Tenure Track
From Kenyon News - August 24, 2017
A psychologist studying video games and social media, a biologist with expertise in how birds learn to fly, and a sociologist interested in how gender intersects with inequality are among the eight professors who have received tenure track appointments for the 2017-18 academic year at Kenyon.
Anna V. Aydinyan, assistant professor of Russian
B.A. Yerevan Free University of Humanities, M.A. University of Michigan, Ph.D. Yale University
Anna Aydinyan teaches courses in Russian language, literature and film. Prior to coming to Kenyon, she taught at Trinity College and the University of Pennsylvania.
Patrick J. Ewell, assistant professor of psychology
B.A. University of Delaware, M.A. and Ph.D. University of Alabama
Patrick Ewell is interested in the psychological intersection between people and new and emerging media. He conducts research on aggression and morality in video games and the impact of social media on social behavior and self-regulation.
Leah R. Dickens, assistant professor of psychology
B.A. Connecticut College, M.A. and Ph.D. Northeastern University
Leah Dickens is a social psychologist specializing in the functions of emotions in everyday life. She was a visiting assistant professor at both Mount Holyoke College and Bowdoin College before coming to Kenyon.
Austin H. Johnson, assistant professor of sociology
B.A. University of South Carolina Upstate, M.A. and Ph.D. Kent State University
Austin Johnson’s scholarship is aimed at understanding how gender operates as an axis of inequality in contexts of health, healthcare and medicalization. He teaches courses on the sociology of health and illness, the sociology of sexualities, queer theory, research methods, and an introductory sociology course, “Institutions & Inequalities.”
David Maldonado Rivera, assistant professor of religious studies
B.A. University of Puerto Rico, M.A. and Ph.D. Indiana University Bloomington
David Maldonado Rivera offers courses that explore the development of the Christian tradition in ancient and modern times. His primary research interest focuses on the discourses surrounding the notions of orthodoxy and heresy in the later Roman Empire. Before arriving at Kenyon, he taught at Indiana University and DePauw University.
Aaron W. Reinhard, associate professor of physics
B.S. Valparaiso University, Ph.D. University of Michigan
Aaron Reinhard uses the techniques of laser cooling and trapping to study the interactions among ultracold, highly-excited atoms, also known as Rydberg atoms.
Jason Waller, associate professor of philosophy
B.A. Kent State University, M.A. and Ph.D. Purdue University
Jason Waller has many philosophical interests. His research began with a focus on the radical modern philosopher Benedict Spinoza, then his research interests shifted towards the relationship between belief in God and the modern sciences.
Natalie Wright, assistant professor of biology
B.A. and M.S. University of Florida, Ph.D. University of New Mexico
Natalie Wright studies the evolution, ecology and anatomy of birds, with a focus on flight. Wright aims to understand how flight affects bird evolution and how ecological factors drive the evolution of flight. Wright has extensive experience studying wild birds in a variety of locales in the United States, Peru, Malaysia, and Caribbean islands.