About WGU Faculty

About WGU Faculty

The faculty at WGU is committed to WGU’s unique student-centric, competency-based approach that places the greatest emphasis on student learning. Because learning at WGU is personalized, we do not use typical online group classes that are dependent upon fixed schedules or group pacing. Instead, each student is guided and assisted through the learning experience by faculty serving different capacities:

Student Mentors
For each student the primary faculty support is a personally assigned Student Mentor. The role of the Student Mentor is to provide continuous academic support from the moment an individual becomes a student to the time he or she graduates. This involves regularly scheduled academic progress conversations weekly or biweekly and active involvement in other aspects of the student’s academic career. While not an expert in all subjects, the student mentor guides the student through the overall program and offers coaching and practical advice.

Course Mentors
Course Mentors are subject matter experts who support students as they engage specific sections of the WGU curriculum. The type and intensity of instructional support varies based upon the needs of each student in a particular course, from help with specific questions that arise to more fully engaged tutorial support. Course Mentors do not develop WGU courses (this is a product management responsibility). They are expected to bring WGU courses of study to life with students via one-to-many or one-to-one forums. Their experience and training is specific to the courses they support. They are knowledgeable and can address any issue that might arise related to a course, a learning resource, or an assessment.

Program Faculty
Program faculty at WGU do not teach but are academic experts with primary responsibility for defining the essential competencies for each subject area, working with our expert academic councils, developing courses of study, identifying the best learning resources, and working alongside the Course Mentors and Student Mentors to facilitate student learning and success.

A Diverse Group of Qualified Faculty
As of 2011, WGU employed over 700 full-time faculty, plus over 100 part-time faculty, serving in one of several faculty roles. About three-fourths of student mentors and over 95 percent of course mentors have earned a graduate degree. For course mentors and academic program management that typically means a Ph.D., Ed.D., or other form of doctorate or professional degree. The following is a partial list of the faculty members who bring to WGU their diverse educational backgrounds.

BUSINESS

Scott Allred, Ph.D. University of Utah
Linda Gunn, Ph.D. Union Institute University Graduate School, Cincinnati
Ralph Orr, A.B.D. Oregon State University
Debra Payne, Ph.D. University of Minnesota
Harry Percupchick, Ph.D. University of Phoenix
Rungrudee Suetorsak, Ph.D. University of Utah
Adam Vester, Ph.D. University of Utah
Keith Wade, Ph.D. North Central University
Deborah Ward, D.BA University of Phoenix

HEALTH PROFESSIONS

Veronica Abdur-Rahman, Ph.D. Texas Woman's University
Juanita G. Allen, D.N.P. University of Utah
Bonnie Beardsley, Ph.D. Walden University
Mary Harper, Ph.D. University of Central Florida
Sue Hunter, Ed.D. University of Northern Colorado
Brenda Luther, Ph.D. University of Utah
Alison Stull, Ph.D. University of Nebraska
Virginia Townsend, Ed.D. Nova Southeastern University

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

Yolanda Dupree, A.B.D. Nova Southeastern University
Junhua Jia, Ph.D. Wayne State University
Christine Kowalski, Ed.D. National Louis University
Jackie Brewer, Ph.D. Capella University
Leslie Vance, Ph.D. Pennsylvania State University

LIBERAL ARTS

Bryan Benson, Ph.D. Boston College
Richard Harmston, Ph.D. University of Michigan
Mark Johnston, Ed.D. University of Massachusetts
Emily Morishima, Ph.D. University of California
Murphy Nmezi, M.D. University of Vienna
David Ouellette, Ph.D. Virginia Commonwealth University
Erin Smith, Ph.D. University of London
Kamille Stone Stanton, Ph.D. University of Leeds
Kelly Thrippleton-Hunter, Ph.D. University of California, Riverside
Alison Walker, Ph.D. University of California

TEACHER EDUCATION

Kathleen Allspaw, Ph.D. Indiana University
Paul Anderson, Ed.D. University of Melbourne
Purisima Capadocia, Ed.D. West Visayas State University
Mario Castro, Ph.D. Arizona State University
Debra Dukes, Ed.D. University of Georgia
Jane Evanson, Ph.D. Florida State University
Alberto Flores, Ed.D. Grand Canyon University
Heidi Franco, Ph.D. University of Utah
Jeffrey Gentry, A.B.D. University of Southern Mississippi
Jennifer Geringer, Ph.D. University of Wyoming
Evelyn Giddens, Ed.D. Capella University
Brenna Gillman-McDonald, Ph.D. University of Utah
Jose Gomez, A.B.D. Utah State University
Harold Heap, D.MA University of Illinois
Alexis Hernandez, Ph.D. University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Tontaleya Ivory, Ed.D. Nova Southeastern University
Alisa Izumi, Ed.D. University of Massachusetts
Lenora Johnson, Ed.D. Nova Southeastern University
Kevin Johnson, Ph.D. Samford University
Dorothee Kocks, Ph.D. Brown University
William Leinbach, Ed.D. Oregon State University
Cynthia Leshin, Ph.D. Arizona State University
Timothy Martin, Ed.D. University of Southern California
Patricia McCarver, Ph.D. California Institute of Integral Studies
Monika Nathan, A.B.D. Argosy University
Penny Roberts, Ed.D. Pepperdine University
Lesele Rose, Ph.D. Capella University
Roberta Ross-Fisher, Ph.D. Saint Louis University
Stan Schmidt, Ph.D. Mississippi State University
Vincent Shrader, Ph.D. Brigham Young University
Kristin Spencer, Ph.D. University of Florida
Judy St Martin, Ph.D. Michigan State University
Colleen Story, Ph.D. Capella University
Mari Tinney, Ph.D. Utah State University
Hector Vasquez, Ed.D. University Stillwater, Oklahoma
Gideon Weinstein, Ph.D. Indiana University
Jarral Yokley, Ph.D. University of Missouri

PROGRAM MANAGEMENT and ADMINISTRATION

Veronica Abdur-Rahman, Ph.D. Texas Woman's University
Nanette Black, Ph.D. Wayne State University
Gloria Blatti, D.O.C. Columbia University
Lois Bobo, Ph.D. Brigham Young University
Gwendolyn Britton, Ph.D. candidate Nova Southeastern University
Dan Eastmond, Ph.D. Syracuse University
John Gantz, Ed.D. University of Southern California
Kurt Gunnell, Ph.D. Kansas State University
Mary Harper, Ph.D. University of Central Florida
Cassandra Holifield, Ph.D. Georgia State University
Robert Hunt, Ph.D., J.D. University of Utah
Rebecca Johnston, Ph.D. Texas Tech
Conrad Lotze, Ph.D. American University
Stacey Ludwig Johnson, Ph.D. University of Colorado
Robert Mendenhall, Ph.D. Brigham Young University
Charles Paddock, Ph.D. University of Houston
Sheryl Phillips, Ph.D. University of Utah
Carrie Pottinger, Ph.D. Capella University
Jose Rodriguez, Ed.D. University of Washington
Robert Rustad, Ph.D. University of Minnesota
Philip Schmidt, Ph.D. Syracuse University
Janet Schnitz, Ed.D. Illinois State University
James Schnitz, Ph.D. Northwestern University
Brent Smith, Ph.D. Ball State University
Sean Spear, Ed.D. Fielding Graduate University
Carol Speyerer, M.D. Nova Southeastern University
Scarlette Studdard, Ph.D. University of Georgia
Alison Stull, Ph.D. University of Nebraska
Virginia Townsend, Ed.D. Nova Southeastern University
Gregory Waddoups, Ph.D. University of Illinois
Sherri Johnson, Ph.D. Capella University

ASSESSMENT and EVALUATIONS

Arnold Adler, Ed.D. Northern Arizona
Ryan Albertsen, J.D. New England Law School
John Avella, D.O.C. Nova Southeastern University
Mikala Beig, Ph.D. Rice University
Keith Burton, Ph.D. Northwestern University
Lisa Cantrell, Ed.D. University of Sarasota
Michael Cassidy, Ph.D. University of Illinois
Judy Dallman, Ph.D. Capella University
Lorretta Davis, Ph.D. Capella University
Verl Dennis, Ph.D. Ohio State University
Flora Flood, D.O.C. University of Tennessee
Marlene Goss, Ph.D. Walden University
Jeffrey Grill, Ed.D. Florida State University
Doug Harris, Ph.D. Brigham Young University
Frederic Hartford, Ph.D. Florida State University
Glenn Haslem, Ed.D. George Fox University
Jonathan Hebertson, Ph.D. Arizona State University
Mary Holmgren, Ph.D. University of Missouri
Peggy Orr Jessee, Ph.D. University of Alabama
Chester Jones, D.O.C. University of Alabama
Tara McNealy, Ph.D. University of Arizona
Melissa Miller, Ed.D. Walden University
Laura Ann Miller, Ph.D. New York University
James Minor, Ed.D. Oklahoma State University
Frank Mora, Ed.D. University of Southern California
Tiffani Nieusma, Ph.D. Northcentral University
James O'Connor, A.B.D. Utah State University
Jonathan Palmer, J.D. Gonzaga University
Denise Pfeiffer, Ph.D. University of Utah
Joellyn Pollock, Ph.D. Arizona State University
Allison Pomeroy, J.D. Brigham Young University
Totumoh Powell, Ph.D. Tennessee State University
Mary Rhodes, Ed.D. University of Utah
Douglas Richards, Ph.D. Brigham Young University
Jesse Shelkey, Ph.D. University of Utah
Karen Tidler, Ph.D. University of New Mexico
Darby Ullyatt, Ed.D. Seton Hall University
Catherine Ulrich, Ph.D. University of California, Santa Barbara
Diantha Watts, Ed.D. St. John Fisher College
Steven Williams, Ph.D. University of Oregon
Blaine Wilson, Ed.D. University of Minnesota

WGU's headquarters are located in Salt Lake City, Utah, and the university has offices in Phoenix, Arizona; Indianapolis, Indiana; Seattle, Washington; and Austin, Texas. However, many of WGU's faculty and staff work from their homes. See where WGU's employees are located.