Learn from Experienced Association Professionals

 Joanna Colbourne, CAE

Deputy Executive Director, National Foundation for Infectious Diseases

Joanna Colbourne is a senior association executive with more than a decade of experience leading complex, mission-driven programs and initiatives. She joined the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID) in 2011, where she oversees strategic marketing, communications, public outreach, and professional education programs and currently serves as Deputy Executive Director. Her work focuses on building scalable programs, aligning initiatives with organizational strategy, and driving measurable impact through disciplined project planning and execution.

Prior to NFID, Joanna served as a project manager at the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc. (APIC), where she led state-funded and sponsored education initiatives and managed cross-functional teams, timelines, and budgets. Her career spans the full project lifecycle — from concept development and stakeholder alignment to implementation, evaluation, and optimization. Joanna brings a practical, real-world approach to project management grounded in association/non-profit operations, governance, and resource stewardship.

Erik Hankin, PMP

Assistant Director, Career & Student Programs, American Geophysical Union

Erik has over a decade of professional experience planning and executing scientific programs and advancing strategies for Earth and space science talent pool development. As the Assistant Director for Career and Student Programs at the American Geophysical Union (AGU), Erik is responsible for the oversight and strategic planning of AGU’s membership professional development programs with a focus on testing and developing scalable, revenue-building programs rooted in member value. Previously, he served as the Executive Program Manager for AGU’s Centennial Strategic Initiative, where he launched and managed the suite of programming for the initiative, including the Centennial Grants Program, which was awarded the ASAE “Power of A” Summit Award in 2020. Before working with AGU, he worked at the National Science Foundation and for the White House’s Ocean Science and Technology Interagency Policy Committee.

Erik is an active CESSE volunteer co-chairing the 2026 ACCESSE Program Committee and serving on the 2024 and 2025 committees as well as the previous co-chair of the Education and Training Shared Interest Group. He is a certified Project Management Professional from the Project Management Institute.

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