Nova Southeastern University Appoints Two to Leadership Positions in Human Resources

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

FORT LAUDERDALE/DAVIE, Fla. – Nova Southeastern University (NSU) announced today the appointment of two leadership positions within its Office of Human Resources.

Laura Bennett, M. Ed., (L) and Lynn Smith, M.B.A., M.S., (R) were appointed to leadership positions at NSU.

Laura Bennett has been appointed NSU’s first full-time Title IX Coordinator and Lynn Smith joins the Office of Human Resources as Managing Director of Employee Relations.

“We are delighted to welcome these individuals who have the skills and experience needed to help NSU fulfill its mission,” said Robert J. (Bob) Pietrykowski, M.A., J.D , NSU’s vice president of Human Resources.

Ms. Bennett has spent her career in student services, first at Colorado College where she rose to the position of associate director and interim director of Residential Life and Housing before moving to the University of California at Berkeley as associate director for Student Conduct and Community Standards. Immediately prior to her appointment with NSU, Ms. Bennett held the position of Title IX Coordinator and Student Conduct Officer at William Rainey Harper College, a community college outside of Chicago, Ill., with a student enrollment of more than 40,000.

“Laura is an acknowledged thought leader in her field and a frequent presenter, author and media contributor in the areas of Title IX compliance, campus threat assessment, and campus safety,” said Pietrykowski.

She has a Master of Education degree (College Student Services Administration concentration) from Oregon State University and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Kansas. Ms. Bennett will begin her position at NSU on August 17, 2016.

Her job title at NSU is required by the U.S. Department of Education; however, it is akin to a Chief Administrative Officer for both the academic and non-academic oversight and compliance for Title IX and related student, faculty and staff engagement.

Lynn Smith joins the Office of Human Resources as managing director of Employee Relations. She brings more than 20 years of employee relations experience to NSU.

“Lynn’s broad skills in human resource management, change management, and supervisory skill development makes her well qualified for her position with NSU,” said Pietrykowski. “She’s uniquely positioned to enhance the university’s human resource culture that is focused on the engagement and satisfaction of all NSU students, faculty and staff.”

Ms. Smith honed her leadership skills at Comcast Communications where she served as senior corporate director of Employee Relations, Employee Engagement and Labor Relations Centers of Excellence. At Comcast, she was the lead subject matter expert and provided strategic direction and implementation for corporate initiatives related to performance management, competency assessment and employee interventions in support of a culture that strived to recognize high-performing and high-potential employees.

Ms. Smith’s accomplishments and expertise have been recognized through her receipt of the Excellence in Human Resources Award from the South Florida Business Journal and as NSU’s Huizenga College of Business and Entrepreneurship 2014 Alumni of the Year. She is a two-time NSU graduate having received an M.B.A. from the Huizenga College of Business and Entrepreneurship and a Master of Science in Employment Law from the Shepard Broad Law College. Ms. Smith will begin her position at NSU on July 11, 2016.

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About Nova Southeastern University (NSU): Located in beautiful Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Nova Southeastern University (NSU) is a dynamic research institution dedicated to providing high-quality educational programs at the undergraduate, graduate, and first-professional degree levels. A private, not-for-profit institution with more than 26,000 students, NSU has campuses in Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Jacksonville, Miami, Miramar, Orlando, Palm Beach, and Tampa, Florida, as well as San Juan, Puerto Rico, while maintaining a presence online globally. For more than 50 years, NSU has been awarding degrees in a wide range of fields, while fostering groundbreaking research and an impactful commitment to community. Classified as a research university with “high research activity” by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, NSU is 1 of only 50 universities nationwide to also be awarded Carnegie’s Community Engagement Classification, and is also the largest private, not-for-profit institution in the United States that meets the U.S. Department of Education’s criteria as a Hispanic-serving Institution. Please visit nova.edu for more information about NSU and realizingpotential.nova.edu for more information on the largest fundraising campaign in NSU history.

July 14, 2016

Julie Spechler | Office of Public Relations
954-262-5349 (office) | 954-591-3361 (cell)
julies@nova.edu