Office of the Chancellor

In his role as President, Julian Schuster serves as Chief Academic Officer and Chief Advisor to Chancellor Elizabeth (Beth) J. Stroble and has direct involvement in the strategic and day-to-day leadership of the institution.

Schuster assumed his position at Webster in July 2010, after serving as Founding Dean of the Hamline School of Business at Hamline University in St. Paul, Minnesota. Prior to that, he served in several capacities at the University of New Haven from 1996 to 2006, including chair of the Department of Economics and Finance, director of the doctoral program, director of the Executive MBA Program and associate dean and dean of the School of Business.

Over the course of his career, Schuster has pioneered global alliances and promoted strategic investment in academic excellence, strengthening and expanding collaborations with more than a dozen international partner institutions.

Schuster received bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees in Economics from the University of Belgrade, one of the oldest and largest universities in the western Balkans. He currently serves on the Board of Governors of the University Avenue Business Association and on the Editorial Board of the International Journal of Pluralism and Economic Education. Schuster's professional memberships include the American Economic Association, the Eastern Economic Association and the American Association for the Advancement of Slavic Studies.

Lisa Blazer serves as the Vice President for Enrollment Management. In this role, she leads strategic enrollment efforts, including oversight for Admissions, Registrar, Enrollment Technology, Financial Aid, International Admissions and Services, Online Learning Center, and Military Campus Operations. In collaboration with academic units and university departments, campuses and partners, Blazer oversees the development and implementation of the University’s strategic enrollment plan, building initiatives to expand opportunities for students to attend Webster’s online and face-to-face undergraduate and graduate programs.

Prior to joining Webster, Blazer served as the Associate Vice President for Enrollment Services at Texas A&M University and served in multiple roles at the University of Texas at San Antonio, including Senior Associate Vice Provost for Academic Innovation, Interim Vice President for Strategic Enrollment and Associate Vice President for Financial Aid & Enrollment Services. Blazer is the recipient of the Alan W. Purdy Distinguished Service Award from the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA). She served as the 2016-2017 NASFAA National Chair, and served as president in state and regional associations. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Piano Performance from Missouri Baptist University, and her master’s degree in Organizational Development and her doctoral degree in Education with a Focus on Organizational Leadership from the University of the Incarnate Word in San Antonio, Texas.

Ryan Elliott is primarily responsible for performance strategy development; departmental information systems and technology; gift/pledge processing and reporting; financial and business data reporting; process optimization; donor research and management; and constituent data integrity and biographical records management for 250,000-plus records. Elliott represents the Office of Advancement in various University-wide planning and implementation committees involving the Chancellor, President, Provost, Academic Affairs, Finance, Information Technology, Office of Research and Sponsored Grants, Student Affairs and more.

Elliott has more than 20 years of progressive responsibility and experience in government, nonprofit agency and higher education environments, starting his career working in the U.S. House of Representatives, Third Congressional District-Missouri Office of the Hon. Richard A. Gephardt, and as a fundraiser for the National MS Society-Gateway Area Chapter where he implemented donor-based fundraising campaigns and special projects.

Elliott earned his Master of Arts in Media Communications with an Emphasis in Public Relations from Webster University in 2004, and both a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and a Bachelor of Arts in History from the University of Missouri. Additionally, he earned a certificate in fundraising from the IUPUI Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, and is a multiple-time Ironman finisher.

Nancy Hellerud leads the Office of Academic Affairs, oversees Student Affairs and six of Webster’s international campuses.

As Vice President for Academic Affairs, Hellerud is responsible for Academic Affairs divisions and programs that support and strengthen student success, including Academic Advising, the Reeg Academic Resource Center and the Faculty Development Center. She is coordinating collaborative initiatives among the schools and colleges of Webster University. In support of global mobility for students and faculty, she oversees Study Abroad, Global Program Development and the Webster International Network of Schools (WINS) Program. In addition, she manages Webster’s institutional accreditation and oversees the Office of Institutional Effectiveness.

Prior to joining Webster in 2011, Hellerud served as interim dean and associate dean of the Hamline University School of Business in St. Paul, Minnesota. She holds a JD from the University of Oregon School of Law, an MA in Liberal Studies from Hamline University and a BA in English and German, also from Hamline.