Regina Barber DeGraaff teaches physics and astronomy at Western Washington University (WWU). Regina completed her PhD in Physics in 2011 from Washington State University with a focus in Astrophysics, studying globular cluster systems. She is also the first STEM Inclusion and Outreach Specialist at WWU with a mission to cultivate and maintain partnerships with faculty and inclusion programs locally & nationally that are devoted to the recruitment, retention and support of underrepresented students in STEM. Regina is also the host of the radio show & podcast Spark Science, a talk show which strives to make science accessible to all.
Ann Beck is the Assistant Director for Veteran Services. Her office helps support veterans and their dependents as they pursue their education. Beck obtained her master’s degree and clinical license in social work. She previously worked at the Opportunity Council with veterans experiencing homelessness for five years as well as a brief period of time for Whatcom Counseling and Psychiatric Clinic in Whatcom County Jail. She has resided in San Francisco, New Orleans, and now calls Bellingham her home.
Anna Blick is the Assistant Director of disAbility Resources for Students. She is privileged to partner with hundreds of Western students with disabilities each year. Outside of the office, Anna enjoys choral singing, distance running, and keeping up with her four-year-old daughter. She is currently pursuing a doctorate in educational leadership and counseling with a focus on developmental education. She is dedicated to broadening access and improving completion outcomes for all students.
Hope Corbin is an Assistant Professor at Woodring College of Education. Corbin obtained her bachelor’s degree at State University of New York at Plattsburgh; MPhil in health promotion at University of Bergen in Norway; PhD in health promotion and development at University of Bergen in Norway. Her scholarly and professional interests include: evaluation of collaborative arrangements among people and organizations locally and internationally; health promotion; inequity and health; social determinants of health; tobacco cessation’ intimate partner violence; HIV and AIDS; global health.
Tim Costello is the Director of the Center for Service-Learning at Western Washington and has been in his position for 9 years. Working at Western is an extension of his passion for promoting a just and diverse society. Prior to working at Western Tim worked in the nonprofit sector in areas related to HIV/AIDS, Hospice and child welfare. In 1987 while living in New York City he went to the first meeting of ACTUP, the acclaimed and controversial first HIV/AIDS activist organization in the world. He was an active member for 3 years and continued his HIV/AIDS work after moving to Bellingham, WA in 1992. In memory of all women, men, and children who died or live with HIV/AIDS, Tim founded Slum Doctor Programme, an international NGO that brought HIV treatment and education to impoverished areas of Kenya and Uganda. The Center for Service-Learning’s Rwanda and Kenya study abroad programs spring from his dedication to the transformative power of cross cultural relationships through shared living, love, and labor. Tim has been a recipient of the Whatcom Human Rights Award (2007), the Whatcom Family and Community Network Community Building Award (2013) and selected as one of the “10 People Who Care” by the Bellingham Herald Editorial Board (2007).
Eileen Coughlin is the Senior Vice President, and has been for 20 years, for VP for Enrollment and Student Services. Coughlin received her doctorate in educational psychology with research in the area of creativity and divergent thinking and holds a license in psychology in the state of Arizona. At Westen Washington University, she carries administrative and fiscal responsibility for Enrollment and Student Services, which compromises Academic and Career Development Services, Admissions and Enrollment Planning, the AS Bookstore, Athletics, Campus Recreation, Counseling, Dean of Students, disAbility Resources, Financial Aid, Student Health Center, Prevention & Wellness Services, New Student Services and Family Outreach, Registrar’s Office, Student Activities, University Residences and Dining Services, Viking Union Facilities, and Student Outreach Services. Her main role includes working with the other vice presidents as assistance is sought, and on strategic initiatives identified by the senior leadership team and involving multiple divisions.
Lina Dahlberg is an Assistant Professor of Biology. She got her PhD at the University of Washington, and worked as a TEACRS (Training in Education and Critical Research Skills) post-doctoral fellow at Tufts University before joining the faculty at Western. Lina’s laboratory researches how neurons maintain normal signaling under normal and stressful conditions. Her educational research is centered on improving student meta-cognition by infusing undergraduate courses with authentic research experiences. She is exploring ways to make STEM classrooms and departments more welcoming through student-centered learning practices, and by bringing more STEM faculty and students into conversations surrounding diversity, equity and inclusion.
Heather Davidson brings a background in adult education, nonprofit development, grassroots community advocacy and fundraising to her courses in Communication Studies. In her first year at Western, she facilitated over 2,100 hours of service-learning, connecting student teams to over 50 community and campus partners. Most notably, students in her Communication in Fundraising course developed an accessible philanthropy campaign to raise scholarship funds for Western students. Working with dozens of businesses, campus representatives, and community members the students brought over $9,000 in support. She also serves as a Community Engagement Faculty Fellow with the Center for Service-Learning. This year she was recognized by the Center for Instructional Innovation and Assessment’s Innovative Teaching Showcase for her use of empathy to infuse diverse perspectives in her curriculum. Her innovative thinking, interdisciplinary approach, and pursuit of meaningful learning experiences for her students have created and reinforced a number of fruitful, meaningful relationships for Western, for Whatcom County, and, most importantly, her students.
Joanne DeMark has been the Leadership Development Specialist for the last 8 years and is proud of bringing facilitation and team development to the following student and staff programs and initiatives: LeaderCorps peer leadership educators, Western’s leadership scholars, Dean of Students Cultural Competency committee, student leadership training and partnerships in ESS, change team to establish WWU as a changemaker university, WWU LGBT Advocacy Council, ESS DART, and the WLA LEADS program office. She takes delight in her annual staff/student staff training and development, as well as program assessment and student leadership research. DeMark earned her Ph.D. in counseling psychology from University of Florida. She came to Western Washington University after successful tenures as a co-founder and co-administrator of a 16-year leadership development and prejudice reduction non-profit, a decade as a human resource development executive in a healthcare software and services firm, and 15 years as an assistant management professor, adjunct, in the Health Policy and Management Master’s program at Emory University’s Rollins School of Public Health- Woodruff Health Sciences Center. She has consulted to dozens of organizations across the U.S. focusing on leadership, team and organizational development, communication skills, conflict resolution, and cross-culturally competent leadership. As a non-profit co-administer, she helped her organization obtain funding from the Kellogg Foundation, the Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta, the Arthur Blank Foundation, and the United Way among others. During her work in healthcare software and services, she managed a direct budget of 6 million dollars and a department of 23 employees. Additionally, she helped implement a performance management system and a leadership curriculum in a post-merger environment that resulted in smoothing the transition of three company cultures into one; she received awards for her work.
Dawn Dietrich received her Ph.D. from the University of Michigan. She teaches in the English department and specializes in media and culture, offering courses in cinema, media studies, and literature and technology. Her work is centered on contemporary literacies that have emerged from social and mobile networks and which have led to new ways of engaging in creative content production within the digital humanities. Dawn also serves as the Director of Western Reads, a common reading program for new students, and she currently sits on the Board of Directors for the Pickford Film Center.
Marie Eaton received her education in literature and curriculum design at Pomona College and the University of Washington. After a long stint as Dean of Fairhaven College, she returned as faculty in 2000 to teach. Eaton wandered into academic administration by accident, but found working with Fairhaven students, staff, and faculty to be both intellectually stimulating and generative. Her research interest areas include reflective practice, memoirs, child studies, death and dying, alternative and liberatory education, queer studies, songwriting, food: what we eat and why and who pays the price, folk music as a cultural and political tool, and applied research methodologies. In addition to her teaching, she is currently Director of the Palliative Care Initiative and is active in the Curriculum for the Bioregion Project. She has lived in Australia, California, Kentucky, and Africa, but returned after having realized she belongs to the Pacific Northwest where she was raised. In addition to her teaching and research work, she is a songwriter and performs regularly with two different bands. She loves spending time with her five grandchildren, her two children, and her partner.
Marco Hatch is an Assistant Professor of Environmental Science at Huxley College of the Environment, Western Washington University. Marco is marine ecologist who received his Ph.D. in Biological Oceanography from Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego and a member of the Samish Indian Nation. Prior to WWU he directed the Salish Sea Research at Northwest Indian College. The Salish Sea Research Center is charged with preparing the next generational of Native environmental scientists and leaders through fostering respect for Indigenous knowledge and providing students with a solid background in scientific methods. His research focuses on the nexus of people and marine ecology, with a particular focus on clams. At WWU he will continue this line of research and partners with Northwest Indian College through a joint project to provide M.S. opportunities for Native students.
Vicki Hsueh is an Associate Professor at the Political Science Department. Hsueh earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and political science at Williams College and a master’s/Ph.D. in political science at Johns Hopkins University. Currently she is director of the Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program at Western, serves as a representative on the Faculty Senate, and is a member of the department’s PSA Conference and Sandison Lecture committee. She has been active in community service as a firefighter/EMT for the South Whatcom Fire Authority and an advocate for Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Services. Her research interests include Anglo-American Political Thought, Ancient and Modern Constitutionalism, History and Historiography of Political Thought, Politics of Representation, Protest Movements and Civic Action, Identity Politics and Theory, Indigenous Politics and Post-Colonial Theory. She has been the recipient of several fellowships including the Barbara S. Mosbacher Fellowship (John Carter Brown Library), the Kate B. and Hall J. Peterson Fellowship (American Antiquarian Society), and the Mayer Fellowship (Huntington Library).
Dr Rand Jimerson is professor of History and director of the Graduate Program in Archives and Records Management at Western. He is a Fellow and past president of the Society of American Archivists. Rand has published dozens of articles and three books: The Private Civil War: Popular Thought During the Sectional Conflict (1988); Archives Power: Memory, Accountability, and Social Justice (SAA, 2009); and Shattered Glass in Birmingham: My Family’s Fight for Civil Rights, 1961-1964 (2014). Currently he is writing a biography of Rev. Robert E. Hughes, a white civil rights leader in Alabama and a human rights advocate in colonial Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) and Zambia.
Vernon (Damani) Johnson has been a faculty member in the Department of Political Science since 1986 and has authored two books. His research interests include: the politics of development, African politics, and race and public policy. In conjunction with Dr. John Korsmo in Human Services and Rehabilitation, Dr. Johnson leads a summer service-learning class in South Africa that involves Western students in the work of local NGOs. He currently serves as the Program Director for the Munro Institute for Civic Education and is editor in chief of the “African Journal of Governance and Development.” In addition to his contributions to African and other communities through his academic pursuits, Professor Johnson was on the advisory committee to Reverend Jesse Jackson’s Presidential Campaign in the state of Washington in 1988 and served on the Steering Committee of the Washington State Rainbow Coalition from 1988-92. When the militia movement swept into the region in the 1990s, he helped found the Whatcom Human Rights Task Force, and chaired its board from 1997-2000. He also was President of the board of the Northwest Coalition for Human Dignity, a regional human rights organization, from 2000 to 2003. He also serves on the board of the Slum Doctor Program and was the recipient of the 1997 Diversity Achievement Award at Western Washington University. Over the last year, as Black Lives Matters Movement has emerged, Professor Johnson has been an invited speaker and participant at Western’s satellite campus in Poulsbo, the Bellingham City Club, and the Tacoma City Club on issues of race and law enforcement. His opinion pieces in the Bellingham Herald, such as the recent “Whatcom View: Race, racism are realities with very real consequences,” showcase his commitment to mobilizing our community to make it a place where “people of all races” can be “comfortable in our own skins.”
Jason Kanov is an Associate Professor for College of Business and Economics, teaching courses on organizational behavior and management topics including motivation, teamwork, negotiation and conflict management, power and influence, and diversity. Kanov obtained his Ph.D. in organizational psychology from University of Michigan. His research focuses on relationships and interpersonal processes in organizational settings such as the nature and impact of suffering and compassion in the workplace. He also researches “interpersonal work”—the effortful and important but often invisible work people in an organization must do to handle their relationships and interactions with other organizational members. He has published his research in a number of different academic journals, edited books, and practitioner handbooks. In addition, he is a certified mediator.
Robin Kodner is an Assistant Professor in the Biology Department at Western Washington University. She earned her BS from the University of Wisconsin – Madison and her PhD in Biology from Harvard University. Her current research uses environmental genomic techniques to understand microbial community diversity, and how these communities respond to changing environments. In addition to her training as a scientist, she has worked as an outdoor educator, specifically for urban based programs that fostered development of self reflection, leadership, and teamwork in a social justice context. She works to bring these same ideals to her science classrooms, and was recognized by the Center for Instructional Innovation and Assessment’s Innovative Teaching Showcase in 2013 for using service learning with experiential learning in her Statistics course. She is excited to continue to work on creating an inclusive culture in STEM classrooms and departments, and across campus.
Langley is the Manager of Equal Opportunity Programs in the Equal Opportunity Office, working with faculty, staff, and students toward ensuring a campus environment that is diverse, inclusive, and free of discrimination and harassment. Langley serves on the University President’s Taskforce on Equity, Inclusion and Diversity, sits on the board of directors of Northwest Youth Services, and is a member of the Board of Ambassadors of Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders. After graduating from law school, Langley clerked in the Massachusetts Appeals Court and then practiced law in Boston, Massachusetts. Langley has extensive experience advising and collaborating to implement transgender-inclusive policies and practices. A former member of the Massachusetts LGBTQ Bar Association’s board of directors, Langley was founding chair of the Association’s Committee on Transgender Inclusion and a member of the Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition’s Legislative Committee. Langley is a past recipient of the National LGBT Bar Association’s Best LGBT Lawyers Under 40 Award and the Massachusetts LGBTQ Bar Association’s Kevin Larkin Memorial Award for Public Service.
Rebecca Marrall is the Discovery Services librarian at Western Washington University Libraries. In addition to participating in the credit instruction program and research consultation, she is the head of the Resource Discovery Unit and chairs the OneSearch Management Team (the latter being the Libraries catalog management working group). After graduating with her MLISc from the University of Hawai’i at Manoa in 2010, Rebecca accepted the Diversity Resident Librarian position at Western Libraries. Upon being hired and throughout the next several years, Rebecca created and led several events and discussions within the Libraries about diversity-related matters. Research interests include diversity and inclusion practices in LIS settings; credit instruction in library spaces; and online user experiences/usability. She is also thrilled to have been a 2015 American Library Association Emerging Leader.
Trula Nicholas is an Associate Professor for Woodring College of Education. Nicholas earned her bachelor’s and master’s degree at Western Washington University as well as a doctoral degree in adult education at Nova Southeastern University. She is interested in university-community partnerships that promote the well-being of individuals, families, communities; authentic university-community partnerships with the nonprofit, government, education, and business sectors. Her specific interests include community development/organizing, community leadership, social justice in the community setting, and the health of the nonprofit sector.
Allison Page is the Office Assistant for the Campus Equity and Inclusion Forum. She recently graduated from Western Washington University with a Bachelor of Arts Degree with concentration of Psychology and Communication Studies. Allison has passion and talent for applying the art and science of psychology to people in the workplace. Her experience with studying abroad through Western’s Institute of Village Studies brought her awareness to cultural diversity. Working as a behavioral therapist with Endless Potential, LLC agency for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder, she recognizes the importance of equal opportunities for all members of our community. Allison’s previous work and educational experiences have aided to her ability to bridge emotional and social competency with organizational skill. Revealing her innate sense of purpose for creating an aesthetically pleasing environment to promote health, safety, and the well being of all people in our community.
Tara Perry is an Associate Professor at Department of Communication Studies. Perry obtained her bachelor’s degree from Western Washington University, master’s degree in communication, and Ph.D. in cultural & disability studies from Washington State University. Teaching, service, community are driving principles in all that she does as she is involved in social justice community projects. In addition to teaching, she is a filmmaker who was recently awarded for her international documentary film about community.
Katie Plewa works in Prevention and Wellness Services as the Violence Prevention Specialist. She provides direct services through CASAS (Consultation and Sexual Assault Support) by assisting students who have experienced sexual and/or dating violence. Katie also provides educational workshops to students, staff, and faculty on topics related to violence prevention and response. Further, she supervises a group of passionate, dedicated Peer Health Educators in WEAVE (Western’s Empowerment and Violence Education).
Nick Sanchez is the Employment Inclusion Manager at Western Washington University. After spending three years in the Equal Opportunity Office, Nick came to the Human Resources Department to launch a new program aimed at recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce at Western. Through a mentoring program, educating employees and supervisors on diversity and equity topics and leading outreach and recruitment efforts, it has been his sole mission to enhance diversity in his time working at Western. In addition he serves as the Co-Chair of the President’s Taskforce on Equity, Inclusion and Diversity. Nick is a Marine Corps Veteran, has a B.A. in Journalism from Humboldt State University and a Juris Doctor from Santa Clara University.
Shurla Thibou has worked as an English Instructor at Harvard Academy, Lynnwood W.A. For the past 13 years, she has and continues to serve as a Senior Instructor of Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies and a Faculty Adviser at Western Washington University (WWU). In addition, Shurla teaches Freshman Interest Group courses, and a Diversity/Social Justice Dynamics course in Human Services at WWU. Her teaching interests expand beyond the following: capitalism and colonization with a focus on the Caribbean basin; acculturation and assimilation into dominant cultures; women and the prison industrial complex; the global sex trade with a focus on sex tourism. Shurla’s favorite pastime activity is short jogs incorporated with long walks, while dreaming about crystal clear blue sea and pearly white sand. She likes various genres of music, but has a preference for reggaeton and jazz.
Christina Van Wingerden is the Assessment, Training and Special Projects Manager for the Dean of Students Unit and Adjunct Instructor for the Human Services program. Van Wingerden received her master’s in education from Western and has had a fruitful, long standing career in Enrollment and Student Services. She is responsible for the planning and organization of an ongoing diversity/cultural competence staff development program for the Dean of Students professional, classified and exempt employees. In addition, she conducts assessment of program effectiveness within the Dean of Students Unit and utilizes collaboration to develop trainings for staff and students. Her research interests include: assessment, experiential learning/instruction, use of technology in learner/participant engagement, curriculum instruction and design, ethics and social justice. Her research has recently been published and she continues to be an active volunteer in the Whatcom County community.
Ian Vincent is the Men’s Resiliency Specialist for the Counseling Center, providing general educational advisement and psycho-educational counseling to male-identified students. Ian oversees and manages the day to day operations of the Men’s Resiliency Committee that aids in the enhanced student experience of male-identified students. Although Ian’s work creates a brave space to support healthy masculinities, his efforts aren’t just for men. As a Western Washington University alumnus, he hopes to create a healthy campus environment for all by challenging rigid gender binaries. In addition, Ian is involved with the Suicide Prevention efforts on campus by coordinating campus events, workshops, and outreach programs.
Molly Ware is a member of the Secondary Education Department. This year she is excited to serve as the Faculty Senate President and hopeful that by strengthening the capacity to collaborate across difference, we can creatively respond to some of the greatest challenges we face as a society. In her work and life, she loves exploring how we can become more fully conscious and empowered through sensing the intuitive wisdom of the body, especially the heart, and to trust ourselves more fully in a world where the analytical mind often dominates, leaving us dissatisfied and incessantly seeking something to fill the void. She loves dancing, rock climbing, yoga, being present in nature, and loving relationships and using these to inspire her work within the institution of higher education.
Joy Wiggins teaches multicultural children’s literature, qualitative research design, literacy, English language learning courses focusing on second language acquisition, sociocultural theory and assessment practices in the Elementary Education department. Wiggins received her doctorate from Ohio State University focusing on how preservice teachers’ cultural identity shapes one’s response to a sociopolitical children’s text about the 1992 Los Angeles Uprisings. She represents her data using qualitative poetic transcription and representation through a qualitative, narrative, and feminist lens. Her current work focuses mainly on actively evaluating the way we are socially and politically constructed and how that plays into our daily intercultural communicative experiences. Her goal is to facilitate transformative learning opportunities infused with love, compassion and perspective taking.