Big Ten Academic Alliance Department Executive Officers Program

Bhaskar Bhattacharya

Professor and Department Head, Statistics

Bhaskar Bhattacharya is Professor and Department Head of Statistics. Prior to this role, he served as Professor and Chair of the School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences at Southern Illinois University, where he led several strategic initiatives focused on student recruitment, engagement, and retention. His research lies at the intersection of order-restricted statistical inference and information-theoretic approaches to statistical methodology. His work in these areas has yielded impactful theoretical contributions with broad implications across statistical practice. A passionate advocate for mathematics and statistics education, Bhattacharya has championed programs that foster academic growth and community. He founded the Langenhop Lecture and Mathematics Conference at SIU, an event that has become an enduring platform for scholarly exchange since its launch in 2016. At UNL, he co-organized the 2025 International Indian Statistical Association Conference, reflecting his commitment to global collaboration and professional service. Bhattacharya earned his bachelor's and master's degrees from the Indian Statistical Institute and his doctorate in statistics from the University of Iowa.

Rigoberto Guevara

Associate Professor of Spanish, Chair of Modern Languages and Literatures

Rigoberto Guevara is associate professor of Spanish and Chair of the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures. His area of research and teaching is Latin American literature and culture from the 15th to the 20th century focusing on poetry, narrative, and history with emphasis on human rights. Among many of his roles at UNL, he has served as Faculty Senate President, Modern Languages and Literatures Graduate Chair, and Graduate and Undergraduate Advisor. He has published two books and numerous articles, many of which he has presented at conferences. Guevara earned his bachelor's and master's degrees at George Mason University and his doctorate in Latin American literature from the University of Arizona.

Courtney Hillebrecht

Professor and Chair, Political Science
Director and Hitchcock Family Chair, Forsythe Family Program on Human Rights and Humanitarian Affairs

Courtney Hillebrecht is Professor and Chair of the Department of Political Science, and Director and Hitchcock Family Chair of the Forsythe Family Program on Human Rights and Humanitarian Affairs. Her research interests focus on international relations, human rights and international law, especially the nexus between domestic politics and the international governance of human rights. She is the author of Saving the International Justice Regime: Beyond Backlash against International Courts and Domestic Politics and International Human Rights Tribunals: The Problem of Compliance. Her research has also appeared in Democratization, The European Journal of International Relations, Foreign Policy Analysis, The Harvard International Law Journal, Human Rights Quarterly, Human Rights Review, International Interactions, The Journal of Human Rights, The Journal of Peace Research and The Law and Society Review. She has served on the editorial team for International Studies Quarterly and currently serves on the executive committee of the International Studies Association. Hillebrecht earned her bachelor's degree in history and Spanish from Middlebury College and her master's degree and doctorate in political science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Jake Messersmith

Professor and Chair, Management

Jake Messersmith is Professor and Chair of the Department of Management. Prior to serving as Chair, he was the Executive Director of Business Graduate Programs at the university. His research focuses on strategic human resource management, examining ways in which human resources practices related to selection, compensation, development, and performance management can best be aligned to enhance firm performance. He also is involved in research on employee well-being, with a focus on understanding how human resources systems affect employee satisfaction, commitment and engagement. His work has been published in such journals as Academy of Management Journal, Organization Science, Journal of Management, Journal of Applied Psychology, Human Resource Management, Personnel Psychology and the Journal of Management Studies. Messersmith earned his bachelor's degree in management with an emphasis in information systems from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln and his doctorate in human resources management from the University of Kansas.

Felix Olschofka

Professor of Violin, Director of the Glenn Korff School of Music

Felix Olschofka is Professor of Violin and Director of the Glenn Korff School of Music. Prior to this role, he was Professor of Violin, Associate Dean for Operations, and Director of Graduate Studies at the University of North Texas College of Music. He has also served as Associate Professor at San Diego State University and has taught at summer festivals such as Round Top Music Festival, Bay View Music Festival, Summit Music Festival, and the CICA International Music Festival. He is a winner of numerous awards and competitions including two first prizes in the prestigious German Youth Music Competition, second prize in the International Chamber Music Competition Charles Hennen in The Netherlands, and a prestigious grant from the Oscar and Vera Ritter Foundation. He has toured as a soloist, concertmaster, and chamber musician throughout Europe, Asia, North America and South America. Born and raised in Germany, Olschofka holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the Music Conservatory Hanns Eisler in Berlin, a performance certificate from Indiana University, and a doctorate from the University of California San Diego.