Wendt Center Staff

Dr. Annalee Ward directed the Wendt Character Initiative from 2012-2024. In the summer of 2024, Dr. Ward retired and was granted the title of Director Emerita.

Dr. Ward instituted faculty/staff book discussions on character, orientations to the Initiative for faculty, staff, and students, newsletters, and a journal. Dr. Ward has also helped re-focus the Initiative on the values of integrity, justice, and compassion, building the Wendt Character Scholars' yearly curriculum around those themes.

Mary Bryant joined the University of Dubuque in 2015. She earned a BA in Biology, Theatre Arts, and German and an MFA in Comparative Literature - Translation from the University of Iowa.

• Ed.D., National Louis University
• MAOM, Ashford University
• MA, St. Xavier University
• BA, Loras College

Liza Johnson, Ed.D., was selected as the Director of the Wendt Character Initiative at the University of Dubuque in the spring of 2024. Johnson came to the University of Dubuque in 2011 as an associate director of career services. She was promoted to director of personal empowerment and assistant director to the president in 2014. In that position, Johnson worked towards enhancing a comprehensive personal empowerment program that aligns with UD's mission, vision, and goals. She has developed various transferable skills that will assist her as director of the Wendt Character Initiative, such as designing curriculum, leading undergraduate, faculty, and staff initiatives, and assessing the effectiveness of the program and initiatives.