The members of our academic support staff have been carefully selected for their investment in student-athletes, their enthusiasm about education and their skill in establishing effective relationships among students, coaches, and faculty.
Every day, our team carries out Temple's mission to provide superior academic, personal and professional guidance to all Temple student-athletes.
It is the impeccable quality and unparalleled caliber of our staff that sets us apart from other academic advisory programs and makes us not only the largest academic support department in the American Athletic Conference but-in our humble opinion-also the best.
Most of our staff members have been student-athletes themselves, and they have worked or played-or sometimes both-at the following institutions:
• Temple University
• Penn State University
• Southern Methodist University
• University of Central Florida
• University of South Florida
• Northwestern University
• University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
• North Carolina State University
• Rutgers University
• Syracuse University
• Arizona State University
• Florida Atlantic University
• University of Tennessee
• Johns Hopkins University
Tara Evans
Director
Men's Basketball, Field Hockey, Women's Basketball
tara.evans@temple.edu
Tara Evans joined the Nancy & Donald Resnikc Academic Support Center for Student-Athletes as a Senior Advisor in August 2014. Prior to her arrival in the Resnick Center, Tara served as the Counselor Coordinator at Temple's Russell Conwell Learning Center.
Evans was a student-athlete at Syracuse University where she earned her bachelor's degree in Sociology, while competing on Syracuse's Swimming & Diving Team. Following her time in upstate New York, Tara earned her master's from Springfield College in Counseling and Psychological Services with a specialization in Athletic Counseling.
Joining the Resnick Center staff marks Tara's return to working with student-athletes after having worked in similar capacities at Villanova University and Florida Atlantic University. During her career as an athletics advisor Tara has worked with numerous different teams and coordinated various support serivces, culminated by her being named the Associate Director at FAU while working with the men's and women's basketball and football programs.
Tara has two daughters named Morgan and Taylor.
Jennifer Locey
Associate Director
Football
jennifer.locey@temple.edu
Jennifer Locey joined the staff in the Nancy and Donald Resnick Academic Support Center for Student-Athletes as an Assistant Director / Football Support Services in September, 2021. Locey oversees the football academic support services. Locey earned both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Miami (Fla.) in Sports Administration. After graduation from Miami, Locey went on to serve as an assistant academic advisor at the UCF until 2016. After her time at UCF, Locey went on to Mississippi as a learning specialist and served in that role until 2017. In April 2017, Locey joined the staff at Syracuse working primarily with the women’s soccer and football programs until her arrival at Temple in 2021.
Kelsey Simpson
Assistant Director
Men's Basketball, Women's Gymnastics, Women's Fencing
Kelsey.Simpson@temple.edu
Kelsey Simpson joined the Resnick Center Team as an associate academic advisor in June 2018. Kelsey, a native of Kentucky, earned her bachelor’s degree in Marketing and Sports Business at Northern Kentucky University while competing on the women’s basketball team for four years as a Norse. She then went on to receive her M.S. in Sport Business from Temple University. Prior to joining the Resnick Center full-time, Kelsey served as an academic mentor for two semesters and most recently completed a semester-long internship with the Resnick Center during Spring 2018.
Alyssa Drachslin
Coordinator for Leadership and Professional Development
Alyssa.Drachslin@temple.edu
Alyssa returned to Temple to join the Rensick Center in February 2018. As a former Owl, Alyssa competed on Temple Women's Volleyball Team from 2012-2016. While at Temple she earned her bachelor's degree in Political Science and a master's in Globalization and Development Communication. After graduating, to combine her passion for sports and international development, Alyssa worked for Student-Athletes Abroad. During her time at Student-Athletes Abroad, she focused on creating international internship and study abroad opportunities for student-athletes primarily in Costa Rica, South Africa, and Spain. From Riverside, California, Alyssa will be focused on leadership and career development for all student-athletes.
Nick Plack
Senior Academic Advisor
Women’s Indoor/Outdoor Track, Men and Women's Cross Country, Men’s Golf, Men and Women’s Tennis and Volleyball
nplack@temple.edu
Nick began his career as a Nittany Lion, receiving his bachelor's degree in human development and family studies from Penn State. While matriculating, he also earned Academic Big-Ten honors as a high jumper and triple jumper. Upon graduation, Nick took on a graduate assistant-ship at Morgan Academic Support Center for Student-Athletes, where he earned a M.Ed. in higher education and administration.
Before arriving at Temple, Nick worked at Southern Methodist University, overseeing the football, women's basketball and volleyball teams.
In his free time, Nick loves spending time with his daughter, Jasmine, running, playing basketball, riding his road bike, and reading novels.
"My most rewarding experience working at the Resnick Center is being able to develop relationships with the student-athletes and watch their progression as a freshman all the way to graduation. I also enjoy trying to support each athlete in their academic and personal goals and finding paths to become successful in their career after Temple."
Reid Vanderlinden
Academic Advisor
Women's Soccer, Men's Crew, Women's Rowing
reid.vanderlinden@temple.edu
Reid Vanderlinden joined the Resnick Center staff in the summer of 2015 after serving for two years as an academic support graduate assistant with the Penn State University football program, earning his M.Ed in Higher Education Administration. A State College, Pennsylvania native, Reid is a 2013 graduate of Johns Hopkins University, where he earned a bachelor's degree in Political Science while playing defensive back for the football team.
Shahbaz Ahmed
Academic Advisor
Football, Women's Basketball
Shahbaz.Ahmed@temple.edu
Shahbaz Ahmed, who was a four-year letter winner for the football team at Temple, returned to his alma mater as an Academic Advisor for the Temple Athletics department. In his role, Ahmed works with student-athletes in their pursuit of graduating and moving on in their respective fields. Ahmed played four seasons and 39 career games from 2012-2015, including 13 starts during the 2015 season. That season the offensive line was named to the Joe Moore Award Honor Roll as one of the top offensive lines in the country. He was also named the Brooks-Irvine College Football Player of the Year. Ahmed, who grew up in Lindenwold, N.J., was a mental health technician in Ambler, Pa., for two years before coming to Temple. Immediately after graduation from Temple, Ahmed took his talents to the NFL. He spent the summer with the Falcons before being waived and signed to the Pittsburgh Steelers. In his time at Temple, Ahmed served as an academic mentor in the Resnick Center for a school year. He also interned for the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. Ahmed earned his degree in political science.
Annie Judge
Academic Advisor
Women's Lacrosse, Men's Soccer
Annie Judge has been at Temple for a little over six years, joining the Resnick team in June 2023. A proud Temple alumna, Annie was a part of the women's field hockey team from 2018 to 2022. She utilized her additional year of eligibility due to the COVID-19 pandemic to compete in a fifth season with the team. During her undergraduate studies, she earned a Bachelor of Science in Early and Elementary Education.
In her final year of competition, Annie also contributed as a Learning Support Intern at the Resnick Center while pursuing a Master of Education in Higher Education. Annie is deeply committed to Temple University and is excited to continue her involvement with Temple athletics and her residence in Philadelphia. She currently supports the Women's Lacrosse and Men's Soccer teams.
Sydney Ferrante
Academic Advisor
Football, Field Hockey
Sydney joined the Resnick staff in September 2023 as an associate academic advisor. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Recreational Fitness from Northern Kentucky University while competing as a member of the softball team for the Norse for four years. After graduation, Sydney attended St. Lawrence University and received her M.Ed. in Educational Leadership. She works with the football and field hockey teams in the Resnick Center.
Mason Williams
Academic Advisor
Tennis, Women's Rowing
Jade McCurdy
Learning Specialist
Jade McCurdy joined the Resnick Academic Support Center for Student-Athletes in July of 2024 as a Learning Specialist. Growing up in Ohio, Jade got her bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Cincinnati where she was an academic coach, senior intern, and Graduate Assistant in the Student-Athlete Support Services Office. Prior to her arrival at Temple, she was an Assistant Learning Specialist at The Ohio State University. Jade is beyond excited to be in Philadelphia at Temple University support their student-athletes.
Keller Bean
Learning Specialist
Keller Bean joined the Resnick Center staff in August 2024 as a Learning Specialist. A South Jersey native, Keller received her bachelor's degree in Inclusive Education from Rowan University while competing on the women’s cross country and track and field teams. She then worked at Northern Arizona University as a learning specialist and academic/tutor coordinator while earning a master’s degree in Educational Leadership.
Nicole Sweeney
Graduate Extern