Faculty

Byron Au Yong, MFA, Director, MFA in Arts Leadership and Interdisciplinary Arts-Arts Leadership, Associate Professor, Performing Arts and Arts Leadershi, and his performing arts project “Forest Aeternam” developed while in residence as an artist at the Bloedel Reserve on Bainbridge Island were featured in the University of Washington Magazine.

Serena Chopra, PhD, Assistant Professor, English/Creative Writing, published her essay, "A House of Haunted Women," a response to Judy Grahn's 1985 collection of essays, The Highest Apple: Sappho and the Lesbian Tradition in Sinister Wisdom Press' republication of Grahn's book, released in November 2023.

Leann Conley-Holcom, DMA, Assistant Professor, Director of Choral and Vocal Activities and Music Program Director, Performing Arts and Arts Leadership, will perform with the GRAMMY-award-winning, Tucson-based professional choral ensemble True Concord in January 2024 in a program featuring Jocelyn Hagen's Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci and Mozart's Mass in C Minor.

Daniel Avi Gilbert Coren, PhD, Assistant Professor, Philosophy, presented his paper entitled "Free Will Meets Computer Science" at the 2023 Northwest Philosophy Conference held at Lewis & Clark College.

Serena Cosgrove, PhD, Associate Professor, International Studies, presented the paper, “Heal Her, Heal the Country: Women’s Leadership to End Gender-Based Violence in Guatemala and Democratic Republic of Congo,” in the panel, “Addressing Violence in Africa and Latin America” on November 15, 2023 at the Latin American Studies Association/Africa 2023 Congress in Accra, Ghana.

Rob Efird, PhD, Professor, Anthropology and Asian Studies, co-edited "Indigenous Perspectives and Environmental Education: Connecting Youth with Plants, Places and Cultural Traditions" last year as a part of a special edition of Clearing: Journal of Environmental Education for the Cascadian Bioregion. The edition is now featured prominently on the site of “Since Time Immemorial: Tribal Sovereignty in Washington State,” curriculum endorsed by all 29 federally recognized tribes.

Christie Eppler, PhD, LMFT, Program Director and Professor, Couples and Family Therapy, presented “Embodying Systemic Resilience” for Seattle University’s Institute for Catholic Thought and Culture on November 27.

Victor D. Evans, PhD, Assistant Professor, Communication and Media, published Live Cargo: A Space Opera Adventure, the second in his co-written “Luminous Void” series.

Leticia Guardiola-Sáenz, PhD, Associate Professor, Theology and Religious Studies, discussed her latest publication at the annual meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature, held in San Antonio, TX, on November 18, 2023. The volume “Latinx Perspectives on the New Testament” (2022), co-edited by Leticia Guardiola-Sáenz and Osvaldo Vena (Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary), was reviewed and discussed by a diverse group of biblical scholars: Tat-siong Benny Liew (College of the Holy Cross); Rodolfo Felices Luna (Oblate School of Theology); Emerson Powery (Messiah University), and Barbara Reid (Catholic Theological Union). The volume was enthusiastically received by the audience during the group conversation.

David A. Green, PhD, Clinical Professor, International Studies, and Director of the Center for Faculty Development, co-presented a session titled “Revisioning our Ethical Guidelines to navigate our changing landscape” at the national conference of the POD Network of educational developers in Pittsburgh, PA. He and his co-presenter, Deandra Little, PhD, of Elon University, will be co-chairing a year-long process to update the network’s nationwide ethical standards for educational developers.

Gabriella Gutiérrez y Muhs, PhD, Professor, Modern Languages and Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies was one of the featured poets at an event held on Beacon Hill to celebrate Días de Muertos, at the Centela  Auditorium, organized by La Sala and El Centro de La Raza.  She read with poets Claudia Castro Luna, Lorna Dee Cervantes, Ricardo Ruiz, Jourdan Imani Keith, Troy Osaki and Mateo Acuna. She presented in Mexico City for the Chicanxs sin Fronteras Organization. She delivered poetry readings and presentations in campuses across Mexico City and  Naucalpán  de Juárez.  She presented at UNAM with Luis Rodríguez, Matt Sedillo, Sonia Gutiérrez, David Romero and others.  She also presented on a panel  at the University in Acatlán and for community groups in Tepito. She was also a featured poet at La Esmeralda, Mexico's National School of Painting and Graphic Arts in Mexico City.  (Escuela Nacional de Pintura, Escultura y Artes Gráficas). On November 17, she was a featured poet and read and performed poetry at Oddfellows for Noveltease Theatre Company in Capitol Hill. On November 26, she interviewed and was interviewed by Rati Saxena, the World Poetry Organizer in India, with whom she has collaborated with for years.  This was organized by El Martillo Press and the Mexican Consulate in Los Angeles, and poet Matt Sedillo, organizer of World Poetry in the United States. She was featured in this interview with Sociology Group.

Brittany Heintz Walters, PhD, Assistant Professor, Kinesiology, was selected for the MS Run the US Ultra Relay Team and is raising funds for multiple sclerosis (MS). She will be running Segment 15—a total of 161 miles across Wisconsin, or a marathon a day for 6 consecutive days in July. Segment 15 is 1 of 21 segments that make up a 3,260-mile relay across the US to raise awareness of and funds to stop MS. The deadline for supporting her run is December 31.

Jacqueline Helfgott, PhD, Professor, Criminal Justice and Director, Crime and Justice Research Center, participated in several media opportunities:

• “Make your safety concerns heard in the Seattle Public Safety Survey,” Op-Ed, Seattle Times
• “Seattle survey seeks your input on crime, police response times and community concerns,” KOMO News
• “Are Denver Police trustworthy? Do they keep you safe? The department wants to know what you think about its performance,” Denverite
• "Denver police want public safety feedback from people living in all 78 neighborhoods," CBS Colorado
• “Denver Police asking for feedback on public safety,” Fox 31, Denver
• “Denver police seek public's feedback on public safety issues,” Denver Gazette
• “Make your voice heard on Denver’s public safety survey,” Guest Column, Denver Gazette

She also completed the Philadelphia and Seattle Marathons this fall.

Sonora Jha, PhD, Associate Dean for Academic Community and Professor, Department of Communication and Media, continues to be recognized for her novel, The Laughter. The book is featured in The New Yorker's “Best Books of 2023," Shelf Awareness' “10 Best Fiction Books for 2023,” and NPR's list of “Books We Love From 2023.”

Rick Malleus, PhD, Associate Professor, Communication and Media, presented his paper "Coming Home: Student Perceptions on Race and the Education Abroad Process" at the National Communication Association annual conference in National Harbor, MD this November. The paper analyzes qualitative data from 90 SU students who studied abroad, and generated five themes about how students perceived their race played a role in their intercultural sojourn.

Kira Mauseth, PhD, Teaching Professor, Psychology, participated in a presentation at the 2023 Annual Conference on Advancing School Mental Health on a panel addressing school violence and mental health. She was also interviewed by the Salish Current for “Behind the uniform: first responder mental health challenges.”

James Miles, MFA, Assistant Professor, Performing Arts and Arts Leadership, illustrates how hip-hop education helps teachers engage and connect with all learners in his new book, Gotta Stay Fresh: Why We Need Hip-Hop in Schools, available now.

Quinton Morris, DMA, Professor, Violin, was featured on "Eric's Heroes" on KOMO News 4 for his work with underserved youth in South King County through his nonprofit organization Key to Change. The 8-minute segment describes Dr. Morris's artistic and scholarly pursuits, his vision for classical music, and the importance of supporting people from marginalized communities. 

Erik Olsen, PhD, Professor Emeritus, Political Science, with co-writers L.C. Bernadine and Nik Whitcomb, in partnership with The Stillwell Institute for Contemporary Black Art, has been awarded a residency by the City of Chicago’s Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events for the development of their new musical, Is You Is, as part of its Studio Theater Residency Pilot. It features “a jazz-meets-musical theatre score” composed by Dr. Olsen. There will be a staged reading of the musical on December 18 at the Chicago Cultural Center. More information is here.

Nova Robinson, PhD, Associate Professor, International Studies and History and Director, Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies, spoke with KING 5 News for “A deeper look into the history of the Israel-Hamas conflict.”

Patrick Schoettmer, PhD, Associate Teaching Professor, Political Science, spoke to The Urbanist for “Low Turnout among Young Voters May Have Swung D4 Council Race to Rivera,” (also includes Diego Batres, Political Science and English/Creative Writing, '23.) He spoke to Sky News Australia in this interview, “‘Biggest threat to Trump is himself’: Presidential candidates prepare for 2024 election.”

Eric Severson, PhD, Associate Teaching Professor, Philosophy, is a “senior instructor” for the Cura Psychologia project, a interdisciplinary convening of faculty from six Jesuit universities. At Georgetown University, in November, Severson presented a paper entitled: “Responsibility as Reparation and Liberation: Frederick Douglass on the Fourth of July.”

Tom Taylor, PhD, Associate Professor, History, and affiliated with International Studies, recently visited Nepal. Check out the story in the Department of History here.

Charles M. Tung, PhD, Professor, English, was invited to present a paper, “Cultural Epidemiology in Deep Time,” at the The Anthropocene and the Humanities symposium hosted by the Laboratory of Big History at the Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on November 27, 2023.

Alumni

Ha’aheo Auwae-Dekker, Film and Media '22, was interviewed for ““We Can Nourish Each Other”: A Conversation with the Fall Flaherty NYC 2023 Programmers” by the International Documentary Association.

Corrine O’Connell, MNPL ‘06, CEO, Habitat for Humanity, Philadelphia, was featured in “CEOs You Should Know.”

Elizabeth Scallon, BA, Humanities, Matteo Ricci Institute and Biochemistry, ‘04, was feature in Puget Sound Business Journal in “WeWork Lab’s Elizabeth Scallon Is a Former Scientist Now Focused on Incubating Startups.”

Eric Sype, BA, Humanities for Teaching, Matteo Ricci Institute, ’15, talk about the personal connection and commitment he made to a friend whom he met while an SU student in “As Texas tries to end federal “parole” program for some immigrants, a Nicaraguan waits to see if he can stay.”

Students

The Debate Team has had a very successful and enjoyable fall season. They are getting ready to host 32+ mostly international teams at a first tournament and 64+ mostly American teams at a second tournament for college debaters. They hosted 3 tournaments with elementary, middle school and high school speakers and debaters several weeks ago, with more than 600 people participating. Pepper Berry and Trinity Doyle won first place in debate at the Linfield Northwest Forensic Conference tournament. They were also finished as top 5 speakers in the tournament. Danny Herre and Dylan Berman, completely new to debate this fall, advanced to the quarterfinals in the very large and competitive YODL 2 tournament. We have forged a partnership with the University of Washington that has led to 2 intersquad scrimmages. Danny and Dylan advanced to First Year Finals at the Lewis and Clark tournament. That's all on top of the growth in the team.