Staff

Meet the staff for the Center for Civic Engagement.

Katy Strzepek became the first director of the Center for Civic Engagement team in February 2020. She was previously the director of the Women and Gender Studies Program and WGS Resource Center at St. Ambrose University, Davenport, Iowa. She also organized the Ambrose Women for Social Justice Conference, bringing globally renowned human rights activists to campus, including Leymah Gbowee, a Nobel Peace Prize winner from Liberia.

Strzepek received a bachelor’s degree in history from Kenyon College, Gambier, Ohio; a master’s degree in African history from Northwestern University; and a doctorate in higher education administration and foundations from Illinois State University.

Harriett Steinbach joined the Center for Civic Engagement team in summer 2017. She previously worked for 10 years in the Dean of Students Office at Illinois State University. Serving in several capacities, Steinbach worked most significantly with Parent and Family Services, off-campus living, leadership development, and community service. Prior to her time at Illinois State, she worked at The Salvation Army and the McLean County Museum of History.

Steinbach received her B.A. in Political Science and History from Eureka College and her M.S. in Political Science with an emphasis in Public Service from Illinois State University. She is currently studying in the Doctor of Public Administration program through the University of Illinois Springfield, with a Leadership of Public and Nonprofit Organizations specialization.

Christine Bruckner started as the Assistant Director of Assessment, Data Management, and Grant Writing in December 2016. Before working for the center, Bruckner was a Research and Planning Analyst for the Office of Planning, Research, and Policy Analysis at Illinois State University. Prior to working at Illinois State, she worked as a Research and Program Evaluation Specialist at the Illinois Network of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies in Bloomington, and as a high school speech and English teacher.

Bruckner is a double alumna from Illinois State University having received a B.A. in Communication Studies Teacher Education (with recognition as a Bone Scholar) and a M.S. in Communication.

Annjanette (Annie) Weaver joined the Center for Civic Engagement team in summer 2017. Previously she worked as the Senior Specialist for Leadership and Community Connections in the Dean of Students Office at Illinois State University. Her work in both the Dean of Students Office and now the Center includes working with the Alternative Breaks program and on several community service initiatives. Before arriving at Illinois State, Weaver was the Coordinator of Student Involvement for Greek Life and Civic Engagement at Lynn University in Boca Raton, FL, working with fraternities and sororities, service programming, and Relay For Life.

Weaver received her B.A.A. from Central Michigan University in Broadcast and Cinematic Arts and Theatre and her M.S Ed. from the University of Nebraska-Kearney in Counseling-Student Affairs.

Emily Nafziger joined Illinois State University and the Center for Civic Engagement in August 2018. Prior to that, she worked for over 18 years at a nonprofit organization in Urbana, Illinois. Her work at the National Council of Teachers of English involved marketing, communications, information technology project management, program management, and convention planning.

Nafziger received her B.A in Public Relations and Mass Communication from Illinois State University and was recognized as a Bone Scholar. She received her M.B.A. from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a focus in general management.

Beth Porter joined Illinois State University and the Center for Civic Engagement in June 2019. Prior to joining the Center, she worked at the Heyworth Public Library for 12 years, serving as the library director for 9 years of those years. She also worked at Unit 4 School District in Heyworth as a special education aide.

Porter is a graduate of Illinois State University with a degree in Political Science. Her passion is growing communities and outreach.

Katelyn Hill earned her B.A. in psychology from Illinois State University in May 2018 and is currently a first-year graduate student pursuing her master's in social work with a specialization in Gerontology. She has completed over 120 hours of volunteer work with organizations such as PATH, Marcfirst, and Special Olympics. During her undergraduate years, she competed on the collegiate level as part of the track and field team. Her main event was the 100m hurdles and the 200m dash, and she would run the 4 x 400m relay on occasion. After being involved in track and field since the fifth grade, Hill is excited about taking a break from running to join the Center for Civic Engagement.

Blair Canedy earned her B.S. in Legal Studies from Illinois State University in May 2019 and is currently a graduate student pursuing her Master’s in College Student Personnel Administration. During her undergraduate years, she was involved in Red Tassel Mortar Board, Students Ending Rape Culture, ISULeads (completing all three pillars), Alternative Breaks (trip leader), and Leaders of Social Change (facilitator). She also was a student manager at the Welcome Desk in the Bone Student Center. As a part of her Civic Engagement minor, Canedy interned at The Immigration Project, an organization that provides legal services in Central and Southern Illinois for two semesters.

Melissa Seipp earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Public Relations from Illinois State in December 2012 and is currently a graduate student pursing her Master’s Degree in the College Student Personnel Administration program. Throughout her undergraduate career, she was part of the Alpha Delta Pi sorority, Students Today Leaders Forever, Pi Sigma Epsilon business fraternity, and the All Greek Programming Board. Seipp also studied abroad at the University of Leicester, north of London, England, during her senior year. She held various internships with the Town of Normal, Motorola, and Country Financial during her time at Illinois State. After graduation, she started her professional career as a counselor in the Admissions Department at Illinois State. Building relationships with those students and having an awesome college experience has driven Seipp to pursue even more opportunities within higher education.