Education
PhD - University of Western Ontario
MHL - Ottawa University
MS - University of Missouri
BA - University of Minnesota
Dr. Steven Boese grew up on a small family farm (dairy, crop and stock) in rural South Dakota.  This rural upbringing has continued to influence his values and goals in the areas of sustainability and food security.  Steven received a Bachelor of Arts degree with a major in biology and minors in chemistry and geology from the University of Minnesota - Morris.  After receiving a Master of Science degree in Forestry from the University of Missouri - Columbia, he spent 5 months in the Democratic Republic of Congo (Zaire at that time) with Habitat for Humanity and African Inter Mennonite Missions.   He then obtained a PhD in Plant Sciences from the University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario.  Dr. Boese has post-doctorate experience at the Boyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research in Ithaca, NY and the Fruit and Vegetable Crops Department, Cornell University where he worked with global climate change research (before climate research became popular). 

Dr. Boese joined Ottawa University in August of 2007 as an Associate Professor of Biology and teaches a wide range of biology courses at the organism and higher levels of organization.  Additionally, Dr. Boese co-teaches an interdisciplinary course on Disaster Response, Planning and Assessment.  He is currently working with colleagues to develop an interdisciplinary course on Hunger Issues.  

Along with sailing, gardening and woodworking, Dr. Boese is very interested in community and outreach.  He is a volunteer with the American Red Cross for local fire response, and is very interested in science education for children.  He has presented numerous “Science Saturday” programs at the community library, after-school programs and scouting groups, and spearheaded the Math and Science Showcase effort that now brings about 100 high school students to campus.  Steven’s most recent efforts have focused on hunger issues including the new community garden initiative.

Education
PhD - Saybrook University
MHL - Ottawa University
MA - Bradley University
BS - Bradley University

Dr. Karen Bryson holds the faculty rank of Associate Professor of Psychology and Human Services.  Karen earned a Ph.D. in Human Science from Saybrook University and earned a Master’s degree in Counseling from Bradley University.  She is a National Certified Counselor (NCC) and a Distance Credentialed Counselor (DCC).  Karen began working at Ottawa in April of 2005.
 
Karen has extensive experience teaching Ottawa’s Liberal Arts, Psychology, and Human Services ground courses. She was also part of the initial faculty team, who helped develop Ottawa’s early online teaching standards and she has been teaching regularly for online since its start as a unit in January of 2008.  Karen also serves as a Phase I Certification instructor, a Phase II mentor and a Phase III peer reviewer for Ottawa Online.

In her personal life, Karen is an award-winning/optioned screenwriter, produced playwright and Amazon best-selling author.  Karen has been writing since she learned to read and fell in love with books.  When she's not at her computer creating new stories, Karen enjoys spending time with her husband, who is an Ottawa graduate, and their bloodhounds.

Education
PhD - Fielding Graduate University
MA - Marquette University
BS - University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Joyce A. Caldwell earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Secondary Education—English from the University of Wisconsin—Milwaukee. While working in a church in education and youth ministries, she earned a Master of Arts degree in Education—Curriculum and Instruction from Marquette University. She served as executive director of a non-profit organization for twelve years, developing resources and facilitating adult groups around the country on issues of diversity and structural racism. With that experience in hand, she returned to school and earned both a Master of Arts degree in Human Development and a Ph.D. in Human and Organizational Systems from Fielding Graduate University, with a Concentration in Transformative Learning for Social Justice. She began teaching at Ottawa University as an adjunct in 2005. She has been a full-time faculty member at OU-Wisconsin since 2007, teaching courses in the liberal arts, adult education, and ethnic relations. In April 2011, she became the Dean of Instruction in Wisconsin.
 
Joyce lives in the Milwaukee area with her husband. They have two adult sons. When she is not working, she enjoys reading, talking with friends, biking, cross-country skiing, and traveling.

Education
MM - University of Missouri, Kansas City
Bridget Clonts is a solo pianist, collaborator, teacher, and arts activist residing in Kansas City. She received her Master’s degree in Piano Performance from the conservatory at UMKC in 2012.  She is the Coordinator and a regular performer with Classical Revolution KC, an organization of young musicians bringing classical music to unconventional spaces including restaurants, record stores, and street corners. Bridget is also the founder of KC Young Musicians Roundtable, an outreach series that helps young musicians develop their professional careers. Currently, she is a member of the KC-based pop orchestra My Brothers and Sisters and has performed with the group at South by Southwest in Austin, Texas and at major festivals and venues in Kansas City.  She is on the board of Kansas City Music Teachers Association, and maintains a vibrant teaching studio in Kansas City. 

Education
MA and MBA - Ottawa University
MLS - Emporia State University
BLIS - University of Cape Town
Gloria Creed-Dikeogu has worked for Ottawa University for 10 years as Director of Library Services and was recently promoted to the rank of Associate Professor of Library Science. She received a Bachelor’s Degree in Library Science in 1986, with majors in English Literature, Library Science and Information Management and minors in Afrikaans and Archaeology, and a Higher Diploma in Education: Post Graduate: Secondary, (which is a Teachers Certification to teach High School) in 1988, from the University of Cape Town, South Africa.  Gloria spent two years teaching in high schools in Cape Town and two years working as a Public Librarian at Cape Town City Libraries prior to coming to study at the University of Kansas, where she started a Master's Degree in Speech Language Pathology. In 1994, she decided for several reasons, that it was best to revert to her old field and transferred to Emporia State University, to begin a Master's Degree in Library and Information Management, working two part-time library jobs at Lawrence Public Library and Kansas City Missouri Public Library, respectively, while completing her degree, part-time in 1999.
 
Prior to coming to Ottawa University in 2002, Gloria worked in a variety of public library settings. While at Ottawa University, she completed a Master's Degree in Human Resources in 2006 and a Master's Degree in Business Administration in 2008 at Ottawa University’s Kansas City site. She is actively involved in committee work in two professional library organizations at the National and State Level, the American Library Association and the Kansas Library Association, and is a doctoral student in the Educational Computing and Online Learning Department at Kansas State University.

Education

PhD - Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis
MSN -  University of Illinois
BSN - Northern Illinois
CNE - Certified Nurse Educator
Dr. DeWitt previously held a faculty position at Colorado Christian University in Northglenn, Colorado, where she served as a professor and the director of their RN-BSN program since 2008 . Dr. DeWitt has more than 20 years of experience in medical-surgical nursing, critical-care nursing, administration, nursing research, and nursing education. She is also active in the Nurses Christian Fellowship; the Arizona Nurses Association where she serves as a Peer Reviewer of Continuing Education; the Arizona League for Nursing as the Conference Planning Chairperson; the Arizona Organization of Nurse Executives as an education committee member; Sigma Theta Tau International; and has co-authored a book chapter in Teaching in Nursing.
 

Education

PhD - Washington University
MHL - Ottawa University
MA - Washington University
BA - Washington University
AB - Oberlin College

 

Barbara Dinneen is Professor of English and Director of the Liberal Arts Studies Program at the College campus. She received her undergraduate degree from Oberlin College in Oberlin, Ohio, double majoring in English and History.  She received her M.A. and Ph.D. in Literature from Washington University in St. Louis, emphasized medieval, 17th century, American, and 20th century British and American literature; wrote her dissertation, Knee Deep in the Thing Not Named, about the novels of Plains writer Willa Cather.  Barbara has taught writing at Washington University, French at the University of Kansas, and, for sixteen years now, literature, history, and interdisciplinary liberal arts courses here at Ottawa University.  She writes creatively (wrote a novel killing off her obstetrician titled The Doctor Came Due, and is currently working on a lively satire of university life, as yet untitled).  
 
In her spare time, Barbara throws herself into a 105 degree room to partake in Bikram yoga; she tries to appropriately parent her three children; and goes canoe-camping when she can get to real water (the Great Lakes, for example).  She has a messy office, but a big chair that she keeps clear for students who need a place to sit and drink tea.

Education
MHL - Ottawa University
MS - Cornell University
BA - Southwest Baptist University
Shannon Dyer has brought extensive education and experience to the OU communication studies division.  As an early indication of her commitment and ability, she earned a Bachelor of Science in four separate majors in four years (communication, psychology, art, and Spanish) at Southwest Baptist University (SBU).  She went on to earn a Master of Science in Communication from Cornell University and is completing doctoral studies in communication at Northwestern University.

Dyer has been an associate professor of communication with Ottawa University since 2005 and serves as chair of the communication studies division for the residential campus.  She is also the acting director of forensics and led the 2006-2007 OU forensics team to sixth place in the state of Kansas in a competition with no school divisions; one team member also walked away as state champion in an individual event.

Prior to joining OU, Dyer served as a summer program instructor at Yale University and Northwestern University and has taught courses for Cornell University, Northwestern University, Loyola University of Chicago, and Lake Forest College.  Dyer has published several articles in her field and routinely makes professional presentations at conferences around the country.  As the director of forensics at SBU, she led the 2003 team to the National Championship of Pi Kappa Delta, the largest speech and debate honor society in the country.  She has assisted with five other national championship teams.  As an undergraduate competitor, Dyer’s team went undefeated for four years, including defending the Pi Kappa Delta title.  Her award-winning speeches were featured as examples in two prominent speech textbooks.

Education
MBA - Ottawa University
MA - Emporia State University
BA - Emporia State University

George has been with Ottawa University as an advisor and adjunct instructor since February 2012.  George transitioned to full-time faculty in July of 2015.  He has a B.A. in Social Sciences, an M.A. in History, and an MBA.  He has plans to begin his PhD work in the fall of 2017.  Prior to Ottawa University, George worked as a consultant for a nonprofit organization where he was charged with reviewing policies and procedures and their implementation. 
 
George teaches a variety of courses for Ottawa University including history, finance, and the arts and sciences. Most of his time is spent working with new students in Writing and Critical Thinking which is the first class new students take.  George resides in Spring Hill, Kansas with his wife Nicole Eshnaur and their daughter Emmalyne.  In his spare time, George enjoys time at the lake with his family, sporting events, and being active outside.

Education
PhD - University of Kansas
MHL - Ottawa University
MA - University of Kansas
BA - Ottawa University

Dr. Kelly Fish-Greenlee lives in Ottawa, Kansas and is a Professor of Sociology and Human Services.  She has been teaching in the Sociology Department at Ottawa University for 25 years.  She is also a graduate of the institution.  Her undergraduate work was in Human Services and Education while her graduate work focused on symbolic anthropology and identity work.  In addition to teaching, Dr. Fish-Greenlee is also engaged with her students in the ongoing oral history project with the Ottawa Tribe of Oklahoma.  This project is part of the Ottawa University Research Service (OURS) which links students with community agencies in task oriented service learning experiences.

As an anthropologist, Dr. Fish-Greenlee has broad ranging interests and to that end, she spends part of her summer every year in the Orkney Islands, an archipelago off of the northern coast of Scotland.  These islands boast an average of three Neolithic archaeological sites per square mile.  Her colleagues and students accompany her to Orkney on a biannual basis to study both the literature and the archaeology of the islands.

Education
PhD - University of Kansas
MHL - Ottawa University
MA - University of Wyoming
BA - McPherson College


Steven Foulke holds a doctoral degree in Geography from the University of Kansas.  He earned an M.A. in American Studies from the University of Wyoming and B.A. degrees in History and English from McPherson (KS) College.  Steven is Associate Professor of History at Ottawa University at the Ottawa, KS campus.  Prior to joining Ottawa University in 2004, Steven taught at St. Lawrence University in Canton, New York, and Emporia State University in Emporia, Kansas.
 
Steven teaches a variety of American history courses at Ottawa University, as well as courses in geography, and has had the pleasure of teaching abroad on several occasions.  In 2007 and 2013 he was awarded a Fulbright Teaching Award by the Council for International Exchange of Scholars and taught American history and culture classes at the University of Saints Cyril and Methodius in Skopje, Macedonia.  In the summer of 2010 Steven traveled to Paraguay and taught a geography course at Universidad Católica Nuestra Señora de la Asunción.  And each spring since 2009 he has conducted a one-week seminar focusing on the cultural geography of the United States at Phillips Universität in Marburg, Germany.
 
Steven resides in Ottawa, Kansas with his wife, Carine Ullom.  They have two sons, Schuyler and Stefan.  In his spare time, Steven enjoys gardening, bicycling, and disc golf.

Education
PhD - Washington University
MHL - Ottawa University
MA - Washington University
BA - Lawrence University
Andrew Hazucha is Professor of English and chair of the Arts and Humanities division at Ottawa University.  A scholar of eighteenth-century British literature, he also regularly teaches interdisciplinary courses on Irish literature and history, and he has taken groups of American students to Ireland for study-abroad opportunities on ten separate occasions.  He has written over a dozen articles on topics as various as William Wordsworth, Nelson Algren, Jackie Robinson, the 1977 Chicago L-train crash, and the poetry of former Kansas City Royals pitcher Dan Quisenberry.  His essay “The Shannon Scheme, Rural Electrification, and Veiled History in Conor McPherson’s The Weir” appeared in the summer 2013 issue of New Hibernia Review.  Hazucha organizes the annual Baseball in Literature and Culture conference hosted by Ottawa University and is the co-editor, with Gerald C. Wood, of the volume Northsiders: Essays on the History and Culture of the Chicago Cubs (McFarland Press, 2008).

Education
PsyD - Argosy University
MA - The Arizona School of Professional Psychology
BA - University of Akron


Dr. Patricia Hernandez is the Director of Graduate Programs in Counseling, an Associate Professor of Professional Counseling, Lead Faculty member for Psychology, and Lead Faculty member for Counseling. Dr. Hernandez earned her Doctorate in Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Master of Arts, Clinical Psychology from The Arizona School of Professional Psychology. Dr. Hernandez is licensed as a Psychologist and Independent Substance Abuse Counselor in the State of Arizona. For over 12 years Dr. Hernandez has provided clinical supervision to associate, bachelor, master, and doctorate level students and associate level counselors. Prior to joining Ottawa University, Dr. Hernandez was employed as a substance abuse counselor in community behavioral health. Areas of interest include supervision and training, cultural concerns in counseling, and group work. Populations of interest include co-occurring, substance using, forensic, and severely mentally ill populations.

Education
MM - University of Maryland-College Park
Michael Keelan is music director at Kansas Public Radio, a news/classical NPR network in the greater Kansas City area. He hosts recordings, interviews, and live performances weekdays from 9 AM-noon. Previously he hosted Nebraska Concerts on NET Radio in Lincoln.
 
Keelan began his career as a violinist with the Lincoln Symphony and his own musical family. He attended Baldwin Wallace Conservatory near Cleveland, and was a member of the Fairfax (VA) Symphony outside Washington, D.C., while earning a master’s degree at the University of Maryland-College Park.
 
He served as full-time artist/instructor of upper strings at the Wausau (WI) Conservatory of Music from 2004-08, also conducting the Wausau Area Youth Symphony. In 2004 he began playing as concertmaster of the Green Bay Symphony, continuing until 2013, where he worked with numerous international soloists. While there, he conducted for the symphony’s youth orchestra program.
 
In the summers of 2010 and 2011 he taught and conducted at Baldwin Wallace’s Summer Music Institute, and he returned in 2014 as recitalist for the university’s nationally known festival of J.S. Bach’s music.  In 2011, he was soloist with the Sioux City (IA) Symphony in John Corigliano's Red Violin Chaconne, and in 2012 served as guest concertmaster of Lincoln’s Symphony Orchestra for the convention of the International Clarinet Association.
 
From 2011-15 he played extensively for the Omaha Symphony and became a member, concurrently teaching strings at Concordia University-Nebraska. He worked regularly as a coach and adjudicator with Omaha and Nebraska all-state youth orchestras.

Education
DNP - University of Kansas (in progress)
MHSA - University of Kansas
MSN - University of Kansas
BSN - University of Kansas
AS - Kansas City Community College
Kathy Kump, Director of Nursing, has been a registered nurse for over 25 years and completed her academic degrees at the University of Kansas, including Bachelor of Science in Nursing, Master of Health Services Administration, and a Master of Science in Nursing, and she is presently enrolled in the University of Kansas Doctor of Nursing Practice program.  She is a certified wound, ostomy, and continence nurse, as well as a certified family nurse practitioner.

Kathy started her nursing career at Bethany Medical Center, Kansas City as a staff nurse on a Medical-Surgical/Orthopedic Unit and has since served in other staff nurse roles, including Intensive Care.  She has 16 years of inpatient and outpatient clinical, managerial, and program development experience in the specialty of wound care, having been involved in the implementation of outpatient wound care clinics at Saint Luke’s Northland Hospital, Kansas City; Stormont-Vail Hospital, Topeka; and Overland Park Regional Medical Center, Overland Park, Kansas. She also assisted in the development and the first successful accreditation of the outpatient Diabetes Education Department at Saint Luke’s Northland Hospital.

In addition, Kathy has previous clinical adjunct teaching experience at both Kansas City Kansas Community College and Johnson County Community College Schools of Nursing, and held a Nurse Educator position at Saint Luke’s South Hospital in Overland Park, Kansas. She remains actively involved in the Wound Management Academy at the VA Eastern Kansas Health Care System, in which she has assisted in teaching registered nurses to become certified in wound care (the Wound Management Academy is only one of eight nationally accredited wound care educational programs of its kind in the United States).

Kathy has been married to her husband, Alex, for 24 years and has five children.

Education
MHL - Ottawa University
MA - University of Kansas
BA - Ottawa University
Frank Lemp’s interest in art started as a child while attending primary school in Klosterneuburg, a city just outside of Vienna. He remembers being overwhelmed by the Baroque art inside the local cathedral and its Gothic architecture. Herr Eidenberger, Frank’s art instructor, was one of his early mentors. He admires his skill and enthusiasm, which he tries to emulate in his work.  Another influence was Frank’s father, a bit of a Renaissance man, he seemed to be able to do or make anything. He was a master blacksmith, and although his art was practical, he did not hesitate to comment on things like beauty.

As a teenager Frank’s family emigrated to New York and he attended high school on Long Island, where his interest in the arts was nurtured by terrific teachers and of course the culture of the New York metropolitan area. Album covers, posters and graffiti probably influenced his aesthetic as much as visits to the MOMA and the Metropolitan.

While in college, Frank attempted to integrate all of his influences and to develop a more personal means of expression. He also learned about the Liberal Arts. This approach to education convinced him that it’s best to allow many different materials and experiences to shape ones artistic work.

Frank has made and taught art through the Modern, Post-modern and Meta-modern phases or paradigms. Computer technology is part of our lives, it allows us to access the recorded past, preserve the present and project into the future with great ease. Predictably, we now seem to oscillate between eras and styles at a pace that is not sustainable. Also the cult of personality, hype and the market seem to influence the arts far too much.

Frank hopes his teaching gives students a basis by which to understand these trends and to some degree comment on them.

Education
MM; MA, University of Missouri - Kansas City
BM, Bethel College
 
Aaron Linscheid is a trumpet performer and educator based in Kansas City and a music faculty member at Ottawa University, where he teaches applied trumpet. He has also directed the Braves Pep Band and taught the course Jazz in America at OU. In addition to his work as an educator, Aaron is also an accomplished performer.  Recent performances include with his own trio, the Diamond Empire Band and performances of original works with Clint Ashlock’s New Jazz Order.  He has also played in the Michael Pagán Big Band. Aaron enjoys teaching younger students in his role as a faculty member at the Village Music Academy in Prairie Village, KS. 

Aaron earned a Bachelor’s in Music at Bethel College before completing two Master’s degrees–one in Trumpet Performance and the other in Jazz Studies –at the University of Missouri Kansas City Conservatory of Music and Dance.  Before moving to Kansas City, Aaron spent several summers in the Education Department of the New York Philharmonic. In his free time, Aaron enjoys spending time with his wife, two sons and two dogs.  He loves the vibrant musical community that he has found in Kansas City and is excited to share his passion for music with the student, faculty and alumni of Ottawa University.

Education
MA - Hofstra University
BA - Webster University
Ryan Louis received his bachelor’s degree in film production from Webster University and a Master of Arts in Speech Communication: Rhetoric and Performance Studies from Hofstra University.  His past experience includes post-production coordinator for MTV Networks; senior coordinator for MTV Networks International, VH1 and MTV News; and general post production for the Academy Award winning documentary Born into Brothels. 

 

Education
BS, MS, and PhD - Southern Illinois University


Jeff McCreight holds a Doctor of Philosophy degree from Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois. Jeff has been an educator in undergraduate mathematics since 1994, having taught the spectrum of undergraduate mathematics courses at three different schools.   He currently is the lead faculty for Mathematics at Ottawa University and resides in Ottawa, Kansas with his beautiful wife, Jill.  His passion is for all things mathematics.

Education
PhD - Fuller Theological Seminary
MHL - Ottawa University
MDiv - Central Baptist Theological Seminary
MA - University of Kansas
BS - University of Kansas
Dr. Rich Menninger is currently the Andrew B. Martin Chair of Religion and Chair for the Department of Theological and Religious Studies.  He earned his bachelor’s degree in mathematics and his master’s in mathematics education from the University of Kansas; a Master of Divinity from Central Baptist Theological Seminary in Kansas City, Kan.; and his doctorate in theology from Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, Calif.
 
Dr. Menninger has been teaching at the college level for the past 25 years.  His previous experiences include teaching secondary mathematics, the New Testament and religion.  While at Ottawa University, he has served as associate professor of mathematics and religion.
 
Dr. Menninger’s research experience includes presenting papers at the Oxford Round Tables in summer 2008 and spring 2010.

Education
PhD - University of Wisconsin-Madison
MHL - Ottawa University
MA - University of Northern Colorado
BA - Doane College

Rhoda Miller, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor of Psychology at Ottawa’s Wisconsin campus.  Dr. Miller earned her doctorate in Counseling Psychology and Counselor Education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.  She has been an educator for 40 years and worked part-time as a psychologist in private practice for 20 years.  She teaches liberal arts and psychology courses and has served as the Adjunct Faculty Coordinator at the Wisconsin campus for several years.  She is looking forward to teaching in the Master of Arts in Counseling program when it is offered in Wisconsin in the Fall of 2013.  In her free time, Dr. Miller loves to travel, be on or in water, and spend time in nature.

Education
PhD - University of Kansas
MHL - Ottawa University
MPh - University of Kansas
MA - Kansas State University
BA - Kansas State University
After earning his BA degree in French with a minor in German and music at Kansas State University, Dr. Mordy studied for one year as a Fulbright in Paris and Lille, France.  The next year he returned to K-State as a Ford Foundation Scholar to pursue his MA in French.  One year later Dr. Mordy began his doctorate in French language and literature with a minor in German at the University of Kansas on a NDEA Title IV scholarship, completing all requirements in 1979. 

Following his two-year teaching position as a teaching assistant at KU, Dr. Mordy taught French at West Texas State University.  Since 1973 he has been teaching foreign languages at Ottawa University, namely French and Spanish, and serving university wide as the International Student Advisor.  Dr. Mordy is also the Chapel supervisor and advisor to the Whole Earth Club and Sigma Alpha.  He has received several awards including the OU Board of Trustees Award for Excellence; honorary membership in the OU Alumni Association; two study abroad scholarships from the American Association of Teachers of French to study in Quebec, Canada, and France; and the prestigious rank of Chevalier in the Palmes Académiques from the French Government. 

In his limited free time Dr. Mordy plays violin in the OU Orchestra, exchanges correspondence with former international students and attends occasional plays and concerts in Kansas City or sees selected movies.  

Education
PhD - University of Kansas
MHL - Ottawa University
MA - New York University
BA and BFA - University of Tennessee

Dr. Karen Ohnesorge is currently the Dean of Instruction at The College and assistant professor of English.  She earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts and Bachelor of Arts from the University of Tennessee, both with highest honors.  She earned her master’s in English-creative writing from New York University and her doctorate in English from the University of Kansas.

She has served as adjunct instructor for Neosho County Community College Extension in Ottawa, Quinsigamond Community College in Worcester, Mass. and Johnson County Community College. 

Dr. Ohnesorge’s past experience involves assistant editor for the American Art Review, director for the Academic Achievement Center in Ottawa, project assistant and support services coordinator for Supportive Educational Services/Student Support Services at the University of Kansas, project coordinator for TRIO Dissemination Partnership & Dean’s Scholars Program and associate director of Academic Programs for Excellence at the University of Kansas, and director of the Center for Excellence at OU.

Dr. Ohnesorge has extensive published works, has conducted several conference presentations, and holds many honors including OU’s College Class of 1966 Award from the Senior Class for having “changed lives and challenged students to achieve.”

Education
DMus, Northwestern University
MA - Kent State University
BM - Kent State University 
Michael Pagán is Associate Professor of Music and serves as Interim Chair of the Music Department at Ottawa University. He received his Doctor of Music degree in composition from Northwestern University; his Master of Arts in composition and Bachelor of Music in Music Education were earned at Kent State University.

Dr. Pagán teaches courses in theory, composition, arranging and piano in classical and jazz contexts. He also directs the University’s vocal jazz ensemble, Bravo! He has performed as a jazz pianist for nearly forty years throughout the United States and in Europe with a long list of notable jazz musicians, has recorded ten CDs as a leader and appears as a sideman on numerous others.

While a graduate student at Kent State University, he won first prize in the New Music For Young Ensembles composer’s competition, which included a Carnegie Hall premiere. Doctoral work in composition at Northwestern followed, and soon Pagán was playing the jazz clubs of Chicago and was mentioned in Downbeat as a musician “deserving wider recognition.” He has also performed on the historic steamer Delta Queen on the Mississippi River. He performs regularly at numerous venues in Kansas City and surrounding regions, including a regular weekly solo piano engagement at Café Trio, where he is in his ninth year, and, since 2014, periodic appearances of the Mike Pagán Big Band.

He has held faculty positions at Olivet College, the University of Minnesota-Duluth, the University of Colorado at Boulder, and UMKC. Michael Pagán's recorded music appears on the Cadence, Capri, Dutch Music Partners, Tapestry and Artists Recording Collective labels and his music is published by Dutch Music Partners of The Netherlands and UNC Jazz Press.
 
Visit www.michaelpaganmusic.com

Education
MHL - Ottawa University
MA - Northern Arizona University
BA - Ottawa University
AA - Gateway Community College
Fred Romero currently serves as the Dean of Instruction (DOI) for both Arizona campuses and Ottawa Online.  He started with Ottawa University in 1981 as an adjunct faculty member in Psychology. In 1988 he was offered a full-time faculty position as an Assistant Professor of Psychology. Prior to becoming the Academic Dean for Online Education in 2008 serving the entire university, Romero served as a faculty member, Dean, and Coordinator of Academic Operations for the Arizona campuses. He was assigned as the DOI for both Arizona and Online in September of 2012. Fred is one of OU’s pioneering online instructors who initially gained experience in online teaching in 2000 with Arizona’s first totally online offering in Police Science in partnership with Rio Salado College.
 
Prior to accepting the full-time faculty position at Ottawa University, Romero served three years as the Political Research Director and Legislative Lobbyist for the Arizona Public Employees Association/American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (APEA/AFSCME). Working at the union’s council level for the entire state of Arizona, he was instrumental in increasing legislative support for public employee sponsored bills.  Beginning with only three legislators scoring over 90% support on bills, Romero saw this number increase to 53 legislators scoring over 90% on public employee issues before resigning his position to accept a faculty position with OU. In a farewell news article to Fred, the union reported, “What Fred brought to APEA/AFSCME was a propensity for fact-finding when it might have been easier to guesstimate information, a strong sense of propriety and fair play when it might have been tempting to engage in rough-and-tumble politics, and a quiet force of courtesy and cordiality when different personalities might have shouted in frustration.”
 
Prior to working with APEA/AFSCME, Romero served fourteen years in the behavioral health field. His experiences during this period included serving as a Mental Health Worker where he eventually became a unit director of a federally funded operant conditioning program at the Arizona State Hospital from 1970 to 1975. From 1975 to 1981, Romeo served as a trainer and program specialist on two federal grant programs funded by NIMH and NIH dealing with the chronically mentally ill for the Department of Health, Division of Behavioral Health Services. Romero was also a certified trainer for NIMH, NCAE, and NIH for federally developed training programs in individual and group counseling techniques. From 1981 to 1984, he served as the Director for a federal project dealing with research in counseling professions in Arizona and eventually served as the Director for the Department of Health subvention services for agencies dealing with children with emotional problems before resigning from state service in 1984.

Romero is a veteran where he served in the US Army under a three-year voluntary elistment.  He served two tours in Vietnam from 1966 to 1968 with a 1st Cavalry Division reconnaissance unit.
 
Romero earned his AA in Mental Health Technology in 1972 and is a 1980 graduate of Ottawa University with a BA in Psychology. He earned his MA in Education/Counseling from Northern Arizona University in 1981. In recognition of his service as a faculty member, he earned his Master of Humane Letters from OU in 1995 and became tenured. In 1998, Romero completed faculty development through the MLE Institute at Harvard University.  Romero took doctoral studies in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies from Arizona State University.
 
Romero, who resides in Glendale, Arizona, is married to Kim Coffman-Romero who is a Professor of Education with OU. They are parents of five adult sons; three are OU graduates.

Education
PhD - Northeastern University
MS - Northeastern University
BS - Northeastern University
Dr. Dennis J. Tyner joined Ottawa University in January 2007 as Vice President and Provost of The College.  He has been teaching at the collegiate level since 1986 when he began lecturing at Northeastern University in Boston, MA.  Immediately prior to coming to Ottawa University, Dr. Tyner served for 8 years as the Dean of The David Crawford School of Engineering at Norwich University, the oldest private military college in the nation.  In that capacity, he helped to reverse a decade long trend of declining enrollment and was able to substantially increase the number of undergraduate engineering students enrolled at the school.  During that time he was instrumental in the development of new undergraduate program offerings, he designed an annual Engineering Summer Camp and a semi-annual Engineering Showcase, and he established the school’s first on-line graduate program.

Dr. Tyner grew up in Boston, MA and earned his BS, MS, and PhD degrees in Electrical Engineering from Northeastern University in 1985, 1986, and 1992, respectively.  His primary research focused on applying digital communication methods in magnetic storage systems to increase the storage capacity of magnetic media.  He published several articles on his research and presented his results at national and international conferences.  While pursuing his BS and MS degrees, Dr. Tyner was employed by GTE as a member of the Radio Products Group of their Communication Systems Division, and during that time he was part of a team that developed the secure communication radios for the aircraft carrier, the USS Enterprise, and for the NASA Space Shuttle.

After earning his doctorate, Dr. Tyner joined the faculty at Norwich University as an Assistant Professor of Electrical Engineering where he developed and taught new courses in communications and digital signal processing.  In addition to his academic work, he served Norwich University in several other areas during his 14 year employment with them, including admissions, facilities operations, student activities, and athletics.  He also served as a textbook reviewer for Prentice Hall and authored two solutions manuals for electric circuits textbooks that he evaluated.

Dr. Tyner is a member of Tau Beta Pi, the National Engineering Honor Society, and he served as advisor to Norwich’s student chapter from 1994 to 2006.  He was instrumental in helping the chapter achieve national recognition, as they were twice voted as the runner-up and twice voted the R.C. Matthews Most Outstanding Chapter.   In 1997, Dr. Tyner was nominated for, and received, the Tau Beta Pi Most Outstanding Advisor Award.  That same year, he was also selected to serve the organization as a facilitator for their award-winning Engineering Futures program, and he travels to schools across the nation to deliver seminars on public speaking, interpersonal skills, analytical problem solving, meeting management, and team chartering.

Dr. Tyner and his wife Patricia have 8 children and they reside with 5 of them in Ottawa, KS.  One of his children (Kristi) and his wife are graduates of Ottawa University, and three of his children (Kandi, David, and Kevin) are currently enrolled in courses at the Ottawa campus.

Education
PhD - University of North Dakota School of Medicine
BA - University of Wisconsin-River Falls
Dr. Thomas Wiese teaches chemistry and biology courses at the college, in addition to responsibilities to other areas of the University.  After completing his undergraduate degree in Biochemistry, he graduated with a PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the University of North Dakota School of Medicine in 1990.  Prior to joining Ottawa University he held positions in the Pathology Department at Washington University School of Medicine and Internal Medicine Department at the University of Iowa College of Medicine. He taught for 19 years at Fort Hays State University where he was a tenured Professor of Chemistry.
 
Dr. Wiese’s primary research interest is in the metabolism of L-fucose.  In his career he has received nearly one million dollars in funding from both the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and National Science Foundation (NSF).  He has worked with more than
65 undergraduate and high school students as well as chairing two graduate student committees.  He and his students have authored 27 abstracts, 14 full length manuscripts and one book chapter.
 
A native of Wisconsin, Dr. Wiese has also lived in North Dakota, Missouri and Iowa before landing in Kansas.  In his spare time he enjoys walks with his wife and golden retriever. He has a variety of hobbies including woodworking, gardening, leather work and reading. Professionally he is involved with the American Association for the Advancement of Science, American Society of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, and the American Chemical Society, where he has held a number of leadership positions.

Education
DMA - University of Kansas
DA - University of Northern Colorado
MA - Stephen F. Austin State University
BM - Arizona State University
Todd Wilkinson is the Instructor of Saxophone and Director of Jazz Studies at Ottawa University in Ottawa, Kansas. He is a native of Kansas City, a devoted husband and father of three, and a free-lance musician/composer living in Overland Park, Kansas. For more than thirty years, Wilkinson has dedicated himself to the promotion and development of music and young musicians. He has a passion for all styles of saxophone performance and is a respected member of the Kansas City musical community.
 
Wilkinson discovered his love for music in the Kansas Unified School District 512, when he began playing saxophone in the fourth grade band (1969). He graduated from Shawnee Mission Northwest High School (1978), where he was inspired to a musical career by Lynn Harrington, Director of Bands, and Choir Director, Jim Ballard. Wilkinson’s college saxophone experience includes a Bachelor of Music from Arizona State University (1983), under the tutelage of Dr. Joseph Wytko, a Master of Arts from Stephen. F. Austin State University (1986), studying with Dr. John Goodall and Dr. Robert (Bob) Miller, two years of doctoral work at the University of Northern Colorado (1986-8) studying with Professor Roger Greenburg, and a Doctor of Musical Arts at the University of Kansas (2007) where he did extensive study with Professor Vincent Gnojek.
 
As a jazz performer, Wilkinson’s major teachers include pianists Dr. Tom Ferguson, Dr. Robert Washut, Dr. Robert Miller, and Professor Chuck Marohnic at Arizona State University. In Texas, he spent time with M. Eugene Hall, founder of the jazz program at the University of North Texas, and worked closely with Trumpeter/ Arranger, G. Darrell Holt. Later at the University of Northern Colorado he was associated with Professor Daniel Gailey, and I.A.J.E. Hall of Fame member, Dr. Gene Aitken.
 
Wilkinson’s past tenure includes: Board membership on the Topeka Jazz Workshop, Inc., Artistic Director for the Coleman Hawkins Legacy Jazz Festival, and Director of Jazz Studies and Instructor of Saxophone at Washburn University (2000-05). His earlier work in Kansas City included stints as the President of the Kansas City Jazz Ambassadors (1991-93), Board Member of the Kansas City Jazz Commission, and Owner/Operator of the Drum Room jazz club (1994-95). Wilkinson has also done freelance work for the International Association of Jazz Educators and the Grammy Awards. From 1994-2000 he was the bandleader of the award-winning Bokomaru, and is very proud of their CD entitled, Dreamland (2000).
 
Wilkinson’s publications include: The Kansas City Jazz and Blues Nightlife Survival Kit -1992, Premier Quatour, Op. 53 Jean-Baptiste Singelee (1812-1875) an Analytical Overview of the First S.A.T.B. Saxophone Quartet - 2004, William P. Latham’s Sisyphus 1971: An Analysis Using Common Tone Networks – 2005, and Frank Trumbauer’s Saxophone Studies and Modern Solos for Saxophone: Compositions by the Hot Jazz Virtuoso and Their Place within the American Saxophone Tradition - 2006. He is currently working on an outline of Practical Assessments for Young Musicians.
 
Wilkinson has conducted Honors Jazz Bands throughout the Midwest and has worked as a clinician/adjudicator in Washington State, Kansas, Oklahoma, Iowa, Texas, Colorado, and Missouri. He has appeared as a sideman with scores of major performers, most notably Mel Torme, Joe Williams, Patti Page, Kevin Mahogany, the Kansas City Chiefs T.D. Pack Band, the Temptations, Diane Schurr, Karrin Allyson, Natalie Cole, and Wayne Newton.