2025-2026 Midwest ACE Executive Board

President:  Jason Eckert, University of Dayton

Jason Eckert has served as the Executive Director of Career Services at the University of Dayton since 2008. He came to UD from Marquette University, where he worked for nine years including five years in Career Services. Jason has a BA in Communication and Theological Studies from Saint Louis University, a MS in Counseling and Student Personnel from Oklahoma State University, and is completing a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership from UD. 

Jason has been a member of Midwest ACE since 2003.  He served on the Board of Directors as Secretary from 2010-2012, and was the Co-Chair of the Trends in Recruiting Conference in 2007.  Jason has been involved with numerous Midwest ACE committees, including the Professional Exchange and Professional Development Committees, and has served on numerous annual conference and Trends conference committees.  He was a previous member of the Midwest ACE College Assembly, and received the Midwest ACE President’s Award in 2007.

Jason enjoys volunteer roles with the Boy Scouts, coaching youth sports, and numerous Church-related activities with St. Henry Parish.  He is also a member of the National Association of Colleges and Employers and the Cox Arboretum MetroPark Foundation Board.  Jason is originally from St. Louis, MO and lives in Springboro, OH with his wife and three children.

Katie currently serves as the Associate Director of Career and Alumni Affairs for the Department of Economics at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.  While she has been with the department since 2015, she has been working in career services for the last 20+ years with the majority of that time being spent on the Illinois campus. Katie has been a member of Midwest ACE since 2005 and most recently served on the Board as Past-President.  In addition, Katie has been involved with numerous Midwest ACE committees, including Professional Exchange, Membership, and Experiential Education and has served on numerous Annual Conference and Trends conference planning committees.

Secretary:  Julie Quick, Cintas Corporation

As the Campus Talent Acquisition Manager for the Northern Territory at Cintas Corporation, Julie leads strategic university partnerships and drives talent initiatives across the Northeastern U.S. and Canada. In this role, she has successfully recruited top talent for the company’s Management Trainee and Internship programs, supporting over 60 locations with a focus on long-term growth and leadership development. Before stepping into her current position, she served as an HR Manager II in the Rental Division in Southern California, where she was instrumental in developing employee engagement strategies, driving compliance, and supporting operational excellence. Prior to joining Cintas, Julie held several key roles that shaped her strong foundation in human resources and talent development. She worked as an HR Manager at Target, served as a Talent Director for Chick-fil-A, and worked as an Event Coordinator at the University of Notre Dame. Julie holds her Bachelor's Degree in Hospitality and Tourism Management from Grand Valley State University and holds her Master's Degree in Human Resources Development from Villanova University. 

Julie is a board member of the Grand Valley State University Alumni Association, and a founding board member of Cintas’ Partner Business Resource Group, ADAPT, which supports partners with disabilities, family members of those with disabilities, and those that support those with disabilities.  

Julie resides in Southwest Michigan with her partner Rob and their 4 dogs.

Director, Advancement & Communications: John Link, Bennington College

Dr. John Link is a transformative higher education leader with over 15 years of progressive experience in career development, experiential learning, and workforce readiness. He holds an Ed.D. from Webster University and is a certified resume writer, digital career strategist, and interview coach.

As Associate Dean of Career Development and Field Work Term at Bennington College, Dr. Link leads one of the nation’s most immersive applied learning programs, where students complete four career-aligned internships before graduation. He directs employer engagement strategy and advances access to meaningful work experiences through innovative partnerships and programming.

He currently serves as Director of Advancement and Communications for the Midwest Association of Colleges and Employers (since July 2021) and is the former President of the Gateway Career Services Association (Greater St. Louis). 

Dr. Link is deeply committed to equity and student success, using data-driven strategies to prepare learners for purposeful, career-ready futures.

Director - College Membership:  Casey Jenkerson, Washington University in St. Louis

Casey Jenkerson is the Director of Employer Engagement at the Center for Career Engagement at Washington University in St. Louis. In this role, she provides strategic direction to the employer engagement team, guiding efforts to cultivate meaningful partnerships with employers and alumni to expand internship and employment opportunities for WashU students. She has been with Washington University since 2017 and previously spent time in the corporate sector in human resources and recruitment. Her team focuses on developing new industry connections, deepening relationships with current employer partners, and aligning recruitment strategies with market trends and student interests.

Director - Employer Membership:  Dorothy Eppenstein, Cintas Corporation

As the Campus Talent Acquisition Manager for the North Central Territory at Cintas Corporation, Dori leads strategic university partnerships and drives talent initiatives across the Northern Midwest U.S. In this role, she has successfully recruited top talent for the company’s Management Trainee and Internship programs, supporting over 50 locations across 8 states with a focus on long-term growth and leadership development.

Prior to her current role, Dori was an HR Manager for Cintas Corporation in the South Suburbs of Chicago, Store Manager for Bath & Body Works pre-COVID, COVID, and post COVID, and worked as an Area Marketing Director in New Market Immersion with Chick-fil-A across the Chicagoland area. 

Dori serves MWACE as the Director of Membership Committee - Employer, her village board in her hometown, her children's baseball association board, Vice Chair of Minnesota Association of Colleges and Employers, and on two Cintas’ Partner Business Resources Group. Dori has a passion for innovative approaches to drive networking, strategizing on business operations and recruitment strategies, and building brand awareness. When Dori is not working, she enjoys traveling with her husband and their two daughters.

Director, Professional Development: Jerry Donahue, College of Lake County

Jerry has had a long career, 40+ years, in higher education career services. He has been a director of career services offices at Indiana University Northwest, Canisius College, Moraine Valley Community College, and St. Norbert College. His experience as a civil engineer in the headquarters of Navistar, formerly International Harvester Co., in Chicago provided some solid background for his work with the Archdiocese of Chicago as their science consultant after ten years of teaching middle school science in the Chicago area. He also has used his technical background working with engineering and computer science students at the State University of New York at Buffalo and the University of Michigan - College of Engineering. Currently, he is working as a Career Specialist with the College of Lake County in Grayslake, IL.

His involvement in professional associations has included leadership roles in the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) in their Northwest Indiana and Green Bay, WI chapters. He has been co-author of a National Association of Colleges & Employers (NACE), formerly CPC, monograph on “Small Employers Connection to College Career Centers.” In addition, he has been in leadership roles with the Midwest Association of Colleges & Employers (MWACE) including co-chairing both an annual conference and a Trends in Recruiting Conference held in Chicago

A native of Chicago’s Beverly neighborhood, he received his B.C.E. (Civil Engineering) degree from the University of Detroit Mercy and his M.Ed. from Loyola University Chicago. He has three grown children and volunteers his time as a career coach at three Chicago area libraries and with the Career Transitions Center of Chicago.