Keynote Speakers
Meet our University President below!
About
President Sue Edwards, Ph.D.
Susan Edwards, Ph.D., is the eighth president of Wright State University. She took office January 1, 2020.
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Edwards joined Wright State in 2018 as executive vice president for academic affairs and provost. She was drawn to Wright State because of the university’s core values and dedication to students. She is proud of how Wright State serves its students and the region and is honored and humbled to serve the university and its partners as president.
During her presidency, Edwards is focused on recruitment, retention, and relationships. She is personally committed to student success, especially in terms of retention, experiential learning, and high quality classroom education.
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Edwards is committed to fostering a welcome and inclusive campus for students, faculty and staff. She will also focus on strengthening relations with the community and being very vocal about telling the Wright State story.
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Prior to coming to Wright State, Edwards served as vice provost for faculty affairs and professor of biology at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina. She was responsible for overseeing all areas of faculty evaluation and development and served as the academic affairs liaison on all personnel matters.
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In 2007, Edwards left her native Australia to join the Department of Biology at Appalachian State. She then took on a leadership role as assistant chair for three years before being appointed chair of the department in 2012.
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Previously, she was the Australian equivalent of an associate professor in the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology in the Faculty of Medicine, Health and Molecular Sciences at James Cook University in Australia. She also served as a visiting assistant professor in the Department of Biology at Georgia Southern University.
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She has taught numerous courses in 10 different degree programs including veterinary science, medicine, biology, pharmacy, biomedical science, aquaculture, medical laboratory science, physiotherapy, exercise science, education, and nursing. In addition, she has taught in university programs localized within indigenous communities in Victoria, Far North Queensland, and the Torres Strait Islands in Australia.
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In her research career, she served as a research assistant in the Brain Research Unit and Autonomic Neuroscience Group at The University of Melbourne. She has secured almost $1.3 million in research funding from the National Science Foundation and $108,000 in funding from the Australian Research Council.
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Edwards has published more than 30 research papers and two book chapters, co-edited the book Hagfish Biology, and served on the editorial board of Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology from 2006 to 2018. She is a former president of the Physiology Section of the American Fisheries Society. She also participated in the American Council on Education's Spectrum Aspiring Leaders Program in 2016 and the BRIDGES Academic leadership for Women at the University of North Carolina in 2014.
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Edwards received a Ph.D. in comparative physiology from Deakin University in Victoria, Australia, an M.S. in neuroscience from The University of Melbourne and a B.S. in biology from Deakin.
Meet our Opening Ceremonies Keynote Speakers below! ​
About
Rachel E Sturm, Ph.D.
Dr. Rachel Sturm is the Associate Dean of the Raj Soin College of Business, and prior to this role, was the Chair of the former Management and International Business Department in the college. She joined Wright State University in 2014 as an Assistant Professor and was awarded the 2016 university-wide Presidential Award for Early Career Achievement for excellence in research, teaching, and service. She is a four-time recipient of the Outstanding Teacher Award for the Department of Management and International Business and is a two-time recipient of the MBA Excellence in Teaching Award for the Raj Soin College of Business. She earned her Ph.D. in Business Administration from the University of Houston and her Bachelors in Psychology (summa cum laude) with a Business Management minor and International Studies certificate from Binghamton University. Prior to her graduate studies, Dr. Sturm has worked in sales, marketing, and the food and beverage industry. She has also worked as a research assistant in a psychopathology lab as well as a leadership and fraud lab. Dr. Sturm is an active researcher in leadership, character development, interpersonal power, workplace gender dynamics, and self-other agreement. Her research has been presented nationally and published in premier practitioner and academic outlets such as Harvard Business Review, Journal of Management, Human Relations, Journal of Management Studies, and The Leadership Quarterly (where she was a former Associate Editor). She is a certified professional coach (through the Institute of Professional Excellence in Coaching) and is on a mission to help others, particularly leaders, create sustainable positive change in their lives.
About
Catherine Amaris Hernandez Hogan, M.Ed.
Catherine Hernandez Hogan, Assistant Vice Provost for Academic Engagement at Wright State University, has built her career advancing student success in higher education with a focus on recruitment, programming, and engagement. She works strategically to foster a college-going culture among students from underserved communities, raising over $100,000 in sponsorships and scholarships over the past two years. Through her leadership, over a thousand students have visited campus and gained a clear vision that college is a viable option for their future.
Catherine spearheaded transformative growth, increasing enrollment and boosting first-year retention numbers. She also co-launched free monthly bilingual wellness clinics with the Latino Medical Student Association and El Puente Learning Center, expanding healthcare access in East Dayton.
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Her impact has been widely recognized with honors including the 2023 Distinguished Hispanic Ohioan Award, 2024 Leader in Diversity by the Dayton Business Journal, and 2025 Top 25 Women to Watch by the Better Business Bureau Women in Business Network. Her department received Wright State University’s 2024 Outstanding Unit Award. Individually, she was named 2025 Student Supporter of the Year and received the 2024–2025 SOCHE Staff Excellence Award.
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In addition to her institutional roles, Catherine serves on the boards of the El Puente Learning Center and the Montgomery County College Promise program. She is a tireless advocate for student belonging and success, continually affirming to students that they matter, they belong, that they have what it takes to succeed, and that by earning their degree, they can impact their families for generations.