Nine new team members joined us this winter semester. Learn more about their positions, past experiences, and why they are excited to join LSA Technology Services. Welcome Mariam, Olivia, Kiara, Nancy, Eddie, Patti, Sandy, Dan, and Abby!
Mariam Abdelsalam, Instructional Designer
With past experience in teaching and working with a nonprofit organization, Mariam is joining us as an Instructional Designer specializing in accessibility. In this role she’ll work closely with faculty, helping them make their course materials more accessible and lead workshops. Mariam is excited to collaborate with a forward-thinking community that shares her passion for innovation and knowledge.
Olivia Cirisan, Audio Visual Technician
Olivia holds both a B.M. and M.M. in Percussion Performance from the University of Michigan. In addition to being a performer, she has also been an active composer, singer/songwriter, producer, and audio engineer in Ann Arbor. She enjoys experimenting in ways that combine her classical percussion background with other interests such as electronics, pop music, and improvisation. Olivia is most excited to meet more people on her team since a lot of those she’s met already have been really cool!
Kiara Glekler, Audio Visual Technician
Kiara primarily worked in hotel AV and, most recently, as a stagehand. She received her BA in Music Composition and Vocal Performance in 2022 and has extensive experience in the music industry. Kiara has been a chorus member for Opera Grand Rapids, worked as a church singer, taught voice lessons, and performed part-time in jazz vocal gigs. She will be assisting our team with AV for events and video conferencing. Kiara is most excited about learning new things in her role. She’s particularly interested in exploring IP networking for AV technology and is thrilled by the kindness and friendliness of everyone on her team, which makes her eager to make new work friends.
Nancy Herlocher, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Automation Center of Excellence Specialist
Nancy has had various roles within the university, ranging from an econometrician to, most recently, an Operations Manager with ITS. In her new role, she will collaborate with LSA departments to coordinate and implement AI projects focused on administrative applications. Nancy is excited to create breathing room in overtaxed positions by applying AI, and hopes to make jobs less stressful and more fun.
Eddie Jackson, Desktop Support Lead
Eddie has experience working in K-12 education and with companies like Apple and ProQuest. He will be working as the Desktop Support Lead for Instructional Computing, and he is excited to be in an educational environment again and have a direct impact on learning.
Patti Kolo, Desktop Support Specialist
Joining as a Desktop Support Specialist for the Randall building region, Patti will assist the community with troubleshooting software and hardware issues. Her previous work includes being a full-stack web developer in legal tech, an audio engineer for a podcast worker, and a barista. Patti looks forward to working through an unusual variety of technical challenges, along with working in-person after a long period of remote work.
Sandy Becker Rozek, Workflow Automation Specialist
Sandy’s background is in mathematics and educational psychology, and she has held several data/computing and education roles at U-M and Eastern Michigan University over the years. Sandy is excited for her work at the new Generative AI Center of Excellence, where she will be leading workshops, assisting staff with AI and automation needs, and evaluating the impact of these efforts throughout LSA.
Dan Stanish, Business Intelligence (BI) Analyst Lead
Dan has worked in various tech roles at U-M since 1997. In his role with LSA Technology Services, he’ll be creating high-impact tools, dashboards, and data products, as well as leading BI reporting projects. Dan is excited to join our team as he believes we are recognized campus-wide as leaders in technology and innovation. He is also excited to join LSA as a whole as we are known for leading science and knowledge in a large range of fascinating fields.
Abby Suneson, Systems Administrator
Abby is working with our Infrastructure team as a Systems Administrator, in support of the lsa-webapps service. She has previous experience as a systems administrator for Trinity University in Texas.
Steve Tinholt, Desktop Support Apprentice
Steve joins us as an apprentice, working with our Hardware Lifecycle Team building new computers and disposing of old devices. Steve’s previous experience is in healthcare, so he is excited about learning and growing in this role.
