News

Meet our 21 new faculty members

Some of them have already been teaching here part time, many of them are new to the University. Read about the newest teachers who make Redlands a great place to learn.

 The new school year at University of Redlands will start with 21 new members of the faculty.

“We are pleased to welcome 21 new faculty colleagues to the University of Redlands this fall,” says Provost Kathy Ogren. “I am particularly excited for our students, who will surely benefit from the instruction, mentoring, and guidance provided by this capable and inspiring group of educators.”

The College of Arts and Sciences welcomes:

•Robert Cipri, Ph.D.—visiting assistant professor of physics. Ph.D., Florida State University, physics; M.S., B.S., Western Michigan University, physics and mathematics. Cipri comes to the University from the College of the Desert where he taught physics and astronomy courses.  Prior to that he was a research assistant and instructor at Florida State University.  His current research interests are astrophysics with an emphasis on experimental methods of extrasolar planetary observation and String Theory.

•Esther Domenech, M.A.—lecturer, Spanish. M.A., California State University, San Bernardino, Spanish literature and linguistics.  Domenech has taught undergraduates at three campuses during the past five years—among them was the University of Redlands where she taught Spanish linguistics and third-year Spanish.  

•Joanna Dyl, Ph.D.—visiting assistant professor of environmental studies. Ph.D., M.A., Princeton University, history; B.A., Stanford University, history.  Dyl’s dissertation was on “Urban Disaster: An Environmental History of San Francisco After the 1906 Earthquake.”  Prior to arriving at the University of Redlands, she was a visiting assistant professor in the Department of Earth and Environment at Franklin and Marshall College teaching various environmental history and environmental studies courses.

•Michael Ferracane, Ph.D.—assistant professor of chemistry. Ph.D., University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, organic chemistry; B.S., University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, chemistry and biochemistry and molecular biophysics.  Over the past several years, Michael has been Head Teaching Assistant, Organic Chemistry laboratory at the University of Virginia, Department of Chemistry. 

•Munro Galloway, M.F.A.—assistant professor of art. M.F.A., Milton Avery Graduate School of the Arts, Bard College, Annandale, NY, painting; B.A., Brown University, Providence, RI, art-semiotics.  Galloway joins the University from Yale University School of Art where he has taught a variety of courses in painting and drawing.  He has also provided instruction at the Paris College of Art, Paris, France.

•Ayano Ginoza, Ph.D.—visiting assistant professor of Japanese. Ph.D., Washington State University, emphasis in ethnic studies, Asian studies, indigenous studies, women’s and gender studies; M.A., University of Nevada, Reno, English; M.A., B.A., University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa Japan, English and American studies. Ginoza previous served as adjunct faculty at the University of Redlands teaching courses in the Asian Studies program.

•Jill Jensen, Ph.D.—visiting assistant professor of business. Ph.D., University of California, Santa Barbara, U.S. history/policy history; M.A., University of California, Riverside, European history; B.A., University of California, San Diego, political science and international relations.  The past two years, Jill has been an adjunct instructor in the department of business administration at the University of Redlands.  Prior to that, she taught a variety of courses at Penn State University.

•Donna Kirscht, M.B.A.—visiting assistant professor of accounting. M.B.A., University of St. Thomas, MN, manufacturing systems engineering; B.S., Mankato State University, MN, accounting and finance.  Krischt been an adjunct faculty member at the University of Redlands, department of accounting for the past few years.  At the same time was an adjunct instructor at College of the Desert, Palm Desert teaching computer literacy, Excel and business communications courses.

•Amy Moff Hudec, Ph.D.—visiting assistant professor of religious studies. Ph.D., Boston University, sociology; M.A., Boston College, sociology; B.A., University of Redlands, economics and sociology.  Hudec’s dissertation was “Courting Eternity:  LDS Dating, Courtship, and Celestial Marriage In and Out of Utah.”

•Maria Munoz, Ph.D.—associate professor of communicative disorders. Ph.D., M.A., University of Texas, Austin, communication sciences and disorders, B.A., University of California Santa Barbara, speech and hearing sciences.  Munoz has spent the past 10 years as an associate professor at Texas Christian University, Fort Worth, TX, as the coordinator, emphasis in bilingual speech-language pathology.  Prior to that she was an assistant professor at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville in the department of audiology and speech pathology.

•Nicholas Reksten, Ph.D.—assistant professor of economics. Ph.D., B.A., American University, Washington, D.C., international studies and economics.  For the past two years, Reksten has been a guest faculty member in economics at Sarah Lawrence College teaching several courses, including economics of the ecological crisis and political economy of energy and climate change.

•Jason Springsted, M.S.—visiting assistant professor of psychology. M.S., California Baptist University, counseling psychology; B.A., University of Redlands, psychology.  During his attendance at the University of Redlands, Springsted was a teaching assistant in the psychology department.  He became a licensed marriage and family therapist in 2013.

The School of Business welcomes: 

•Neena Gopalan, Ph.D.—assistant professor of organizational behavior. Ph.D., M.S., Kansas State University, industrial/organizational psychology; M.B.A., University of Madras, India, human resources; M.A. University of Hull, United Kingdom, developing area studies; B.A., University of Kerala, India, English language and literature.

•Mehrdad Koohikamali, Ph.D.—assistant professor of GIS. Ph.D., MSc., University of North Texas, emphasis in information systems and GIS; MSc., University of Tehran, Geomatics engineering with an emphasis in GIS; BSc, University of Tabriz, civil engineering with an emphasis in Geomatics.  Koohikamali has taught a variety of courses at the University of North Texas including Intro to GIS, Earth Science and Intro to Computers in Business. 

The School of Education welcomes: 

•Joseph Almasy, M.A.—visiting lecturer, Department of Teaching and Learning. M.A., Azusa Pacific University, educational administration; B.S., Eastern Michigan University, industrial technology.  Almasy joins the University from Orange Grove High School, Corona-Norco Unified School District where he has served as principal since 2003.  He has also been an adjunct professor with the University of Redlands, School of Education since 2014.

•Adriana Alvarado, Ph.D.—assistant professor, Graduate Department of Leadership and Counseling. Ph.D., M.A., M.Ed., University of California, Los Angeles, higher education and organizational change; B.A, University of California, Berkeley, social welfare. Alvarado’s research focused on improving the conditions and increasing the success of historically underrepresented students in college.

•Nirmla Flores, Ed.D.—visiting lecturer, Department of Teaching and Learning. Ed.D., University of Redlands, educational leadership for social justice; M.A., California State University, Dominguez Hills, education with a multicultural emphasis; B.S., Ateneo de Manila University, Philippines, psychology.  Currently, Flores is a cohort advisor for the School of Education, University of Redlands at the Temecula regional campus and the main campus.

•Nicol Howard, Ph.D.—assistant professor, Department of Teaching and Learning. Ph.D., Chapman University, emphasis in cultural and curricular studies, M.A., Azusa Pacific University, educational technology, B.A., University of California, Los Angeles, sociology.  Howard has most recently served as program specialist in Santa Ana Unified School District and adjunct faculty at Chapman University.

•Stephanie Quan, Ed.D.—visiting lecturer, Department of Teaching and Learning. Ed.D., Columbia University, New York, mathematics education; M.A., teaching, B.S., mathematics, University of San Francisco.  Quan wrote her dissertation on “The Impact of Stressful Situations on Mathematics Anxiety and Mathematics Performance.”

•Hideko Sera, PsyD.—visiting associate professor, Department of Leadership and Counseling. Sera is the first Japanese citizen to earn her PsyD in clinical psychology from an APA (American Psychological Association) accredited professional school.  She has taught graduate-level courses for the past 17 years in both domestic and international settings as a bilingual/bicultural educator.  

•Matthew Witenstein Ph.D.—visiting lecturer, Graduate Department of Leadership and Counseling. Ph.D., Claremont Graduate University, higher education research; M.A., Louisiana State University, educational research methodology; M.S., University of Memphis, leadership and policy studies of higher education; B.A., Towson University, English.  Witenstein joins the University from the University of San Diego where he was a clinical assistant professor, School of Leadership and Education Sciences.