Guilherme M. Costa serves as the Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary of the Corporation of Bentley University. Prior to joining Bentley University in 2023, Guilherme served as the Interim Senior Vice President and University Secretary (and previously as the Senior Associate Vice President and Deputy University Secretary) of Syracuse University, the Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary to the Board of Trustees of Ithaca College, General Counsel of the South Dakota Board of Regents, and the Deputy General Counsel (and previously as the Associate General Counsel) of the University of Idaho.
Guilherme joined NACUA in 2010 and has served several terms on the Committee on Membership and Member Services and the Journal of College and University Law Editorial Board. He has also spoken at several NACUA programs.
Guilherme earned his undergraduate degrees in business administration and political science from the University of Florida, his law degree from the University of Notre Dame Law School, and his master’s degree in Adult/Organizational Learning and Leadership from the University of Idaho.
Melissa Jackson Holloway serves as Vice Chancellor and General Counsel for North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, the nation’s largest Historically Black College and University (HBCU) in Greensboro, N.C. At North Carolina A&T, Melissa provides legal counsel as the university’s senior attorney and maintains responsibility for the supervision and administration of the Division of Legal Affairs, Risk, and Compliance which consists of the Office of Legal Affairs, the Office of Enterprise Risk Management and Compliance, the Title IX Office, and the Office Internal Auditing. Before joining N.C. A&T in 2019, she spent three years as Deputy General Counsel at Ball State University, six years as General Counsel at North Carolina Central University, and eight years as Chief Legal Affairs Officer at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay. Prior to entering the practice of higher education law, Melissa spent four years as an associate with Foley & Lardner in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Melissa is a 2022 alum of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities’ Millennium Leadership Initiative 2022 cohort, serves on several local non-profit boards, and is a life member of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc.
Melissa has been a NACUA member since 2001. During her 22 years as a NACUA volunteer, she has served as a member of the Committee on Program for Annual Conference, Committee on Board Operations, Board Advisory Council on Diversity and Inclusivity, with leadership roles as Vice Chair of Committee on Legal Education and Vice Chair and Chair of Committee on Membership and Member Services. Melissa is also a frequent moderator and presenter at NACUA workshops, conferences, and Lawyers New to Higher Education workshop. Additionally, she currently serves as an instructor for the Fundamentals of FERPA online course. Melissa served as an at-large member of the NACUA Board of Directors from 2016-2019 and is a 2020 recipient of NACUA’s Distinguished Service Award.
Melissa holds a B.A. from Syracuse University, an M.A. from Binghamton University, and her J.D., with honors, from the University of Wisconsin School of Law.