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Faculty and Staff Highlights

Dr. Scott Hegerty Chair of Anthropology, Economics, Geography & Environmental Studies, Global Studies, and Philosophy What kinds of research are you doing? Right now I am doing a lot of joint projects with colleagues, where I mainly do the statistics. Most of this is with the Warsaw School of Economics—I just got added to a grant where we examine how being part of a geographic cluster affects firm performance—but I'm also looking at trade and CO2 emissions with a colleague from Romania. On my own, I have a few projects in Urban Geography. The big one lately looks at whether ethnic diversity changes sharply at urban-suburban borders. What is your favorite thing about NEIU? Definitely the fact that we have such a big impact on people's lives. A college degree—or even just one class—can change not only someone's earning power, but also their view of the world. Plus, everyone is super interesting, and I get to hear about their businesses, side hustles, or YouTube discographies. What are your hobbies? I'm a musician, and used to play bass in bands. I was in a Gospel Choir in Milwaukee for years, and we would go on bus tours to small towns across Wisconsin(!). I play guitar and drums as well. Right now I write songs to get a laugh out of people and have smuggled a guitar into BBH. I also read a lot of weird sci-fi when I get the chance. Why did you decide to work in an academic environment? I originally thought I was going to work for the Federal Government, and wound up interviewing at a few places around D.C. It got weird—at one point a bunch of applicants were taking the psych eval in a computer lab (I passed!) and since I got done pretty quickly I wound up helping some others understand the questions. That whole experience helped me realize I'd rather be in the classroom.
Dr. Steve Frankel Biology What is your educational history? I got my Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. My thesis was in plant chemical ecology with research in the rainforests of Panama. What are your research interests? My research focus at NEIU has been on prairie ecology focusing on the impacts of fire on the prairie ecosystem. What do you do at NEIU and beyond? I am a Senior Instructor in Biology. My teaching focus is ecology and plant biology. In addition to General Ecology, I also teach Local Flora and Economic Botany with the goal of getting students to better appreciate our local habitats and the world of plants. I am involved in the maintenance of the campus natural landscaping, including running the prescribed fires of the prairie and swamp white oak savannah. I am also a member of the Tree Campus USA committee and the management team for the Gensberg-Markham Prairie. I work with the University Professionals of Illinois and the Illinois Federation of Teachers to increase the investment in and support of public higher education in the state. What are your hobbies? My hobbies include running, gardening, brewing beer and mead, hiking, and camping. What is your favorite thing about NEIU? The thing I most value about NEIU is the opportunity it offers to our students. I see so many students who have work, family, and financial obligations that would overwhelm most people, yet they still do outstanding work in the classroom and are setting themselves up for a better future. I feel like NEIU understands the challenge our students face and all of us here support them and their goals.
Dr. Denise Cloonan Cortez World Languages and Cultures What are your res I have been at NEIU since 1997. I am currently chair of World Languages and Cultures, ELP, SAELL and TESOL as well as coordinator of the Peace Corps Prep Certificate Program. I am a Romance Linguist with interests in dialectology of Spanish and regional literature with eye dialect: literatura campesina y literatura minera. In grad school, I was pursuing a Ph.D. in literature and began taking linguistics courses to complement my literary analyses, and then decided to switch to a linguistics Ph.D. and so I am able to blend both fields together--my dissertation was an empirical study involving 350 students and I analyzed how their cultural background influenced their reading comprehension and interpretation in Spanish. What is your favorite thing about NEIU? My favorite thing about NEIU are the students. We have such interesting students who are eager to learn and it is rewarding to see the impact that our graduates make in the community. Many of our undergraduates come back for our grad programs and that is a testament to us and the work that we all do here. Working at NEIU is a labor of love; I have seen NEIU change dramatically over the last 27 years and I have adapted to those changes. We are in a good place right now with strong leadership, but we still need to put in a lot of effort and I like to believe that I positively contribute to the well-being of our community here. What are your hobbies? I love all animals! I adopt as many rescue animals as I can. I have one TNR (Trap-Neuter-Release Program) cat (the ones with the notch on their ear) and two rescue dogs. However, apart from the domesticated animals, I love the great apes. I am a strong advocate for their protection from human intervention/habitat loss. Orangutans are my favorite and I have promised myself that I will take a trip to Borneo to see the orangutans in sanctuary. I sponsor one orangutan, named Kopral, in Borneo on a sanctuary island and I sponsor two chimpanzees, Kareem and Gracie, in Georgia under the care of Project Chimps. I probably should have become a primatologist. I proudly carry my green BOS (Borneo Orangutan Survival) Foundation water bottle to all NEIU meetings. A word of warning from my (loving?) son: "Don't let my mom trap you in a conversation about the apes, you'll be sorry!"
Tim Barnett English Why did you choose English? I study language, writing especially, because I think it is the most powerful force in the world. I love to see people expand their voices and to look at language and themselves in new ways. NEIU has been a great place for this kind of work because of its diversity and the unique voices our students bring to the world. I have learned more than I ever expected from them and from the great faculty and staff at our university. What do you like about NEIU? I’ve been extremely lucky to be in a tenured position at NEIU. Tenure provides a lot of freedom to think and to explore the relationships between ideas and actions; it’s given me the opportunity to try—and both succeed and fail at—many different sorts of projects and initiatives over my 27 years as a professor. It is one of the things all academics should have to guarantee academic independence. What part of your work are you most proud of? Three of the things I am most proud of are working with the Prison+Neighborhood Arts/Education Project and Erica Meiners to bring a college degree program to Stateville Prison, helping to lead our faculty/staff union, and working in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. Those experiences have reinforced for me the idea that education needs to be responsive to politics and social inequities. They have helped me think of schools as places for individual growth (however individual students might define that term) and as places to imagine and initiate social change, even as we also help students find the careers they need to make it in the world as it exists today. We know, though, that we don't have to settle for the world as it is, and that keeps our work exciting.
Dr. Chris Merchant Psychology What are your research interests? My research interests—like the wind—are ever-changing. At the moment, I am working on a study about people’s relationship to their religious/spiritual texts and their beliefs about climate change, supernatural causation, and other socio-political issues. This came from my previous research interests in identity development and social media engagement, which was subsequent to my graduate research training in suicide intervention among adolescents. What is your favorite thing about NEIU? The world we live in is constantly picking on people. I love that working here offers me a chance to help those people stand up for themselves. From incarcerated students, to undocumented students; Black, Latinx, disabled, queer, Palestinian, neurodivergent, and all of the working-class students. Being here lets me work and be in community with them in a way that is important to me. What are your hobbies? Plotting the overthrowing of our oligarchs. Also crafts. I dabble in woodworking, bookbinding, 3d printing, painting, collage... In truth I collect hobbies. I’ve got my eye on linocut printing for 2025. Why did you choose an academic environment? I originally saw myself as working primarily with data, but during graduate school I was required to do a teaching assistantship. Despite being at a larger institution, I found a lot of gratification in working closely with students from time to time. And I fell in love with the look on someone’s face when they get something they had been struggling with.
Adam Goldstein Associate Professor of Theatre What kinds of creative activities are you involved with currently? It's good to be busy! My professional creative life typically involves two main areas, theatre direction and accents & dialects design. Currently as a director, I'm preparing to co-direct alongside collaborator Emilio Williams, an awesome new piece GROWING UP WITH BIG HAIR by Diana Suarez Mucci for Stage Center Theatre's thINKtank Series! This play will be presented onstage at our partner theatre, Bramble Theatre, in Andersonville and will feature a sea of NEIU alumni in a professional setting. Additionally, I'm in casting for TUCK EVERLASTING, the beautiful musical which I'll direct this summer for Actors Training Center in Wilmette. On the accents & dialects front, I have a current design running at Steep Theatre in the haunting play, A SLOW AIR by David Harrower and directed by my good friend and acclaimed director, Robin Witt. That piece runs until March 1! Later that week, I head into rehearsal as the accents & dialects coach for TITANIC, the musical at the Marriott Theatre in Lincolnshire where I previously designed BEAUTIFUL: THE CAROLE KING MUSICAL, and where in the fall I'll design dialects for CATCH ME IF YOU CAN. What is your favorite thing about NEIU? My favorite thing about NEIU is the tangibility of our community and the ever present opportunity to make a positive impact on layers of both our student lives and our world at large. I love that our students come here taking nothing for granted and ready and willing to attack each day. The relationships built and the learning gleaned at NEIU by both students and faculty alike connect us across years and generations. It's so meaningful to see critical ripple effects of our time in class as our students tackle vital careers in spaces that foster a better world. What are your hobbies? I am an absolute sports junkie overall and most prominently a golf and baseball nut. I love exploring different pockets of our own area via the golf scene as well as planning rockin' golf trips around the world with my tight knit group of friends. Alongside that I'm an active member of the Evanston Baseball and Softball Association Board where one of the greatest experiences of my life throughout the year is having the opportunity to coach my son's local house team and to sit as a fan for his remarkable travel ball team in the summer. Dean Libretti would jump in to point out that I'm proud to be a "championship winning coach" in local tournaments. Sports has connected me to possibly the greatest community of folks I've encountered in a town in which I've lived and have helped to connect my son and I to a common love of competition on the field. Pitchers and catchers report this week, so let's go Cubs! Why did you decide to work in an academic environment? So I tell a story to my acting students on the first day of class most semesters of an encounter that I had in my BFA acting program with a teacher that has forever shaped my life. On our first day in undergrad, my acting teacher, Alexandra Borrie, a true force of nature, was asked why she as a tremendously successful artist chose to teach. She said quite simply and directly that in her view, anyone who is fortunate enough in our field as artists has a duty and an obligation to share their tools and success with upcoming generations. Immediately that day as an eighteen year old, I knew that not only did I want to achieve such success, but that teaching would be an essential goal of my work. Universities and colleges find students at a crucial intersection in life where close mentorship and guidance can forever empower a student. This happened to me via Alexandra and so many other teachers on and off campuses. Her words helped me to see that the destination of training and education was not a destination but rather about the process of forging one's constantly evolving contributions in the continuum of learning that connects us across time. My career is in conversation with Alexandra's career which in turn puts us both in conversation with my students. I take that obligation incredibly seriously as I feel that I've been fortunate enough to achieve certain career milestones and a current body of work that equip me to teach not the "next" generation but emerging artists walking alongside me. Further, I recognize now that the beauty of teaching is not in sharing what you know, but in the exchange from which I learn immensely from my own wonderful students. This connects us not as teacher/student, but rather as peer artists working to generate meaning through art in a complex world. Alexandra's words come with me to work every single day and help me to constantly reignite purpose at the top of every class session.
Dr. Stacey Goguen Philosophy + Women’s, Gender, & Sexuality studies Dr. Goguen is interested in many different research topics, but most revolve around the question: When should we trust what someone tells us? And what should we do when we don't know who or what to trust? Dr. Goguen shared that she first thought about this question when she was in elementary school and got accused of cheating on a test. Even though she hadn’t cheated, she realized there was no way the teacher could know that, so she began thinking, what should the teacher do? Now, Dr. Goguen studies bias, stereotypes, disinformation, and ignorance, but they all come back to questions like: If someone you trust says something you can't believe, what should you do: stop trusting the person, or start believing the incredible? Dr. Goguen was originally planning to specialize in philosophy of physics (because the wave/particle duality and quantum entanglement are “freakin cool and strange”.) Then she discovered social psychology and feminist philosophy, and that changed her life. Dr. Goguen realized that some things she had taken for granted (Do we know our own thoughts and intentions? Do our social identities influence what we know and notice?) might have some wildly different answers than what she had previously assumed to be true. According to Dr. Goguen, her favorite thing about NEIU is that there are so many people here (students, staff, faculty) who genuinely care about contributing to their communities and don't want to settle for what's comfortable and easy--they want to do what's hard and transformative. They want to keep growing and learning. That's a wonderful space to be in. When Dr. Goguen isn’t in front of class or serving on a committee; you might find her playing games (board games, video games, etc.) She can run eight different TTRPG systems! Dr. Goguen also likes learning new recipes to cook, and walking by the river.
David Nissim-Sabat Director of preprofessional advising (Pre-Health & pre-law) David has been instrumental in meeting the needs of students in the CAS who are interested in health and/or the law careers and/or graduate programs. David works with students on a number of areas, including: Assisting students in the application process to professional graduate programs Providing information about the basic requirements and admission procedures for professional graduate programs Assisting students with personal statements Providing opportunities for students to learn more about professional and graduate programs as well as other career options Guiding, monitoring, and assisting students in their academic progress Helping students to succeed in their involvement of activities, workshops, and enrichment experiences. David is actively involved with both the National Association for Advisors for the Health Professions (NAAHP) and the Midwest Association of Pre-Law Advisors (MAPLA). David has also been heavily involved in the CAS Career Readiness Initiative helping to develop and chart career pathways and working to identify core competencies taught across the CAS curriculum. In addition to David’s professional activities, he is also an accomplished photographer and drone pilot. The CAS is lucky to have such a Renaissance person amongst our ranks! You can make an appointment with David by using this link: Also, be sure to check out David’s pre-professional advising webpage which contains a wealth of helpful information.
Dr. Ana Nieves Art + Design department Dr. Nieves, an Associate Professor of Art History in the Art + Design Department, specializes in the art and architecture of the Americas, specifically on the artistic traditions of the Peruvian south coast. Dr. Nieves has taught a number of classes for NEIU ranging from General Education classes (Introduction to Art History) through graduate-level courses offering, specifically a class titled Latin American Literatures and Cultures (taught entirely in Spanish!) for the World Languages and Cultures Department, as part of the MA in Latin American Literatures and Cultures. Dr. Nieves organized a study abroad trip (for NEIU students) to Peru as part of a class on Andean Art and Architecture. Students were able to visit Lima and Cuzco where they were able to explore museums and archaeological sites. Dr. Nieves has regularly conducted research in the South Coast of Peru, where she regularly publishes and presents her work. In fact, Dr. Nieves recently exhibited her work at the Museo Julio C. Tello de Paracas in Paracas, Peru where the exhibit was, in many ways, a culmination of her years of field work in the Nasca and Palpa Valleys, specifically her photographic work through the process of Reflectance Transformation Imaging and photogrammetry. In addition to being an internationally recognized scholar, Dr. Nieves’ work was honored by two NEIU Excellence Awards in research. Relatedly, for many years, Dr. Nieves organized a lecture series that focused on the Art of the Americas, an important series and ever more so for an HSI. Finally, Dr. Nieves has been instrumental in her role as a faculty member on the planning committee for the annual John Albazi Student Research and Creative Activities Symposium, one of the most special days of the academic year for our students, where they are able to showcase their scholarly activities by disseminating their projects with the rest of the NEIU community.
Dr. Joseph Hibdon Jr. Mathematics department Faculty in the College of Arts and Sciences not only excel in the classroom, they also do amazing work related to research and engagement of the community in many different ways. Professor Joseph Hibdon Jr., of the Mathematics Department, is one of our faculty that has an extensive track record of research grants related to student success, and the hits keep coming! Dr. Hibdon was recently awarded a grant from the National Institute for Theory and Mathematics in Biology, where he serves as a Leader on the Outreach and Leadership Team. In his work on this project, Dr. Hibdon will be focusing on how students at Primarily Undergraduate Institutions (PUIs), just like NEIU, will benefit from the project's mission of creating a collaborative research community to address real world issues through the integration of mathematics and biology. This is just one example of how Dr. Hibdon has connected his research work to the success of our students. A thread that is easily seen throughout his work is a laser sharp focus on students and how he can use his expertise in mathematical modeling in creative ways to support NEIU students. Other recent examples of this include running a workshop for the American Institute of Mathematics on open educational resources related to Quantitative Justice at the California Institute of Technology, and coming in the summer of 2025, he will be leading a Research Experiences for Undergraduates program funded by the National Science Foundation that will provide students paid internships related to Quantitative Justice, in connection with the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute. Throughout his time at NEIU, Dr. Hibdon has filled the roles of Director and Advisor in the Student Center for Science Engagement, as a Principal Investigator on a major National Institutes of Health grant, and as a faculty in the Mathematics department, providing him with an excellent connection to and understanding of our students. The commitment that he routinely shows to the NEIU mission and our students goes far beyond the classroom, and exposes students to the opportunities and pathways that exist for them in the College of Arts and Sciences and beyond. Dr. Hibdon’s work is a prime example of how the disciplinary expertise of CAS faculty is translated into real world success that improves the lives of our students. Way to go Joe!
Dr. Casey Holtschneider Social Work Program Often faculty in the College of Arts and Sciences are doing amazing work that falls under the radar precisely because the College is vast and so many of our faculty are busily engaged in the activities meaningful to them that they do not have time to publicize what they are doing. Professor Casey Holtschneider, a faculty member in the Social Work program, is one such faculty member. Dr. Casey has done an incredible job developing a center for homeless youth outside of the great work she does as a faculty member at NEIU. She always extended an open invitation to visit, and earlier this term, Dean Tim Libretti, and Associate Deans Ken Voglesonger and Amanda DykemaEngblade took a road trip to 549 E. 76th Street to visit the LYTE Collective. What we saw amazed us, exceeding anything we imagined. As we approached the building that resembled a kind of spaceship, staff from the collective (including an NEIU graduate!) were putting up Halloween decorations. Casey came out to greet us and took us on a tour through the warm and welcoming center, explaining to us that LYTE derives from the principle articulated by the human rights leader Václav Havel of Live Your Truth Everywhere. The center is designed to provide any and every young adult impacted by poverty and homelessness with whatever they need without question. Those who enter can help themselves to a meal in the kitchen and dining area, designed to resemble a café, where homeless youth often seek shelter. They can nap, shower, and do laundry. There are lockers for them to store their belongings. There is an art and music studio, a library, a clinic where people can receive medical care, and more. As explained on the LYTE Collective website, “Havel’s ideas call us to end participation in social systems that harm human beings and to instead create alternative systems defined by social justice, dignity and the protection of human rights.” Casey had worked in social service agencies for a decade and was frustrated seeing the harm these systems do to those seeking succor. So she and the other founders in 2014 set out to develop this alternative system whose mission has three key elements: SUPPORT every young adult who contacts us, with whatever they need, for as long as they want us by their side. END harmful systems that cause young people to need our help in the first place. BUILD a more just and equitable world together with all who aspire to do better by young people. This brief news blurb can not do justice to the wonders of this center and the work Casey is doing. It is truly a gem representing the best of work our faculty in the College of Arts and Sciences contribute to the world. To learn more, check out the site:
Dr. Christopher Owen Department of Music and Dance The College of Arts and Sciences is proud to announce that Professor Christopher Owen, who chairs our Department of Music and Dance, was chosen last June to serve as the Artistic Director of Windy City Performing Arts, a performing arts company that “sings to inspire change, celebrate diversity, and honor the dignity of the LGBTQ+ community,” according to their website. Owen sought the position because for him it was, he says, “about being able to serve the queer community of which I’m a part. To be part of an organization that puts the LGBTQ+ community in the center is a great honor.” For Owen, taking on this leadership role in our current political landscape in which members of LGBTQ+ community, particularly trans youth, are targeted for violence and told they don’t belong, was a powerful political act. As he puts it, “Every time the LGBTQ+ community sings, it’s a political act. We’re saying we are here, we’re not going anywhere, and we can create beautiful things for the world.” Owen sees the company modeling for LGBTQ+ people, youth and trans youth in particular, that they have a right to exist and that they have much beauty to bring to the world—a vital message in a world that too often seeks to exclude or target for hostility LGBTQ+ people. The company features the Windy City Gay Choir (TTBB) for tenors and basses and the Windy City Treble Quire (SSAA) for sopranos and altos. Owen explains that the spelling “Quire” is intended to highlight the queer identity of the group, for whom intersectionality is an important element as they seek to transcend the simplistic identity categories that have historically organized, say, a men’s or women’s choir. The College is proud of Professor Owen’s community leadership.