Faculty
Meet Your Chair
Crystal W. Boyce
Crystal W. Boyce serves as the director of alumni programs at North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University. Being a proud two-time alumna of North Carolina A&T, with a B.S. in Journalism & Mass Communication and M.S. in Adult Education, she takes great pride in the work that she does. In her current role she leads the programming team in executing programming for nearly 70,000 A&T alumni internationally. Additionally, she oversees the University’s alumni events including the Greatest Homecoming on Earth, reunion weekend, young alumni council and much more. Prior to this role, she served as the Associate Director of Undergraduate Admissions at the University, leading the recruitment with enrolling record-breaking classes. Having worked with students at the beginning of their journey and now working with alumni of the university gives her a very unique insight into what people want.
Crystal is a native of Washington, D.C. and currently resides in Greensboro, NC. She loves the southern hospitality that North Carolina has to offer. She is married to Brenton J. Boyce, Esq. who is also an alumnus of NC A&T State University.
Faculty
Deidra Smith
Deidra Smith serves as the Director of Alumni and Family Engagement at Davidson College. Deidra brings more than ten years of experience in alumni relations work, including managing identity-based affinity efforts, volunteer management, strategic planning, and philanthropy education. However, her true passion is event planning - throughout her tenure as a higher education professional, she has managed over 200+ on campus and regional events for alumni including homecoming and reunion weekend programming, alumni award ceremonies, presidential tributes, graduation programming, affinity reunions and network events. Deidra thrives on tackling the most complex of projects and understanding the need for innovative and adaptive leadership to be industry leading. Deidra graduated from Appalachian State University with a degree in organizational communication. She earned a master’s degree in college student affairs administration from the University of Georgia. Deidra is a native of Raleigh, NC, and in her spare time, she enjoys practicing yoga and spending quality time with her two nephews.
Tim Valentine
Tim Valentine directs the School-based alumni engagement strategy at New York University working with Alumni Directors and Academic Deans to set priorities, design programs, and increase connections. Prior to this role, he served as the Director of Alumni Relations for the NYU School of Professional Studies where he created new traditions with reunion programming, department and division based alumni societies, and global connections in India.
Tim has increased engagement through reunion and homecoming programs, alumni awards, signature events, and student and recent alumni programs. In addition, he has developed identity-based affinity clubs, the NYU Student Alumni Council, and redesigned Alumni and Families Weekend with new expertise in virtual and hybrid event planning. Tim has been in higher education for 17 years with additional background in arts administration, professional theatre, living-learning communities, academic enhancement programs, and career services. Tim holds a Bachelor of Music Education from West Virginia University and a Master’s degree in Higher Education and Student Affairs from The Ohio State University.
Guest Speaker
Dominique Mendoza
Dominique is an alumni relations and student affairs generalist who currently works at the University of Southern California (USC) Alumni Association and has over 9 years of experience in various areas of higher education. Prior to starting her career at USC she traveled as a Leadership Development Consultant and worked at the Disneyland Resort. Dominique holds a master's degree in Postsecondary Administration and Student Affairs from USC and a bachelor's degree in Criminology, Law, and Society from University of California, Irvine. In her free time, she enjoys meeting friends over a cup of coffee, cheering on her favorite sports teams, listening to music, and exploring the outdoors.