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About Jodi

With a doctorate in History, Jodi taught for many years at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, focusing on systems of privilege and inequality and social change. Her specialties include women’s history and gender, race, and leadership. She is a nationally recognized scholar of the history of motherhood.

 

Jodi’s leadership roles include, most recently, chairing the Department of Race, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at UW-La Crosse, as well as serving as Executive Director of the Greater La Crosse Area Diversity Council from 2015 to 2018, where she led the effort to create diverse and inclusive workplaces and communities. Between 2001 and 2009, she directed large federal grants to improve history education, and later facilitated grantseeking and writing development for others as a faculty fellow in the university’s grants office. In 2019, Jodi created a “Mentoring Circles” program to link students to community leaders. She is a frequent speaker on topics of women’s leadership and other dimensions of diversity, equity, and inclusion.

 

Jodi is the author of two history books, including Modern Motherhood: An American History (Rutgers University Press, 2014), numerous research and popular articles on intersectional gender issues, and a book of poems. She is also a developmental editor for non-fiction authors.

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Testimonials
 

“I worked alongside Jodi for over 16 years in a higher education setting and admired her greatly from the moment I met her. She is a gentle, yet fierce, advocate for more inclusive workplaces, specifically in regard to racial and gender equity, and modeled this value through her many leadership roles on campus. Countless people, myself included, looked to Jodi's wisdom and passion as a compass to move our departments/institutions forward in more just and equitable ways. As a woman of color, I always felt seen, valued, supported, and authentically mentored by Jodi. As a campus community, I wholeheartedly believe we were stronger and better because of her leadership. Any organization that cares about their people would be well-served to invest in Jodi as a consultant or coach; I cannot recommend her enough!"

—Amanda Florence Goodenough, CEO of Goodenough Consulting; Team Lead for Social Responsibility Speaks; Former Director of the Research & Resource Center for Campus Climate at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse

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"The course content was very valuable for me. I loved the set up of giving the background research and then the practical skills and application ideas. I felt less isolated after hearing the common barriers that women face and more empowered after learning that leadership skills can be developed."

--Unlocking Your Leadership Potential Course Participant

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“I’ve worked with Jodi Vandenberg-Daves as a colleague, fellow writing-group member, mentee, and as a participant at her professional development and writing workshops. She has a real knack for talking about writing, research, and academic life in a very concrete and realistic way. She approaches academia practically, as a product of the daily life of human beings with diverse goals, family and personal needs, and demanding schedules. She knows the details of grant writing, book proposals, and scholarly publishing; but also what it takes to help real people accomplish great things in the academic world.”

—James Longhurst, Professor of History, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, and author of Citizen Environmentalists (2010) and Bike Battles: A History of Sharing the American Road (2015)

 

“I was fortunate to work with Jodi during the early stages of a recent career transition.  She helped me to recognize my strengths and explore new options and opportunities at a time where I was unsure as to what my next steps should be.  Jodi had valuable insight into what the job search process would entail and helped me to view myself as an employee in a new field.”

—Alix Kost, Communications Strategist and Project Manager

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“Jodi’s services have been so very valuable for my professional development! She has helped me to gain clarity and direction with my career goals. Her process guided me to identify my values and skills and recognize my worth, allowing me to build confidence and trust in my interests and decisions. She has broadened my perspective generally as well as with specific work situations, helping me to find solutions and to build resources and support. Additionally, through Jodi’s writing expertise, I have learned ways to tailor my writing style to be suitable for different types of projects. I am so glad to have Jodi as a career and writing mentor!"

—Dr. Erica Srinivasan, Assoc. Prof. of Psychology, Univ. of Wisc.-La Crosse and Owner, Integrating Grief

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“Jodi created a safe, informed space for our team to evaluate and understand the role gender played in our workplace. Through her coaching and listening, she helped us surface subtle and critical dynamics within our teams that were holding us back. We left our training with a shared vocabulary that allowed us to identify and begin to address the behaviors that were undermining the safety and sense of belonging of some of our team members. On the whole, the training was enlightening and engaging.”

—Luke Brekke, General Manager, Roastery and Services, Wonderstate Coffee

 

“Whatever you set out to do with Jodi by your side, you will be better for it. Jodi has done so much for my work in a variety of capacities: she has helped me edit my book, mentored me in my new leadership roles at my institution, provided me guidance as I strategized new career goals, and more. As a consultant, Jodi draws upon the treasure trove of her experiences and knowledge and is generous with her time and insight when helping her clients work through their own challenges. She has a captivating presence in a room, whether it's a full-house auditorium, a small group meeting on Zoom, or one-on-one.”
--Christine Hippert, Assoc. Dean of Faculty and Professor, Loyola University

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“What I appreciate most about Jodi is she thinks through everything, asks questions and really listens. She's optimistic and doesn't see barriers but hurdles. Jodi is compassionate, and inspiring. She has definitely encouraged and challenged me to be my best self. I always felt she was in my corner, cheering me on.”

—Ann Wales, Chaplain, La Crosse Jail Ministry, Past President Greater La Crosse Area Diversity Council; Past President, La Crosse Area Society for Human Resource Management.

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“We are so grateful and honored to have worked with Dr. Jodi Vandenberg-Daves on our book: You’re doing it wrong! Mothering, media, and medical expertise. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press. After our work together, we can enthusiastically endorse her developmental editing services. Her perspective encouraged us to tighten and strengthen our arguments while working from interdisciplinary methodologies. Being able to view the manuscript through multiple methodological lenses, Jodi assisted us in ensuring our work remained both consistent and accessible. As a result of her mentorship, we grew as writers, and we are proud of the final product. Jodi’s feedback was detailed, prompt and organized—she gave us thoughtful critiques in a way that was supportive yet challenging and invigorating. Our experience was so positive we continue to recommend her services to scholars in various fields.”

—Bethany Johnson, Research Affiliate Faculty, Communication Studies, University of North Carolina and Margaret M. Quinlan, Ph.D., Assoc. Professor of Communication Studies, University of North Carolina Charlotte, authors of You’re Doing It Wrong! Mothering, Media, and Medical Expertise Rutgers University Press, 2019.)

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“Jodi did an outstanding job editing my book manuscript. She read my manuscript carefully and critically, engaging thoroughly with both content and form. After providing a first set of comments, Jodi reread my manuscript. Her second set of comments took an entirely holistic approach to my work. As a result, my manuscript is much more readable, accessible, and broader in scope. After a difficult review process (prior to requesting Jodi’s services), the second review went extremely well. Indeed one of the reviewers commented: ‘The author’s style is…very clear and concise. His/her manuscript reads well and is devoid of those unnecessary words and expressions. The reader has easy access to the ideas even in the passages dealing with high theoretical concepts… Even though this manuscript deals specifically with comic books, it covers many topics of interest and with sound analysis.'”

—Jennifer Howell, Assistant Professor of Languages, Literature, and Cultures, Illinois State University and author of The Algerian War in French-Language Comics: Postcolonial Memory, History, and Subjectivity (Lexington Books, 2015)

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“Jodi worked with me to help conceptualize, revise, and edit three major grants. What is especially unique about Jodi’s skills in this area is that she is able to provide suggestions on a high conceptual level, and also on the minute level of wording and sentence structure. Her suggestions and comments were invaluable to my writing process and I have no doubt that the revisions she had me do made my grants stronger and likely brought them to a higher position when the grants were ranked and funding distributed. I highly recommend Jodi as an editor.”

—Ariel Beaujot, Professor of History, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse

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“Whether it’s a book proposal for a prospective publisher or a project description for an external grant, Jodi makes sure that whatever I produce is polished and presentable. She provides thorough and elegant editing in a timely and professional manner. I highly recommend Jodi.”

—Gita Pai, Professor of History, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse

 

"I was having difficulty with the organization of the content of a journal article. Jodi assisted in my final edit. She made significant organizational changes which helped to make the article flow better. She also suggested alternative wording for certain sections. Additionally, she was conscientious with time and was fast in submitting her feedback. Overall, she provided much-needed reassurance that my work was valid and worthy of being shared. I wholeheartedly recommend her as an editor."
—Kallia Wright, Associate Professor of Communication & Rhetorical Studies, Illinois College.