Meet the Dean of Students Office

Kate Shannon Biddle

Kate Shannon Biddle serves as the Dean of Students for Harris. In her role, she advocates for Harris students, supports students in crisis, approves leave of absence and degree transfer requests, manages student disciplinary issues, and liaises with the Harris curriculum committee. Kate also sets and reviews policies and procedures related to students to ensure fairness, equity, and clarity. Her team oversees many areas of the student academic experience, including academic advising, registration, academic support, and the writing program.

Kate has worked with graduate students most of her professional career and finds tremendous joy in working with the diverse, intelligent, and engaged Harris student body.

David Chrisinger

David Chrisinger directs the Harris Writing Program, leads the Writing Persuasive Public Policy Credential Program, advises the Chicago Policy Review and Harris students enrolled in the Education and Society Certificate Program, and teaches policy writing courses in the winter and spring quarters. He is the author of Public Policy Writing That Matters and Stories Are What Save Us: A Survivor’s Guide to Writing about Trauma.

Daisy Cruz

Daisy advises graduate students on academic and financial aid matters to help them achieve their goals and enhance the student experience.

Isabeau Dasho

Assistant Director of the Writing Program Isabeau Dasho helps facilitate the Writing Program’s many seminars, workshops, and creative writing events. She is also available to meet with students one on one for strategic help on assignments, drafts, journal articles, or other writing projects.

Andrew Dawson

Andrew Dawson is the Senior Associate Dean of Students for Registration and Academics at Harris Public Policy, where he works on academics, curriculum, and student life. Andrew serves as an academic advisor to MPP and MA students, manages data projects, and works on curriculum development.

Matthew Fleming

Matthew Fleming is a Writing Coach within the Writing Program at Harris. He holds an MA in Applied Linguistics and has spent the past decade working with English Language Learners both in the United States and abroad. Reach out to Matthew for help with any essay, article, or presentation you need help bringing to life, at any stage of its development.

Marquis Hayes

Marquis Hayes is an Academic Advising Specialist. He advises and supports MPP students throughout their time at Harris.

Nikki Horn

Nikki Horn is the Director of Harris’ PhD and Master in Public Policy with Certificate in Research Methods programs, where she oversees operations and academic affairs. She provides academic advising and support to students in the PhD and MACRM programs.

Amity James

Amity is the Associate Program Director for the MSCAPP Program. In this role, she handles issues related to course scheduling and registration and works with the Program Director to evaluate program curriculum, policies, and procedures. She also serves as an academic advisor for MSCAPP students.

Kelly Lofgren

Kelly Lofgren is the Registrar at Harris. She is responsible for creating the course schedule, leading the annual curriculum planning process, overseeing course registration, and managing faculty and instructor communications related to courses.

Jen Lombardo

Jen oversees academic advising at Harris and coordinates a variety of student services with other members of the Dean of Students Team. She is an academic advisor for MPP and joint degree students and is constantly thinking about ways to improve the student experience.

Marley Mandelaro

Marley Mandelaro serves as an Assistant Director for Academic Advising and Academic Services. She takes a relational approach to supporting Harris students from orientation to graduation. Marley also facilitates accommodations for students with documented disabilities and assists our international student population.

Tricia McCann

As Student Life Coordinator, Tricia supports the engagement and connection of students in the Evening Master’s Program. They work to provide various programming and events that enhance students’ experience in the program.

Lauren Sirota

Lauren serves as the Associate Director of Academic Advising and Academic Support at Harris. In this role, she oversees key academic support resources, including the Math and Coding Camp, Jumpstart Program, and tutoring program. She also advises MPP students.

William Smith

Will is the Assistant Program Director for the Master of Science in Computational Analysis and Public Policy Program (MSCAPP). He serves as an academic advisor for MSCAPP students and also supports academic and professional programming for the program.

Leslie Villaverde

Leslie is an Academic Advisor and Registration Specialist for the MPP and MA programs. In this role, she supports students during their time at Harris and helps them register for classes.