Wellness through an Inclusive Lens
Join us for our third annual virtual LICSPA Symposium on May 12, 2023, from 10 a.m. –12 p.m. EST.
A Multi-Faceted Approach to Wellness for our Students and Staff Populations
After an ever-changing time in higher education, professional staff and students face a challenge that is not new, but that has become more prevalent in all aspects of our lives: taking care of ourselves. Oftentimes, wellness can be a looked over topic by both students and staff/faculty, the result being harm to themselves and those around them. This symposium serves to re-emphasize the importance of all aspects and areas of wellness. With the assistance of our panelists who all have one or more aspects of wellness within their realm, we desire to answer the question: How do we, as professionals, promote and facilitate proper wellness strategies in both ours and students’ lives? And further, how do we do this in an equitable way?
Join our panelists and specialists as they address this topic at our virtual LICSPA Symposium on Friday, May 12, 2023, 10–12:00 p.m.
Alicia K. Czachowski, EdD, MPH, CHES (they/them/theirs), Senior Executive Director of Alice! Health Promotion, Columbia Health
Adele Gutierrez, BDN, RN, Registered Nurse: EAP Coordinator at SUNY Old Westbury
Christina Vargas, MS, Chief Diversity Officer and Title IX Coordinator at SCCC; Co-Chair of the Board of Directors for ERASE Racism, Inc.; Adjunct Professor at Stony Brook University
Erin Maurno, MA, Assistant Director of Fitness and Wellness at Stony Brook University
Marisa Bisiani, DNP, Associate Vice President of Student Health, Wellness, and Prevention Services at Stony Brook University
The LICSPA Symposium is free to those with an active 2023 LICSPA membership and current graduate student staff and professionals. For other individuals, the LICSPA symposium is $10 for non-members. Click here to become a 2023 LICSPA member.
Meet the Panelists
Alicia K. Czachowski, EdD, MPH, CHES (they/them/theirs) is the Senior Executive Director of Alice Health Promotion. In their role, they manage the Alice Health Promotion team including Direct Services, Health Promotion, and Public Health initiatives. Alicia also works with the Senior Leadership team of Columbia Health on strategic planning; diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging efforts; and ongoing holistic health and well-being work supporting the Columbia community.
Originally from Syracuse, Alicia has lived in Philadelphia and New Orleans, and is excited to return to living in New York City. They enjoy spending their free time with family and friends, their dog McKinney, traveling, indulging in anything Star Wars or Doctor Who related, and going to Broadway shows.
Adele Gutierrez, BDN, RN, started her career in nursing in 2010 as a Psychiatric Nurse. Two years later she found herself applying to the College of SUNY Old Westbury Student Health Center where she currently serves the campus community. Adele has been at SUNY Old Westbury for 11 years, serving as a Senior Nurse on Staff, also mentoring students in many clubs, internships, campus programs, such as OW Pride, Peer Educators and the list goes on. In addition, she is certified with the American Heart Association as a CPR Instructor. Her passion is getting involved with the next generation and being a positive support to guide students through some challenging years into adulthood and educate them to become advocates for their health.
Adele also serves as the volunteer Employee Assistance Program Coordinator and WellNYS Ambassador for SUNY Old Westbury staff and Faculty, providing referrals and resources for various topics such as health, wellness, childcare, grief in the workplace, financial planning, mediation and anything else that may arise unexpectedly for employees.
In her spare time, she is a proud mom of her furry human, cocker spaniel named Bailey, Podcasts, cycles, active in the LGBTQ+ community and works part time working for Adults with Disabilities as a group home nurse.
Christina Vargas, MS is the Chief Diversity Officer and Title IX Coordinator at Suffolk County Community College. Throughout her career, she has displayed a commitment to social justice, multiculturalism, equity and inclusion. She is an engaging and passionate speaker; and an accomplished trainer and facilitator. At Suffolk, she is responsible for leading strategic efforts to build a more equitable and diverse academic community and inclusive college climate. Ms. Vargas has designed and implemented the Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI) professional development institute for faculty and staff, is a facilitator for the Braver Spaces LGBTQ+ allyship program, provides oversight of faculty and staff diversity recruitment, and oversees anti-discrimination and sexual violence prevention programs. Ms. Vargas is an adjunct lecturer for the Master’s Program in Higher Education Administration at Stony Brook University where she was the recipient of the program’s Faculty Excellence Award. She spent 20 years of her career at Stony Brook University, serving as the Director of Diversity and Affirmative Action/Title IX Coordinator for all University academic and administrative areas, Stony Brook Medicine and the Long Island State Veteran’s home.
Erin Maurno, MA is currently serving as the Assistant Director of Fitness and Wellness for Stony Brook University. She earned her Masters in Higher Education Administration from Stony Brook University where she sparked her interest in fitness programming. After graduating she worked at Syracuse University where she designed and implemented a new group fitness program model which provided free access to all students. Erin also worked to open the Barnes Center, a state of the art facility that houses all aspects of health and wellness under one roof from fitness equipment and classes to counseling and the pharmacy.
Dr. Marisa Bisiani is the Associate Vice President for Health, Wellness, and Prevention Services. Bisiani has been a leader in Student Affairs since she began working at Stony Brook in 2017 in the newly-created role as Assistant Vice President for Student Health, Wellness and Prevention Services to address the need for greater investment and focus on the safety, health, and wellness of the student body. Bisiani worked to expand and integrate the holistic services that support the student experience at Stony Brook. This includes the renovation of the Student Health & Counseling Center, the introduction of telehealth and telecounseling services, and the creation of proactive educational, recreational and outreach efforts. When COVID impacted the campus community almost three years ago, Bisiani was at the helm of the health and safety planning for both students and employees. She worked to respond to aspects of addressing the pandemic, speaking to many audiences and worked to keep the campus safe.
In her expanded role, Bisiani oversees the teams in Counseling & Psychological Services, Center for Prevention & Outreach, Recreation & Wellness, Student Accessibility Support Center, and Student Health Services. Shealso works closely with the Division of Human Resources, as she has during the pandemic, including Healthier U and the Employee Assistance Program (EAP), supporting broader health and wellness initiatives for West campus employees.
Dr. Bisiani received her Doctor of Nursing Practice, Master of Science/Adult Practitioner and Bachelor’s of Science degree in Nursing from Stony Brook University.
Bisiani is married and is the mother of three children.