Kimberly Novak, CEO NovakTalks is an independent consultant for Campus Safety, Student Risk Management and Student Organization Development. Additionally, she serves Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity as their Health & Safety Officer. She is recognized as a national expert in student-focused risk management, organization conduct, hazing prevention, and involving students in campus safety efforts. She has been invited to speak at national conferences and on college campuses around the country and has served as faculty for several nationally sponsored professional institutes and leadership programs. Her work in the field of hazing prevention resulted in the development, design, and facilitation of the Novak Institute for Hazing Prevention, a successful ten-year program which in 2018 became the Interdisciplinary Institute for Hazing Prevention.

Kim served as a Fellow for the U.S. Department of Education Higher Education Center and on several national advisory boards including the Board of Directors for The Association of Student Conduct Administrators. Kim currently serves as the Fraternity Executive Association’s Dean for the Interfraternity Institute (IFI) and on the Advisory Board for the University of Vermont Higher Ed Law Conference.

Prior to embarking on her consulting career, Kim served as the Director for Student and Campus Community Development at Arizona State University, Downtown Phoenix campus. She was also the Assistant Director for Student Affairs Risk Management at Arizona State University, Tempe Campus where she led the design and implementation of a comprehensive and proactive risk management model for The Division of Student Affairs. Prior to joining the ASU community, Kim worked for eight years at Texas A&M University where she served as Program Coordinator for Risk Management and Organizational Development and led the implementation of the University's internationally recognized proactive risk management plan for student organizations.

Kim approaches her work with college students and those that support them with the heart of an advocate and is committed to the advancement of communities of care on college campuses across the country.

Dr. Keith Ellis has been recognized nationally as a leader and expert in hazing prevention, risk management education, and commitment to safe and healthy student services and experiences. Keith brings passion to the topic of prevention education and community change and has led workshops for students and professionals across the United States. Keith joined the faculty of the Interdisciplinary Institute for Hazing Prevention in 2010 and uses this platform to engage participants in conversations of research, partnership, policy development, and the application of prevention science to the topic of hazing. Keith’s goal in this work is to help students, faculty, and staff create environments where each party can come together in partnership and shared responsibility.

Keith graduated from the University of Memphis in 2002 with a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy and received his Master’s in Higher Education Administration from the University of Kansas before moving to the University of Kentucky to be the Assistant Director of Student Involvement from 2005-2008. Keith became the Assistant Dean of Students at the University of Kentucky in 2008 where he worked directly with the fraternity and sorority community to create change and advance the fraternal movement. In 2010, Keith assumed responsibility for the Students of Concern and Behavior Intervention Team at the University of Kentucky, advancing the work of student safety across many platforms including Mental Health, Physical Safety, and Student Conduct. In 2011 Keith moved on to become the Associate Director of Fraternity and Sorority Life at the University of South Carolina where he was responsible for the ongoing risk reduction education of fraternities and sororities and challenged the community to uphold their fraternal values during a period of crisis that received national attention. In 2013, Keith became the Director of Residence Life at the University of South Carolina integrating the work of student leadership, student conduct, residential education, behavior intervention, crisis management, prevention education, Title IX, and staff development. In 2020, Keith transitioned to the University of Illinois Chicago as Assistant Dean of Students where he oversaw the student conduct process for the University, with direct responsibility for student organization conduct, threat management, adjudication of Title IX cases, and community/neighborhood relations. Keith is currently serving as the Executive Director of Campus Housing at UIC a role he began in January 2023. In 2018, Keith completed his Ph.D. from the University of Kentucky with a research focus on the examination of hazing case law as applied between 1980-2013.

Keith is the father of 2 beautiful daughters Amelia and Annabeth (and a 3rd due in June!), husband to an amazing wife Nichole, and spends his free time supporting the local community through his connections with youth sports and F3 Nation. Keith continues to stay connected to the fraternity world as a volunteer for Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity.

Fred Dobry received his Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management from Indiana State University (Go Sycamores!). Upon graduation, Fred began working for Sigma Nu Fraternity Headquarters. He served for many years as Director of Risk Reduction until transitioning to his current role of Director of Health and Safety. In that role, Fred is responsible for developing and implementing prevention strategies identified through the Fraternity’s problem analysis as well as managing the Fraternity’s insurance program, risk reduction department, and expansion and recruitment department.

In his career, Fred has presented at numerous campus, fraternity, and trade association events and conferences including the AFA Annual Meeting and SGLA. He also has served on numerous task forces and committees, including serving as a report producer for the NIC Presidential Commission on Hazing Awareness and Prevention.

Fred resides in northwest Indiana with his wife, three young children, and dog, Mac. 

Dr. Linda Langford is an independent consultant specializing in campus- and community-based prevention, strategic planning, health communications, and program evaluation, with special interests in violence prevention, substance abuse prevention, mental health promotion, environmental approaches to prevention, practitioner-researcher collaborations, and translating research to practice. 

From 1998 to 2012, she served as an Associate Center Director of the U.S. Department of Education’s Higher Education Center for Alcohol, Drug Abuse, and Violence Prevention, initially managing the Center’s evaluation projects and from 2002-2012 serving as Director of Violence Prevention initiatives. During her time at the Center, Linda developed a framework for violence prevention in higher education based on a public health approach that promotes campus and community collaboration and systematic data-driven planning based on the best available prevention science. She authored a widely-used working paper on campus hazing prevention and has worked collaboratively with the faculty to incorporate the prevention framework into the Hazing Institute curriculum. She has presented at other national hazing prevention trainings and consulted on related initiatives including the criteria for the Zeta Tau Alpha Award for Innovation in Campus Hazing Prevention and Education and the National Agenda for Hazing Prevention. She trains, speaks, and consults widely on effective campus and community prevention and has served on numerous national advisory boards and expert panels. 

Since the Higher Education Center’s funding was eliminated in 2012, Linda has worked with campuses, communities and national organizations to improve their health and safety initiatives through her consulting practice Langford & Associates. Example projects have included conducting prevention reviews, conducting online and in-person trainings and presentations, and providing short- and long-term consultation on an array of issues related to effective prevention, including “prevention 101,” strategic planning, effective communications, bystander intervention, social norms, effective partnerships, environmental approaches to prevention, the intersection of alcohol and sexual violence, maximizing synergy across prevention efforts, and other topics. Dr. Langford also currently works part-time as an Evaluation and Communications Scientist at the Education Development Center (EDC). She holds a doctorate in behavioral sciences from the Harvard School of Public Health.

As the CEO and Project Leader of RISE Partnerships, Dan Wrona has provided training and consulting to leaders on more than 200 campuses over the past 25 years. He has held positions as a university administrator, national fraternity staff member, staff member for the North-American Interfraternity Conference, advisor to several student organizations, and volunteer for multiple workgroups in hazing prevention.

Through his work with RISE, Dan guides institutions and organizations in analyzing hazing problems and provides recommendations and training to support their hazing prevention efforts. He is the co-creator of multiple award-winning educational initiatives addressing hazing.

Dan earned his undergraduate degree in neuroscience from Albright College and his graduate degree in business administration from the University of South Carolina. He is a perpetual student of neuroscience, systems theory, strategy, instructional design, risk prevention, and social change.

Trey Robb serves as the Director of Member Services for Delta Kappa Epsilon Fraternity. He previously served as a fraternity/sorority advisor at the University of Tennessee and Texas Tech University. He is a three-time attendee, intern, and the newest faculty member of the Institute.

Trey is a skilled facilitator and brings extensive experience in leading hazing prevention efforts in both the university and organization environment.