The Walker School is supported by a team of faculty and staff members who are committed to providing students with a first-class educational experience. Meet our administration and staff, advisory board, and full-time and adjunct faculty from the departments of Business, Computer and Information Sciences and Management.
Denise Harrell
Director, Recruitment and Retention
Jack Croghan
Program Administrator, Sports and Entertainment Management
Carly Surkamp
Business Department Coordinator
Madelyn Irovic
Computer and Information Sciences Department Coordinator
Elizabeth Risik, PhD
Chair, Associate Professor
Rich Dippel, JD
Associate Professor
Mitch Ellison, PhD
Associate Professor
Baichun Feng, PhD
Associate Professor
Steve Hinson, PhD
Professor, MBA Program Director
Daniel K. Mueller, PhD
Visiting Assistant Professor
Run Niu, PhD
Professor
Mary Paine, MPhil, DHSc, RN
Assistant Professor
Mary Paine, MPhil, DHSc, RN, is an experienced health care executive and epidemiologist. Her areas of expertise include clinical trials research, evidence-based medicine and health care technology assessment, medical communications and informatics. Paine has previously held senior management positions in the home care, health insurance and medical communications industries. She also has experience as an epidemiologist for numerous clinical trials, as well as the Yale Congestive Heart Failure Study.
Paine received a BSN degree from Georgetown University, a Master of Philosophy degree in chronic disease epidemiology from Yale University and a Doctor of Health Science degree with a concentration in leadership and organizational behavior from A.T. Still University. Awards received include the National Research Service Award from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, a Yale Fellowship, the Georgetown University Dean’s Citation and membership in Sigma Theta Tau, the National Honor Society of Nursing. Her clinical background is in cardiology, renal transplant and care management.
Brad Scott, PhD
Professor
Doug Whitman, DSc
Assistant Professor
Doug Whitman earned a Doctor of Science in Healthcare Management from the University of Alabama Birmingham. He earned an MBA at Duke University and his undergraduate degree at the University of Arkansas. He is currently an MHA program lead and assistant professor of Health Administration in the Walker School of Business & Technology at Webster University in St. Louis. He began teaching Healthcare Management at the University of North Carolina in 2014.
Prior to entering academia, Whitman served in various healthcare leadership positions for 20 years, including president of small nonprofit healthcare organization, vice president of a large national healthcare company and director of strategic growth for a mid-sized regional healthcare company. Most recently, he was a healthcare consultant specializing in crisis change management. Professional licenses include licensed nursing home administrator and licensed assisted living administrator. Before entering healthcare, he was CEO of a technology startup, senior vice president of a broadcasting company and managing director of an investment bank.
Whitman was raised in Seattle and lived in Arkansas and North Carolina before moving to Missouri in 2020. He is married to an elementary school teacher, and the couple has two children. He is also a professional DJ on the side … he likes his classic rock loud. He enjoys running, runs a 5K most mornings before work, and has completed a dozen marathons and triathlons.
*Ed Spillane, Faculty Emeritus
Willie J. Rivers, DBA
Department Chair, Instructor, Data Analytics
Dr. Will Rivers earned his BS in Computer Science and MS in Applied Analytics from Saint Louis University, and his Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) from the University of Missouri–St. Louis, where his research focused on data professionals’ attitudes and perceptions of data governance. His teaching areas include machine learning algorithms, statistical modeling and predictive analytics.
Adewale Ashogbon, PhD
Assistant Professor, Cyber Security
Dr. Adewale Ashogbon is an Assistant Professor of Cybersecurity at Webster University
in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. He holds a PhD with research that examined
the role of the Diffusion of Innovation Theory (DOI) in the context of Cloud Computing
Adoption, from Northcentral University in San Diego, California. His research interest
lies in the intersection of Information Systems Security/Cybersecurity, Information
Technology Risk and Compliance, and Data Governance.
With over a decade of professional experience in Information Systems Security/Cybersecurity
Audit, Information Systems Management, Enterprise Risk Management and Data Governance,
he previously served as Director of Application Technology Audit at Morgan Stanley
in Baltimore. His professional background spans both public and private sectors. A
notable conference speaker on cybersecurity-related subjects, he has also published
his work in reputable Information Technology Engineering journals.
Brenda Boyce, MS
Associate Professor
Pengpeng Chen
Assistant Professor, Computer Information Systems
Velimir Ćosić, MS
Instructor, Cybersecurity
Velimir Ćosić is a cybersecurity management solutions engineer who focuses
on finding solutions and working collaboratively in a team environment. Ćosić has
skills in implementing highly secure network operations and effectively managing innovative
customers and technical support strategies. He has a
comprehensive understanding of computer hardware and software, including installation,
configuration, management, troubleshooting and support, and is well-versed in the
concepts of relational databases, various programming languages and web applications.
Ćosić can communicate fluently in multiple languages, including English, Croatian and German, with and advanced grasp of Spanish. He received his bachelor's degree in Computer Science with an Emphasis in IT Management and his master's degree in Cybersecurity from Webster University.
Jason Dill, MBA
Instructor, Cybersecurity
Lasanthi Gamage, PhD
Assistant Professor, Computer Science
Xue Li, PhD
Assistant Professor, Computer Science
Dr. Xue Li is an Assistant Professor of Computer Science at Webster University. She holds a PhD in Computer Science from the University of Texas at San Antonio, where she focused on efficient resource management for serverless computing. Her research interests include energy-efficient AI inference, serverless architectures, cloud and edge computing, and fairness-aware resource scheduling.
Li has received multiple awards, including a Best Paper Award at the IEEE Cloud Summit 2024, and her work has been published in leading conferences such as CCGrid and IEEE Cloud Summit.
Peter Maher, PhD
Professor, Computer Science
Y. Olumoye Mosud, PhD
Visiting Assistant Professor - Information Technology Management
Ali Ovlia, DMgt
Professor, Computer Science
Tonya Rivers, DBA
Instructor, Business Analytics
Dr. Tonya S. Rivers is an educator, executive coach, keynote speaker and digital transformation leader with over 20 years of experience in IT, health care, biotech and telecommunications. She serves as Instructor and Program Lead for Webster University’s Master of Science in Business Analytics program, where she leads curriculum innovation, experiential learning and applied analytics using data-driven tools, such as SAP S/4HANA and Power BI.
Rivers holds a Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) from the University of Missouri–St. Louis, an MBA and dual bachelor's degrees from Webster University. Her teaching and research interests include executive coaching, leadership, organizational behavior, business agility, OKRs and organizational change. A highly regarded consultant, she holds several top industry-leading certifications, including ICF Professional Certified Coach (PCC), Board Certified Coach (BCC), Distinguished Toastmaster (DTM), Project Management Professional (PMP), Certified Scrum Professional (CSP-SM) and SAFe Practice Consultant (SPC).
A dedicated volunteer, Rivers serves as a board member and strategic advisor for several organizations in the Greater St. Louis community. She is also active in several professional organizations locally and nationally, including the Association of Change Management Professionals (ACMP), Project Management Institute (PMI), National Speakers Association (NSA) and the International Coaching Federation (ICF).
Quinn Shao, MA, MS
Professor, Computer Science
Xiaoyuan Suo, PhD
Associate Professor, Computer Science
JiangPing Wang, PhD
Associate Professor
* John Aleshunas, Faculty Emeritus
Eric Rhiney, PhD
Chair, Associate Professor
Barrett Baebler, PhD
Associate Professor
Sharilyn Franklin, PhD
Visiting Assistant Professor
Email: sfranklin20@webster.edu
Al Marcella, PhD
Professor
Olumoye Mosud
Visiting Professor, Information Technology Management
EAB
Phone:
Email:
Olumoye Mosud earned a PhD degree in Information Systems and Technology from the University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa; two master's degrees in Information Technology in Ladoke Akintola University of Technology and National Open University of Nigeria, two bachelor’s degrees (B.Eng. (Hons) in Mechanical Engineering and B.Sc. (Hons.) in Information and Communication Technology from Ondo State University, Ado-Ekiti and University of Cape Coast).
He is an Information Technology professional certified by CompTIA (A+) and Microsoft (MCP). He is also a Cyber Security professional and forensic examiner certified by Computer Forensics Institute, Nigeria. Mosud belongs to several professional organizations, including Cyber Security Experts Association of Nigeria, Cyber-Security and Forensic Studies, Nigeria; Computer Forensics Institute, Information Technology Professional South Africa, International Association of Engineers (IAENG); Council For Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria, Nigerian Society of Engineers, South African Institute of Occupational Safety & Health. He has over 20 years of undergraduate and postgraduate teaching experience. Before joining Webster University, he was an Associate Professor and Senior Lecturer in Mountain Top University and Caleb University (Nigeria) respectively.
Doug O'Bannon, PhD
Professor
Julie Palmer, PhD
Professor
Nisha Ray-Chaudhuri, DBA
Assistant Professor, Management
Joe Roberts, PhD
Associate Professor
Dustin Smith, PhD
Associate Professor
Ece Tuncel, PhD
Professor
*Jeff Haldeman, Faculty Emeritus
*Tom Quirk, Faculty Emeritus
Brian Ashworth, MBA ’00
Member-at-Large
Amanda Bohnert, BA ’04, MA ’09
Chief Marketing Officer, S. M. Wilson & Co.
Rodney Crim
CEO and President, St. Louis Economic Development Partnership
Jun Fabella, MBA ’94
CEO and Managing Partner, ANiGENT
Chuck Feltz, MA ’89
CEO, Human Capital Institute
Sara Govero, BA ’05, MA ’05
President, Govero Asset Management
Traci O'Bryan
CEO, Arcturis Inc.
Michael Pruett, MBA ’94
Consultant, Impact Consulting
Andre Stevens, MBA ’12
Principal, Slalom