22 Research and Education Leaders Join InCommon Steering and Advisory Committees in 2026

WASHINGTON, Feb. 12, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Internet2 today announced the appointment of four new members to the InCommon Steering Committee and 18 new members to the InCommon Advisory Committees, reinforcing the community-led governance that enables secure collaboration across thousands of research and education institutions worldwide.

InCommon, powered by Internet2, provides tailored identity and access management (IAM) solutions, specialized tools, and strategic guidance for the specific privacy, trust, and security needs of research and higher education — empowering secure, scalable inter-organizational collaboration.

"InCommon's strength lies in its community — leaders across research and education who show up not just to advise, but to actively shape the future of identity and access management," said Christopher Misra, vice chancellor and chief information officer at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and chair of the InCommon Steering Committee. "Their contributions ensure that our solutions reflect real-world needs, and that we continue building secure, seamless pathways for collaboration across institutions and borders."

As a gateway to digital access and cross-institutional collaboration, IAM continues to grow more complex. InCommon helps navigate that complexity, with committees contributing practitioner expertise that directly influences the tools and standards institutions rely on every day.

With more than 100 active committee members and working group members, InCommon's community-driven efforts support over 1,000 participating organizations.

"Technologies, cyber threats, regulations, and standards are constantly changing," said Kevin Morooney, vice president of trust and identity and NET+ programs at Internet2. "One dynamic that has remained consistent over the 20-plus-year history of InCommon is the commitment and engagement of community leaders to help guide InCommon's role in enabling inter-institutional collaboration. We're in good hands in the coming year with the new additions to the advising ecosystem we rely upon."

New InCommon Steering Committee Members
The InCommon Steering Committee provides strategic governance and oversight for the InCommon Federation. Newly appointed members serving three-year terms are:

• Rick Haugerud, interim chief information officer, University of Nebraska
• Ryan McDaniel, associate vice chancellor and chief information officer, University of Alaska Anchorage
• Carrie Rampp, vice president and chief information officer, Franklin & Marshall College
• David Seidl, vice president for information technology and chief information officer, Miami University

New InCommon Advisory Committee Members
InCommon's advisory committees guide technical operations, trust initiatives, and architecture across four specialized areas. Newly appointed members will serve three-year terms.

InCommon Technical Advisory Committee

• Matthew Economou, vice president of engineering, RDCT
• Zhaneille Green, e-access librarian, Duke University
• Kellen Murphy, identity architect, University of Virginia
• Michael Turner, deputy chief information officer, University of Alabama in Huntsville

InCommon Community Trust and Assurance Board

• RuthAnne Bevier, retired chief information security officer, California Institute of Technology
• Gabor Eszes, identity architect, University of North Carolina at Greensboro
• Darren Fallis, information security analyst, North Carolina State University
• Amanda Ferrante, principal product manager for identity and access management, EBSCO Information Services
• Joseph Ryan, chief information officer and vice president, IT Governance, Risk, and Compliance at EDUCAUSE

InCommon Community Architecture Committee for Trust and Identity

• Julian Anderson, senior server administrator, Cleveland State University
• Alan Buxey, senior security engineer, Myunidays Limited
• Drew Capener, software engineer, Omnibond
• Katie Weber, IAM product manager and service owner, University of Minnesota

In addition to the new members, the Community Architecture Committee for Trust and Identity named Kevin Hickey, director of information security at the University of Detroit Mercy, as chair, and Rob Carter, middleware architect at Duke University, as vice chair. Both are serving terms that end in 2027.

eduroam-US Advisory Committee

• Mark Breen, chief technology officer, Vail School District
• Christopher Dietrich, senior network architect, Ohio State University
• Alicia Marques, network engineer, Virginia Community College System
• Giselle Martinez, senior IAM consultant, Moran Technology; adjunct professor, Menlo College
• Gloria Stephenson, associate director of cybersecurity and LAN services, MOREnet

The eduroam-US Advisory Committee also named Derek Eiler, principal systems engineer at the Nevada System of Higher Education, as chair and Mike Dickson, network engineer at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, as vice chair. Both are serving terms through 2026.

Participation in InCommon committees provides meaningful professional value, including expanded expertise, increased visibility within the IAM community, trusted peer connections, and opportunities to move the community forward together.

Learn more about the InCommon Steering and Advisory Committees and view the full roster of committee members.

Acknowledging Outgoing Committee Members
Internet2 extends its gratitude to the outgoing members of the InCommon Steering and Advisory Committees for their leadership and service in advancing IAM for the research and education community.

Outgoing steering committee members are:

• Brad Christ, associate vice president and deputy chief information officer, University of Hawaii
• Bernie Gulachek, former vice president and chief information officer, University of Minnesota
• Dave Robinson, chief information officer, Baylor School
• Jim Stewart, former chief technology officer, Utah Education and Telehealth Network
• Marc Wallman, vice president for IT and chief information officer, North Dakota State University

In addition, 17 outgoing advisory committee members contributed expertise drawn from across the community. They represented public and private universities, colleges, K-12 schools, federal research agencies and laboratories, and national research and education networks.

About Internet2
Internet2^® is a nonprofit, member-driven advanced technology community founded by the nation's leading higher education institutions in 1996. Internet2 serves 336 U.S. universities, 58 government agencies, 46 regional and state education networks and through them supports more than 80,000 community anchor institutions, over 1,000 InCommon participants, 62 leading corporations working with our community, and 70 national research and education network operators that represent more than 100 countries.

Internet2 delivers a diverse portfolio of technology solutions that leverages, integrates, and amplifies the strengths of its members and helps support their educational, research, and community service missions. Internet2's core infrastructure components include the nation's largest and fastest research and education network that was built to deliver advanced, customized services that are accessed and secured by the community-developed trust and identity framework. For more information: https://internet2.edu

SOURCE Internet2