NetVUE Regional Gathering

Bryan Dewsbury is an Associate Professor of Biology at Florida International University (FIU). He is the Principal Investigator of the Science Education And Society (SEAS) research program, which blends research on the social context of teaching and learning, faculty development of inclusive practices, and programming in the cultivation of equity in education. He is an Associate Director of the STEM Transformational Institute where he directs the Division of Transformative Education. He is also a Fellow with the John N. Gardner Institute where he assists institutions of higher education cultivate best practices in inclusive education. He is the creator and executive producer of the Massive Open Online Course called Inclusive Teaching. He is a co-editor of the book the Norton Guide to Equity Minded Teaching. He has led faculty development workshops in over 150 institutions across North America, Europe and Western Africa. He is the host of the podcast Knowledge Unbound where he interviews people who do transformational work in education across the globe. Dewsbury grew up in Trinidad and Tobago and immigrated to the United States in 1999. He received a BS in biology from Morehouse College and an MS and PhD in biology from FIU

Tono Sablan is a proud lifelong resident of Parkland, Washington. He is a career-long nonprofit executive with a background in philanthropy, community development, education, and well-being. Currently, Tono serves as the executive director for the LeMay Family Foundation in Parkland, as well as the executive director for Blue Zones Project, a health and well-being initiative serving the residents of Parkland and Spanaway. He holds a master’s degree in public administration from The Evergreen State College and a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Pacific Lutheran University. He currently serves as an elected School Board Director for the Franklin Pierce School District where he’s led as its Board President since 2022.

Scott Rogers is an associate professor of English at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, WA, where he teaches courses in academic and professional writing, literacy studies, and public memory. He also serves as the Dean of Assessment and Core Curriculum, providing oversight for academic assessment across campus and supporting the faculty-led general education program.

Jennifer Smith (she/her) serves as the Dean of Inclusive Excellence at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, WA; in this role, she oversees efforts to diversify the curriculum, institute equitable hiring practices, and familiarize faculty with inclusive teaching methods. She is also an associate professor of Gender, Sexuality, and Race Studies, regularly teaching courses in critical theory at PLU as well as at the Washington Corrections Center for Women in Gig Harbor, WA as part of the Freedom Education Project Puget Sound (FEPPS).

Michael Artime is an Associate Professor in the Political Science Department at Pacific Lutheran University. He has been at PLU since 2016. He also serves as the Pre-Law advisor at the university. He has a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Missouri–St. Louis. He has published on a wide range of topics including: media and public opinion, the political behavior of celebrities, and state budgeting processes.

Sebastian Bostwick is a Senior Student Success Advisor at Pacific Lutheran University, where they prioritize relationship-building and strengths-based approaches in both their advising and teaching practices. They hold a Master’s of Fine Arts in Poetry from the University of Notre Dame and are currently pursuing a Master’s of Social Work at PLU; their hope is to combine these two fields and share the healing powers of creativity with queer and trans youth and young adults. On a typical Friday night you can find them hanging out with their cat, crocheting a new project, or caring for their overwhelming collection of house plants.

Dr. Michelle Ceynar is a professor of Psychology at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, Washington. She primarily teaches Introductory Psychology, Social Psychology, and Psychology of Women. Her most recent scholarship includes co-editing a 2 volume series Early Psychological Research Contributions from Women of Color.

Emily F. Davidson is an associate professor of Hispanic and Latino Studies specializing in Latinx, Central American, and Caribbean Studies. Her leadership in the development of Latino Studies at PLU and the creation of the popular class, Spanish for Heritage Speakers, exemplify her commitment to designing courses in which students find a deep sense of joy, belonging, and meaning. These curricular initiatives also reflect her interest in cultivating culturally situated conversations about vocational discernment.

Terri Farrar is an associate professor in the Department of Kinesiology at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, WA. where she teaches courses in health and fitness pedagogy. Her educational interests focus on mentoring her students to flourish in their vocational journey’s as K-12 health and fitness teachers.

Antonios Finitsis is professor of Hebrew Bible at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma WA, where he serves as Executive Director for the Wild Hope Center for Vocation. His duties include directing initiatives on vocation for faculty, staff, and students and managing institutional-wide efforts aimed to thoughtfully integrate vocational reflection throughout the University. His long-term interests focus on storytelling and study away as educational opportunities that enhance vocational discernment.

Ralph Flick is an Associate Professor of Management in his ninth year at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, WA, where he teaches primarily business law courses in the undergraduate and graduate programs. In addition to his involvement in the Wild Hope Center for Vocation, Ralph also regularly advises students in his role as the university’s pre-law advisor and as the NCAA Faculty Athletic Representative and as a study-away program leader in the Master of Business Administration program.

Katrina Hay is a professor of physics at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, Washington. She integrates evidence-based teaching practices into her physics and engineering courses, creates lightboard instructional videos, and includes student reflection on vocation and sustainability. Katrina mentors undergraduate students in observational astronomy and fluid dynamics research, and she contributed to NASA’s Dawn Mission timeline. Her passions for astronomy, music, and art inspire outreach projects, including the children’s book about astronomy, Little Bear’s Big Night Sky, that she wrote and illustrated.

Tom Smith is a professor of Theatre at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, WA, where he teaches courses in playwriting, theatre management and improvisation. He serves as chair of PLU’s Educational Policies Committee and is the recipient of a Faculty Excellence Award in Advising.

Dr. Jes Takla (she/they) is an artist (BFA from School of the Art Institute of Chicago), student affairs educator (MA in College Student Personnel from Bowling Green State University), and qualitative researcher (PhD in Higher Education from Azusa Pacific University) who has worked in higher education for nearly 20 years and currently serves as the Assistant Vice President for Student Life Strategic Initiatives and Assessment at Pacific Lutheran University. Through qualitative research endeavors, Jes explores and engages radical imagination and critical creativity praxis for liberatory transformation.

Neal Yakelis is a professor of chemistry at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, WA. Since 2005, he has regularly taught courses in introductory and organic chemistry, and his current research involves mentoring undergraduates in the lab synthesis of new, luminescent dyes to track RNA in cells. Neal also serves as a member of PLU’s Pre-Health Sciences Advising Team, a group of faculty who guide students and alumni discerning paths in medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, and other health professions.

Tamara R. Williams is a professor of Hispanic and Latino Studies at Pacific Lutheran University and Executive Director of the Wang Center for Global and Community Engaged Education. Her work advances PLU’s vision for global education through faculty development, study away programs, and on-campus events addressing global issues. Her current research focuses on representations of violence and explores new dimensions of the elegy in contemporary Mexican literature. She is also in the process of completing a two-year training as a Mindfulness Meditation Instructor.

Laree Winer is the Operations Director for the Wild Hope Center for Vocation and has been involved with the work of vocational reflection and discernment at Pacific Lutheran University (PLU) for 14 years. The focus of her work has been to promote and implement initiatives that embed vocation into the curriculum and co curriculum. One of her greatest joys as an educator has been to co-create and teach a J-Term study away course focused on vocation and inclusive community.

Pastor Jen Rude (she/her) has served as the University Pastor at Pacific Lutheran University since 2016. Through the work of Campus Ministry Jen seeks to engage students, faculty, and staff in co-creating a vibrant and diverse spiritual ecosystem at PLU that centers belonging, spiritual development, vocation and purpose, and meaningful service. Jen particularly enjoys working with her student staff team, collaborating on projects with partners internal and external to the university, being a lifelong learner, and saying, “Let’s try it.”