LINKS

Marla Amborn, Program Coordinator
Marla Amborn, who joined the staff in March 2004, has over 15 years of college experience in faculty and administrative roles. She has been a leader in initiating and supporting college instructors to use creative and powerful methods to engage learners. Her Master’s Degree in Human Development from St. Mary’s University focused on brain-compatible learning, providing a solid foundation in the educational research and neuroscience of the brain and learning.

Prior to joining The Collaboration, Marla conducted staff development for instructors and provided consulting for organizations on becoming learning-centered and brain-compatible as the Director of The Center for Engaged Learning. She received her baccalaureate from Ripon College and worked as an instructor and administrator at Century College, Dakota County Technical College, and Wisconsin Indianhead Technical College. Marla, who served previously as Program Director at The Collaboration, is currently a student at Luther Seminary and continues to work with us part-time. She manages The Collaboration’s Traveling Workshop Program and provides logistical support for conferences and other events.

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Timothy Barrett, Program Director
Tim Barrett, who joined the staff in June 2007, most recently served as Senior Educator at the Bakken Museum, where he worked with K–12 and especially K–8 children and teachers, created and managed an innovative Bush Foundation-funded school program, and oversaw a unique Science Theatre program. With a Bachelor of Arts from the University of St. Thomas and a Master of Arts from North Dakota State University, Tim has a background in theatre, with an emphasis on acting and technical production.

Before working at the Bakken, Tim taught through the joint Theatre Department at the University of St. Thomas and the College of St. Catherine from 1989–2004 and served as Technical Director and Assistant Production Manager for The O’Shaughnessy. He also worked as Production Manager at Twin City Public Television for three years and has other teaching, workshop presentation, and theatre experience. In his work with The Collaboration, Tim is responsible for planning, developing, and managing Collaboration programs, including conferences, Traveling Workshops, and the Institute for Academic Innovation.

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Shirley Baugher, President
Dr. Shirley L. Baugher recently joined The Collaboration from Bowling Green State University in Ohio, where she served as Provost and Vice President for Academic Programs. Prior to her service at BGSU, Shirley was Dean of the College of Human Ecology at the University of Minnesota. She has also served as Department Chair at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Associate Dean at the University of Minnesota, Assistant Director of Extension Programs at the University of Minnesota, and as faculty member at the University of Missouri-Columbia, the University of Minnesota, and Webster College at Ft. Leonard Wood Missouri. Shirley has also worked in state and federal government and taught in the public schools in Texas and Missouri in previous career appointments.

Shirley completed her Ph.D. in Education at the University of Missouri-Columbia, a BSEd. in Education, and an M. A. in counseling at Truman State University (formerly Northeast State University) in Missouri. She completed graduate coursework in special education at Lincoln University in Jefferson City. Her scholarship has focused on women in leadership and, more recently, on diversity and community development. 

In 2008, The University of Missouri College of Education awarded Shirley the Citation of Merit for Outstanding Meritorious Service. She was a recipient of the Sue Tidball Service to the University and the Shades of Leadership for Service to Students of Color at the University of Nebraska Lincoln; the Adult Educator of the Year Award from the Missouri Valley Adult Education Association; and she was selected as a Fellow of the W. K. Kellogg Leadership Program. Most recently, she participated in the ACE Institute for New Chief Academic Officers.  

Shirley's service to her profession is evidenced by the numerous leadership and Board appointments. She has been elected to the following Honor Societies: Phi Upsilon Omicron (Human Sciences); Phi Beta Delta (International Scholars); Phi Delta Kappa (Education); Gamma Sigma Delta (Agriculture); Epsilon Sigma Phi (Extension); International Society of Poets, and she is a Laureate Member of the Academy of American Poets. She has also been an active leader within the National Association of State University and Land Grant Colleges (Human Sciences). Shirley is also a Sherpa-certified Executive Coach. She completed her certification at the Smeal College of Business, at Penn State University. 

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Michael Fallon, Marketing, Communications, & Special Projects Manager 
Michael Fallon joined the staff in July, 2008. Before that, he served as Executive Director at the Northfield Arts Guild, where he worked with multiple arts programs, spear-headed the creation of new artist residency programs in local schools, led a number of projects to engage local college students in community arts programs, and oversaw various technology and marketing initiatives. With a Bachelor of Arts from the University of California, Berkeley and a Master of Arts Management from Carnegie Mellon University, Michael has a background in the arts, with an emphasis on arts writing, marketing, and administration.

Michael’s responsibilities include managing The Collaboration’s marketing and communications efforts, including membership and the website; providing fundraising support; and coordinating the Bellman Award for Exemplary Leadership, the Faculty Developers’ Network, and other projects.

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Kristen Klein, Program and Marketing Assistant

Kristen received an Associate Travel Consultant degree from the Travel Academy and is in the final stages of getting her Bachelor of Science degree in Communications from the University of Minnesota–Crookston. Prior to joining us, Kristen worked at the American Academy of Neurology as the Senior Specialist of Conference Management and as a subcontractor for the Society for Simulation in Healthcare.

As Program and Marketing Assistant, Kristen is responsible for providing support for marketing/communications and for event planning and management, with a focus on logistical support for events.

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Diana Longseth, Manager of Administrative Services 
Diana Longseth has been a member of The Collaboration staff since 1990 and has an Associate's Degree in Liberal Arts from Inver Hills Community College. She manages the organization's human resource functions, provides administrative support to the president and chief executive officer and Board of Directors. She is responsible for maintaining the organization's accounting system and membership records.   

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Janet Luna, Administrative Secretary 
Janet Luna joined The Collaboration's staff in May 2007, with a diploma as a legal secretary from St. Paul College. She brings 15 years of experience as an office assistant with a broad base of skills. Prior to joining The Collaboration, Janet worked in financial and legal settings, including positions with Macy's Headquarters, the Minnesota State Attorney General's Office, and a small law firm. 

Janet is responsible for database and registration management. She provides clerical support to senior staff for program and marketing and friendly front-line customer service to our members, clients, and other callers. 

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Lesley Cafarelli, President Emerita
Dr. Lesley K. Cafarelli, The Collaboration's first president and chief executive officer, has been honored by The Collaboration’s Board of Directors with the permanent title of President Emerita. Lesley headed The Collaboration from July 1987 through August 2009, shepherding it from an informal regional network of 30-plus Bush Foundation faculty development grant coordinators to a robust independent nonprofit organization with 108 institutional members from across the United States and participants from many other institutions and nations. As president, she led the development of distinctive, cutting-edge programs and services embodying a commitment to inclusivity, active learning, and integrated program design; developed programming for historically black and Native American tribal colleges and universities; and forged partnerships with many other organizations. She also oversaw the organization’s marketing, managed its finances, secured funding, and facilitated the work of the Board.

Lesley has provided leadership and management for faculty development and the improvement of higher education since 1981. From 1984-90, she served as director of educational development for the University of Minnesota system, coordinating curriculum development grants and workshops; programs for academic advisers; the Bush Sabbatical Fellowship Program; Morse-Alumni Awards for Outstanding Contributions to Undergraduate Education; and the Rhodes, Marshall, and Churchill Scholarships. She led initiatives to improve undergraduate education, including development of college honors programs, orientation and mentoring for new faculty, and liberal education; training and development for graduate TAs; and minority student development. She also created the University's Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) and secured external grants to fund departmental undergraduate research programs. In fall 1990, Lesley moved from the University to the Minnesota Private College Council, Fund, and Research Foundation, where she served as assistant vice president for leadership development for Minnesota’s Private Colleges, including management of The Collaboration, the Kellogg Presidential Leadership and Blandin Faculty Fellowship Programs, and quarterly meetings of the colleges' chief academic officers group.

With an academic background in Greek and ancient Near Eastern studies, Lesley was a faculty member at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities from 1977-92, teaching graduate and undergraduate courses in Classical Studies and the College of Liberal Arts Honors Division. Her publications include Dilemmas in Teaching: Cases for Collaborative Faculty Reflection (1998), the result of a six-year project on case-based learning, and she has given numerous keynote addresses and other presentations. Lesley has served on several nonprofit boards, including the Professional and Organizational Development Network (POD), the Associated Colleges of the Twin Cities, the Minnesota ACE Network, and the National Conferences for Undergraduate Research, which she helped to found. She has also served as a reviewer for higher education journals and a consultant for many colleges and universities and for the Bush Foundation, Lilly Endowment, HBCU Faculty Development Network, and National Endowment for the Humanities. Over her career, she has personally raised more than $7.1 million in grants and gifts for higher education.

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