AUECO is a volunteer-managed association of export compliance professionals led by an Executive Board elected annually by the membership. The members of the Executive Board serve as the principle contacts for various efforts of the Association. The information below about the 2021/2022 AUECO Executive Board team is provided to encourage engagement between AUECO members and the Executive Board team. Members are encouraged to contact any member of the Executive Board team with questions about AUECO or the role of the Executive Board in the management of the Association.
2021/2022 AUECO Executive Board
Chair: Marci Copeland

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Marci Copeland has been with the University of California (UC) system for thirteen years and is currently Associate Director Export Control in the UC Office of the President. In that role she supports the UC system-wide export control compliance program. She has been an active member of the Association of University Export Control Officers (AUECO) and served three years on the AUECO Executive Board previously as Secretary.
Vice-Chair: Bethany Nelson

Bethany Nelson has been the Export Control Coordinator for the University of Wisconsin-Madison for the past seven years. She has been both the Membership and Outreach Chair for the Association of University Export Control Officers (AUECO) in the past, has presented at a variety of events for organizations such as AUECO, NCURA, and Kings College London, and is a speaker for the U.S. State Department. She has also had articles on export control published in a variety of publications. Ms. Nelson holds a Law Degree as well as a Bachelor’s in Physics. She also loves finding the flaws in fictional characters export compliance.
Secretary: Josef Mejido

Josef Mejido earned a B.S., summa cum laude, in Biology from the College of William & Mary, an M.S. in Genomics and Bioinformatics from the George Washington University, and a J.D. from the Rutgers School of Law – Newark, where he also received the ABA/BNA Award for Excellence – Intellectual Property Law. Currently, Josef works as the Export Control Officer at the University of Rochester. While in law school, Josef served as Managing Articles Editor for the Rutgers Computer & Technology Law Journal. Before taking the position at the University of Rochester, Josef briefly worked in private practice focusing on intellectual property law. Additionally, he has over six years of biomedical laboratory experience from working as a research biologist in the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and as a research fellow in the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research (CBER) at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Treasurer: Abigail Nixon

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Abby Nixon has served as the Director of Research Operations at Weill Cornell Medicine for the past 8 years. In support of a comprehensive academic and research program, she oversees administrative, operational, and financial areas for all divisions of Research Operations. Abby is responsible for $50M+ in operating budgets, as well as export controls and hazardous materials. Prior to her current role, she was an administrator for Cornell’s Embryology Lab for 8 years. Abby holds a B.S. in Hospital Administration & Biology from James Madison University.
Membership: Susan Gasparo

Susan Gasparo has been with Stony Brook University for over twenty years and is currently the Director of Research Security. Susan’s portfolio includes: research security, export controls, foreign influence, and conflict of interest/commitment. Previously she was in the Office of Sponsored Programs where she was involved in proposal submissions and contract negotiations. Susan has been a member of AUECO since 2013 and was on the Membership Committee before being elected chair. She has a B.A. in political science from Stony Brook University and a M.P.A. in finance from New York University.
Outreach: Sarah Marie Schlagter

Sarah Schlagter is the Export Control and Compliance Officer at Cornell University, where she has worked for the past six years. Prior to coming to Cornell, Sarah worked in the international contracts group for a large defense contractor where she had the opportunity to travel to various international locations for large contract negotiations. Sarah is an attorney admitted to practice in New York State and has practiced law in both the private and public sectors. In her free time, Sarah is an avid yoga practitioner and instructor.
Past-Chair: David Ivey

David Ivey is a graduate of The University of Texas at Austin and Texas Tech University School of Law, he is licensed to practice law in the state of Texas and before the Supreme Court of the United States. Mr. Ivey practiced civil litigation and oil and gas transactional work as a partner in the Houston Office of Jackson Walker where he also served as head of the Houston Litigation Section in 1990 Mr. Ivey accepted an offer to join the Houston office of Baker Hostetler to practice civil litigation, environmental, and International Trade law focusing in US Export Controls, Economic Sanctions, US Customs, and CFIUS reviews which he did from 1990 to 2011. In 2011 Mr. Ivey left private law practice to return to his alma mater, the University of Texas at Austin to serve as the Export Control Officer, Export Compliance Counsel, and Empowered Official for The University.