The Center for Student Engagement (CSE) is pleased to introduce the team members working to create inclusive and innovative opportunities to help New Paltz students build connections and community.
Interested in getting involved? If you’re looking for a great club or student organization to join, start with Engage, which includes links to all of our existing student activities on campus. The CSE website also offers links to off-campus resources and local volunteer opportunities.
Ashley Walker, Director for the Center for Student Engagement
Walker joined the New Paltz community as a leader in the CSE this summer. She earned her bachelor’s in sociology and her master’s in Africana Studies from the University at Albany, where she also began her student affairs journey in the department of residential life. She continued as Assistant Director of Student Activities and emcee for home football and basketball games. She later became Associate Director for Campus Activities and Events at East Carolina University, where she also chaired the Student Involvement & Leadership’s DEI Committee and co-chaired the Student Access and Success subcommittee.
Walker is happy to be back home in the SUNY system, where she can continue to advocate for full-time student affairs professionals, to provide the same support to students she received during her college career, and to be a change agent in making universities student-ready.
Ed Lawson, Assistant Director for Intercultural Relations
As a committed change agent and transformative leader, Lawson serves as the Assistant Director for Intercultural Relations in the Center for Student Engagement. He earned a Bachelor of Science and Master’s in Business Administration degree in finance from Manhattan College and a Juris Doctorate degree from the University of Virginia.
He has consistently provided pragmatic insights and solutions and built a record of measurable success while conducting more than 250 trainings, workshops, and community engagement events in 20 states and three countries. Lawson has been married to his wife Sandra for 29 years and has two children: Maya, an attorney working in Washington, D.C., and Trey, who is attending Loma Linda Medical School.
Emily Holub ’15, Assistant Director for Orientation & New Student Programs
Holub has been with the CSE since July 2020. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from New Paltz and a Master’s in Higher Education from Merrimack College.
Holub previously worked in the Department of Residence Life and transitioned into the former Center for Student Development to work on retention.
She enjoys working with students in transition, specifically those who are new to the College, and also with the student leaders who help facilitate orientation programs.
Jennifer Turner, Assistant Director for Fraternity & Sorority Life
Turner is excited to be back at New Paltz as the Assistant Director for Fraternity & Sorority Life. She previously served as the New York Program Director for Avodah, the Jewish service corps; as the Student Activities Coordinator at SUNY New Paltz; and as the Civic Engagement Coordinator at the University of Bridgeport.
She is a four-term AmeriCorps VISTA alum. She completed her bachelor’s degree in politics & religion at the University of Memphis and her master’s degree in counseling for college student personnel at University of Bridgeport. In her free time, she loves traveling and hanging out with her dog, Zora.
Ariana Carbonaro ’16 ’18g, Student Union Coordinator
Two-time alumna Carbonaro returns to New Paltz as the Student Union Coordinator. She graduated with her Bachelor of Arts in English with a minor in women, gender & sexuality studies in 2016, and received her Master of Professional Studies in 2018 in Humanistic Multicultural Education. Her thesis studied ways of preventing burnout in student leadership in higher education.
Her love for student engagement started here at New Paltz, where she was involved in the Departments of Residence Life and Student Development, and in the Residence Hall Student Association.
In her time outside of New Paltz, Carbonaro served as the Leadership Development Coach at Mount Saint Mary College in Newburgh, New York, as well as an admissions counselor at the Culinary Institute of America. However, there is no place like home, and she is grateful to be back working with students to have them educated, engaged, and excited for all New Paltz has to offer.
Margo Bogossian, Orientation & Involvement Coordinator
Bogossian holds both a Bachelor of Science and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Kansas, as well as a Master of Science from Arizona State University and a Master of Education from Northern Arizona University.
Bogossian joined the Center for Student Engagement with seven years of experience in higher education, primarily in admissions and recruiting. Her past experience includes coordinating recruitment events, serving as an admissions counselor and leading both student employees and volunteer student tour guides at the University of Arizona. She brings her passion for higher education and commitment to serving students to the Center for Student Engagement.
Kevin Merting ’22, Reservations & Events Manager
As an undergraduate student, Merting worked in a variety of student leadership roles, including time as a student resilience advocate, orientation leader, intern for the Center for Student Media, and public relations for RHSA.
Merting currently serves as the CSE’s reservations and events manager. He is happy to be continuing his time at New Paltz and is excited to work with students to promote the Student Union Building and the programming therein.
Visit the Center for Student Engagement website for more information or to get in touch.
