Office of Residential Education
The first question Renee often asks a student is to share the story that brought them to CMU. Renee’s story to CMU started with an early morning call about a job. Nearly 20 years later she remains grateful she got to the office early that day and answered the phone! A housefellow, college liaison, Fifth Year Scholar Program advisor and the student affairs liaison to our Doha, Qatar campus, are some of the responsibilities that keep Renee asking, “What is your CMU story?”
With 15 plus years of experience in residential education and part of the CMU community since 2005, David serves as the college liaison for the Schools of Music and Art and CFA transitional. His favorite part of his job is hearing residents’ stories and supporting them through their CMU journey. With a background in creative writing and theatre and a Master’s degree in higher education administration, he infuses his work with humor, humanity, and humility. In his free time, he enjoys cooking, riding and repairing vintage scooters, listening to baseball games, and sharing all that happens at CMU with his wife, two kids, and dog.
Jae is the first person you see when you walk into the Student Life offices. A member of the CMU community since 2009, Jae has discovered her passion for serving students and happily joined the Residential Education family after working as an administrative assistant in the Department of Chemistry and the School of Computer Science. When she is not at work managing the front desk operations or studying towards her Masters in Social Work degree at Pitt, Jae enjoys spending quality time with her husband and her daughter, Penny.
Grace is serving as the assistant to the Community Standards & Integrity office for the past two year. She currently supports both the academic integrity and community standards side of things within the university. Originally born in San Francisco, she grew up in Pittsburgh and now considers the city to be her home. In her free time, she is usually chasing her toddler Teddy and is excitedly preparing for her second shortly. She is also involved within her church serving as a deacon.
Aaron George
Coordinator for Center for Student Diversity & Inclusion & Housefellow
Email
412-268-2142
At the Center for Student Diversity and Inclusion, Aaron coordinates bystander education for the university and provides programming and individual student support on issues related to healthy masculinity, gender identity, and gender expression. He also serves as a liaison to BXA and as a housefellow, building relationships with his residents so that they thrive at CMU. A song on the soundtrack of Aaron's life is Black Water by the Doobie Brothers.
John joined Carnegie Mellon in 1994. He provides leadership to the departments in the Division of Student Affairs that are focused on creating safe, supportive and engaging living environments on campus, including Housing Services, Residential Education, Parent and Family Programs & First Year Orientation, Conference and Events Services, and Pre-College Summer Studies. Additionally, he provides direction for the division’s role in campus incident management and emergency response, while also serving as the university’s ombudsperson for town-gown relations with campus neighbors. A native of Western New York, John possesses a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics from Colgate University and a master’s degree in Counselor Education from the Pennsylvania State University.
Holly B. Hippensteel
Associate Vice President for Community Standards & Integrity & Housefellow
Email
412-268-2075
Holly joined the university in 1998, and has served in a variety of roles, including most recently, Assistant Dean of Student Affairs and as the Housefellow for Resnik House and West Wing. She also serves as a Student Affairs Liaison for the College of Engineering (CIT) and works closely with graduate education colleagues and the Graduate Student Assemblyrelating to the overall experience of graduate students at Carnegie Mellon University. Holly completed her undergraduate studies in sociology at La Roche College, earned her master’s in student affairs in higher education from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, and received her doctorate in higher education from Kent State University.
Kristine Kengor is currently the Housefellow for Stever House, a Leed-certified first-year residence hall located on Morewood Avenue. Additionally, as a Coordinator of Civic Engagement, she spearheads community service and civic engagement initiatives across the Carnegie Mellon campus, including in the residence halls. You can often see Kristine at the Paws to Relax events in the Mindfullness room with her retired racing greyhound, Copper, who is a certified therapy dog through Animal Friends.
Utilizing his skills in organizational operations, program planning, and leadership development, Jesse helps the individuals and organizations within the CMU Greek community thrive and succeed. As the primary liaison for the Greek Housing experience, Jesse advocates for a positive living-learning experience for all residents. When he’s not working, you can find him walking his dogs, walking dogs at the Humane Animal Rescue, asking strangers to pet their dogs, or dreaming about creating a dog sanctuary.
Bryan has been working with residential students at Carnegie Mellon since 2010. Part of the Office of Residential Education, he oversees social media strategy and education, while also providing leadership to the community advisor recruitment and selection process. Bryan is the staff advisor to Student Dormitory Council and is the proud housefellow for Morewood Gardens, CMU's largest residential community. Bryan completed his undergraduate studies and his master’s in higher education from Penn State University, and his doctorate in higher education administration from George Washington University. Out of the office, he is likely training for a half-marathon, listening to podcasts, or walking his Samoyed with his spouse, Laura.
Scott serves as a coordinator in the Office of Community Standards and Integrity, focusing primarily on academic integrity case management. Scott is also the housefellow for Resnik, connecting, engaging, and supporting the students and staff who reside in this sought-after community. When he is not making homemade ice-cream of all varieties, Scott is cooking up food from cuisines around the world. When he is not cooking up something delicious, you’ll find him eating it.
Rachel earned her MFA in poetry from Carlow University in December of 2018. During her time at Carlow, she participated in summer residencies at Trinity College Dublin in Ireland. As an Administrative Assistant, Rachel enjoys connecting with and supporting students. She strives to ensure that all students are equally represented and have access to the resources they need to succeed. In her free time, she can be found workshopping poems with other writers at various coffee shops, networking with artists and musicians in the city, attending concerts, exploring stone-age ruins in Ireland with her partner Chris, and spending time with her pomsky Freyja at the dog park.
Born and raised a proud New Yorker, Michelle now considers New York, Pittsburgh, and Chile her homes. She is currently the housefellow for Welch, Henderson, Boss and McGill (aka WaHBaM!). In her coordinator role she supports the International, Exchange, and Transfer student experience. Michelle holds a B.A. in Professional Writing from Carnegie Mellon University, an M.A. from New York University in Higher Education Administration & Student Affairs, and a post-graduate certificate in International Studies from the Universidad de Chile. She prefers to speak Spanish at every opportunity and if she’s not in Pittsburgh, she’s likely off traveling with her trusty backpack.
Michaela has been working in residential life for nearly a decade, first in New England and now at CMU as a housefellow. She has focused on living and learning experiences and sophomore programming, and currently holds an auxiliary role in the SLICE office with Civic Engagement, overseeing Alternative Break programs. Michaela loves seeing students develop over time and is constantly inspired by her students. When not “housefellowing,” Michaela enjoys running, traveling, and hanging out with her lively family.
M. Shernell Smith
Assistant Director for the Center for Student Diversity & Housefellow
Email
412-268-4955
Everyone has a story and Shernell is committed to ensuring that - at Carnegie Mellon - we are fostering environments for authentic and meaningful exchange. She believes that diversity is meaningful exchange and meaningful exchanges can inspire and empower action toward social change. In moments of quiet mindfulness, you will either find Shernell trying to physically plant something in the local community garden, planting seeds of change and activism in the local community through her various non-profit board affiliations, or planning her next travel adventure.
Guided by the Latin phrase cura personalis, care for the entire person, Gwendolyn’s philosophy is to ensure everyone feels heard, seen, and valued. She is committed to cultivating vibrant living and learning experiences reflective on the diversity and uniqueness of every CMU student. As part of the Residential Education team, she seeks to create communities that are enriching and inclusive for all. She's also a part of the Orientation and First-Year Programs team. Outside of work, Gwendolyn enjoys binge watching Netflix, boxing, and playing with her dog, MiMi.
