Freshmen are not the only mass of first-timers at Lawrence this year. Both the college and the conservatory have hired new professors, instructors, and lecturers.The science departments have added five assistant professors. Andrew Kunz and Paul Bunson bring to the physics department a shared interest in theoretical condensed matter physics. In the chemistry department, the two newcomers are David Hall and David Thompson. Hall’s research interest is in the biological mechanics of asthma. Thompson hopes to continue research into anti-malarial agents using laser spectroscopy. Rounding out the sciences, Jodi Sedlock brings an ecological slant to the teaching of biology.
Kurt Krebsbach, new to the computer science department, has an interest in many cutting-edge technological applications, including artificial intelligence, automated planning, multi-agent systems, functional programming, music, and zymurgy.
George E. Meyer, 2002-2003 Scarff Professor, will join the environmental science department. Meyer has had a 30-year career with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, including eight as the department’s secretary.
Fourteen teachers have been hired in the humanities. Brent Peterson will be an associate professor of German, bringing an interest in, among other things, construction of national and ethnic identities. Alexis Boylan and Joseph D’Uva will be assistant professors of art history and art, respectively. Boylan’s interests range from art history to pop culture, and D’Uva specializes in non-toxic art processes.
Steven J. Wulf will be an assistant professor of government, focusing on philosophical applications. Ayako Yamagata will be an assistant professor of East Asian Languages and Cultures, teaching Lawrence’s new Japanese classes.
Timothy Reed joins the humanities staff in Spanish and Freshman Studies; Cecile Despres-Berry will teach the new English as a second language program; Christian Grose joins the government department, specializing in American politics; Mark Hall will teach French with an eye to French literature; Marla Rosa Tapia Fernandez will bring her cultural perspective to Spanish, and Wendy Walter-Bailey will join the education department.
Also, Jane Shippen (with an interest in Latin American literature) and W. Flagg Miller (culture) will be lecturers in English and linguistics/anthropology, respectively. Ileana Maria Rodriguez-Silva will hold the minority pre-doctoral fellow in history.
In the conservatory, the following will hold assistant professorships: Antoinette Powell, music librarian; Kevin Clifton, music theory, and John Daniel, trumpet.
Dmitri Novgorodsky and Phillip Swan will be visiting assistant professors of piano and choral conducting, respectively.
Fred Sturm is returning after 11 years’ absence as professor of jazz studies. Jose Luis Encarnacion holds the minority pre-doctoral fellow in music and specializes in jazz and improvisation. Both Strum and Encarnacion came to Lawrence from the Eastman School of Music.
David Thurmaier, who brings an interest in music theory pedagogy, will be an instructor in music theory.
The following will hold the position of lecturer in music: Scott Kreger, Laura Snyder, and Mary Van De Loo. Seong-Kyung Graham will be an assistant conductor.
New to the position of tenured associate professor are: Michael Injae Kim, piano; Kathryn Kueny, religious studies; Rebecca Epstein Matveyev, Russian; Anthony Padilla, piano, and Lifongo Vetinde, French.