch College and attended graduate school in City Planning at the University of California at Berkeley.

E-mail dstein@duke.edu
Phone (919)668-6271

Diann Walker

Staff Assistant

Responsibilities

Diann manages the director’s schedule, works on special projects assigned by the director and ensures that the office runs smoothly.

E-mail dhawes@duke.edu
Phone (919) 668-6279

Mayme Webb-Bledsoe

Senior Neighborhood Coordinator

Responsibilities

As a veteran of Durham grassroots work, Mayme plans and implements strategies through an empowerment model. Mayme is a Technology of Participation (ToP) qualified trainer, and she provides support and technical assistance to community partners, non-profits, local government, civic groups and the private sector in six Southwest Central Durham neighborhoods through the Quality of Life Project.

Background

Mayme holds a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from UNC-Charlotte and a Master of Science in Higher Education from Iowa State University, with a concentration in Organizational Development. Mayme is a Samuel DuBois Cook Society Community Betterment Award recipient, in recognition of her outstanding service to the community.

E-mail mayme.webb@duke.edu
Phone (919) 668-6277

Neil Hoefs

Program Coordinator

Responsibilities

Neil manages relationships with internal and external partners in support of the Duke-Durham Neighborhood Partnership (DDNP), coordinates volunteers with special emphasis on undergraduate student engagement, provides support to the senior staff of the DDNP, and completes other Durham and Regional Affairs projects as needed.

Background & Experience

Neil joined the DDNP after serving for two years as an AmeriCorps*VISTA with the Community Service Center. He holds a degree in Strategic Communication from The Ohio State University.

E-mail neil.hoefs@duke.edu
Phone (919) 684-4960

Pat James

Office Coordinator

Responsibilities

Pat manages the office, oversees finances, and helps out with Community Service Center (CSC) projects and events. She provides administrative support to the Director of the CSC and Associate Director of DukeEngage and manages the payroll process for more than 180 students participating in the America Reads / America Counts program.

Background & Experience

Pat joined the office in December 1995 following 16 years as a medical transcriptionist at Duke Hospital. She obtained a Duke certificate in Human Resource Management in 2008. Pat is from Durham and has received the Duke Presidential Meritorious Award and the Samuel DuBois Cook Society Award for her ongoing commitment to the Duke and Durham communities.

E-mail patricia.james@duke.edu
Phone (919) 684-4377

Elaine Madison

Director of Community Service Center and Associate Director for Programs, DukeEngage

Responsibilities

Elaine oversees the Community Service Center and all Durham programs within DukeEngage. She has been a senior advisor to DukeEngage since its origin and heads up the University Council on Civic Engagement, which amplifies and coordinates new and ongoing civic engagement initiatives across campus.

Background & Experience

Before coming to the Community Service Center in 1993, Elaine was Associate Director for Duke’s Office of Continuing Education. She holds a J.D. from UNC-Chapel Hill, where she was a Chancellor’s Scholar. She earned her bachelor’s degree at Colorado Women’s College and completed graduate work at Brandeis University and the University of California, Santa Cruz.

E-mail elaine.madison@duke.edu
Phone (919) 684-4377

Girija Mahajan

Program Director, Duke College Advising Corps

Responsibilities

Girija works with North Carolina partner high schools and Duke Advisors to manage the Duke College Advising Corps, which provides college admissions advising to more than 1,500 students across the Triad.

Background & Experience

Girija began working in the Community Service Center in June 2012 with the America Reads/America Counts program. Before joining Duke, she served in administrative and teaching roles with the Emily K Center, the Center for Teaching Quality and New York City Public Schools. Girija earned both her bachelor’s degree in International Studies and master’s degree in Educational Policy and Leadership from the University of Iowa.

E-mail girija.mahajan@duke.edu
Phone (919) 660-3209

Domoniqúe Redmond

Assistant Director for Programs

Responsibilities

Domoniqúe is responsible for the development, planning, implementation and volunteer recruitment for the Community Service Center (CSC) signature programs, as well as non-profit community partner collaborations. As part of the CSC’s outreach and recruitment efforts, she manages e-mail lists and is responsible for website updates that include volunteer and federal work-study announcements and listings. Domoniqúe supervises and mentors CSC’s national service corps members and student interns and is the Program Director for DukeEngage-Durham.

Background & Experience

Domoniqúe joined the CSC in 1997 as Volunteer Coordinator and became the Assistant Director of Programs in 2006 after receiving her Master of Public Administration degree from N.C. Central University. Before coming to North Carolina, she was the Program Assistant for the Tennessee Association of Housing and Redevelopment Authorities (TAHRA) statewide AmeriCorps*VISTA project.

E-mail dredmond@duke.edu
Phone (919) 684-4377

Megan McCurley

Program Coordinator, America Reads/America Counts

Responsibilities

Megan works with local schools and Duke students to coordinate the America Reads/America Counts program, which places hundreds of tutors in schools across Durham.

E-mail megan.mccurley@duke.edu
Phone (919) 660-2445