Dana Stachowiak has been appointed director of the Women’s Studies and Resource Center at the University of North Carolina Wilmington.

Stachowiak brings two decades of teaching experience to the center and a “strong commitment to diversity and inclusion,” said Rich Ogle, interim dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, in a news release. She is an associate professor in UNCW’s Watson College of Education.

“Her vision to expand the academic impact of the WSRC is well-aligned with UNCW and College of Arts and Sciences strategic plans,” Ogle said.

Stachowiak will oversee the women’s and gender studies minor and post-baccalaureate certificate program, stated the release. She will also develop a research agenda and educational and cultural programming focused on women’s and gender issues, among other responsibilities with her role.

“Her work will involve close interaction and collaboration with department chairs, faculty, students and community members,” officials said.

Stachowiak is an associate professor of curriculum and instruction in the Watson College of Education’s Department of Educational Leadership.

She was previously an assistant professor of diversity and multicultural education at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. She was a classroom teacher and district curriculum specialist in North Carolina before moving to higher education, stated the release.

She joined UNCW in 2016.

She holds a doctorate in educational studies with a concentration in cultural foundations, as well as a graduate certificate in women's and gender studies from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. She earned her master’s degree in curriculum and instruction from Winthrop University and a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Western Michigan University.