Faculty

Kenny Bagley

Leslie Batchelder a northwest native, grew up in a small town just east of Seattle. She holds a PhD in German cultural studies from the University of California at Davis. In addition to the Constructed Self, she also teaches Popular Culture and Women’s Studies. Ms. Batchelder lives in Hillsboro with her computer crazed husband and her son Rhys.

Joel Bettridge draws on his background in poetry and philosophy to help students develop their critical thinking and writing skills. Professor Bettridge received his BA from Emory University and his PhD from the State University of New York at Buffalo. A poet and a critic, his interests include American literature, the Modernist tradition and its legacy, contemporary poetry and poetics, and post-secular thought.

Becky Boesch has taught in University Studies since its inception in 1993 and has a wide range of experience teaching in Freshman Inquiry, Sophomore Inquiry and Transfer Transition. Her disciplinary background encompasses American and English literature, applied linguistics, and postsecondary education with a specific focus on immigrant literature and issues surrounding immigration and immigrants in higher education. Becky grew up in South Dakota and is herself a child of an immigrant. She also has a strong environmental ethic and during her free time, she can be found hiking, camping, wildlife viewing and gardening.

Barbara Brower

Chris Butenhoff is an Adjunct Assistant Professor. MS, 1999, Portland State University.

Christopher Carey, J.D., is a former Deputy District Attorney and currently an Assistant Professor at Portland State University. He has recently served as a Teaching Fellow at Arizona State University’s Hugh Downs School of Human Communication where his focus was intercultural communication. His expertise extends to the application of international law with an emphasis on human trafficking in South Asia and working with groups to improve collaboration with the field of human rights. When not learning about the world from his Eli and Lilah, he can be found fly fishing the rivers and climbing the mountains of the Pacific Northwest.

Elisabeth Ceppi

Evguenia Davidova is a European historian who specializes in the 19th century, “It took me a while to realize that I like making drastic changes in my life. I have been deciphering 19th-century manuscripts in various archives for a very long time, an exciting effort in challenging my eyes and brains that led to a Ph.D. in history. I also worked on a project ‘History of Roma/Gypsies in Eastern Europe’ and, like these nomads, have traveled a lot. My imaginary travels into the past and my curiosity about the future influenced my decision to leave my native country Bulgaria and to move to the USA. Hence it is not a coincidence that my current research interests focus on travel literature. In my spare time I enjoy reading books, listening to music, and watching movies.”

Grace L. Dillon, PhD, is editor of Hive of Dreams: Contemporary Science Fiction from the Pacific Northwest (OSU Press, 2003) and author of numerous articles and papers reflecting research interests in science fiction, Native and indigenous diasporas, cultural studies and popular culture, and early modern literature. She is coordinator of popular culture at Portland State University and currently serves on the national board of the Popular Culture Association. Her recent publications include “Miindiwag and Indigenous Diaspora: Eden Robinson’s and Celu Amberstone’s Forays into ‘Postcolonial’ Science Fiction and Fantasy, Extrapolation 48:2 (Summer 2007) and “L’impulso divinatorio di Philip K. Dick: il ragno e l’ape” (“Dick’s Vatic Impulse: The Spider and the Bee”), Transmigrazioni: I mondi di Philip K. Dick (Edumonde Le Monnier, Firenze, 2006).

Todd Dixon

JR Estes

Tom Fisher received his MA and Ph.D. in English Language and Literature from the State University of New York at Buffalo. A participant of the unique Poetics Program there, Tom pursued his interests in poetry through both traditional academic study and involvement in Buffalo’s vibrant literary community. He is interested primarily in independently published and nontraditional work that challenges and expands our sense of the literary. Also, as an undergraduate at Oberlin College, Tom studied Classics and has recently returned to it as both a scholar and a teacher. He is very enthusiastic about teaching in Freshman Inquiry and enjoys bringing his various interests, including music, art and theory, as well as his engaged and open teaching practice to the program.

Jeff Fletcher

Michael Flower's research interests include original training and research/teaching in developmental and molecular biology; political, moral, social and economic understandings of natural science; science education reform.

Jeff Gerwing is an ecologist with a specialty in tropical forest ecology and sustainable forest management. He conducted his field research in the Brazilian Amazon where he developed an interest in Brazilian music and culture. Jeff is new to Portland State University this year and spends his spare time exploring Portland and the surrounding countryside on foot and by bicycle. He is interested in developing a research program centered on sustainability and working sustainability literacy into undergraduate education at Portland State.

David Horowitz

Cody Jones

Dr. Marion “Paul” Latiolais is Professor of Mathematics at Portland State University. He was one of the creators of Portland State's ground-breaking University Studies program. Part of his teaching has continued to include courses in that program. His current research includes: faculty attitudes toward teaching, mathematical literacy at the undergraduate level at PSU and identifying strategies to help undergraduate students overcome mathematical anxiety. His “faculty attitudes” research, in collaboration with Barbara Holland and John Braxton, is focused on how faculty are affected by innovation. This research is a continuation of seven years of published work on Dr. Latiolais’ experiences in change in higher education.

Joseph "Chip" Long (1998) Ph.D. Assistant Professor of University Studies. Ph.D. 1997 Stanford University.

Alan MacCormack has been with the University Studies Program since 1999. He is a zoologist and ecologist with a doctoral degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an undergraduate degree from Antioch College. Alan has worked with pesticide pollution, the social behavior of wasps, bird migration, and biological rhythms. Current interests include evolutionary theory, science education and the philosophy of science. He is happy to discuss almost anything other than golf and reality shows.

Betsy Natter started teaching in the Maseeh College of Electrical and Computer Engineering and University Studies in 2004. Prior to teaching she spent ten years in the semiconductor industry in positions ranging from process and device engineering to management of quality and reliability. Teaching semiconductor physics had been a goal and was a natural transition, but teaching Design & Society and working with a great variety of teammates has been an unexpected delight. She hopes to make science and engineering less intimidating and more easily understood so her students can prosper in our technological society. She received her BS in Physics from Caltech and her MS in Electrical Engineering from the Oregon Graduate Institute. She loves reading, playing the piano, backpacking, skiing, and spending time with her family.

Scott Parker joined the Theater Arts faculty in 1977 and teaches acting and improvisational acting classes. He has worked in the Portland theater community since 1968, performing with several semi-professional theaters in the area, as well as the renowned comedy group Waggie & Friends. He was Master of Ceremonies for the annual Oregon Museum of Science and Industry Gala (fund-raising event) - introducing The Temptations in 2002. Each Christmas Scott performs with the Oregon Trail Band in a benefit for "Friends of the Children." Parker's last professional presentation was for the Association of Integrated Studies Conference in 2000. Parker is a member of the Screen Actors Guild and still occasionally does film and television work in the area. He holds an MA from Portland State University.

Victoria Parker-Pohl is an award-winning writer, director, and actor with over twenty-five years experience as a theater instructor. With a masters in theater and a BA in interdisciplinary arts with a special focus on northwestern ecology and environmental studies, Victoria has long enjoyed blending her deep interest in natural science with the arts and humanities, which she brings to her teaching in University Studies. Her skills evolve from extensive experience facilitating learning for diverse populations, including a wide range of professional clients as well as Portland’s underserved and adjudicated youth. Victoria has developed and implemented arts-related programming in conflict resolution, risk-orientation, team-building, interpersonal communication and creativity. She has taught Freshman Inquiry courses at PSU since 2001.

Ben Perkins is a geologist, environmental scientist, and outdoor enthusiast. His primary research interest is exploring how geology and human activities control the occurrence of problematic trace elements such as arsenic and chromium in surface and ground waters. Ben holds a BS and MS in geology and received his Ph.D. in environmental sciences and resources from Portland State University. He has taught geology courses at Portland State University, Portland Community College, and Washington State University. He worked for eight years as a professional environmental consultant, much of that time in the Willamette Valley. Most recently, he was a postdoctoral fellow with the U.S. Geological Survey in Menlo Park, California. His wife has a Ph.D. in biochemistry. They both enjoy hiking and camping, gardening, cooking, music, and travel.

Maji Christine Rhee received her Ed.D. in education focusing on a comparison of knowledge formation in Japan, Korea, and the United States from Rutgers University. Prof. Rhee's writing and research specialty are divided into three areas: the languages of the two Koreas, romantic condition in contemporary Japanese literature, and gender and knowledge in Japan and Korea. She teaches courses in Korean and Japanese languages, and participates in courses taught in the International Studies Program. Professor Rhee's recent publications include The Doomed Empire: Japan in Colonial Korea (Ashgate, 1997) and Gender and the Law (Asian Cultural Studies, v.25, 1999). She has served as a director of the Oregon-Japan Study Program at Waseda University located in Tokyo, Japan. She is currently serving as a research member of the Korean Unification Council where she regularly contributes her writing on Japan, South Korea and North Korea.

Jamie P. Ross has been teaching philosophy and interdisciplinary studies at Portland State University since 1992. She received her Ph.D. in philosophy in 1995 from the University of Oregon and has an undergraduate degree in philosophy from Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania. Her areas of specialization are feminist philosophy and American pragmatism. Her goal in teaching is to show students that philosophy and critical inquiry are the bases of all further learning. It has been said of her reputation as a professor at Portland State University that she “has high standards but is fair.” One of her teaching concerns is the low number of women in philosophy as well as other traditionally male dominated fields. She hopes to contribute to a change in that trend by setting an example of alternative ways of interpreting and studying traditional and classical philosophy. Dr. Ross hails from New York City. She skis, rides horses and enjoys Dixieland jazz and baroque music.

Ken Ruoff

Tim Sheard (see website for more information)

Cameron Smith

Jack Straton earned a BFA in Photography from the University of Oregon in 1977, worked as a professional jazz drummer for three years, and then returned to the U of O in the 1980s to earn a doctorate in quantum theory. Both as a volunteer and professional diversity trainer, he has facilitated several hundred workshops on issues ranging from “Ending Sexual Assault” to “Unlearning Racism.” Jack’s teaching links all of this. He has served as co-chair of the National Organization for Men Against Sexism (NOMAS) and writes and speaks on ethical and public policy issues related to the overlap between child abuse and woman abuse. He loves hiking, rollerblading, photographing, yoga, and music.

Alton Straub

Anmarie Trimble is editor of Born Magazine ( www.bornmagazine.org ), an experimental online publication that features collaborations between writers and multimedia artists. She's particularly interested in the impact of multimedia on the literary arts, and she has lectured extensively on this subject for technology and literary audiences. This intersection between technology and writing stems from a life-long passion for science that influences her poetry. Her poetry has appeared in Black Warrior Review and Field: Contemporary Poetry and Poetics, and other publications. She has also worked in the Web industry as an editor and researcher, developing web sites and kiosks for Experience Music Project, National Geographic, Discovery Channel, PBS, and others. When she’s not gardening or studying dance, she dreams of being official poet to the first manned mission to Mars.

Chuck White has been teaching at Portland State University since 1971. He holds a PhD in political science. After a period of administrative responsibilities, He enjoys the theme because of the other faculty members on the team and their disciplines. He especially appreciates the opportunity the team has to explore topics important for understanding our contemporary lives and each other. He very much enjoys the opportunity to teach Freshman Inquiry because of the number of different topics we cover. Being with the same students for the entire year is something he enjoys because it gives the class the opportunity to form a very strong community of learners. When he is not teaching, Dr. White spends time with his three sons, attempts to play golf and, in the winter, very much enjoys skiing. He also is a reasonably accomplished cook with expertise in multiple cuisines.

Lindsay Wilkinson