Faculty and Staff Fill Senior Roles in Andrew Young School of Policy Studies

ATLANTA — Jan Ivery, Denise Jenkins, Leah E. Daigle, G. Brent Cummings and Nadia Borissova have been named to senior leadership positions within the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies (AYSPS) in recent weeks.

“I couldn’t be more pleased to announce the new roles our faculty and staff have agreed to lead,” said Ann-Margaret Esnard, interim dean. “We are grateful for their dedication and all the unique qualities Jan, Denise, Leah, Brent and Nadia will each bring to their new roles.”

Ivery was appointed interim associate dean of academic affairs effective June 1. An associate professor in the School of Social Work, she accepted this role after serving as assistant dean of academic programs for the college since February 2020, effectively through the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic. In this position, Ivery led critical initiatives like the college’s peer counseling program that helped so many AYSPS students succeed through the pandemic. An AYSPS faculty member for almost two decades, her research agenda emphasizes macro social work practice with a focus on community partnerships, community and organizational capacity, and service delivery associated with homelessness and gerontology. She holds a B.A. in Sociology from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, an M.S.W. from the University of Pittsburgh, where she was recognized among the 2020 Distinguished Alumni, and a Ph.D. from Virginia Commonwealth University.

Ivery oversees the activities of the Office of Academic Affairs, Career Services and Instructional Design in this role. Her work will continue to focus on student success — from recruitment to enrollment, progression and outcomes — and in managing the additional resources that help many succeed, including college-level scholarships and fellowships and graduate research assistantships. She manages new faculty orientation, academic complaints and appeals, university-level initiatives and interdisciplinary degree programs, and serves as the lead contact for the Collective Social Action Alliance certificate program.

Denise Jenkins

Jenkins was promoted to assistant dean for finance effective May 1. An employee of the University System of Georgia since 1998, Jenkins joined Georgia State University’s Office of Budget and Planning in 2001. She was the college financial officer for the College of Education & Human Development for a year before she joined AYSPS as chief financial officer in July 2013. For the last decade, Jenkins has served as a valued member of the college’s executive leadership team, which helps set policies and budget priorities. She holds a B.B.A. in Accounting Management and an M.P.A. in Management and Finance from Georgia State University.

As assistant dean, Jenkins oversees all budget and accounting systems and policies across all funding sources in the college. Additionally, she is working to create a sustainable model for financial planning, management and business operations that will strengthen the college’s ability to innovate while managing its yearly budget.

Leah Daigle

Daigle became chair of the Department of Criminal Justice & Criminology effective Aug. 1. A Distinguished University Professor and core faculty member of Georgia State University’s Center for Research on Interpersonal Violence, Daigle joined the department as an associate professor in 2008. Her research focuses on recurring victimization, sexual victimization of college women and the correlates of victimization, along with the development and continuation of victimization across the life course. She has published more than 50 peer-reviewed articles and has authored several books, including “Unsafe in the Ivory Tower: The Sexual Victimization of College Women,” which received the 2011 Outstanding Book Award from the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences. Daigle received the American Society of Criminology’s Division of Victimology Bonnie S. Fisher Career Award in 2020, recognizing her significant, lifetime contribution to the study of victimology. She holds a B.A. in Criminal Justice from Roanoke College, an M.S. in Criminal Justice from Northeastern University and a Ph.D. in Criminal Justice from the University of Cincinnati.

Cummings, a retired U.S. Army colonel, was promoted to director of the Georgia International Law Enforcement Exchange (GILEE) effective July 1. Cummings joined GILEE as associate director in spring 2020 after serving in numerous leadership positions throughout his 28 years in the U.S. Army. Cummings is a graduate of the U.S. Army War College and was a National Security Fellow at The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. He holds a B.S. from Norwich University and an M.S. from Troy University.

Also on July 1, Borissova, an integral member of the GILEE program for more than 15 years, was promoted to GILEE associate director. Borissova began at GILEE as a graduate research assistant while pursuing her master’s degree at Georgia State. She served as a program coordinator and assistant director before moving into the associate director role. Borissova holds a B.A. in International Studies from the University of South Carolina and an M.S. in Criminal Justice from Georgia State University.