At NIU, our digital marketing programs are one of a kind. We know that the industry moves fast. And to be successful, students not only need a great foundation of education, but also people supporting them. To do this, we have a digital marketing advisory board made up of leaders throughout the industry who are passionate about giving back to the next generation of marketers.
Our digital marketing advisory board contributes to the direction of our program by bringing real-world insights to the forefront. They frequently participate in activities to help Huskies grow such as informational interviews, résumé reviews and guest lectures. We’re glad our board members — working on the East and West Coasts as well as the Midwest — connect with students wherever they may be.
“Being on the board allows me to give back to the NIU community while collaborating with markets from different sectors of the industry,” said Elizabeth Gavin, MSDM. ’22.
We’re proud to have the following members a part of our Huskie team:
Vice president client services, Red Caffeine
Anderson is a results-driven, creative problem-solver and leader with 20-plus years of agency experience in account management. She is a B2B/B2C/B2H panelist, a speaker and is forever passionate about delivering exceptional client experiences.
Vice president, Consumer Industries
MSDM instructor
Bossert is a passionate and credible marketing services and technology executive with 25-plus years of increasingly responsible positions in the planning, management, delivery and operations of large-scale marketing systems for some of the biggest and best marketers in the world. Bossert is a numbers- and process-driven leader with a history of delivering high-quality, high-performing marketing solutions that drive value for Acxiom clients. Bossert has an intense passion for empowering individuals and teams to be the best that they can be; driving and leading public cloud migration and adoption; aligning business strategy and technology; and managing a portfolio of financial services accounts that generate more than $90 million in annual revenue. Bossert earned his B.S. degree in computer science from NIU in 1988 and his MBA degree from DePaul University in 1993.
Chase Bougeon
Search Marketing Manager, Digitas
Bougeon is a passionate marketer who loves agency life. He has years of experience in various areas, such as paid media, SEO, client services and sales. Bougeon graduated from the University of Iowa with his bachelor’s degree in economics. He frequently is a guest speaker on campus and in our online MSDM programs.
Senior product engineering manager, McDonald’s
Centracco earned his B.S. degree in marketing in 2011 and his MBA degree in 2016 from NIU with emphases in digital marketing, professional selling and strategic marketing. Centracco has experience working in three dynamic industries during which his career path has evolved from driving an
e-commerce business to enhancing digital financial experiences and bridging a digital/physical global checkout experience.
Communications specialist, Boeing
MSDM instructor
Eddy is a communications specialist at the Boeing Company, overseeing digital marketing and communications across all three Boeing business units internally for more than 140,000 global employees. He also has experience in banking and has taught at NIU since 2013.
Director of client strategy, Spinutech
Over the past 15 years, Fontana has worked to drive brand and product growth through creative marketing, product and operations strategy. Today, he leads client strategy at Spinutech — a premier Inc. 5000 digital agency. Giving back has always been a priority, and education has always been a passion. Fontana is excited to connect with students while also collaborating with faculty and board members to ensure the digital marketing programs at NIU are relevant, innovative and best in class.
Digital marketing manager, Fabricators & Manufacturers Association
Gavin is a data-driven marketer and human-centric communicator. She has a passion for learning new things, traveling the world and helping people reach their fullest potential. Gavin earned her MSDM degree in 2022 from NIU and received her B.A. degree from Columbia College Chicago in fashion business in 2012. Learn more about her student experience.
Marketing manager, ZOOMcatalog and owner, Trend On Brand
MSDM and MBA instructor
Gibbons-Rauch earned her B.S. degree in marketing in 2004 and her MBA degree in 2017 from NIU. She supports distributors through digital marketing, trend reporting and process improvements. In addition to her work, she also serves as a council member on the Northern Illinois Young Alumni Council.
Social listening and digital intelligence, Anheuser-Busch
MSDM instructor
Glover is employed at AB-InBev in data analytics and SEO. She earned her MSDM degree from NIU in 2022, where she learned to fine-tune her professional marketing skills. Glover has advanced knowledge of social media and platform algorithms. In addition, she enjoys hanging out with her son and dog in her free time. See Glover’s MSDM story.
Sales support assistant, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Hernandez is a graduate of the MSDM program, class of 2022. She has spent seven years at an educational publishing company with efforts in program research, sample creation, cost proposal generation and collaboration with sales teams and other internal departments.
Nike.com channel marketing manager | North America, Nike
Kincaid is a consumer-direct marketing manager at Nike. Prior to Nike, she was a marketing manager at Allstate and worked at JAK Creative Design and Diamond Communications Solutions before that. She earned her B.S. degree in marketing in 2008 from NIU and earned her MBA degree from Western Illinois University 2017. She lives in Portland, Oregon and can be found outdoors hiking or training for marathons.
Customer engagement and retention manager, Intrado Digital Media
Mathews is a graduate of the University of Michigan and has worked in sales and marketing for over the last decade. Mathews has been a guest speaker for our virtual Digital Dialogue sessions for NIU students. Hear part of his lecture.
Director of community outreach, BluShark Digital
McMaster manages a team of creative, community-driven link builders at BluShark Digital, a cutting-edge SEO agency. McMaster uses her extensive background in off-page SEO to discover outside-the-box link-building opportunities. She shines in the intersection of helping businesses bring their offline branding online, and creating digital connections on both local and national levels. McMaster’s passion is fueled by seeing the direct correlation between building backlinks to greater online visibility and lead generation for small businesses. McMaster has bounced around the U.S. but has come to love Maryland (and its wild flag) the most. McMaster has been a guest speaker for our Digital Dialogue sessions. Watch part of her lecture here.
Assistant director, Web Communications, Northern Illinois University
Nicholson has worked at NIU for 16 years in various roles including graphic designer, social media manager and web designer. She has a B.F.A. degree in visual communication and an M.S. degree in digital marketing. Nicholson is also passionate about shared governance in higher education. She lives in DeKalb with her husband, two kids and dog named Phoebe.
Marketplace search performance manager, Walmart Connect
Schubert currently works as a marketplace search performance manager in the apparel department at Walmart Connect. In this role, he leverages paid search experience and provides strategic, data-driven recommendations to help sellers increase revenue and exceed their business objectives on Walmart.com. Prior to working on the retail media side, he worked at Performics, a Publicis Groupe company, where he gained paid search experience working on a large global account. Schubert earned his MSDM degree from NIU in 2020. Aaron is an MSDM alumnus. See his story here.
Founder and digital marketing strategist, Social Vision LLC
Vandenbroek is a graduate of NIU’s MSDM program and passionate about marketing. She opened her own marketing agency in 2017, and would love to show students how to achieve the same goal and be set up for success. See Vandenbroek’s story here.
Marketing director, McDonald’s
Vrancic is a modern, innovative marketing professional with 14-plus years of global and market experience in marketing, digital marketing and technology. Her passion for talent development and continuous learning led her back to her alma mater, NIU, where she earned her B.S. degree in marketing in 2008 and her MBA degree in 2018. She lends her talents to the MSDM board to pay it forward for the next generation of marketers.
