Debbie Darr serves as director of membership and operations for CUMU. She oversees membership, including recruitment, member retention, and the on-boarding of new members to ensure the success of the organization. She also manages finances and supports the planning of the annual conference and the functions of the board of directors.

Debbie’s background includes ten years in the financial services industry at two Baltimore firms. Debbie holds an M.B.A. from Loyola University Maryland and a B.S. in business administration and marketing from Towson University.

Valerie Holton serves as chief executive officer for CUMU. She brings over 25 years of experience in and across universities and non-profit organizations, as a faculty member, administrator, Fulbright Senior Scholar, practitioner, and consultant. Valerie has developed and strengthened internal and external partnerships to advance strategic and operational imperatives to deepening our public mission. Valerie’s scholarship draws on her professional experience by examining organizational change and impact.

Valerie has served as CUMU’s senior fellow, facilitated its strategic planning processes, developed and led the Barbara A. Holland Scholar-Administrator Award, and guided the early development of CUMU’s partnership with the Democracy Collaborative, which later expanded into the Anchor Learning Network. After serving as an author and guest editor, she served as the editor of Metropolitan Universities journal (MUJ) from 2016 to 2023.

Valerie holds a B.A. in psychology from The College of William & Mary, and a masters and Ph.D. in social work from Virginia Commonwealth University. She continues to teach courses with National Yang Ming Chaio Tung University in Taipei, Taiwan.

Stacey M. Johnson serves as director of learning and engagement for CUMU. She brings over 20 years of experience in higher education both as faculty and professional staff in research universities, liberal arts colleges, and community colleges. Stacey is also an active scholar in her discipline. She is a journal editor, podcast producer, workshop facilitator, presenter, and author. She has published books and articles on topics related to online/hybrid instruction, postsecondary language classroom practices, and adult learning including transformative learning and critical pedagogy. Her most recent publication is an edited collection entitled How We Take Action: Social Justice in PK-16 Language Classrooms that features more than 50 authors sharing how they foster more engaged, justice-oriented educational spaces for language learners.

Stacey holds an Ed.D. in adult education and an M.A. in Romance languages from the University of Memphis and a B.A. in Spanish and international studies from Union University.