Meet the Vice Provost
Hikaru (Karu) Kozuma, Ed.D.
he/him
Vice Provost for University Life
Hikaru (Karu) Kozuma serves as the Vice Provost for University Life at the University of Pennsylvania. The University Life Division supports and nurtures the development of Penn’s diverse undergraduate and graduate/professional student communities, providing academic and career programming, campus and community engagement, and opportunities for personal and professional growth. Originally from New York City, Karu attended Middlebury College, majoring in English and minoring in American History. In 2001, he attended Harvard¹s Graduate School of Education and received his master of education in higher education administration. He earned his doctorate of education from Penn¹s Graduate School of Education in 2015, focusing his research on critical race theory, coalition building, and student engagement and empowerment. For 25 years, he has served in several roles in student affairs at Middlebury College, Columbia University, Amherst College, and the University of Pennsylvania. He has been highly involved in NASPA – National Association for Student Personnel Administrators – since 2005 and served as the National Co-Chair for the Asian Pacific Islander Knowledge Community from 2009–2011. He has taught graduate and undergraduate students, including a course about Asian American activism and organizing.
Meet the Team
Tamara Greenfield King, J.D.
she/her
Senior Associate Vice Provost
for Student Affairs
for Student Affairs
Tamara Greenfield King serves as Senior Associate Vice Provost for Student Affairs. Her portfolio includes Career Services, Naval ROTC, Platt Student Performing Arts House, the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life, and the Office of Student Affairs.
She is a sough-after expert in student conduct and Title IX, serving as the first African American president of the Association for Student Conduct Administration and co-authoring the book, Reframing Campus Conflict: Student Conduct Practice Through the Lens of Inclusive Excellence. Prior to higher education, King worked at various law firms, opened her own firm, and served as the first African American Assistant District Attorney in Northampton County, Pennsylvania. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Penn State University and received her law degree from New York University.
Sharon Smith
she/her
Associate Vice Provost
for University Life
for University Life
Sharon Smith serves as Associate Vice Provost for University Life, overseeing Penn Violence Prevention, Student Intervention Services, and the Weingarten Center, which houses Learning Resources, Tutoring Services, and Student Disability Services. Her areas work closely with Counseling and Psychology Services (CAPS), Student Health Service, International Student and Scholars Services, the Chaplain’s Office, and the 12 schools in a shared mission to serve students navigating Penn.
Smith came to Penn in 1987 serving in various leadership positions including PENNCAP, New Student Orientation, and Open Expression. She helped create the mission and framework of Student Intervention Services (SIS), which leads the University’s response to emergencies and critical incidents involving students. She earned a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Penn State University and a master’s in Counseling Psychology from Temple University.
Will Atkins, Ph.D.
he/him
Associate Vice Provost for
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging
Will Atkins serves as Associate Vice Provost for University Life – Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging. Within this role, he is responsible for supporting DEIB efforts for students, specifically overseeing the university’s outstanding Cultural Resource Centers and engaging with numerous student organizations across campus. The six Cultural Resource Centers include: The Albert M. Greenfield Intercultural Center, The Center for Hispanic Excellence: LaCasa Latina, The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Center, Makuu: The Black Cultural Center; The Pan-Asian American Community House, and the Penn Women’s Center. He also serves as University Life’s point of contact for university-wide DEIB efforts, in collaboration with various campus stakeholders.
Will is a native of Tampa, Florida and came to Penn after serving as Assistant Vice President for Student Life at the University of Florida (UF). His professional experiences include working with multicultural centers/social justice education, first-generation student success, sorority and fraternity life, student activities, student government, service learning, and new student orientation. He earned his bachelor’s degree from UF, master’s degree in higher education administration from the University of Michigan – Ann Arbor, and Ph.D. in curriculum and instruction from UF.
Laurie A. Hall
she/her
Assistant Vice Provost for Strategic Planning and Operations
Laurie A. Hall serves as Assistant Vice Provost for Strategic Planning and Operations with responsibility for the advancement of the strategic direction for the division. She has oversight of the creation of strategies focused on the continual improvement of the organization including professional development, staff engagement, cultivating an ethos of dignity, cultural humility, inclusion, and understanding of common divisional goals and institutional values. Her portfolio includes the functional areas of Strategic Initiatives and Partnerships, Communications, Design Strategies, and University Life Space and Events Management.
Hall came to Penn in 2017 after seventeen years of progressive experience at Princeton University, most recently as Assistant Director for Administrative Planning in the Office of the Executive Vice President where she participated in enterprise level planning, financial stewardship, emergency planning, and organizational development. Preceding her roles with Princeton, she served as director of the Center for Volunteerism and Service Learning at Saint Elizabeth University. Hall spent her early career in the private, non-profit sector providing community reintegration and family programming for formerly incarcerated adults and managing undergraduate internships and field placements with the organization. Ms. Hall received her BA and Ed.M. in Education Theory, Policy, and Administration from Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ.
Christine Brown-Lawrence
she/her
Executive Assistant to the Vice Provost for University Life
Christine Brown-Lawrence serves as the Executive Assistant for University Life Central. She holds a B.A. in Business Administration and a M.S in Athletic Coaching from West Virginia University, and is currently pursuing an MBA at Temple University. Prior to working at University of Pennsylvania, she worked at Temple University for 8+ years supporting the President & CEO of Temple Hospital and Dean of Temple University Medical School.
Rob Butler
he/him
University Life Technology Services Director
Rob Butler serves as Interim University Life Technology Services Director. He has been at the University for seventeen years – nine of those years with the Division of Finance IT and eight with University Life Technology Services.
University Life Organization Chart
Senior Associate Vice Provost
for Student Affairs
Tamara Greenfield King, J.D.
Career Services
Executive Director
Barbara Hewitt, Ed.D.
Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps
Director
Colonel Vincent J. Ciuccoli
Office of Student Affairs
Executive Director
Katie Bonner
Platt Student Performing Arts House
Director
Laurie McCall
Associate Vice Provost for
University Life
Sharon Smith
Community Care
Associate Director
Emily Giffin
Penn Violence Prevention
Director
Elise Scioscia
Student Intervention Services
Director
Lauren Rudick
Weingarten Center
Executive Director
Jane Holahan, Ed.D.
Academic Support, Weingarten Center
Director
Ryan Miller, Ed.D.
Disability Services, Weingarten Center
Director
Aaron Spector
Associate Vice Provost for
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging
Will Atkins, Ph.D.
Greenfield Intercultural Center
Director
Valerie De Cruz
Inclusion Initiatives and Social Justice Education
Director
Malik Muhammad
La Casa Latina
Director
Krista Cortes, Ph.D.
Makuu: The Black Cultural Center
Director
Brian Peterson, Ph.D.
Pan-Asian American Community House
Director
Xiumei (Mei) Long
Penn Women’s Center
Director
Elisa Foster
Assistant Vice Provost
for Strategic Planning and Operations
Laurie A. Hall
Space and Events Management
Director
Saleem M. Curry
Strategic Initiatives
Executive Director
Michael Elias
Creative Strategy and Design
Director
Marjan Osman Gartland
Strategic Partnerships and Programs
Director
Laurie McCaffrey
IT Technical Director
Technology Services
Rob Butler