Meet the Women's Center Staff
Each Center staff member serves as a Virginia Tech Safe Zone.
Penny Cook, Counselor and Volunteer/Operations Coordinator, provides the following services to students, faculty and staff who are victims of sexual assault, relationship violence, stalking and harassment: counseling, crisis intervention, advocacy, accompaniment to law enforcement, medical facilities, and judicial proceedings, as well as information and referral. In addition, Penny recruits, trains, places, and evaluates volunteers, interns, and service learning students. She currently advises the Health Advocate and Cornerstone volunteer teams who provide outreach and education to the university and surrounding community. Students also learn about issues of importance in the lives of women. Penny manages the volunteer program, which includes providing leadership and guidance to volunteers who annually donate more than 3500 hours of service. Penny, along with the Women's Center staff, works to provide volunteers with a valuable and rewarding experience. Penny has a master's degree from Virginia Tech in Counselor Education and is a National Certified Counselor. E-mail Penny: onecent@vt.edu
Kathy Lokale, Program Coordinator, responsible for the development, implementation and coordination of the Women's Month celebration in March. She also provides leadership to the Women's Leadership Conference, the VT V-Day Initiative, the Graduate Women's Research Series, and the 2008 Chocolate Festival Planning Team. Prior to starting her position at the Women's Center, Kathy volunteered as an AmeriCorps VISTA in rural PA and worked on implementing a Financial Empowerment Series for impoverished single mothers. She also has experience in International Development and is committed to working on global feminism and minority women's issues. Kathy recieved her B.A. from St. Francis University in Psychology and Philosophy and minored in Social Responsibilty. Email Kathy: klokale@vt.edu
Anna LoMascolo, Co-Director, Programming, is responsible for managing all aspects of the education and outreach programming for the Women's Center including program design, implementation, supervision, and assessment of our efforts aimed at advocacy and educating the university community about gender, women's issues, diversity, equity and social justice.
Anna's demonstrated commitment to gender issues in higher education is evident in her career history, volunteerism, and research. She is also trained in crisis response. Anna received her B.A. in Communication Studies from Virginia Tech, her M.A. in Sociology from California State University, Humboldt, and her Ph.D. in Sociology with a Graduate Certificate in Women's Studies from Virginia Tech. E-mail Anna: alomasco@vt.edu
Jessie Meltsner, Special Projects Coordinator, works on projects such as the Lactation Room Program, educational programming, the Women's Center Awards, and other ongoing initiative and activities.
Jessie received her B.A. from Oberlin College and her M.S.W. in Clinical Social Work from the University of Chicago's School of Social Service Administration. She has experience working in inpatient psychiatric settings and has done individual and couples counseling. More recently Jessie has worked with the AmeriCorps program as a community organizer. Jessie has been interested and active in the women's health and reproductive rights movement since 1986. E-mail Jessie: jmelts@vt.edu
Christine Dennis Smith, Co-Director, Services, manages the Women's Center's Counseling and Advocacy Program. Christine also oversees our outreach and educational efforts on violence against women issues. Christine along with other Women's Center staff provide the following services to students, faculty, and staff who are victims of sexual assault, relationship violence, stalking, and/or harassment: crisis intervention, short term counseling, advocacy, accompaniment to law enforcement, medical facilities, and judicial proceedings, and information and referral. Christine is also available to do educational presentations and training to student, faculty, and staff groups.
Christine joined the Women's Center is June of 2001. She has her Masters in Social Work (M.S.W.) and is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (L.C.S.W). She has extensive experience working with survivors of sexual assault, dating and domestic violence, stalking, and sexual harassment. E-mail Christine: cdennis@vt.edu
Ashley Staum, Office Manager is the newest addition to the Women’s Center staff. Joining the Center in late 2007 she responsible for the proper and efficient implementation of the Center’s receptionist, administrative and fiscal functions. Ashley is also an active participant in all aspects of planning, implementation and coordination of educational programs and support services offered by the Women’s Center. Ashley has been a part of the Virginia Tech community since 1996 when she started her undergraduate degree with the university. She went on to complete her MBA as well as work with other departments around campus focused on event planning and fiscal management. E-mail Ashley: astaum@vt.edu
Jennifer Underwood, Victim Services Outreach Coordinator, joined the Women’s Center and the VAWA team in July 2006 where she works to increase awareness of gender-based violence issues among first-year and sophomore students and to increase reports of sexual assault, relationship violence, and stalking. Jennifer is responsible for developing a protocol to deal with incidents of interpersonal violence, organizing campus-wide programs, facilitating presentations for classes and student organizations, and providing direct services and advocacy to students, faculty and staff. She has experience working with survivors of sexual violence, relationship violence, and stalking, as well as with campus and community outreach and education. Jennifer earned her M.S.W. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. E-mail Jen: jwunder@vt.edu