College of General Studies Contacts

Vickie Hayes, MS, Academic Advisor, College of General Studies
Email: Vickie.Hayes@columbiasouthern.edu
Phone: 1-800-977-8449 ext. 186

Vickie Hayes joined CSU in 2007 and currently serves as Academic Advisor for the College of General Studies and a professor of the CSU Student Orientation course. She previously served as adjunct professor of psychology at Athens State University in Athens, Alabama and Calhoun Community College in Decatur, Alabama. Hayes has a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Athens State University and a master’s degree in counseling psychology from Alabama A&M University. She is an active member of the National Academic Advising Association and has been involved in the Alabama Counseling Association and Habitat for Humanity.

Tamrala Swafford, Dean of General Studies, MS
Email: Tamrala.Swafford@columbiasouthern.edu
Phone: 1-800-977-8449 ext. 314

Tamrala Swafford serves as the Dean of General Studies for CSU. Originally from Ragland, Alabama, she holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree in English from Jacksonville State University and a second master’s degree in American History/Cherokee Studies from Western Carolina University. Swafford is currently a doctoral candidate in the history department at Arizona State University specializing in twentieth century economic development and environmental history among the Eastern Cherokees of North Carolina. She is an active member of the American Society for Ethno Historians, the Southern Historical Association, American Historical Association, Organization of American Historians and honor societies, Phi Alpha Theta and Pi Gamma Mu.

Nichole Gotschall, Adjunct Chair of General Studies, MAT
Email: Nichole.Gotschall@columbiasouthern.edu

Nichole Gotschall joined CSU in 2007 and serves as the Chair of General Studies at CSU. She holds a master’s degree in teaching with a concentration in history and a bachelor’s degree in history with a minor in computer science from the University of West Alabama. Prior to joining CSU, Gotschall served as the professor of online programs and Chair for Developmental Studies at Sullivan University where she was in charge of the Freshman Seminar Program. Her past experience also includes Public Service Representative for the University of West Alabama Library System.

James Meyers, Adjunct Chair of the Psychology Department, Psy.D.
Email: Meyers@columbiasouthern.edu

James Meyers serves as the Chair of the Psychology Department at CSU. Meyers holds a doctorate in psychology from the Florida Institute of Technology, a MA in psychology from Middle Tennessee State University and a bachelor’s degree in psychobiology from Rhodes College. He also holds a MS/SE in Computer Science/Software Engineering from the University of West Florida. Prior to joining CSU as a department chair, Meyer worked for 17 years in a private practice in Gulf Breeze and taught as a professor of psychology at both the University of West Florida and CSU. Meyers is a master scuba diver trainer for the Professional Association of Dive Instructors, an instructor for the National Association of Underwater Instructors, and a licensed captain for the United States Coast Guard.