NEW FACULTY & STAFF

JEREMY DAVIS

M.F.A. Sculpture, School of the Art Institute of Chicago

Joins us from School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Jeremy is a visual artist, musician and instructor who focuses on 3D media. By combining digital technology with metalsmithing he has created handmade tuning forks which symbolically resurrect a person he has lost.

MFA Ceramics, Indiana University

Joins us from Indiana University.

Stephanie’s abstract sculptures communicate the elusive quality of human sensuality.

STEPHANIE GALLI

Assistant Professor, Sculpture

Lecturer I, Ceramics

Department of Art & Design

NICOLE GRAZIANO

M.F.A. Dramatic Arts with a specialization in Puppet Arts, University of Connecticut

Previously was Extended Day Program Coordinator, Westborough, MA Community Education Program.

Specializes in puppetry arts around the globe and has experience in developing outreach and educational programming.

MFA Visual Communications, Ecole Supérieure des Arts Ecole de Recherche Graphique (erg), Brussels

Joins us from James Madison University.

Author of award-winning book, Kommando Otl Aicher, which examines the visual identity of the 1972 Olympic Games. He is currently focusing on the epistemological consequences of computer generated imagery.

ALEXANDER NEGRELLILecturer I, Graphic Design

Lecturer I, Oral Interpretation and Theatre and Assistant Art Gallery Director

MARGARET MURPHY

M.F.A. Painting, Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers University

Joins us from Maryland Institute College of Art.

She is an artist who focuses on global and social issues affecting women and girls. Her work has been included in the Brooklyn Museum’s Feminist Art Base. Margaret’s multidisciplinary practice combines printmaking, drawing, digital images, fashion and video with painting.

Department of Art & Design

Artist in Residence

CHRIS CSONT

M.F.A. Screenwriting, Boston University

Joins us from Boston University and Wheaton College (Norton, MA) and is a consulting screenwriter.

His work was nominated for NBC’s Viral Video of the Year and was a finalist for NBC’s It’s Your Show competition. He has previously worked for the Ann Arbor Film Festival as the Operations Manager and a member of the screening committee.

Attended Alma College

Twenty years of administrative office experience, thirteen of those in education most recently at Ithaca Public Schools.

MICHELLE KALISEK

Lecturer I, Beginning & Advanced Electronic Media Writing

Administrative Assistant

School of Broadcast & Cinematic Arts

PAUL COLLINS

M.F.A. Theatre Arts, University of Iowa

Joins us from College of Charleston Department of Theatre and Dance.

Paul’s lighting design for Almost Maine was recognized by Kennedy Center’s American College Theatre Festival. He is a theatre artist and enjoys telling a story through whatever role he may play in a production.

Ph.D. Communication, Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, University of Southern California

Joins us from University of Southern California.

Tisha examines food blogs as sites for feminist politics and resistance. Her work focuses on Food Network TV shows which presents the compulsion for White women to return home to the U.S. heartland as a moral and national duty.

TISHA DEJMANEE

Assistant Professor, Scenery and Lighting Design

Assistant Professor, Media and Cultural Studies

Department of Communication & Dramatic Arts

STEPHEN HARRICK

Ph.D. Theatre, Bowling Green State University

Joins us from Ohio Northern University.

Stephen has taught Script Analysis, Performance Studies, Public Speaking and Writing classes.   He has published in Etudes, Theatre Journal, Theatre Topics, Theatre History Studies, and New England Theatre Journal, and has worked at professional theatres across the country.

Lecturer I, Oral Interpretation and Theatre

M.A. Communication & Dramatic Arts, Central Michigan University

Recently taught graduate courses in CDA. Her research interests center around communication which occurs within the unique interpersonal relationship style of Friends with Benefits Relationships.

Lecturer I, CommunicationLAURA JENNINGS

ABD Communication, University of Southern California

Joins us from University of Southern California.

His work concentrates on the topics of politics, media, culture and economics.

FLEMMING RHODELecturer I, Debate and Public Speaking

Ph.D. Theatre History & Literature, Bowling Green State University

Previously was Scholarship Coordinator, UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine.

An award-winning playwright and screenwriter, Julian won the University of Central Missouri’s Theatre for Young Audiences National Playwriting Competition. He was also a screenwriter for the award-winning docudrama, “Ear 2 tha Streetz.”

Lecturer I, Oral Interpretation and TheatrePATRICK JULIAN

M.A. Interpersonal and Public Communication, Central Michigan University

Joins us from North Central Michigan College. Sara is also an Online Instructor for Central Michigan University’s Global Campus.

Her research interests focus on communication in stepfamily systems.

Lecturer I, Intro to Communication, Intercultural Communication, Oral Communication in the Online Environment

SARA WILSON

BERNIE CESENA

B.S. Public Relations, Bowling Green State University

More than 20 years of administrative office experience, 14 of those in education most recently as Secretary, Central Michigan University’s Multicultural Academic Student Services.

MFA in Theatrical Costume Design, Wayne State University

Previously was Cutter/Draper at Mcleod Summer Playhouse and Wardrobe Intern at Meadow Brook Theatre.

Mary was a Kennedy Center’s American College Theatre Festival finalist for make-up and hair design for Violet: The Musical.

MARY GIEZTEN

Executive Secretary

Costume Shop Manager

KATHY BACKUS

B.A.A. Journalism, Central Michigan University

Owner/President of Backus Public Relations, a full-service public relations/marketing firm for more than 20 years.  Kathy has public relations experience in both the private and public sectors.  She founded online magazine, Vision Mid-Michigan.

Lecturer I, Racial and Cultural Diversity: Mass Media’s Role

B.A.A. Journalism, Central Michigan University

Most recently worked for MLive Media Group.

Jeff was a member of the MLive team who earned 207 Michigan Press Association awards in 2014 and 2015.

Lecturer I, Intro to Graphics and Visual CommunicationJEFF JOHNSTON

Department of Journalism

DAVID HALL

M.M Percussion, Eastman School of Music

Recently served as sabbatical replacement for Andrew Spencer. Before joining us at Central Michigan University he taught at Michigan State University.

An accomplished performer and recording artist, David has been the Assistant Principal Percussionist and Assistant Timpanist with the Grand Rapids Symphony Orchestra.

Lecturer I, Percussion

D.M.A. University of Cincinnati, College-Conservatory of Music

Joins us from Melody Institute of Music and Art.

Amanda has numerous international performance credits to her name which include Opera, Concert, and Solo Recitals. She has also participated in several radio broadcasts with Radio France and the Metropolitan Opera and released recordings with Callisto Records, among others.

AMANDA PABYANLecturer I, Voice

School of Music

SCOTT SCHUMANN

Ph.D. Music Theory, The University of Texas, Austin

Joins us from The University of Missouri.

Scott plays trumpet and piano and focuses on theories of music and expressive meaning, specifically music from the 20th and 21st centuries.

D.M.A. Voice, Benjamin T. Rome School of Music, Catholic University of America

Joins us from St. Mary’s College of Maryland.

Jeff has performed across North America, Europe and Asia and has won prizes in several international voice competitions, including the Jose Carreras prize in Spain. He has worked in musical theatre, film, and television.

JEFFREY SPRINGER

Assistant Professor, Music Theory

Assistant Professor, Tenor

FANGYE SUN

D.M.A. Violin Performance, Michigan State University

Previously taught at Central Michigan University, Xi’an Conservatory of Music (China) and Michigan State University Community Music School.

Fangye has given solo recitals in both Michigan and China and performs with the Grand Rapids and Lansing Symphony Orchestras. She recently received an internal grant to record a CD.

D.M.A. Viola Performance, Stony Brook University

Joins us from Stony Brook University.

Alicia was first prize winner in the David Dalton Competition and was classified as a Rising Star in the Viola Society. She is an accomplished pianist and has performed in unique venues like Carnegie Hall, an Alaskan women’s prison and, European discotheques.

ALICIA VALOTI

Assistant Professor, Violin

Assistant Professor, Viola

KATHY WHEELER

M.M.E. Central Michigan University

Joins us from McBain Rural Agricultural Schools.

Kathy has 18 years of public school teaching experience where she taught music, orchestra, band, choir and physical education.  She has her own private music studio and has instructed students in voice, piano, trumpet, trombone, flute, violin and cello.

Lecturer I, Music Education

LYNN LOSEY

Most recently was a Specialist Clerk, Central Michigan University’s Registrar’s Office.

Twenty years of administrative office experience, in both the private and public sectors.

Administrative Secretary

JODY PIERCE

B.S. Music concentration in Piano Pedagogy, Central Michigan University

Jody has her own private piano studio in addition to working with vocalists, instrumentalists, and conductors on a wide range of repertoire.

Secretary

ANDREW SPENCER

Ph.D. Performance and Literature (percussion), Eastman School of Music

Performed as a soloist in the U.S., Poland, Japan, Canada, and Costa Rica. He released “Slender Beams” a recording which features works by composer Dave Hollinden. He is a Principal Timpanist with the Lansing Symphony Orchestra and is Principal Percussionist for the Midland Symphony Orchestra. He has performed with numerous chamber ensembles and plays drum set with the CMU Faculty Jazz Ensemble whom he has recorded two CD’s: “Caught in the Act: and “Conspiracy Theory.”

D.M.A. Oboe Performance, University of Arizona

Principal oboist with the Flint Symphony Orchestra and substitutes with the Lansing and Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestras. She performed with the Colorado Symphony on the Mannheim Steamroller 2014 Christmas Tour, and the 2015 International Double Reed Society conference in Tokyo.

LINDABETH BINKLEY

Interim Associate Dean, Professor/Percussion

Assistant Dean for Student Engagement, Associate Professor/Oboe

Dean’s Office

CJ YERINGTON

M.A. Mental Health Counseling, University of Northern Iowa

Recently was Coordinator-Career Planning/Assessment & Operations, Southeast Missouri State University. Prior to that he engaged with students through residence life roles at various higher education institutions.

B.F.A. Graphic Design, Central Michigan University

Previously was Graphic Design Student Assistant for the State of Michigan where she worked on designs for the Michigan Public Service Commission website, employee presentations and various other projects.

MEGAN SCHNEIDER

Success Coach

Graphic Designer