2020 IFL Faculty Fellows

Our first Fellows cohort consists of 11 scholars and post-doctoral professors. Six of the scholars are internal Coast Guard academics. Five of the Fellows are academics from other prominent universities, who are also military veterans. All five Armed forces are represented by our initial group of 11, all listed below. They have been selected based on their body of work, and their expertise in researching leadership in the military domain. The Fellows have partnered into six research groups to conduct joint studies of leadership development at the Coast Guard Academy.

Armando Estrada, Ph.D., is a faculty member in the College of Education at Temple University. His research examines factors influencing leadership, teamwork and performance, with particular focus on cohesion, readiness, resilience and effectiveness of collectives in civilian and military organizations. He also studies diversity, inclusion and engagement in civilian and military organizations. Dr. Estrada has been editor-in-chief for the journal Military Psychology and president of the Society for Military Psychology. Dr. Estrada is a veteran of the United States Marine Corps.
CAPT Anna Hickey, Ph.D., is the Department Head of Management at the United States Coast Guard Academy and a member of the Academy’s Permanent Commissioned Teaching Staff. She received her MBA from Florida Atlantic University and a Ph.D. in Business Administration from West Virginia University, and is an Academy graduate. Her research interests are in governmental financial reporting and accounting education. She also serves on the editorial board for the Journal of Accounting Education.
Tom Miller, Ph.D., serves at the Coast Guard Leadership Development Center (LDC) in New London, Connecticut where he facilitates the delivery of the Mid-Grade Officer and Civilian Transition Course and other courses within the LDC. His research interests include vertical leader development (Epistemic Cognition, Reflective Judgment, and Critical Thinking), Constructive Development Theory, and the ecological approach to leadership.
Sean Edmund Rogers, Ph.D., is the Spachman Professor of Human Resources and Labor Relations at the University of Rhode Island College of Business. He studies volunteerism, workplace diversity, employment discrimination, and labor-management relations. An Army veteran, Rogers currently serves as a Medical Service Corps officer in the US Air Force Reserve.
LT Brandon Strickland, Ph.D., received his M.Ed. and PhD in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies from the University of Massachusetts in Dartmouth. His dissertation examined shifts in educational policy and resulting pedagogical approaches in urban public schools over the past three decades. Currently, he is as an Admissions Officer and Assistant Campus Program Manager at the Coast Guard Academy.
Kenneth Sweet, Ph.D., is an operations research/systems analysis officer in the Texas Army National Guard and an Assistant Professor of Management at Texas A&M University – San Antonio. He researches organizational leadership, workplace deviance, and business pedagogy. An Army veteran, Dr. Sweet currently serves as the Operations Officer for the 101st Information Operations Battalion at Camp Mabry, TX.
Celia Szelwach, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor of Leadership and Organizational Development at Cabrini University. Her research interests include women veterans, embodied leadership, organizational and leader resilience, and building healthy, inclusive work cultures. Szelwach graduated in the 11th class of women from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and served as an Army transportation officer and senior-rated parachutist at Fort Bragg.
Kassim Tarhini, Ph.D., is professor of civil engineering at the Coast Guard Academy. His research examines innovative pedagogy in engineering education, the progressive integration of design process into the curriculum, infusing ethics activities through case studies, and the enhancement of leadership development in undergraduate engineering education.
Curtis L. Wesley II, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor of Management and Leadership at the University of Houston C.T. Bauer College of Business. His research focuses on the governance of social ventures as well as positive outcomes related to effective leadership of organizations. Wesley is graduate of the United States Naval Academy and is a retired senior naval officer.
LCDR Peter Vermeer, is the Assistant Director of Institutional Research at the Coast Guard Academy. He supports other IFL Fellows’ with institutional research, data collection, and other data management activities. His previous research is in statistics education and simulation of Coast Guard maritime security & safety operations. He also serves as the President of the Connecticut Association for Institutional Research.
Yang Xu, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Strategy in the Management Department at USCGA. She holds an MBA from China Europe International Business School and a Ph.D. in Business from Virginia Tech. Xu has taught a variety of business administration courses and has published articles in various academic journals such as Personnel Review, Management Research Review, Gender in Management and Journal of Education for Business.
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Contact Information

Loy Institute for Leadership
Mr. Tobias Olsen
USCGA Leader
Development Program Manager
Loy Institute Fellows Program Administrator
860-442-2691 Ext. 30
Tobias.M.Olsen@uscga.edu
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