Faculty & Staff Directory

Leah Daniel is Batten’s Salesforce Manager. Prior to joining Batten, Leah was Senior Financial Analyst and Salesforce Administrator at UVA School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics. She brings years of database management experience to Batten from her role as database manager at both the Darden School Foundation (1997-2003) and the UVA Law School Foundation (2004-2017). Leah holds a B.S. from the University of South Carolina.

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Brian Ford

Brian
Ford

Senior HR Business Partner

As an HR leader with 20 years experience, Brian Ford currently is the Sr. HR Partner for the Batten School and McIntire School of Commerce. Prior to UVA, he led the Employee Experience function for the eastern US region at VMLY&R. In this capacity, he and his team drive culture, talent management and the overall employee experience for offices such as New York, Atlanta & Miami. Prior to VMLY&R, Brian was Chief People Officer at Fusion Media Group and had sr. leadership roles at Ogilvy, LG Electronics and Mercedes-Benz USA.

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Ben Hartless

Ben
Hartless

Assistant Director of Information Technology
Garrett Hall L029

Ben Hartless is the assistant director of information technology at the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy. Ben was born and raised an hour away in Lexington, Virginia where he worked at Washington and Lee University for thirteen years as a Technology Support Specialist. He also worked seven years at the Washington and Lee School of Law as the Director of Information Technology before beginning his new career at the Frank Batten School in Spring of 2020.

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Craig Lindqvist

Craig
Lindqvist

Associate Dean for Administration
(434) 243-7528

Craig Lindqvist serves as the Associate Dean for Administration at the Batten School where he oversees the school's business affairs, planning, finances, personnel, technology, facilities, and other non-academic functions.

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Mark Outten

Mark
Outten

Director of Information Technology and School Systems
Garrett Hall L015

Mark was most recently the Director of Technology for the Orange County Public Schools in Orange, VA, has over 20 years of education-related technology leadership and management experience, worked in private industry for a Hewitt Associates, and is a veteran of the U.S. Air Force. He brings a wealth of strategic and practical education technology experience to Batten.

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Jill Rockwell

Jill
Rockwell

Senior Assistant Dean of Career Advancement and Alumni Engagement

Jill Rockwell, Senior Assistant Dean of Career Advancement and Alumni Engagement at UVA Batten, and her team are focused on the professional success of our graduates and alumni as well as activating our alumni network in support of the school.

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Lauren Shepherd

Lauren
Shepherd

Chief of Staff and Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives

Lauren Shepherd joined Batten in 2022, coming from Teach For America where she served as Managing Director, Chief of Staff to the Vice President of Executive Director Learning. Prior to that, she served as the Chief of Staff to the TFA Bay Area Executive Director and as Managing Director of Teacher Onboarding Strategy. Originally trained as a journalist, she has professional experience as a writer and reporter as well as many years involved in strategic and operational planning, project management, partnerships, and talent development. 

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