Staff
Karian Wright
Assistant Dean for Diversity & Inclusion, Graduate School
Director, Center for Inclusive Education
Karian Wright joined the Center for Inclusive Education in 2013 as the program manager for the NSF-funded Alliances for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP) program titled "The Stony Brook-Brookhaven AGEP Frontiers of Research and Academic Models of Excellence (FRAME) Alliance for Transformation. Since then, Karian has also served as the program manager for the NIH-funded Institutional Research and Academic Career Development Award (IRACDA) New York Consortium for the Advancement of Postdoctoral Scholars (NY-CAPS) program and the AGEP Alliance Model to Advance Underrepresented Minority STEM Faculty at Predominately Undergraduate Institutions. Prior to Stony Brook University, Karian served as Assistant Director of Undergraduate Admissions and Adjunct Faculty of Information Technology at Monroe College in New Rochelle, NY. Karian has over 20 years of experience in higher education including admissions, recruitment, student advising, and retention. She also managed a College Jumpstart program serving over 500 high school students annually and developed a female empowerment program for over 300 young women, most of whom were first-generation college students from minoritized backgrounds. Karian has a firm commitment to the advancement of students who have been historically underrepresented in higher education. She holds a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from Monroe College and is currently pursuing a PhD in Higher Education Leadership at Colorado State University.
Rosalia Davi 
Program Manager
Rosalia Davi joined the CIE in March 2016 as the CIE Diversity Outreach Coordinator, where her primary focus was to grow the successful recruitment of underrepresented scholars for graduate and postdoctoral study across the STEM disciplines, and for the CIE's suite of externally funded programs. Rosalia is now the Program Manager for the NIH IMSD MERGE T32, Dr. W. Burghardt Turner, and GEM Fellowship programs. Prior to her time in higher education, Rosalia worked for a college access non-profit helping to bridge the opportunity gap for underresourced students at Let's Get Ready. With over 15 years of experience in higher education and non-profit management, specifically in experiential education, diversity graduate and postdoctoral recruitment, and program management, Rosalia has a demonstrated committment to supporting scholars from historically marginalized communities. She has a dual master’s degree in Gender and Cultural Studies and Communications Management from Simmons College, and is a Stony Brook University alumna.
Lisa Ospitale
Program Manager
Lisa Ospitale joined the Center for Inclusive Education in July 2021 as a Program Coordintor. In September 2022, Lisa became the Program Manager for the NSF-funded Alliance for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP) and the NIH-funded Institutional Research and Academic Career Development Award (IRACDA), Postdoctoral Fellowship. Lisa also coordinates the Community of Student Mentors (CSM) program and the summer Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) in Nanotechnology and SUNY Summer Opportunities for Academic Research (SOAR). Lisa came to the CIE with over 20 years of higher education experience, with a background in student affairs, communications, and mentoring students while also providing support to families. Lisa has her BA in Philosophy with a minor in Gender and Women’s Studies and her Master’s in Social Work from Stony Brook University. Lisa has a focused commitment to mentoring students, providing mental health and wellness support, and networking with faculty in order to support the needs of their students and postdocs.
Elizanne Warren-Russell
Program Coordinator
Elizanne joined the Center for Inclusive Education in September 2021 as program coordinator for the NIH IMSD MERGE T32, Dr. W. Burghardt Turner, and GEM Fellowship programs. Prior to joining the CIE, Elizanne served as the administrative assistant for the Center for Criminal Justice Studies at SUNY Farmingdale and continues there as an Adjunct Professor. Elizanne has a bachelor’s degree in Community & Human Services from SUNY Empire and a master’s degree in Criminal Justice from Molloy College. She is a strong advocate for the education of single and teen mothers to gain sustainable careers.
JessicaTriola
Program Coordinator
Jessica joined the Center for Inclusive Education in January 2023 as Program Coordinator for NSF AGEP, NIH IRACDA, and Summer Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) Nanotechnology. Before joining the CIE, Jessica served as a Project Manager at Columbia University, and prior to that as the Administrative Specialist and Admissions Coordinator in the Occupational Therapy graduate program at New York Institute of Technology. Jessica is a proud alumna of Stony Brook University, earning her bachelor’s degree in Psychology, followed by a master’s degree in General Psychology from Adelphi University. She is excited to be part of the CIE team and support its commitment to advancing diversity in graduate education, academia and the scientific workforce.
Erica Valdez
CIE Administrator
Bio coming soon!