Faculty and Staff
Dean of the College
A HERS Alum and American Council on Education Leadership Fellow, Dr. Carolyn Gentle-Genitty is a distinguished social work and youth development scholar with over 20 years of experience in higher education. She has held significant roles at Indiana University, including leading the Bachelor of Social Work program, developing online education programs, and overseeing system-wide academic policies as Assistant Vice President for Academic Policy. In 2024, she became the inaugural dean of Founder’s College at Butler University, a new two-year interdisciplinary college program aimed at providing affordable education and pathways to a four-year degree for low-wealth students. Dr. Gentle-Genitty is recognized nationally for her expertise in transfer and credit processes and policies and as an international expert in school bonding, attendance, and absenteeism.
Dr. Gentle-Genitty’s own educational journey was marked by perseverance and financial challenges. She paid for her associate degree through work-study, earned a full scholarship for her bachelor’s degree, and covered her master’s degree costs with a promissory loan. These experiences gave her firsthand insight into the barriers many students face in accessing higher education.
After earning her degrees in Social Work and leading the YMCA of Belize for nearly five years, she moved to Indianapolis in 2004 to pursue her Ph.D. at Indiana University. This transition into academia, combined with her background in social work and youth development, solidified her commitment to improving access and support for students in higher education.
Her progression from faculty roles to system-wide leadership positions at Indiana University, where she focused on developing online programs, overseeing academic policies, and improving transfer processes, demonstrates a growing passion for addressing systemic issues in higher education. She currently sits on the LEARN COMMISSION responding to the national credit evaluation and recognition in hopes to offer recommendations.
Fun Facts: She was a radio talk show host, was a CARICOM Consultant, consulted with UNICEF and OAS, holds an Honorary Chief of Police Distinction and got the Keys to the City of Louisville, KY for distinguished service.
Associate Deans
Dr. Stephanie Fernhaber is the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs in Founder’s College at Butler University. She is also a Professor of Entrepreneurship & Innovation.
She has taught a variety of courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels, including The Entrepreneurial Mindset, Impact Practicum, First-Year Business Experience, and Social Entrepreneurship.
In addition to teaching, Dr. Fernhaber conducts research in the areas of international entrepreneurship, grassroots innovation, and societal grand challenges. Her research has been published in various academic journals, including the Journal of International Business Studies, Strategic Management Journal, Journal of Business Venturing, Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal, and Entrepreneurship, Theory & Practice. Dr. Fernhaber has also co-created four books. She is the Field Editor for International Entrepreneurship at the Journal of Business Venturing.
At the community level, Dr. Fernhaber has a passion for spurring innovation with an emphasis on social entrepreneurship.
Rob serves as the Associate Dean of Students Affairs within the Founder’s College. In this role, Rob focuses on ensuring each student finds belonging at Butler and in the Indianapolis community. Through his work, he hopes to be a part of the students authoring their own endings. An important part of his story is where he was born and raised: Flint, Michigan. It was there that he learned how important being a part of a community is to each person’s success. He completed his B.A. in English Literature and Creative Writing from Oakland University, his M.A. in Higher Education Administration from The University of Akron, and a Certificate in College and University Teaching from Ball State University. He is currently a PhD student in the Global Leadership program at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College.
In addition to his work at Butler, Rob also serves on the Board of Directors for The Facing Project and is a learning consultant working with across sectors to shift organizaitonal cultures. His research interests are broad: men and masculinities, intercultural competence, social mobility, poverty studies, and conflict resolution, to name a few. He is led by curiosity as a foundational value and practice. He can usually be found with a book (ask him what he’s currently reading), tinkering with different odds and ends, or writing, both academically and creatively.
CliftonStrengths: Learner, Input, Connectedness, Intellection, Individualization
Certifications: Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI) Qualified Administrator, Mental Health First Aid, Lean Six Sigma Green Belt
Faculty and Staff
Born and raised in Indianapolis, Indiana, and has built her career on a deep commitment to student success and equitable access to higher education. A proud graduate of Arsenal Technical High School, she earned her Bachelor of Arts in Sociology, along with a certificate and minor in Africana Studies, from Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis.
With extensive experience in college admissions, Donneisha has designed and led impactful initiatives that improve the student experience, strengthen enrollment strategies, and expand access to postsecondary opportunities. She is skilled at cultivating meaningful partnerships—both on campus and in the community—and leveraging those relationships to create supportive pathways for students from application to graduation.
Driven by her passion for educational equity, Donneisha brings strategic vision, collaborative leadership, and an unwavering belief that higher education should be within reach for every student.
Dr. Ernstberger is a Lecturer in Humanities, Arts, and Social & Behavioral Sciences at Founder’s College at Butler University, where she brings an interdisciplinary, student‑centered approach to teaching and learning. She earned her Ph.D. in History from Purdue University, specializing in transnational feminist histories and global social movements, and completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Alaska Anchorage with a double major in History and Political Science. She teaches courses that challenge students to engage deeply with complex global issues, including Plagues, Pox & Pandemics, Genocide in Global Perspectives, and Global Women’s Movements. Known by her students as “Dr. E.,” her teaching is grounded in a commitment to social equity, intentional engagement with culturally significant material, and innovative strategies that support student success both in and beyond the classroom.
She views travel as a transformational form of education and has visited 85 countries, leading 16 study abroad programs focused on history, culture, and contemporary politics in regions such as Sub‑Saharan Africa, Europe, and Central America. She now enjoys a bustling household with three adults, two teenagers, and three dogs. Her scholarship includes chapters such as “Bewitching History: Witch Studies as a Lens for Teaching Global Gender History” (Duke University Press, 2025) and “The Enduring Struggle: Findings from the History of Women’s and Gender Studies in the Global South” (University of Washington Pressbooks).
Abby Martin provides holistic support to help students thrive academically and personally, connecting them to essential resources and creating programming that fosters belonging and well-being. She earned her Master of Social Work from Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis and is a licensed social worker. Abby is passionate about empowering students to author their own ending and succeed in an ever-changing world.
Morgan McCombs holds a Bachelor of Science in Sociology with a minor in Family & Human Development from Arizona State University and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Southern Indiana. With over 12 years of experience in higher education, she has built expertise across student services, financial aid, and support programs that foster belonging and student success.
Morgan has guided cross-functional efforts to improve systems and practices that strengthen student support, and expand opportunities for students. Recognized for her results-driven leadership, she leverages best practices to ensure all students have access to a high-quality education.
Alex McGrath is a Lecturer of Business Data Analytics in the Founder’s College at Butler University. He is an alumnus of Butler’s Computer Science and Music Departments, and has previously served as an Associate Instructor of Music at Indiana University and Adjunct Professor of Computer Science at Butler University.
Alex has previously held roles as a Software Developer and Data Analyst at various companies in Indianapolis, and bases his instruction on his industry experience. With a wide variety of interests and specializations and a penchant for building community, Alex helps foster a fresh enthusiasm and energy among students at Founder’s College.
She was only five at the time, but she hung her head out the window of an airplane and sang, “Don’t cry for me Argentina” when she moved from her native homeland of Buenos Aires to the United States. She knew they’d be fine without her because she would become a non-profit fundraiser and expert and earn a Certified Fundraising Executive Certificate and a Cornell University Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Certificate and Business Communications Certificate.
As a non-profit leader of more than 23 years, she has become a permanent and prominent figure in the non-profit world. She is currently the Associate Director of Career Services & External Relations at the new Founder’s College at Butler University. In this role, she will partner with our incoming young executives to help them envision their future, explore diverse career possibilities, and secure transformative internships that open doors to opportunities they may have never imagined.
Her previous experience has included serving on many local boards of the 2012 Super Bowl Host Committee, the 2024 Swimming Olympic Trials LOC, the 2024 NBA All-Star Game Host Committee and The Christamore House. She has two degrees from Florday State University. While in her former positions with Raphael Health Center, Women’s Fund of Indiana, Providence Cristo Rey High School and Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana she was focused on community development, external strategy and corporate partnerships.
She is married to Jason and they have two children, Marco and Katalyna, and one cat, Moriah.
Sara Venecek is Assistant to the Dean of Founder’s College at Butler University. She has over 14 years of experience in higher education, ranging from library services to administrative support to teaching as an adjunct instructor. Sara held roles at Boston University, University of Illinois at Chicago, and Northwestern University before arriving at Butler.
Sara also has a background in the arts (BFA) and worked professionally as a designer, art director, and stager.
Bria L. Young brings a passion for fostering social hope and building intentional communities. Her teaching and research invite students and collaborators to imagine and enact more just, connected futures. Young’s work explores how hope operates not only as a feeling or aspiration but as a method—an organizing and relational force that shapes how people learn, live, and move together toward transformation. She is drawn to the question of how communities make meaning from uncertainty and how imagination might be a site of resistance and repair.
Originally from Saratoga Springs, NY, Young is a scholar, environmental collaborator, and animal lover. Her research and pedagogy are guided by a deep commitment to interdisciplinarity and public scholarship. Drawing from sociology, Africana studies, feminist theory, and environmental humanities, her work asks how patterns of social connection can be reimagined in ways that center justice, care, and reciprocity. She approaches knowledge as a living practice, something built through collaboration and carried in conversation, storytelling, and shared labor. In her teaching, she encourages students to trace how hope moves through the social world: as feeling, as infrastructure, and as method. Each classroom, in her view, becomes a microcosm of community, a micro-utopia, an experiment in mutual recognition and collective becoming.