UTEP Welcomes 37 New Tenured and Tenure-Track Faculty Members
Last Updated on August 25, 2020 at 12:00 AM
Originally published August 25, 2020
By Erika Villegas
Office of the Provost
The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) welcomed 37 new tenured and tenure-track faculty members to start the 2020-21 academic year.
The new faculty members come to UTEP from a diverse array of disciplines – from geographic sciences, aerospace engineering, and computational sciences, to English, educational policy, marketing, rehabilitation counseling, and pharmaceutical sciences. Four of the scholars are returning full circle to teach at their alma mater, after having served as professors, researchers, and engineers at institutions across the nation.
Additionally, the cohort includes two administrators: Bruce Friedman, Ph.D., professor of social work, who will serve as chair of the Department of Social Work; and Joel Cramer, Ph.D., professor of kinesiology, who will serve as associate dean at the College of Health Sciences.
“Faculty at public research universities drive innovation and discovery, and equip students with the skills, knowledge and experience to become leaders,” said John Wiebe, Ph.D., provost and vice president for academic affairs. “We are proud to add to the number of exceptionally committed and talented faculty at UTEP.” The new faculty members are recipients of prestigious national awards and fellowships, authors in leading publications, principal investigators on multimillion-dollar grants, and inventors of patented technologies.
In addition to their roles in teaching and discovery, UTEP faculty offer their expertise, time and energy to a variety of community organizations and initiatives that strengthen the economy and address challenges in the community and the region. UTEP is one of only 73 top tier research universities in the U.S. that are also recognized by the Carnegie Foundation as Community Engaged Institutions.
Many of UTEP’s new faculty members have moved to El Paso from places across the globe – from California to Connecticut and Israel – while some have already been here at UTEP and are settling into new roles.
“We are grateful for their presence and look forward to the many contributions they will make as teachers, scholars and leaders on campus and in the community,” Wiebe said.
Read more about the faculty members’ expertise here. The new faculty members include:
- Carlos Algara, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Political Science
- Laura Alvarez, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Geological Sciences
- Sandra Butvilofsky, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Teacher Education
- Tawanda Chabikwa, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Theatre and Dance
- Joel Cramer, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Kinesiology; Associate Dean, College of Health Sciences
- Misty Duke, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Criminal Justice
- Angel Flores-Abad, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering
- Alexander Friedman, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Biological Sciences
- Bruce Friedman, Ph.D., Chair and Professor, Department of Social Work
- Andrew Fultz, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Marketing and Management
- Sergio Grove, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Marketing and Management
- Michael Harvey, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Biological Sciences
- DeLisa Hawkes, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of English
- Yoonsun Jeong, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Marketing and Management
- Yun-Pai (Beatrice) Lee, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Master of Rehabilitation Counseling Program
- Sergio Luna, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Industrial, Manufacturing and Systems Engineering
- Eric MacDonald, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering
- Abhijit Mandal, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Mathematical Sciences
- Edna Martinez, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Educational Leadership and Foundations
- Thomas McCabe, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Biological Sciences
- Shirley Moore, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Computer Science
- Hernan Moreno, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Geological Sciences
- Travis Moschak, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Biological Sciences
- Sylvia Natividad-Diaz, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Metallurgical, Materials, and Biomedical Engineering
- Aaron Nelson, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Accounting and Information Systems
- Saeid Tizpaz Niari, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Computer Science
- Christine Potter, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology
