John A. Burtka IV is President and Chief Executive Officer of the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. He graduated from Hillsdale College with degrees in French and Christian Studies and earned a graduate degree in theology from La Faculté Jean Calvin in Aix-en-Provence, France. Johnny began his career at ISI, where he served as a development officer. He returned to ISI after four years at The American Conservative magazine, where he served as...

Spencer Kashmanian is Chief of Staff for the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. As a member of ISI’s leadership team, Spencer works closely with ISI’s President and other senior leaders on strategic planning, organizational management, development administration, and special projects. Prior to joining ISI, Spencer worked at American Philanthropic as a fundraising and marketing consultant to nonprofit organizations. He also previously managed...

Paul Rhein is the Vice President of Operations at the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. He graduated with a degree in economics from the University of Detroit Mercy and completed graduate work in distance education technology at the University of Maryland. A former Coast Guard volunteer, he is active in his parish and in the Delaware Saengerbund, the area’s German historical society. Mr. Rhein lives in northern Delaware with his wife and...

Daniel McCarthy is vice president for the Collegiate Network at the Intercollegiate Studies Institute and editor of ISI's journal Modern Age. He is responsible for ISI's college journalism programs, which support independent campus publications and provide internships and fellowships to outstanding student reporters, writers, and editors. He has an extensive background in journalism, including as a columnist for The Spectator and past editor of...

Jon Elordi is the Director of Marketing for the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. Working to produce innovative and exceptional marketing for ISI and the conservative movement is a priority for him. Jon is the owner of a Catholic blog where he hopes to use his powers of SEO marketing for good. He previously worked as the marketing director of a conservative startup New Founding and as a proud Michiganander, he has worked for General Motors. He...

Marlo Slayback is National Director of Student Programs for the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. She is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh, where she studied political science and poetry. She is a former ISI Collegiate Network fellow at National Review and led an ISI Society on her campus, where she also helped launch a Collegiate Network newspaper. Marlo is a 2021 Publius Fellow with the Claremont Institute and joined the ISI team...

Matthew is Chief Financial Officer for the Intercollegiate Studies Institute.  He holds a BS in accounting from Villanova University, an MBA in Entrepreneurship from the University of Maryland, and a DBA from Temple University where his research focused on private equity performance. Prior to joining ISI, he had a two-part career in which he first directed and managed over $2 billion in private equity and real estate investments, then taught at...

Ethan Swain is a Director of Major Gifts for the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. As a student at Villanova University, he led the ISI Society on campus and was an ISI Honors Scholar. Ethan received his BA from Villanova in Humanities as well as Theology and Religious Studies, and he was a visiting student at Blackfriars Hall, University of Oxford. He received an MS in Commerce with a finance concentration from the University of Virginia....

McKay Stangler is a Regional Director of Major Gifts for ISI. After earning a Ph.D. with a dissertation on Richard Weaver, McKay worked as a college professor for five years—where he saw firsthand just how critical ISI's mission is for today's students and faculty. He then joined the world of development and advocacy, serving on the fundraising team of a small Catholic college in Kansas City. A lifelong bird nut, Stangler then served as...

Hannah Rowan is managing editor of ISI’s journal Modern Age. She graduated from Hillsdale College, where she studied English and journalism. She has been Hilton Kramer Fellow in Criticism at the New Criterion and managing editor at the American Spectator, as well as associate editor for Bombardier Books. Her writing has appeared in the Washington Examiner, the Lamp, the Wall Street Journal, and other publications. She lives in Washington, D.C.

Josh Evans is the program manager for the Collegiate Network at the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. He earned a BA in political science with a minor in communications from Grove City College, where he also worked on the student newspaper, The Collegian, eventually rising to the position of editor-in-chief. Most recently, he managed the Writing Fellows Program at America's Future, along with a number of the organization's other professional...

José Sáenz Crespo is a Program Operations Manager at the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. He holds a master’s degree in Public Administration from American University and a BA in Political Sciences from The Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina. Before joining ISI, José worked as an Employee Leadership and Development Consultant for the Inter-American Development Bank, the most important development bank for Latin America and the...

Jane Scharl is Seminar Manager for the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. She holds a bachelor's degree in politics, philosophy, and economics from The King's College-NYC and a masters of fine arts from Seattle Pacific University. Jane Scharl has served as a Senior Editor for The European Conservative. She is a poet, playwright, and essayist, and her work has appeared in prominent outlets on both sides of the Atlantic, including the BBC, The...

Gina Arnold Fake is the Deputy Chief of Staff at the Intercollegiate Studies Institute (ISI). Gina was originally hired as ISI’s first Social Media Manager in 2021 before she received a promotion within the Marketing Department as the new Marketing Project Manager and Strategist in 2022. In April of 2024, Gina was promoted to the President's Office as the new Deputy Chief of Staff. The primary focus of her current position is to work with the...

Ashley is Events Manager for ISI. Originally from Beaver, PA, Ashley now lives in Chester County, PA. As an undergraduate student at Franciscan University of Steubenville, she studied Political Science, History, Philosophy, Spanish, and Human Life Studies, and stayed at Franciscan to complete her M.A. in Catholic Studies. She was a postgraduate fellow with the John Jay Institute where she further pursued studies in her primary area of...

Morgan Pirrall serves as Grant Writer for the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. She graduated from Thomas Aquinas College with a liberal arts degree and began her career at ISI, where she served as a Senior Development Officer for five years. She returned to ISI after three years at Thomas Aquinas College, where she served as the Associate Director of Development for TAC’s New England campus.

Tom Sarrouf, originally from Worcester, Massachusetts, is the Debates Manager at the Intercollegiate Studies Institute, as well as the Podcast Production Manager of “Conservative Conversations with ISI.” He graduated summa cum laude from Boston College with a B.A. in History, Philosophy, and Secondary Education. He is also a teacher for World Youth Alliance, whom he has worked for as an intern and teacher since 2020, and whom he represented...

Callie Erk is a Regional Director of Major Gifts for the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. Callie received her BA from Baylor University’s Honors College with concentrations in Religion, Politics and Society and Great Texts, and she was a visiting student at Wycliffe Hall, University of Oxford. She received her Masters in Applied Theology with a concentration on faith, sexuality and gender from the University of Oxford. Prior to joining ISI,...

Josie McDonell is a Regional Director of Major Gifts for the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. She holds a B.A. in Music and English Literature from Seattle University and an M.A. in Performance Studies from NYU’s Gallatin School. Josie loves being part of an organization that encourages students to engage with ideas and art that might otherwise be difficult for them to seek out at their own universities. Originally from Seattle, Washington,...

Hannah Sailer is the Development Assistant for the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. Hannah received her BA in Writing and Rhetoric with a focus on Journalism and Professional Writing from Hobart and William Smith Colleges. While in school, Hannah completed her year-long Honors Program project: Free Speech for Thee, But Not for Me: The Violations of Free Speech Within Institutions of Higher Education. She is a former ISI Honors Scholar and...

Annie Messiter graduated from Hillsdale College with a Bachelor of Arts in English. After graduation, she taught 7th and 8th grade literature, grammar, and composition at a classical Christian school in Louisville, KY. She is originally from Toledo, OH but now resides in Steubenville, OH with her husband. In her free time she enjoys, conversations with her husband, baking desserts or brunch sweets, brainstorming creative ways to host people,...

Grace Collins is the Social Media Marketer for Intercollegiate Studies Institute. She graduated with a Business Accounting degree in 2020. She also participated in a year-long apprenticeship where she completed multiple marketing projects for a variety of small businesses. She has a great love for creativity and promoting conservative principles and is excited to help ISI in its mission to educate college students. Originally from Tennessee, she...

Micah Paul Veillon is an Associate Programs Officer for the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. He recently graduated from Georgia Tech where he studied history, sociology, and philosophy. He is also a writer and has been published in The American Conservative, The European Conservative, Voegelin View, and Moonshine & Magnolias. Micah Paul loves to read on political philosophy, the philosophy of economics, the Middle Ages, the...

A.J. Fezza is a Program Officer at the Collegiate Network, the Intercollegiate Studies Institute’s student journalism program. He graduated from Villanova University’s Honors Program in 2023 with a BA in Communication and Humanities. At Villanova, A.J. was Editor of the Culture and Opinion sections of the student newspaper The Villanovan. Outside of journalism, he is interested in film production, piano, philosophy, and Tae Kwon Do, and is...

Raquel Roberts serves as the office manager at the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the University of Delaware and a Masters in Elementary Education from Cabrini College. She has been an active volunteer for various local charities and organizations, as well as her church and her children’s school. Prior to her volunteer work, Raquel was a legal secretary for several law firms in the...

Originally from Irving, Texas, Sebastian is an Associate Programs Officer for the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. He graduated from Hillsdale College with a B.A. in Politics and Theatre. After graduating, he spent a year in seminary formation with the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter. Outside of politics and education, Sebastian’s interests include dramatic literature, music, theology, and competitive ultimate frisbee.