Subject Matter Experts

Many of the Rhodes faculty and staff are available to respond to media requests and comment on various topics of interest. To reach any of our subject experts, please contact the Communications Office at (901) 843-3875.

 

Anthropology-Sociology

 

  • Susan Kus: Symbolic anthropology, early state origins, archaeology and ethnography of Madagascar
  • Thomas McGowan: Interpretive sociology, social gerontology, prejudice and discrimination
  • Carla Shirley: Race and ethnicity, gender, social stratification, service-learning and community outreach, research methods, pedagogy in higher education

Art

 
  • Victor Coonin: Renaissance, Baroque and Medieval art history
  • Erin Harmon: Painting, self-portraiture, pop culture
  • David McCarthy: Modern, contemporary and American art history

Biology

 

  • Jay Blundon: Animal physiology, neuroscience
  • Terry Hill: Biology of fungi
  • Alan Jaslow: Herpetology, animal communication
  • Carolyn Jaslow: Biomechanics, histology, embryology, mammalogy 
  • David Kesler: Ecology, liminology, coral reef ecology
  • Gary Lindquester: Molecular biology, virology, gene expression
  • Mary Miller: Genetics and cancer biology
  • John Olsen: Evolution, systematics, plant taxonomy, morphology

Business-Economics-Finance

 

  • Teresa Beckham: International Economics, International Trade, Development Economics
  • Dee Birnbaum: General economic issues, economics of health care, Mideast women, Egypt
  • Pamela Church: Accountancy
  • Marshall Gramm: Regulation, mortgage lending, betting markets, equine industries
  • Deborah Pittman: Inflation-indexed bonds, real rate of interest, expected inflation, inflation risk premium,nonpublic business valuation, Institute for Executive Leadership
  • John Planchon: Advertising strategy, business strategy, general marketing issues
  • Ferron Thompson: Accountancy

Chemistry

 

  • David Jeter: Inorganic Chemistry
  • Darlene Loprete: Biochemistry

Education and Higher Education

 

  • Robert Johnson: Student retention theory, discourse analysis
  • Glenn Munson: College enrollment trends, college calendars, Family Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), transcript fraud, grades and grade inflation, retention issues
  • Katherine Richardson: Studies abroad programs, global education, student honor system
  • Mark Smith: School improvement planning, accreditation
  • Forrest Stuart: Financing a college education, scholarships and financial assistance programs
  • Sandi Tracy: Career preparation, jobs, internship programs
  • William Troutt: Cost of a college education, higher education leadership
  • David Wottle: Enrollment trends, the college admissions process, tips for students and parents

English

 

  • Tina Barr: Creative writing, 20th century poetry
  • Gordon Bigelow: Nineteenth century British and Irish literature, cultural studies
  • Marshall Boswell: Twentieth century American literature, contemporary fiction, creative writing
  • Jennifer Brady: Renaissance and Restoration literature
  • Michael Leslie: Literature and the visual arts
  • Scott Newstok: Shakespeare, adaptation, lyric poetry, rhetoric
  • Leslie Petty: Nineteenth- and Twentieth-century American literature, feminist theory, cultural studies, feminist activism in American fiction
  • Brian Shaffer: Twentiety century British literature, modern novel
  • Stephen Schottenfeld: Fiction writing, playwriting, screenwriting, contemporary literature

History

 

  • Frank Buscher: Modern Germany, modern Russia, World War II, the Holocaust, war crimes trials
  • Michael Drompp: East Asian history, China and Japan, Inner Asia
  • Dee Garceau: The American West, gender, Native American history
  • Timothy Huebner: American South, U.S. Constitutional/legal history
  • Jeffrey Jackson: Modern Europe, modern France
  • Michael LaRosa: Contemporary Latin America, Colombia, Catholic Church history 
  • Charles W. McKinney Jr.: African American history, civil rights movement, 20th century social and political history, social change in the United States
  • Gail Murray: History of Southern women, women in the civil rights movement, history of children’s literature, changing perceptions of childhood in America
  • Robert Saxe: U.S. history since 1945, World War II, and U.S. political history
  • Russell Wigginton: African American history, U.S. labor and community history
  • Lynn Zastoupil: Modern Britain, India/Pakistan, European intellectual history

International Studies

 

  • Stephen Ceccoli: International relations, international political economy, comparative public policy, pharmaceutical industry
  • John Copper: Taiwan and China (25 books including 10 on Taiwan, international politics, Japan, international law, human rights, U.S.-Asia/China/Taiwan policy)
  • Shadrack W. Nasong'o: African politics, international relations, comparative politics
  • Amy Risley: Latin American politics, comparative politics
  • David Romano: Middle-East and Mediterranean politics (with a special emphasis on Turkey, Iraq, the Kurds), politicized Islam, nationalism, theories of peace and conflict, forced migration (refugees, internally displaced persons), and globalization and development issues

Mathematics and Computer Science

 

  • Robert England: Operating systems, object oriented programming
  • Eric Gottlieb: Algebraic combinatorics
  • Chris Mouron: Topology, continuum theory, discrete dynamical systems

Modern Languages and Literatures

 

  • Eric Henager: Spanish language and Spanish-American literature
  • Amanda Irwin: Spanish language and Spanish-American literature
  • Alexandra Kostina: Russian language and literature, linguistics, Russian folklore
  • Shira Malkin: French language and literature, French culture, drama, translation, intercultural communication
  • Kenneth Morrell: Greek and Roman studies
  • Valerie Nollan: Russian language and literature, Soviet/Russian cinema, Russian culture, contemporary Russian life, Russian emigration, and Russian Orthodoxy (Orthodox Christianity, Eastern Orthodoxy)
  • David Sick: Greek and Roman religion, Indo-European mythology
  • James Vest: French language and literature (18th and 19th century)
  • Katheryn Wright: French language and literature, African literatures

Music

 
  • Thomas Bryant: Piano, music theory and literature
  • Courtenay Harter: Prokofiev′s piano sonatas, music theory, music history, oboe, English horn, chamber music (woodwind quintet), orchestra, wind ensemble
  • Timothy Sharp: Choral music, conducting, church music
  • Timothy Watkins: Music history, ethnomusicology, world (non-Western) music, Latin American music, church and worship music

Philosophy

 

  • Patrick Shade: American philosophy, ethics, logic, history of philosophy, interdisciplinary humanities

Physics

 

  • Shubho Banerjee: Theoretical physics, material science
  • Brent Hoffmeister: Ultrasonics, medical physics
  • Ann Viano: Solid state physics, biomaterials

Political Science-Government-American Scene

 

  • Daniel Cullen: American political thought, history of American politics, political theory  
  • Marcus Pohlmann: Racial politics, urban politics, voting rights, constitutional law and civil liberties, intercollegiate mock trial
  • Stephen Wirls: Congress, American politics, political theory, U.S. Constitution

Psychology

 

  • Bette Ackerman: Self-concept, health, applied statistics
  • Anita Davis: Clinical community, interventions with minority populations, adolescent motherhood
  • Janet Panter: School psychology, educational psychology, school readiness, assessment and evaluation
  • Natalie Person: Educational psychology, instructional technologies, artificial intelligence  
  • Julie Steel: Social justice-seeking and revenge, counterfactual thinking, social dilemmas
  • Marsha Walton: Social and moral development, gender and language, peer conflict
  • Christopher Wetzel: Decision making, social cognition

Religious Studies

 
  • Thomas Bremer: Religious history of the Americas, sacred space, religious tourism
  • Ryan Byrne: Arab-Israeli conflict, religion in  modern Middle East, Hebrew Bible & ancient Israel, Semitic languages & epigraphy, archaeology, Mesopotamian studies, early Judaism, Biblical & cuneiform law, labor & gender & exchange in antiquity
  • Patrick Gray: New Testament, religious conversion, superstition
  • Stephen Haynes: Holocaust studies, religion and racism, religion and education, religiously affiliated colleges
  • Luther Ivory: African-American religion, civil rights, Afro-Caribbean religions, African traditional religions, contemporary theology, Christian ethics, hip hop spirituality, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
  • John Kaltner: Arabic, Islam, Catholicism, Bible
  • Steven McKenzie: Hebrew Bible (Old Testament), archaeology and the Bible, Dead Sea Scrolls
  • Bernadette McNary-Zak: Early Christianity, Catholic studies
  • Mark Muesse: Fundamentalism, Buddhism and Hinduism, men′s movements, religion and sexuality, religious pluralism, cults
  • Michelle Voss Roberts: medieval Christianity, Hinduism, religious pluralism, feminist theology
  • Gail Streete: Women in antiquity and early Christianity, the Bible (especially New Testament and Paul), early and medieval Christianity

Theatre

 

  • Laura Canon: Lighting design, theory
  • Julia Ewing: Acting, theatre history, directing, movement, Shakespeare
  • David Jilg: Production design, costume design, theatre history

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