Malcolm Hill – News

An architect of major academic innovations at �ֲ��ý, Dean of the Faculty Malcolm Hill to step down in June 2025 to return to the faculty

�ֲ��ý News — Fri, 13 Sep 2024 16:11:02 +0000

Malcolm Hill will step down as dean of the faculty and vice president for academic affairs on June 30, 2025, announced �ֲ��ý President Garry W. Jenkins on Monday.

Hill, a tenured biology professor at �ֲ��ý and widely published scholar on the evolutionary ecology of marine invertebrates, will return to the �ֲ��ý classroom in fall 2026 after a sabbatical in the 2025-26 academic year.

Hill, who joined �ֲ��ý in 2018, is the architect of significant academic innovations that have strengthened the college and its national reputation while expanding support for student and faculty success, said Jenkins.

Malcolm Hill, dean of the faculty and vice president for academic affairs at �ֲ��ý since 2018, will return to teaching and research at �ֲ��ý in 2026. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

“I am extraordinarily grateful for all that Malcolm has done for our college. I am so appreciative of his deep commitment to his work, to our faculty and students, and to our collaborative efforts as a senior leadership team. Malcolm’s work has profoundly shaped our academic programs and strengthened the college’s position as a national leader in the liberal arts and sciences, and his dedication to advancing inclusive, equity-driven, and innovative best practices has left an indelible mark on our graduates and our college.”

Jenkins added, “During the pandemic, under pressure and uncertainty, Malcolm worked with faculty and senior staff colleagues to help lead this college through unprecedented challenges, modeling values of collaboration and resilience. Malcolm has been a terrific partner these past 14 months, and I look forward to continuing to work closely with him for the remainder of the year. We are excited to see him return to his research and teaching and to continue contributing to our students’ and to �ֲ��ý’ academic excellence.”

In his announcement, Jenkins said that the college will develop and announce plans for a search for Hill’s successor later in the fall after broad consultation with the �ֲ��ý community.

As a member of the college’s senior administrative team and chief academic officer, Hill holds leadership responsibilities in the areas of curriculum and academic initiatives; faculty recruitment, review, tenure and promotion; and nurturing faculty career development in the arenas of instruction, scholarship, and community engagement. Hill’s office oversees the Registrar, the Harward Center for Community Partnerships, the �ֲ��ý Dance Festival, the Museum of Art, and the Office of Sponsored Programs and Research Compliance.

Malcolm Hill joined �ֲ��ý in 2018 from the University of Richmond, where he was the Clarence E. Denoon Jr. Professor of Science and held leadership roles in the School of Arts and Sciences. Hill is a widely published scholar on the evolutionary ecology of marine invertebrates. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

Under Hill’s leadership, �ֲ��ý has made remarkable progress in embedding equity and inclusion into its academic fabric, enhancing both faculty and student success.

“I am proud of the strides that �ֲ��ý has made to strengthen and expand opportunities for student success at �ֲ��ý and how we have supported faculty in developing the tools to be effective in their work,” said Hill. “I am particularly proud of our progress in embedding equity and inclusion into the academic fabric of �ֲ��ý, a firm foundation that will continue to support our community for years to come.”

He added, “I am exceedingly grateful to the �ֲ��ý faculty for their amazing capacity to fully engage not only in their teaching and in their scholarly and creative work, but in the behind-the-scenes work as advocates for the quality and integrity of our academic programs. I am indebted to our faculty for their embrace of institutional goals and their willingness to collaborate for the betterment of our students’ academic experience.”

Over a two-year period ending in 2021, Hill provided leadership support for substantial modernization and improvement to the process for faculty reappointment, tenure, and promotion. During Hill’s tenure, criteria that define faculty excellence have been strengthened and now incorporate equity and inclusion in essential ways.

To support the faculty’s professional development in this area, Hill advocated for, and helped establish in 2022, the Center for Inclusive Teaching and Learning. The new center introduces current research findings and modern approaches to help faculty and staff educators develop and refine professional, reflective, innovative, and inclusive pedagogies.

In September 2022, Malcolm Hill (left) attends a reception at the newly opened Center for Inclusive Teaching and Learning in 2022 with, from left, center director Lindsey Hamilton ’04, Associate Dean of the Faculty and Professor of Psychology Krista Aronson, and Professor of Mathematics Katharine Ott. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

A year later, �ֲ��ý completed a comprehensive reorganization and expansion of its academic student support programs, resulting in two new centers, the Student Academic Support Center and the Student Writing and Language Center. Located in the new Peer Learning Commons space on the ground floor of Ladd Library, the centers have streamlined resources and enhanced peer tutoring across disciplines.

This achievement reflected a larger success in improving student advising, including major improvements to the management of the First-Year Seminar program so students retain their pre-major advisor through their first two years.

Other transformational efforts to energize and inspire teaching and research include facility investments exceeding $75 million in state-of-the-art spaces including Bonney Science Center, renovations to Dana Chemistry Hall, and improvements to Carnegie Science Hall. By the time Hill leaves the office, the college will have hired more than 75 new permanent faculty colleagues across all academic divisions. Hill’s work to achieve a net increase in the size of the faculty through the addition of eight new tenure-track faculty lines represents an important investment in the academic enterprise.

Martin Kruse, associate professor of biology and neuroscience, teaches a “Lab-Based Biological Inquiry” course on cellular neuroscience in Bonney Science Center on Jan. 25, 2024. The course typifies new approaches to teaching STEM fields at �ֲ��ý by introducing students to compelling, real research questions early in their time at �ֲ��ý. (Theophil Syslo/�ֲ��ý College)

In April 2023, the faculty approved a new general education requirement to engage students with issues of race, power, privilege, and colonialism. Student advocacy, faculty collaboration, and institutional commitment ensured that �ֲ��ý students will be equipped to understand the history and legacies of racism, and prepared to address systemic inequities in the world. To support ongoing curricular discussions, Hill called upon the faculty to engage in Foundational Dialogues, a structured platform for ongoing, critical conversations to promote thoughtful engagement across disciplines, foster collaborative learning, and guide the faculty toward continuous academic improvement.

Through a 2018 grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Inclusive Excellence Initiative, �ֲ��ý faculty have adopted new curricula and pedagogical approaches in STEM that have yielded dramatic results in improved retention outcomes for all students and particularly within the college’s Black and Hispanic students. In addition, the Mellon Curricular Grants project has brought a focus to the faculty’s capacity to teach and mentor a diverse student population in the humanities and humanistic social sciences.

While serving as dean, Hill kept his hand in the classroom and research. In recent years, he has taught courses in evolutionary biology and biostatistics, as well as a First-Year Seminar, guiding students in the college’s equity-driven STEM Scholars program that was developed through the HHMI grant.

Hill joined �ֲ��ý from the University of Richmond, where he was the Clarence E. Denoon Jr. Professor of Science and held leadership roles in the School of Arts and Sciences. He received a bachelor’s degree in biology and environmental science from Colby College and a doctorate in evolutionary ecology from the University of Houston.

National Science Foundation awards $582K grant to �ֲ��ý chemistry and biochemistry professor

Mary Pols — Fri, 10 Feb 2023 16:21:16 +0000

Assistant Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry Geneva Laurita is the recipient of a major National Science Foundation grant of $581,984.

The NSF CAREER award, considered to be one of the foundation’s most prestigious awards for faculty members who are just beginning their teaching and research careers, is based on both her scientific research in solid state materials and how she brings undergraduates into that vital area of scientific exploration.

“Receiving a National Science Foundation CAREER award is a milestone accomplishment, and provides clear evidence of the high quality work that Geneva Laurita is conducting,” says Dean of the Faculty and Vice President for Academic Affairs Malcolm Hill. “�ֲ��ý defines excellent teachers as individuals who are active scholars and experts in their fields, and this award is the clearest indication of both.”

Assistant Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry Geneva Laurita works with students during her chemical reactivity course in Bonney Science Center on Jan. 30, 2023. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

For Laurita, who joined the �ֲ��ý faculty in 2017, the award means being able to do more of what she came to �ֲ��ý to do: introduce students to concepts and research work that is typically available only to graduate students and rarely seen at primarily undergraduate institutions like �ֲ��ý.

“I’ve always been passionate about undergraduate research, and this is a place where the undergraduates are doing research with faculty members, and it is high impact, high level research at the top of the field, working on the questions that everybody is asking. And �ֲ��ý has the resources to get to do that kind of research.”

Laurita, who received the grant news just a few weeks ago, is still taking it all in. “I still am like, ‘What? Did this really happen?’ Because this is amazing.” She said this was the last year she was eligible to apply for this grant, which is intended to vault scientists into the next phase of their careers, and the only time she applied for it. “I had never applied for it because honestly, I didn’t quite have the idea yet.”

The idea came to her as a result of wanting to connect �ֲ��ý undergraduates with graduate students elsewhere, and also has a direct connection to an earlier, 2019 NSF grant of $193,405 Laurita received to study a group of materials called pyrochlore oxides.

Described by Laurita to the NSF as a “poorly understood family of materials,” pyrochlore oxides have potential for many technology-driven applications, particularly replacing lead-based materials that are highly useful — and used — in technology but full of challenges because of their inherent toxicities. Pyrochlores present an opportunity for less-toxic, potentially lead-free materials.

How do you pronounce “pyrochlores”?

Listen to Geneva Laurita sound it out: “PIE-ro-klors.”

“The science component is actually based off of some things that we discovered in my current NSF grant,” Laurita says. “The thing about the CAREER grant is that it needs to have a really strong science idea as well as a really strong educational component. And it took awhile for those two things to come together for me.”

This is only the second time a �ֲ��ý faculty member has received an NSF CAREER award. In 2016 neuroscience faculty Jason Castro received a Faculty CAREER award for his work in studying brain structure.

The language for Laurita’s grant specifically refers to the “national need to educate and train future generations of material scientists,” and cites Laurita’s intention to promote “participation of individuals from historically excluded and underrepresented groups.” Additionally, the program will play “a role in long-term and broader goals to diversify academic faculty, particularly at PUIs,” which stands for primarily undergraduate institutions.

The award is supported by the Solid State and Materials Chemistry program in the NSF’s Division of Materials Research, which recognizes how Laurita’s group at �ֲ��ý has already been working with pyrochlores, a name that refers to the particular arrangement of atoms in this family of materials, which are formed in a crystal structure.

“We’re going to be looking at materials that we can use for energy and electronic applications,” says Assistant Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry Geneva Laurita.

Theophil Syslo/�ֲ��ý College

“Pyrochlores can be metals, they can be insulators, they can have magnetic properties or non-magnetic properties, it all depends on what atom you put in,” Laurita explains. They’re so adaptable that they provide what she describes as a “nice playground for chemistry.”

But this playground has serious potential for use within energy and electronic applications. “We want to think about how we can manipulate these materials, using external things such as electric and magnetic fields,” Laurita says.

That includes using advanced neutron and synchrotron X-ray scattering techniques to learn more about the structure of these materials. Laurita’s research emphasizes scattering experiments performed at national laboratories, which she was first introduced to herself in college, inspiring the career she has today.

When Laurita was an undergraduate student at the University of Northern Colorado, she did some casting around for a direction. She considered being a music major at one point and going into pharmacy at another. Then, during her junior year, she took inorganic chemistry with a professor named Robin Macaluso, who introduced her to the concept of superconductors. “Things really clicked into place,” Laurita remembers. “I was like, this is amazing.” She ended up taking a fifth year, and focusing on research with Macaluso.

In that fifth year, Macaluso sent Laurita to the National Institute of Standards and Technology, in Gaithersburg, Md., to do her first neutron-scattering experiment. “I point to that particular trip as why I am doing everything that I’m doing today. It really sparked my love for neutron science, and also this passion that I really do feel for undergraduate exposure to the national labs, because that’s when I got it.”

She flew to D.C. by herself, then took a train to Gaithersburg, arriving alone at NIST, where she was met by someone Macaluso had worked with as a post-doc. She was awestruck by the facility, by the giant instrumentation, and the sense of proximity to real, high-stakes science. She had to tag in and out of experimental areas before exposing the sample to neutrons and be trained on every kind of safety protocol.

“You get to talk to the scientists as well. And I think that the scientists are really excited to work with undergraduates because I think that they don’t get to work with that population very often.”

Recipient of a major NSF award recognizing her early-career accomplishments, Assistant Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry Geneva Laurita explains what drew her to �ֲ��ý: “a place where the undergraduates are doing research and it is a high impact, high level research.”

Theophil Syslo/�ֲ��ý College

Today one of her favorite things is bringing �ֲ��ý students into these kinds of national research facilities, such as the famed Oak Ridge National Laboratory and seeing their own reactions, those gasps of, “Oh my gosh, this is so cool.”

“One of my pillars is giving undergraduates ,” she says, referring to the powerhouse network of 17 research laboratories under the Department of Energy. “A lot of times people don’t understand that they even exist until they’re halfway through their graduate career. They think it’s just done in institutions like universities or colleges. This grant supports travel for undergraduate students to these National Labs where we can do some of these really cool experiments,” she says.

“I do feel that sometimes, people don’t expect as high level research from undergraduates. They think you have to water down the projects, or you can’t work on such high level projects.”

Laurita was drawn to work at �ֲ��ý precisely because it seemed to her that �ֲ��ý faculty was engaged in “really impactful research with undergraduates.” Being able to present her data to colleagues outside of �ֲ��ý, to share findings and then drop the origin story of that data into the narrative is another of her favorite things: “To be like, ‘By the way, this is all done by undergraduates.’ I just love that feeling.”

Geneva Laurita explains why, in tackling big problems, including renewable energy, “we really need to bring everybody to the table.”

Theophil Syslo/�ֲ��ý College

As is often the case at �ֲ��ý, undergraduates who do research in Laurita’s lab are now showing up as her co-authors in academic journals.

Former lab researcher Jake O’Hara ’21, a doctoral candidate at the University of Michigan, is a co-author on the article . And Owen Bailey ’22, also in graduate school, and Maddie Murphy ’20, a high school teacher, are co-authors of an article .

Courtesy of this five-year NSF CAREER grant, not only will more �ֲ��ý undergraduates get this kind of experience, they’ll have a unique opportunity to work with graduate students, something Laurita herself looks forward to.

“I do spend a lot of time talking to graduate students on Zoom about what it’s like to work at a place like �ֲ��ý. But you don’t really know what it’s like to be a faculty member, especially at a place like �ֲ��ý where we’re doing really impactful undergraduate research as well as teaching.”

The NSF grant will change that, by providing funding to recruit and hire two graduate student interns to come to �ֲ��ý during Short Term and teach a class with Laurita and then continue through the summer research with four �ֲ��ý students in her lab.

“There’s going to be a lot of learning, on all different levels, which should be really exciting.”
Geneva Laurita

The idea is for the graduate students to “actually see what it’s like to work at a place like �ֲ��ý.” And her �ֲ��ý students will have the experience of “getting to interface with graduate students as well.” The grand plan is for Laurita to teach this Short Term course four times, collaborating and coteaching with graduate students from underrepresented groups and schools.

“It’s going to be an opportunity for everybody to get to interact with a population at different stages that we don’t usually get to interact with. There’s going to be a lot of learning, on all different levels, which should be really exciting.”

She’s gearing up to find her first set of interns, to bring in for Short Term 2024. “I’m going to try and activate my whole network.”

“The award will allow Geneva more opportunities to provide transformative educational experiences for our students with access to cutting-edge research and national laboratory experiences,” says Malcolm Hill.

“This is one of the reasons that �ֲ��ý is such a great place for our students to train to become scientists within a liberal arts context. I look forward to watching this remarkable grant proposal come to fruition over the next several years.”

The NSF grant runs through 2028.

�ֲ��ý College announces goal to add eight new permanent faculty positions

�ֲ��ý News — Mon, 23 Jan 2023 18:03:36 +0000

�ֲ��ý College plans to add eight new permanent faculty positions over the next three years, Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the Faculty Malcolm Hill has announced.

The new tenure-track positions are in addition to seven endowed professorships funded as part of the college’s recently completed �ֲ��ý Campaign. The result is a nearly 10 percent increase in the �ֲ��ý faculty under the leadership of Clayton Spencer, who became president of �ֲ��ý in July 2012.

Expanding the faculty “is a matter of central importance to the strength and vitality of our academic program,” said Hill, who shared the plan during the January meeting of the �ֲ��ý faculty.

He added, “�ֲ��ý has long been known for its strong academic program, anchored by a faculty of outstanding teachers and scholars who work intensively with students to help them acquire the knowledge, skills, and habits of mind that will equip them to be highly effective leaders and contributors in their lives after �ֲ��ý.”

The eight new positions will “help to reduce workload associated with advising and senior thesis; enhance the student experience with smaller class sizes and expanded curricular offerings; and create opportunities for curricular innovation.”
Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the Faculty Malcolm Hill

Several factors have made the goal of growing the faculty feasible, Hill explained, including recent shifts in the composition of the faculty and retirements of senior members of the faculty; prudent financial planning; and the success of the �ֲ��ý Campaign, which raised $346 million, of which $90 million was given to drive academic excellence.

In his remarks to the faculty at its Jan. 17 meeting Hill noted that the plan to expand the faculty will be pressure-tested against current economic conditions. “Our ability to fully achieve this goal is contingent upon maintaining a stable and positive financial outlook at the college.”

Professor of Environmental Studies and Christian A. Johnson Professor of Interdisciplinary Studies Holly Ewing teaches her “Soils” class at the Keigwin Amphitheater in September 2022. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

An expanded faculty will deliver significant benefits to �ֲ��ý and to our students, “maintaining our position as a leading liberal arts college,” said Hill.

The new positions will “help to reduce workload associated with advising and senior thesis; enhance the student experience with smaller class sizes and expanded curricular offerings; and create opportunities for curricular innovation.”

Hill said that that he looks forward to working with the faculty’s Academic Affairs Council to determine the allocation of new faculty positions in existing �ֲ��ý departments and programs, with an eye on delivering the greatest impact for �ֲ��ý students and faculty. The plan to expand the faculty will begin with three additive searches in the next academic year (2023–24).

Tenure-track �ֲ��ý faculty who join the college today and in the coming years will encounter a robust and forward-looking program of professional support, expectations, and mentoring.

In 2021, the faculty adopted new criteria for reappointment, tenure, and promotion through a revision of the Faculty Handbook. In 2022, �ֲ��ý opened its Center for Inclusive Teaching and Learning to support faculty and staff educators through ongoing professional development in evidence-based and inclusive pedagogies, “which, in turn, will support greater student success,” said Hill.

“Going forward, �ֲ��ý will continue to invest time and energy to support the faculty in their work, with the ultimate goal of strengthening our ability to deliver an exceptional education for our students.”

�ֲ��ý College announces promotions of 13 professors

�ֲ��ý News — Thu, 08 Dec 2022 14:43:23 +0000

Thirteen professors at �ֲ��ý College have received promotions, including tenure awards, over the last two academic years. The promotions were recommended by the faculty’s Committee on Personnel and approved by the �ֲ��ý College Board of Trustees.

“These promotions underscore the global reach of our faculty and the quality of their work,” said Malcolm Hill, vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty.

“Our alumni value tremendously the knowledge and habits of mind taught to them by their �ֲ��ý teachers. Fellow scholars, community leaders, and policy makers seek out the �ֲ��ý faculty for their expertise, and willingness to collaborate, create, and share. As academic stewards, the faculty help move �ֲ��ý forward. I congratulate these professors on this milestone, and I thank our entire faculty for their tremendous work.”

Promoted from assistant professor to associate professor with tenure:

Effective August 2022

Aleksandar Diamond-Stanic of the Department of Physics and Astronomy
Andrew Kennedy of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Alison Melnick Dyer of the Department of Religious Studies
Paul Schofield of the Department of Philosophy
Leshui He of the Department of Economics

Effective August 2021

Nathan Faries of the Program in Asian Studies
Jeffrey Oishi of the Department of Physics and Astronomy

Awarded tenure as an associate professor:

Effective August 2021:

Carrie Diaz Eaton of the Program in Digital and Computational Studies

Promoted from associate professor to full professor:

Effective August 2022:

Stephanie Kelley-Romano of the Department of Rhetoric, Film, Screen Studies
Paul Shea of the Department of Economics

Effective August 2021:

Nathan Lundblad of the Department of Physics and Astronomy
Daniel Riera-Crichton of the Department of Economics
Adriana Salerno of the Department of Mathematics

Below are profiles of these 13 newly promoted faculty members, including their areas of scholarly expertise, an example of a �ֲ��ý course they teach, and, in their words, what being a �ֲ��ý professor means to them.

Associate Professor of Physics Aleksandar Diamond-Stanic

Aleksandar Diamond-Stanic (standing, second from left), promoted from assistant professor to associate professor of physics, poses with his nine summer student researchers in June 2017. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

Doctoral institution: University of Arizona

Areas of research: Evolution of galaxies and the growth of supermassive black holes through cosmic time, using data from ground- and space-based telescopes.

Courses taught include: “Galaxies and Cosmology,” an introduction to the astrophysics of galaxies and cosmology with an emphasis on the physical principles required to understand and interpret astronomical observations.

What it means to me to be a �ֲ��ý professor:

“What I value the most about �ֲ��ý is the community and the connections with students. Developing supportive relationships with one another is at the core of what we do, and I see myself as a guide and a coach for students as they navigate their own growth and development. At the same time, this allows me to grow as a teacher, as a scholar, and as a human being, and to identify connections and opportunities, both within my own discipline and across many disciplines, in terms of how we can continuously improve at what we do.”

Associate Professor of Digital and Computational Studies Carrie Diaz Eaton

Carrie Diaz Eaton, awarded tenure as an associate professor of digital and computational studies, teaches her course “Calling Bull” in 2019. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

Doctoral institution: University of Tennessee

Areas of research: Interdisciplinary and inclusive undergraduate STEM education using mixed methods including computational, data science, and digital narrative approaches grounded in a complex adaptive and ecological systems perspective.

Courses taught include: “Calling Bull,” focusing on data literacy and information science to help students hone their digital citizenship skills by spotting, dissecting, and publicly refuting false claims and inferences based on quantitative, statistical, and computational analysis of data.

What it means to me to be a �ֲ��ý professor:

“I value �ֲ��ý because of the intellectual freedom it offers someone like me, an interdisciplinarian. I love being able to teach and research from both mathematical and computational perspectives alongside critical perspectives, qualitative approaches, and community justice and activism. I don’t have to leave a part of myself at the door to be successful, and I endeavor to provide an environment where my students can say the same.”

Associate Professor of Asian Studies Nathan Faries

Nathan Faries, promoted from assistant professor to associate professor with tenure, introduces students presenting on the topic “Cultural Forces in Contemporary China,” at Mount David Summit in 2019. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

Doctoral institution: Penn State University

Areas of research: Examining religious identity and freedom in Chinese literature, including portrayals of Buddhism in adaptations of 16th-century Chinese literature and exploring Chinese spiritual practice as it contrasts with Western Christian spirituality.

Courses taught include: “Communism, Capitalism, and Cannibalism,” a survey of literature since 1911 from mainland China and texts from the Chinese diaspora, including three periods: the May Fourth shift from traditional language and forms to vernacular literature; Socialist Realism and the Marxist theory of the first three decades of the People’s Republic; and China’s Reform Era.

What it means to me to be a �ֲ��ý professor:

“I am very grateful to be teaching at �ֲ��ý and teaching material that still fascinates me. I get to spend a good portion of each work day interacting with intelligent young people from all over the world. This job allows me to keep growing; I receive new insights about Chinese language and culture every day thanks to my students and colleagues. Being a �ֲ��ý professor offers me the gift of hope for the next generation, for the future of China–U.S. relations. This position gives me the assurance of continuity, a vision for this work being carried on by others long after I have retired.”

Associate Professor of Economics Leshui He

Leshui He, promoted from assistant professor to associate professor with tenure, poses for a portrait in 2015. (Josh Kuckens/�ֲ��ý College)

Doctoral institution: University of Connecticut

Areas of research: Microeconomics, including dwindling offline retail on the prices at online retailers and effect of news media on sensationalistic consumer products.

Courses taught include: “Economics of Strategies in Firms and Markets,” investigating the economics of strategies between and within firms, including applications of game theory in the realm of business practices and empirical realities of business organizations.

What it means to me to be a �ֲ��ý professor:

“Being a �ֲ��ý professor is an exciting adventure that energizes me every next moment. The talented, curious, generous, and hardworking people around campus constantly inspire me. In the classrooms, offices, and dining hall, I receive more thought-provoking questions, stories, and wisdom than I can ever give back. Above all, my wonderful colleagues and students made me kinder, smarter, and happier.”

Professor of Rhetoric, Film, and Screen Studies Stephanie Kelley-Romano

Stephanie Kelley-Romano (left), promoted from associate professor to professor of rhetoric, film, and screen studies, talks with Molly Chisholm ’17, a student in Kelley-Romano’s course “Presidential Campaign Rhetoric,” in 2016. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

Doctoral institution: University of Kansas

Areas of research: Her research and teaching interests include gender and media, myth and narrative, conspiracy, political rhetoric, and substance (mis)use disorder/addiction.

Courses taught include: “Television Criticism,” examining the representational strategies employed by television to convey social messages, including how representations of race, class, sexuality, ability, and other categories of analysis are articulated in science fiction and fantasy on television.

What it means to me to be a �ֲ��ý professor:
“Being a �ֲ��ý professor to me means I get to engage the world with a bunch of intellectually curious — and brave — people. I get to talk about television, politics, and conspiracies, and then, with my students, critique the way the topics and forms distribute, or replicate, power. Then, I get to watch them come up with creative and critical solutions to move the bar for civic discourse higher. Ridiculously cool.”

Associate Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry Andrew Kennedy

Andrew Kennedy, promoted from assistant professor to associate professor of chemistry and biochemistry with tenure, talks with student researcher Hannah Smith ‘19 in 2018. (Phylllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

Doctoral institution: University of Virginia

Areas of research: Understanding the chemical mechanisms that encode and maintain long-term memory and learning imprints information onto the epigenome of participating neurons.

Courses taught include: “Mechanisms of Memory,” a study of how our experiences are encoded chemically into the mind as memories, and how they can be manipulated, enhanced, erased, or edited genetically and molecularly.

What it means to me to be a �ֲ��ý professor:

“For me, being a �ֲ��ý professor is about helping students create and organize moving relationships with ideas. An education is not an accumulation of experiences; it is a process of learning strategies to experiment with the techniques of argument, and then finding evidence, whether it supports the hypothesis or not.

“So much of science education is learning facts about the known universe, but practicing science requires seeing the unknown spaces from original and creative angles. I think being a �ֲ��ý professor of science is helping students turn that intellectual corner themselves. There is pride in that, even arrogance, but also honesty as to why I am here: a deep faith in the power of young people enfranchised with truth and responsibility.”

Professor of Physics Nathan Lundblad

Nathan Lundblad, promoted from associate professor to professor of physics, works with Ben Lovitz ’15 in 2014. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

Doctoral institution: California Institute of Technology

Areas of research: Exploring the physics of matter cooled to just barely above absolute zero, including the phenomenon of terrestrially and in microgravity aboard the International Space Station.

Courses taught include: “Quantum Computing,” an emerging field that explores how the laws of nature can be used to store and process information in new ways, including the potential to create an exponential speed-up for certain classes of computational problems.

What it means to me to be a �ֲ��ý professor:

“Being a professor at �ֲ��ý means I get to share what I find most interesting about the world with students every day. It means I get to build low-temperature experiments with lasers and magnets in Carnegie Science Hall, work with collaborators on similar projects around the world, and feel connected — through the tools of my field, ultracold atomic physics — to the ongoing human effort to build better and better models of how the universe works.

“Physics as a science can provide deep knowledge about the world. More importantly, it represents a way of thinking that I constantly push students to embrace. As they build thesis experiments, build models and analyze data in lab courses and summer research projects, and figure out what doesn’t make sense here at every stage, students develop a solid framework for solving problems and building intuition. I’m privileged to be a part of that sense-making process, and I try to model it for them as much as I can: sharing when I’m stuck or confused, as well as when I and my collaborators have finally figured something out that’s been a long time coming. Plus, we all get to use high-power lasers while we’re doing it…”

Associate Professor of Religious Studies Alison Melnick Dyer

Alison Melnick Dyer, promoted from assistant professor to associate professor of religious studies with tenure, engages with colleagues during a panel discussion, “Courage to Transgress: Engaging Dangerous Ideas in the Classroom,” in September 2022. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

Doctoral institution: University of Virginia

Areas of research: Tibetan and Chinese Buddhist literary history, the role of hagiography in creating the lives of Buddhist saints, 21st century gender dynamics in and between monastic institutions, power and privilege in Buddhist societies.

Courses taught include: “Buddhism and Gender,” examining the role of gender in Buddhist communities from the inception of the religious tradition to the modern day, including how gender identity has influenced Buddhism and where gender appears in Buddhist literature, doctrine, and art.

What it means to me to be a �ֲ��ý professor:

“What I love most about being a �ֲ��ý professor is working with thoughtful and engaged students and colleagues to better understand how religion functions as a key component of our human experience. I’m continually impressed with the ways that �ֲ��ý folks are committed to being engaged in dialogue, whether it’s sitting in a classroom on campus discussing how religious bias influenced the experiences of interned Japanese Americans in World War II, or traveling to remote Buddhist communities in Ladakh to study the impact of monastic education on the lives of young people.

“As an interdisciplinary scholar, it is so great to see students drawing connections across disciplines to make sense of the ways that religion continues to influence experiences of gender, social class, privilege, and power. And it’s incredibly enriching to work with colleagues across campus who are invested in making the world a better place. I feel very lucky to be here!”

Associate Professor of Physics Jeffrey Oishi

Jeffrey Oishi, promoted from assistant to associate professor of physics with tenure, talks about the college’s high-performance computing cluster in 2016 in a Kalperis Hall hub room. (Jay Burns/�ֲ��ý College)

Doctoral institution: University of Virginia

Areas of research: Theoretical and computational fluid and plasma dynamics, with particular interest in problems related to sustainability: the dynamics of Earth’s ocean and atmosphere, the confinement of plasmas in future fusion power generators, and the Sun’s magnetic field.

Courses taught include: “Quantum Theory,” a formal treatment of quantum theory combining physical insight and motivation with the mathematical tools of abstract vector spaces and group theory.

What it means to me to be a �ֲ��ý professor:

“Being a �ֲ��ý professor gives me the opportunity to help students develop the habits of mind that make up theoretical physics: a ceaseless process of questioning, quantification, and approximation that allow us to gain deep insight into the physical world. At �ֲ��ý, I get to do this while working on problems at the forefront of fluid mechanics and plasma physics with a team of students here in Maine and collaborators from around the world.”

Professor of Economics Daniel Riera-Crichton

Daniel Riera-Crichton, promoted from associate professor to professor of economics, delivers the Convocation address in September 2022. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

Doctoral institution: University of California–Santa Cruz

Areas of research: Exploring the fiscal multipliers and their interplay with monetary policy, global financial transmission mechanisms, the links between banking and external crises, and the relationship between economic shocks and macroeconomic development.

Courses taught include: “Time Series Econometrics,” examining issues related to time series data including stationarity, lag structure, and endogeneity, as well as estimation techniques such as vector autoregressions, maximum likelihood, and Bayesian approaches.

What it means to me to be a �ֲ��ý professor:

“Being a �ֲ��ý professor is a privilege. The opportunity to work next to outstanding educators and to teach wonderful young minds is challenging and ultimately extremely rewarding. At �ֲ��ý, we get a fresh view of the world every semester and the opportunity to learn through the eyes of our students. We are rewarded seeing our students develop into independent thinkers, ready to make their contributions to society. I am grateful to be part of this community.”

Associate Professor of Philosophy Paul Schofield

Paul Schofield, promoted from assistant professor to associate professor of philosophy with tenure, poses for a portrait in 2019. (Theophil Syslo/�ֲ��ý College)

Doctoral institution: Harvard University

Areas of research: Moral and political philosophy as well as the philosophy of film.

Courses taught include: “I and Thou: Recognition and Second-Personal Morality,” examining the requirement of morality that we treat people not simply as objects to be planned around or manipulated, but as beings with a special status that we ought to recognize or acknowledge.

What it means to me to be a �ֲ��ý professor:

“Whether I’m meeting with students, or meeting with other faculty, or meeting with senior staff, being a �ֲ��ý professor doesn’t just mean I have a job. It means being part of a community that I take with me, wherever I go.”

Professor of Mathematics Adriana Salerno

Adriana Salerno, promoted from associate professor to professor of mathematics, teaches a First-Year Seminar, “The Communication Equation: A Mathematical Media Tour,” in 2015. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

Doctoral institution: University of Texas at Austin

Areas of research: Exploring number theory, in particular the intersections of number theory with geometry, physics, and cryptography; also interested in the communication and teaching of mathematics to create a more inclusive and equitable STEM community.

Courses taught include: “Cryptography,” examining public key cryptography, which is at the center of most secure transactions, with an exploration of various methods of encryption — RSA cryptosystem, the Diffie-Hellman key exchange, Elliptic Curve Cryptography — and methods of breaking these encryptions.

What it means to me to be a �ֲ��ý professor:

“Being a �ֲ��ý professor means I get to be fully myself: I get to be a teacher, a mentor, an advocate for a more inclusive math profession, a research mathematician, and a member of a community committed to justice. Even better, I get to help our students be fully themselves and see them thrive, alongside folks who care about our students as much as I do.”

Professor of Economics Paul Shea

Paul Shea, promoted from associate professor to professor of economics, delivers remarks honoring his retiring colleague Margaret Maurer-Fazio in 2021 in Pettengill Hall. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

Doctoral institution: University of Oregon

Areas of research: Macroeconomics, especially macroeconomic effects of incomplete or faulty information.

Courses taught include: “A Tale of Two Recessions: 2008 and 2020,” examining the causes, events, and aftermath of the 2008 recession, including the housing bubble before the recession, how the crisis in the housing sector spread to the rest of the economy, and the response of monetary, fiscal, and regulatory policies.

What it means to me to be a �ֲ��ý professor:

“I enjoy being at �ֲ��ý because of the community of students, colleagues, and staff. I am continually impressed with the intelligence and curiosity of �ֲ��ý students, and by how supportive they are of one another. Teaching at �ֲ��ý is just having a conversation about topics in economics that we are mutually interested in. I have been fortunate to have so many great faculty colleagues who are deeply invested in our curriculum. Also our great staff make the campus a wonderfully pleasant place to come to work each day.”

�ֲ��ý announces four faculty promotions, including tenure, for 2019–20

�ֲ��ý News — Thu, 22 Aug 2019 14:56:22 +0000

�ֲ��ý has announced four faculty promotions, including tenure awards, effective Aug. 1 for the 2019–20 academic year.

Travis Gould, physics, and Michael Rocque, sociology, were promoted from assistant to associate professor and were granted tenure. Krista Aronson, psychology, was promoted from associate to full professor. Anita Charles, education, was promoted from lecturer to senior lecturer.

The promotions were recommended by the faculty’s Committee on Personnel and approved by the �ֲ��ý College Board of Trustees.

“Their extraordinary talents are emblematic of the across-the-board excellence of the �ֲ��ý faculty.”

“The faculty whose promotions we are celebrating this year, in physics, sociology, education, and psychology, are not only leading scholars, but also, through their teaching, guides who lead our students and our community to engage with important ideas,” said Malcolm Hill, vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty.

“Their extraordinary talents are emblematic of the across-the-board excellence of the �ֲ��ý faculty.”

Meet the four newly promoted faculty members, learn their research fields, and discover why they teach.

Associate Professor of Physics Travis Gould

Assistant Professor of Physics Travis Gould (center) works students during his Short Term course “Microcontroller Laboratory” in 2015. (Josh Kuckens/�ֲ��ý College)

Appointment year: 2013

Doctoral institution: University of Maine, Orono

Fields of research: Adaptive optics, development and application of fluorescence microscopy techniques, fluorescence correlation spectroscopy, fluorescence nanoscopy, image processing, light-sheet microscopy, STED microscopy, super-resolution microscopy

Why I teach: Having been primarily a researcher before coming to �ֲ��ý, I’ve been pleasantly surprised that teaching has been such a rewarding experience. It has also been an opportunity for me to learn — as I’m trying to work concepts out for myself, I’m sharing the thought process with the students, making connections between technologies and the physics behind them. The students and I have been able to go through the process of figuring it out together.

Our students really get into the material and many of them want to apply it in a research setting. It’s been really nice to see that excitement, and to have students come from classes into my lab to do summer research, senior thesis, or independent study.

Associate Professor of Sociology Michael Rocque

Associate Professor of Sociology Michael Rocque is also the faculty liaison to the Bobcat football team. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

Appointment year: 2014

Doctoral institution: Northeastern University

Fields of research: Biosocial crime prevention, corrections, criminology theory, desistance from crime, life-course criminology, race and crime, race and school discipline, risk assessment in corrections, survey research

Why I teach: I feel like I am among the luckiest people in the world to be able to call �ֲ��ý College my professional home. It is an institution that truly values educating the whole person and allows us as professors to do that in innovative and creative ways.

As professors, we get to witness and play a small part in the development of young people as they make their way from their teens into adulthood, becoming the people they will be for the rest of their lives. It is an honor to be able to do this for a living.

Professor of Psychology Krista Aronson

Professor of Psychology Krista Aronson reviews picture books during a Short Term course trip to the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst, Mass., in 2017. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

Appointment year: 2003

Doctoral institution: University of Michigan

Fields of research: Digital humanities, multicultural children’s literature, intercultural competence, racial and ethnic identity development, acculturation, immigration, psychometric assessment

Why I teach: I love my job because I get to engage amazing students in meaningful work designed to affect contemporary social problems — every day.

Whether it’s in the classroom, in the library, at school, or online through the Diverse BookFinder, I love working with �ֲ��ý students to bring theory and research into practice. This is my passion.

Senior Lecturer in Education and Director of Secondary Teacher Education Anita Charles

Senior Lecturer in Education Anita Charles teaches a course on topics in special education in 2018. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

Appointment year: 2004

Doctoral institution: University of New Hampshire

Fields of research: Early and adolescent literacy, public education reform, special education, teacher education

Why I teach: I come from a long line of educators — my passion for teaching is literally in my blood! After years of teaching in K–12 venues, I now teach future educators at �ֲ��ý who aim to make the world a better place for all children and youth. I hope to cultivate in my students a love of learning and teaching in relationship with young people in the community and beyond.

I believe that the work I do encourages transformative reflection and engagement, rigorous ideological exploration tied to practical civic action, and a commitment to social justice within educational institutions.

Education is the linchpin of democracy; the courses I teach in literacy, special education, and teacher education aim to disrupt hegemonies and assumptions around systemic power structures and around concepts of ability and possibility. My hope is that students leave my courses with at least as many questions as answers.

�ֲ��ý College ranks fourth in the nation in Fulbright U.S. Student awards

�ֲ��ý News — Fri, 15 Feb 2019 15:22:12 +0000

�ֲ��ý is the fourth-ranked producer of Fulbright U.S. Student awards in 2018–19.

This year’s Fulbright Top Producer list was announced by the U.S. Department of State on Feb. 10 and published in .

�ֲ��ý College has earned Fulbright Top Producer honors for eight straight years, including a No. 1 ranking among all bachelor’s degree institutions in 2017-18.

With 13 awards this academic year, �ֲ��ý sits among the top five producers for the fourth straight year, including a No. 1 ranking in 2017–18. �ֲ��ý has earned Fulbright Top Producer honors for eight straight years.

“This outcome is a beautiful alignment of our mission and academic enterprise.”

Sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, the Fulbright is the U.S. government’s flagship international educational exchange program.

The highly competitive program, which makes its awards based on academic merit and leadership potential, sends Americans to dozens of countries to teach, study, or conduct research, promoting cultural exchange and international understanding, and finding solutions to shared concerns.

“�ֲ��ý has distinguished itself in many spheres, but our impressive and recurring placement among the top Fulbright Student producers is especially noteworthy,” says Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of Faculty Malcolm Hill.

“This outcome is a beautiful alignment of our mission and academic enterprise, and I congratulate our faculty who consistently cultivate intellectual discovery among our students. Having met many of the Fulbright finalists, I am impressed with their meaningful desire to live into our mission as they become leaders responsible for stewardship of the wider world.”

Thirteen young alumni are now engaged in multi-month Fulbright research and teaching experiences in 10 countries: Austria, Colombia, Germany, Laos, Malaysia, Poland, Rwanda, Spain, Taiwan, and Vietnam. Eleven of the �ֲ��ý Fulbrights are English teaching assistant awards and two are study/research awards.

Politics major and German minor Stephen Rowe ’18, one of 13 �ֲ��ý recipients of a Fulbright U.S. Student award for 2018—19, is studying Austria’s response to a changing European security architecture at the University of Innsbruck. (Theophil Syslo/�ֲ��ý College)

Director of Graduate Fellowships Robert Strong says the distinctive character of a �ֲ��ý liberal arts education gives aspiring Fulbright awardees “unique preparation to be teachers, scholars, and cultural ambassadors around the world — which, in turn, prepares them for the next step in their careers and lives of purposeful work.”

Strong points to several factors fueling the college’s Fulbright success:

Off-campus study that helps students develop independence and global awareness. Sixty percent of �ֲ��ý graduates study abroad for a semester or a year, the highest rate among peer institutions.

Community-engaged learning in Lewiston and other local communities, including significant teaching experiences through the college’s Department of Education, that is integrated into the curriculum and positions students to discuss their experiences with depth and nuance.

Senior thesis experiences that allow our graduates to develop “fairly advanced and focused research agendas and goals.”

Intercultural exchanges during study abroad and also with Lewiston-Auburn’s diverse community, which incorporates new residents from African nations.

One-on-one mentoring with faculty during the application process that positions Fulbright applicants for successful outcomes.

Grace Jurkovich ’18, a key figure in building a social enterprise at a Lewiston nonprofit, the Center for Wisdom’s Women, is using her Fulbright U.S. Student award to teach in La Rioja, Spain. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

By senior year, students pursuing Fulbrights and other graduate fellowships have become eager “to put into practice in the world, with a sense of agency and ownership, what they’ve learned at �ֲ��ý,” Strong says.

“They leave with the mindset of a practitioner.”

That attitude, Strong adds, reflects the goals of the college’s Purposeful Work program, which helps students identify and align their interests with personally meaningful work after �ֲ��ý.

“Our students have developed different abilities and interests, but they’re all thinking about how they can best integrate their work and outreach efforts into the communities they enter.”

Purposeful Work, Strong says, underscores the pragmatic education that �ֲ��ý students receive. “They leave with the mindset of a practitioner. They are all thinking, in very practical ways, about how to bring their expertise, enthusiasm, and talents to serve the world in productive careers.”

�ֲ��ý awarded $1.2 million grant to create an inclusive 21st-century curriculum in the humanities

�ֲ��ý News — Thu, 25 Oct 2018 15:27:59 +0000

The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation has awarded �ֲ��ý College a $1.2 million grant to support the faculty’s ongoing work to strengthen the college’s humanities and humanistic social sciences curriculum and teaching.

The five-year grant will fund strategies to create a 21st-century curriculum, support the faculty’s capacity to more effectively teach and mentor a diverse student population, and remove barriers to academic success particularly experienced by students from marginalized groups.

“This grant comes at a crucial moment for �ֲ��ý,” said President Clayton Spencer. “Moving forward, we must ensure that our teaching and curriculum excite the interest and creativity of all of our students, preparing them to function as leaders in a pluralistic society.”

“�ֲ��ý is committed to being a national leader in liberal arts education, and the Mellon grant is another example of the way our colleagues in the humanities and humanistic sciences are engaging in the national dialogue,” said Malcolm Hill, dean of the faculty and vice president for academic affairs.

The new Mellon Foundation grant “affords new opportunities to build inclusive curricula,” says Malcolm Hill, vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty, seen introducing professors at a Back to �ֲ��ý academics panel in October. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

“Our faculty already employ powerful pedagogies, conduct consequential scholarship, and enrich the world with inspired creations,” he added. “The Mellon grant affords us new opportunities to build inclusive curricula to ensure that all students have access to these important fields of study. I am excited to support these efforts in the coming years.”

A major thrust of the grant-funded work will be to evaluate and strengthen the curriculum in many of the college’s 22 departments and programs in the humanities and humanistic social sciences, the latter including social and behavioral disciplines, such as history and sociology, that often explore the human experience through methods akin to the humanities.

“Their hope is to go beyond a ‘checklist’ approach and instead address equity and inclusion in a comprehensive way.”

“The �ֲ��ý faculty have already been deeply engaged in discussions about how best to transform the curriculum to include a stronger focus on equity and inclusion. At each turn, their hope is to go beyond a ‘checklist’ approach and instead address equity and inclusion in a comprehensive way,” said Professor of Psychology Kathryn Graff Low, who served as interim dean of the faculty and vice president for academic affairs in 2017–18. “As such, �ֲ��ý is in a strong position to make the most of this new Mellon grant.”

Specifically, the new grant will fund a series of “Curriculum Transformation Grants” that will enable the faculty, from a holistic perspective, to assess their curricula, courses, syllabi, and major requirements while following best practices for inclusive course design and pedagogy.

The curricular-revision work will also leverage existing best practices in three distinctive areas of the �ֲ��ý curriculum — First-Year Seminars, the Short Term (Re)Design program, and community-engaged courses — to ensure that all points of student contact with the curriculum emphasize critical thinking about power and privilege and reflect an approach to teaching and learning that invites student engagement.

Jahmari Josiah ’20 of the Bronx, N.Y., leads a discussion for the course “Community Organizing for Social Justice,” taught by Associate Professor of Education Mara Tieken and focusing on the theory and practice of community organizing for social or political change. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

Beyond courses and curricula, the Mellon grant will also support the creation of learning communities and other programs to help the faculty lead discussions about self-awareness, power, and structural barriers to success in the classroom.

“Over the past few years, we have begun to develop a sustainable network of well-trained faculty who are ready to reach out to their colleagues with advice and guidance on how inclusion, equity, and diversity play out in course design, pedagogy, and the mission of the college itself,” said Melinda Plastas, a �ֲ��ý faculty member in gender and sexuality studies and a key designer of the Mellon grant proposal.

“The grant will allow us to expand our network and deepen the faculty’s shared understanding of the path to transform learning at �ֲ��ý.”

Faculty member Melinda Plastas, a key designer of the Mellon grant proposal, watches as award-winning choreographer and dancer Sean Dorsey works with her students in October 2014. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

In recent years, �ֲ��ý has received significant new gifts and grants to fund institution-wide work to redefine academic excellence in a way that encompasses greater equity and inclusion in the college’s academic programs.

In 2015, the college received a $1 million Mellon grant to advance faculty diversity and, in 2013, a $1 million Mellon grant to support innovative approaches to teaching and research in the humanities. �ֲ��ý is also a leading member of the Creating Connections Consortium, which received a $5.5 million Mellon grant in 2017 to help to prepare young scholars from underrepresented groups for careers in liberal arts colleges.

In the sciences, �ֲ��ý recently won a $1 million grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute to transform its STEM culture to better support all students in fields related to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. In September, �ֲ��ý announced a new professorship dedicated to bringing greater equity and inclusion to the STEM disciplines.

The gifts and grants are all part of the college’s ongoing fundraising initiative, The �ֲ��ý Campaign, a multi-year effort to secure the programs and values that have defined �ֲ��ý for a century and a half and to shape new strategies for a new age.

�ֲ��ý announces eight faculty promotions, including tenure, for 2018–19

�ֲ��ý News — Fri, 10 Aug 2018 12:00:42 +0000

�ֲ��ý has announced eight faculty promotions, including tenure awards and full professorships, effective Aug. 1 for the 2018–19 academic year.

The promotions were recommended by the faculty’s Committee on Personnel and approved by the �ֲ��ý College Board of Trustees.

Malcolm Hill is vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty at �ֲ��ý College.

“One of the joys of working at �ֲ��ý is to be surrounded by exceptionally talented and creative people. This year’s tenured and promoted faculty provide outstanding examples of the consequential scholarship and creative work going on at �ֲ��ý,” said Malcolm Hill, vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty.

“As leaders in their respective fields and through their continuing hard work, these faculty offer our students unparalleled opportunities in the classroom, and give us all an opportunity to engage with the important ideas of our time.”

Meet the eight newly promoted professors, learn their research fields, and discover why they teach.

Promotions to associate professor with tenure

+Associate Professor of Religious Studies Ali Humayun Akhtar

�ֲ��ý academic programs: Religious Studies; Asian Studies; Classical and Medieval Studies

Appointment year: 2012

Doctoral institution: New York University

Fields of research: World history, international affairs, intersections of law and society, comparative religion, gender studies, international development, Middle Eastern and North African studies, Asian studies

Why I teach: �ֲ��ý students are among the most creative and talented students I’ve taught in my career as a professor, and it’s been rewarding to empower them with the analytical, research, and leadership skills that have helped them excel after graduation.

The students and I both learn in the classroom, because I make sure they build the confidence necessary to think independently while working collaboratively. With the help of multimedia technology, field trips, and interdisciplinary assignments, I’ve ensured that my classroom offers students a global cultural experience where they can study the sights, sounds, and ideas that shape the modern world.

The combination of American and international students at �ֲ��ý, including scholar-athletes from all corners of the Earth, has enriched these conversations and has even propelled my own research on international development and global affairs.

Ali Humayun Akhtar has been promoted to associate professor of religious studies. (Michael Bradley/�ֲ��ý College)

+Associate Professor of Rhetoric, Film, and Screen Studies Jonathan Cavallero

�ֲ��ý academic program: Rhetoric, Film, and Screen Studies

Appointment year: 2013

Doctoral institution: Indiana University Bloomington

Fields of research: Race, ethnicity, and media (especially Italian Americans); film and television history; film festivals; Bollywood; U.S. cultural history; multiculturalism and pedagogy

Why I teach: Teaching is the most fulfilling profession I can imagine. On a daily basis, I get to witness some pretty amazing things: the excitement of coming up with new ideas and courses, the joy of sharing them with students, and the ways in-class discussions form new communities.

I love interacting with students, especially when the conversations we have challenge me to think differently about film, television, teaching, politics, or life. I learn so much from my students, and I love playing a small role in helping them to achieve their goals and realize their dreams.

Jonathan Cavallero has been promoted to associate professor of rhetoric, film, and screen studies. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

+Associate Professor of German Raluca Cernahoschi

�ֲ��ý academic programs: German; European Studies

Appointment year: 2009

Doctoral institution: University of British Columbia

Fields of research: German and East-Central European literature and film, literatures and cultures of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, poetry, film adaptation, literary geography

Why I teach: The principles that are the foundation of a liberal arts education guide me as a teacher every day: the application of rigor in the pursuit of our passions, the willingness to invest of ourselves that creates a community, the curiosity to expand our experiences beyond the tried and safe, the openness to different points of view and different approaches.

I aim to challenge students to reach a new level of understanding of the material, the world, and themselves. The first part of this aim connects directly to the introduction of new subject matter, be it linguistic, cultural, theoretical, or historical. The second part has as its goal student self-evaluation within historical or cultural contexts, as receivers and producers of knowledge, or in relation to other perspectives on a given subject.

Raluca Cernahoschi has been promoted to associate professor of German. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

+Associate Professor of German Jakub Kazecki

�ֲ��ý academic programs: German; European Studies

Appointment year: 2012

Doctoral institution: University of British Columbia

Fields of research: 20th-century German literature; literature about the First World War; images of German-Polish relationships in literature, film and visual arts; laughter and comedy

Why I teach: I want to help my students make connections between literature and their own experience. Even if the connections are not visible to my students at first reading, the discovery of such links in class discussions leads to the pleasure of the text. For me, the moments of reading together an older text, and helping them to realize its relevance, is a rush of adrenaline — it’s addictive.

This joy of discovery creates a fundament on which I can build the understanding of the work’s idiosyncrasies in a given historical context. I can then better develop the students’ awareness of the language: When they understand what the ideas are, they show a keen interest in how these ideas are expressed.

For this reason, teaching literature and culture of the German-speaking world is for me a vital step in challenging the conventional concept of “foreign” and an invitation to a further study of the language.

Jakub Kazecki has been promoted to associate professor of German. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

+Associate Professor of Mathematics Katharine Ott

�ֲ��ý academic programs: Mathematics

Appointment year: 2014

Doctoral institution: University of Virginia

Fields of research: Real analysis, harmonic analysis, partial differential equations

Why I teach: I love teaching mathematics in a liberal arts setting because I can engage with students to explore both theoretical and applied aspects of math.

Students at �ֲ��ý study math for a wide array of reasons, and getting to know individuals along with their varied interests makes every class unique.

My favorite moments happen when students move beyond the memorization of formulas and definitions to create ideas and to prove theorems. In classes ranging from calculus to electives and seminars, I enjoy incorporating mathematical software to aide with computations. It is rewarding to watch students gain confidence in programming and to explore technology alongside mathematical theory.

Katharine Ott has been promoted to associate professor of mathematics. (Sarah Crosby/�ֲ��ý College)

+Associate Professor of Biology Larissa Williams

�ֲ��ý academic programs: Biology

Appointment year: 2012

Doctoral institution: North Carolina State University

Fields of research: Biological importance of genetic variation, cellular and molecular responses to toxicants

Why I teach: I have been curious about the world all my life, and biology as an academic field lends itself to an unlimited number of questions to be asked and explored.

It is a privilege every day to cultivate curiosity in my students. I especially enjoy the variety of settings in which I am able to teach: the classroom, in my research lab, or in places as remote as the Galápagos Islands. Each setting brings with it new opportunities and challenges to explore the underpinnings of the natural world.

I also delight in the personal relationships that are forged between professors and students at small colleges. As an alumna of a small college that benefited from such connections, I feel as though I am able to pay it forward in my job. It is a wonderfully fulfilling feeling to make a difference in a student’s life.

Larissa Williams has been promoted to associate professor of biology. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

Promotions to full professor

+Professor of Politics Stephen Engel

�ֲ��ý academic programs: Politics; Gender and Sexuality Studies

Appointment year: 2011

Doctoral institution: Yale University

Fields of research: American political development; U.S. constitutional law; and social movements, particularly LGBTQ sociopolitical and legal mobilization

Why I teach: It has always been important that we, as a faculty, foster learning environments that are nurturing and challenging.

For me, the classroom has to be a place where ideas are challenged and where students must be empowered to rise to the occasion of testing new ideas and taking risks. I am always considering how we can best achieve this, particularly when we work with students who have not yet participated in that kind of educational setting.

The classroom is where I can test ideas, challenge students, and have students challenge me and one another about those ideas. It’s where together we can really think through, in the context of politics, how contemporary policy disputes, constitutional controversies, and unconventional ideas can be understood both in the moment and in the historical context.

Stephen Engel has been promoted to professor of politics. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

+Professor of Classical and Medieval Studies Lisa Maurizio

�ֲ��ý academic program: Classical and Medieval Studies

Appointment year: 1999

Doctoral institution: Princeton University

Fields of research: Greek and Roman mythology; Greek poetry and religious practices in archaic and classical Greece; Delphic divination.

Why I teach:

If you were religious folk,
how would your dramas justify
unmerited suffering?
By what myths would your priests account
for the hurricanes that come
twice every twenty-four hours,
each time I dress or undress…?

So wrote the poet and classicist W.H. Auden, who turned to the ancient Greeks to ask big questions, such as how we understand and justify unmerited suffering. I study the myths and religious practices of the Greeks not because they provide the best answers to these big questions, but because the Greeks in their poetry and on their temple walls offer answers that are beautiful and mysterious and harsh.

When my students and I engage with the Greeks over shared questions, time slips away. On these journeys to the past amid the chaos and sorrows of the present, we are teaching each other the language of our souls and fortifying ourselves for the future.

Lisa Maurizio has been promoted to professor of classical and medieval studies. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/�ֲ��ý College)

�ֲ��ý College names Malcolm Hill as vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty

�ֲ��ý News — Mon, 08 Jan 2018 15:29:14 +0000

�ֲ��ý President Clayton Spencer announced today that Malcolm S. Hill, Clarence E. Denoon Jr. Professor of Science, former associate dean of the School of Arts and Sciences, and former chair of the Department of Biology at the University of Richmond, will become vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty at �ֲ��ý effective July 1, 2018.

Malcolm Hill has been appointed vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty at �ֲ��ý College.

“I am thrilled to welcome Malcolm Hill to �ֲ��ý in this vitally important role,” Spencer said in announcing the appointment. “Malcolm is an outstanding teacher and scholar and a seasoned academic leader with a deep commitment to the liberal arts. At the University of Richmond, he was a driving force in fostering undergraduate research opportunities and in undertaking a variety of initiatives to build diverse and inclusive communities among students, faculty, and staff. I very much look forward to working with Malcolm as the next leader of the �ֲ��ý faculty.”

“As an educator, I am wholeheartedly committed to the liberal arts, and �ֲ��ý represents a distinctive and powerful example of this model, given its long history of broadening access to higher education for all,” said Hill.

“This type of education should integrate knowledge, emphasize the power of communication, model intellectual curiosity, focus on the whole person, and encourage us all to live in a world committed to the good of others. I look forward to getting to work as soon as possible and joining such a deep and talented faculty of scholar-educators.”

Hill’s appointment follows a national search overseen by a committee comprising faculty, staff, and the president. Hill will succeed Kathryn Graff Low, who has served as interim vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty since July 2017, following the appointment of Matthew Auer as dean of the School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Georgia.

“He impressed all of us with his intellectual curiosity, his interest in �ֲ��ý’ history and mission, and the genuineness of his approach to both people and ideas.”

“Speaking on behalf of the search committee, we are delighted that Malcolm will be joining the �ֲ��ý community,” said Jane Costlow, Clark A. Griffith Professor of Environmental Studies and chair of the selection committee. “There was tremendous interest in this position, and Malcolm emerged early as a compelling candidate. During his visit to campus, he impressed all of us with his intellectual curiosity, his interest in �ֲ��ý’ history and mission, and the genuineness of his approach to both people and ideas.”

As vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty, Hill will work with colleagues to set the intellectual direction of the college, foster a strong faculty culture, and lead the dynamic evolution of the �ֲ��ý academic experience. A member of �ֲ��ý’ senior staff, Hill will oversee the college’s academic departments and programs and guide the professional activities of approximately 280 individuals. He will also be responsible for the Academic Resource Commons, �ֲ��ý College Museum of Art, �ֲ��ý Dance Festival, the Harward Center for Community Partnerships, the Mathematics and Statistics Workshop, the Office of the Registrar and Academic Systems, the Office of Sponsored Programs and Research Compliance, and Writing at �ֲ��ý.

A faculty member in the Department of Biology at the University of Richmond since 2004, Hill has taught courses in integrative biology, ecology, evolution, tropical marine biology, biostatistics, and several field seminars. From 2012 to 2015, Hill served as associate dean of the School of Arts and Sciences and as chair of the Department of Biology from 2008 to 2011.

As a department chair, Hill oversaw the hiring of faculty and staff, improvements to governance to foster inclusivity, and a revision of curriculum in one of the largest majors at the university. During his tenure as associate dean, Hill led the development and implementation of strategic initiatives designed to enhance the academic experience in the arts and sciences, as well as efforts to improve facilities on the campus.

Hill has authored or co-authored numerous peer-reviewed articles in the field of ecology. At the University of Richmond, his projects have focused on the evolutionary ecology of sponges and other invertebrates in tropical marine systems. His research examines population characteristics, and community structure and functions, of coral reefs. His work explores the role climate change is playing in shaping those ecosystems, and focuses on an essential symbiosis that is being disrupted by warming oceans around the world. Working closely with a team of undergraduate researchers and faculty, Hill has received several grants from the National Science Foundation and other funding agencies.

Prior to the University of Richmond, Hill held teaching and research positions in biology at Fairfield University, Harvard University, and the University of Massachusetts Boston. Hill received a bachelor’s degree in biology and environmental science from Colby College and a doctorate in evolutionary ecology from the University of Houston.

Hill will come to �ֲ��ý with his wife, April, a molecular and cell biologist, and their daughter Ruby. His son, Sam, is a graduate student in computer science at Northwestern, and his daughter Katie is finishing a double major in biology and bioethics at the University of Virginia this year.

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�ֲ��ý College names Malcolm Hill as vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty