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Lehigh has welcomed a diverse group of new faculty for the 2024-2025 academic year.
Learn about new faculty members on campus this fall.
Christina Tatu
Marcus Smith '25
A distinctive group of new faculty members joined the Lehigh community for the 2024-25 academic year. They include those who have been in academia for decades, those who recently earned their Ph.D., those who moved from overseas, and others who have been living and working in the Lehigh Valley.
“Each academic year, Lehigh welcomes an extraordinary group of new faculty with varied backgrounds and experiences,” said Nathan Urban, provost and senior vice president for academic affairs. “This year’s diverse cohort includes humanists, social scientists, engineers and scholars of business, science and health. They join us from a wide array of institutions, bringing new expertise and perspectives to the research and education that happens at Lehigh. I hope you will join me in welcoming these new educators and researchers to the Lehigh community.”
Continue reading to learn more about these outstanding scholars, their research, teaching and why they chose to join Lehigh.
What are your research interests?
Rhetoric and composition, lyric theory, poetry and poetics, romantic literature, women’s studies and undergraduate research.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
ENGL001, ENGL002, ENGL011.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
Georgia Institute of Technology.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
The element of teaching that I enjoy the most is interacting with students and collaborating to find connections between their interests and the topics of our course.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
I chose Lehigh because of the welcoming community of faculty, staff and students here.
What are your research interests?
Camp, popular culture, performance, rhetoric, LGBTQIA+, identity, pedagogy and writing.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
Writing 001 and Writing 002.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
Rollins College.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
I mainly teach first-year students. I love guiding them, helping them learn the skills they need to be successful in college and helping them feel heard when they’re struggling with the adjustment.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
[I was drawn to] the English department and the opportunities I have to teach courses that align more clearly with my particular studies. I was also looking for a long-term career, rather than short-term appointments, and Lehigh is in a location that better suits my needs. I have also been teaching at a private college and I love the sense of community.
What are your research interests?
Computer engineering.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
ECE401.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
Ph.D., Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Maryland, College Park, 2020.
What was your previous institution?
University of Maryland, College Park.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
Interacting with students.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
[Lehigh is a] great Institution.
What are your research interests?
Music composition, film music.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
Philharmonic Orchestra, Foundations of Music.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
Missouri University of Science and Technology.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
Sharing music with students and creating meaningful musical experiences.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
[I chose Lehigh for its] rich musical legacy and commitment to the arts.
What are your research interests?
Environmental history, environmental justice, modern Middle East, water, pollution and development.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
Environmental History.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
Cardiff University.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
Learning with brilliant students.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
The history department seems like a fantastic home for my research.
What are your research interests?
Protestant Christianity in francophone Caribbean, transnational Korean religions, migration, gender studies and theory and method of religion.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
Religion, Superstition and Film.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
Lehigh University (as a postdoctoral fellow).
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
Students’ energy and intellect.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
Lehigh provides a great work environment as an interdisciplinary research university.
What are your research interests?
Algebraic combinatorics.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
Probability & Statistics, and Prep for Calculus.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them ?
What was your previous institution?
College of William & Mary.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
Discovering, alongside students, new ways to view, teach and learn mathematics.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
I enjoyed my time in graduate school living in the Lehigh Valley, I appreciate the many available resources the university offers, and this position allows me to be close to family.
What are your research interests?
Biostatistics, GIScience, visualization and infectious diseases.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
POPH 001-010 Intro to Population & Public Health.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
Drexel, University of Pennsylvania and University of North Carolina at Charlotte.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
Motivating students to learn something new and develop critical thinking.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
It is an excellent university in close proximity to Philadelphia.
What are your research interests?
Capital markets.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
Fin 328, MBA 453, MBA 461.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
University of Kentucky.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
Connecting with students.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
Great student base, closer to home.
What are your research interests?
International organizations, diplomacy, United Nations, climate politics and agenda-setting.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
Intro to International Relations, International Organizations.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
Princeton University’s Niehaus Center for Globalization and Governance.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
Helping students uncover and develop their own research interests.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
I am excited to work with top-notch undergraduates and to be in a supportive research environment.
What are your research interests?
Primarily, I am a democratic theorist with an emphasis on continental thought and American political thought. My work examines how ‘democracy’ has been taken up conceptually and historically, mainly within the American republic. Assessing American democracy beyond the liberal and republican paradigms, I seek to explore how moments of democratic energy and eruptions are scattered across the lifespan of the American experiment in self-government. I’m also researching the potential that storytelling—through oral traditions and from cinema and literature—maintains within the democratic imaginary.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
I’ll be teaching a wide array of courses within our political theory subfield. These include classes such as Introduction to Political Thought, Politics of Authenticity, Philosophy, and American Political Thought.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
I’m joining Lehigh University after four years of teaching at Merced College in the Central Valley of California. There, I had the incredible opportunity to develop the political science program and curriculum at our main campus and for incarcerated students at two state prisons.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
Teaching is the lifeblood of the profession. It is an experience that transforms how students see themselves and the world around them. Exploring political theory texts with students creates a vital, intimate space where the members of the classroom not only form a community, but also grapple with how ideas of the past influence the institutions that govern us and the relationships that shape us.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
Lehigh University has been the defining institution of my life. As a proud alumnus, the opportunities afforded to me as a student transformed how I engaged with the world. The university and the department of political science, in particular, refined and enhanced critical thinking skills that empower learners to be active members of their communities and to foster robust dialogue even in the face of difference. In many ways, I didn’t choose Lehigh, but Lehigh chose me to be a member of an academic campus that strives to build a more just and equitable community here in the Valley.
What are your research interests?
Power electronics, renewable energy.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
ECE 402
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
Ph.D., University of Michigan, 2017.
What was your previous institution?
Drexel University.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
Student progress.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
It has a good research environment and leadership in engineering.
What are your research interests?
High-frequency power conversion, transportation electrification, Smart Grid.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
ECE 402.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
Ph.D., Northwestern Polytechnical University.
What was your previous institution?
Rowan University.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
I like working with students.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
I enjoy the university’s friendly and supportive culture.
What are your research interests?
To understand how the brain alters its structure and function in learning, aging and psychiatric disorders, across its organizational hierarchy from synapses to functional networks.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
Techniques in Systems Neuroscience.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
University of California Santa Cruz.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
I think teaching is the best way to streamline and clarify one’s understanding of a subject. Moreover, it is inspiring and thought-provoking to interact with students.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
I like the diverse intellectual environment provided by Lehigh’s Department of Biological Sciences and the abundant collaborative opportunities with researchers in physical sciences and engineering.
What are your research interests?
As a teaching assistant professor, I will not be completing my own program of research. However, I am an avid consumer of research and use research to support my clinical work and further my understanding of the human experience.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
Psychopathology and Clinical Psychology.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
I am returning to Lehigh.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
As cliché as it might sound, the students. There is something so special about the energy that comes from being in the discovery process with others. I really love watching moments of connection unfold—whether it be with class content, oneself, others or the world. Additionally, I get really excited by the dynamic nature of teaching as there is always more to learn, especially in a field like psychology.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
The people and community feel of campus.
What are your research interests?
I investigate how people think about their own learning, integrating perspectives from cognition and metacognition, motivation and emotions, and identity and context. I am also passionate about supporting current and future scholars to use responsible and critical research methods.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
I will be creating a new undergraduate learning sciences program, beginning to teach those courses in the spring.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
Colgate University.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
In teaching, I enjoy when students recognize they are creators of knowledge and can see the relevance and application of our content to their lives and communities. Often I strive for this through autonomy-supportive practices, like design thinking and project-based learning, where students are drivers of their own learning.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
Lehigh’s strong commitment to and prioritization of educational innovation and interdisciplinary research/teaching is what drew me to the university. Being tasked with creating an interdisciplinary curriculum is an incredible opportunity and I was impressed by the ways students, faculty, staff and administration have already shown support for this new initiative. Lehigh’s creation of spaces and resources for change makers and risk takers ensured this would be a meaningful community to join.
What are your research interests?
Polymers, sustainability and fiber reinforced composites.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
Polymer science and engineering classes.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
M.S. in Mechanical & Aeronautical Engineering, University of California, Davis.
What was your previous institution?
Research engineer at UC Davis, adjunct faculty at Cosumnes River College.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
Learning!
Why did you choose Lehigh?
Lehigh offers an exclusive graduate program in polymer science. Also, I’ve known Lehigh for its excellence in the engineering field.
What are your research interests?
Latin American migration literature, the Venezuelan migration crisis, national identity and memory.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
Cultural Evolution of Latin America.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
Georgetown University.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
One of the things I enjoy most about teaching is sharing ideas with students and learning from their perspectives.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
Lehigh is recognized among the nation’s highly-ranked research universities and higher education institutions for excellence in diversity. I am also looking forward to the opportunity to collaborate with the colleagues and students of the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures and other programs and departments at Lehigh University.
What are your research interests?
Women, gender & sexuality studies, postcolonial studies, transnational feminist theories, Caribbean and Black diaspora studies, Indo-Caribbean literature, francophone literature, African, African-American and American studies, 20 and 21st centuries, migration and diaspora studies, Afro-Russian studies.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
Postcolonial and Caribbean Literature.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
Seton Hall University.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
Engaging with students, having an interactive classroom—interacting and learning from students, witnessing students’ growth, building a relationship with students.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
Support for research and teaching, great opportunities for partnerships and collaborations, the focus on work-life balance, location.
What are your research interests?
Quantitative methods, artificial intelligence, organizational behavior, socio-economic development.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
BIS335 (Application Development for Business), BIS342 (E-Business Enterprise Applications), BUAN397 (Foundations of AI for Business).
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
The World Bank.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
Designing courses and learning journeys that makes students excited and then seeing the satisfaction of learning something new; 1-1 relationship with students that teaches me about the new generation(s).
Why did you choose Lehigh?
I have been teaching as an adjunct in the DATA department for the last two years. That experience motivated me to switch to full-time teaching: (1) The quality and the character of Lehigh students—always engaging, willing to learn, humble, respectful and fun; (2) The collegiality at the DATA department specifically, and at the COB generally; (3) The existence of the CSB (Computer Science and Business Program) as a signal of innovation at the institution.
What are your research interests?
My research interests include: examining the relationship between ethnic-racial identity development, purpose and positive youth outcomes; creating and evaluating ethnic-racial identity interventions within academic settings, and examining the effects of ERI development across academic and professional settings.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
Counseling Theories; Qualitative Research Methods; Gender and Sexuality.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology from Boston College.
What was your previous institution?
Felcian University.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
What I enjoy most is encountering students who initially believe they will struggle within a course, only for students to share that they feel confident in the course material. Relatedly, I enjoy seeing students grow within my courses—I firmly believe it is my responsibility to ensure that students gain knowledge and skills in my course. Finally, I enjoy the academic environment, one that encourages ongoing learning for both me and my students.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
My interactions with faculty and staff across the interview days. While they conducted interviews to determine a good fit for the department, they all welcomed me with open arms, and regardless of the outcome of the interview, I left feeling like I made genuine connections. Additionally, I observed the close relationships among the faculty, and those close relationships are what I hoped for in my future professional home.
What are your research interests?
I am a moral philosopher who uses questions about disability and bioethics to rethink foundational questions in ethical and political theory. My work encompasses four interconnected lines of inquiry: (1) moral status; (2) capacity and communication; (3) bio- and neuroethics, and (4) the emotional, political and social contexts of disability. I also have two qualitative projects, the first on non-spoken but meaning conveying forms of communication salient to non-speaking humans, and the latter on integrating virtue ethics into medical school ethics curriculums.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
Advanced Research Ethics, Bioethics, Philosophy of Medicine.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
UCLA.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
Developing collaborative learning environments with my students.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
I love the opportunity to help build the College of Health, and the emphasis on interdisciplinary, collaborative research there.
What are your research interests?
Broadly, I study climate and humans in the past using the chemistry of rocks, dirt, and mud. Specifically, my work addresses questions such as: What was atmospheric and ocean circulation like during a warmer-than-present world? How did the land, ocean and atmosphere interact over the last several million years? Can we identify new feedbacks between the climate system and ever-changing landscapes? What can we learn about past civilizations from the chemistry of archaeological sediments?
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
This fall I will be teaching EES 095 – Earth’s Climate from the Dinosaurs to the Day After Tomorrow. In the future, I also plan to teach undergraduate and graduate courses on modern climate, past climates and how we use chemistry to study the Earth and ancient civilizations.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
University of Arizona.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
It is always a wonderful experience getting to see students understand new concepts. I also enjoy the opportunity to engage with students about Earth’s climate and how a changing climate impacts the world around them.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
I was quite drawn to Lehigh’s commitment to excellence in both research and teaching. I also really appreciate Lehigh’s support of undergraduate research.
What are your research interests?
My research centers around Algebraic Combinatorics, a vibrant branch of mathematics that explores the interplay between algebra and combinatorial structures, such as graphs and tableaux, to solve difficult, often multi-disciplined, problems.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
Math 43 (Survey of Linear Algebra), Math 231 (Probability and Statistics).
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
Lehigh University.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
I feel immense joy when students discover and expand their mathematical abilities.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
Institutional support, welcoming colleagues, and excellent students.
What are your research interests?
Wireless communication networks, intelligent Internet of Things, network optimization.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
CSE 109 Systems Software.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
Toronto Metropolitan University, Canada.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
Serving as an instructor not only allows me to interact closely with students but also
fosters opportunities for academic collaborations and innovations.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
Lehigh offers excellent undergraduate and graduate programs with a high reputation, attracting students with strong academic standings from around the world. As a faculty member, it provides me with opportunities to teach and mentor talented students. Additionally, there are numerous intra- and interdisciplinary collaboration opportunities with top-tier researchers at the university.
What are your research interests?
Cluster analysis, biostatistical modeling, statistical computations and simulations, psychometrics, meta-analysis and biostatistics application in medicine and public health.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
BSTA 103, BSTA 104, EPI 305.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
I have worked at three different institutions which allowed me to interact with a diverse student body. Most recently Kuwait University, College of Medicine, Department of Community Medicine and Behavioral Sciences. Before that, I worked at Florida International University, Department of Biostatistics in Miami, and Nova Southeastern University, Fort Lauderdale.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
I enjoy being in the classroom with students and witnessing the knowledge growth of my students in biostatistics and how students’ attitudes towards biostatistics have changed from my weak area to my enjoyable area. I enjoy seeing my students apply the theory to solve real problems using real data.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
Lehigh University is very supportive of research and academia. Also, it is student-centered with small class sizes that allow faculty to pay attention to students’ academic needs and growth in the classroom individually.
What are your research interests?
My research interests focus on reproductive and sexual health and policies as critical areas of health equity and health disparities. I am particularly interested in collaborative and interdisciplinary research grounded in principles of social justice.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
POPH 301-010 Capstone (Proposal); POPH 305-010 Honors Pop Health Capstone (P); CGH 301-010 Field Experience I and CGH 303-010 Honors Field Experience I.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
University of Central Florida.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
In my teaching, I especially enjoy interacting with students one-on-one, promoting engagement through discussions in my classes and creating a supportive learning atmosphere that nurtures students’ own self-discovery and intellectual growth.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
Lehigh’s College of Health presents a unique opportunity to advance rigorous and collaborative research and engage in student-centered teaching at an innovative, vibrant and growing institution.
What are your research interests?
Education policy and leadership, economics of education, inequality in education, education finance, education labor markets.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
Doctoral research seminars, public education policy.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
Saint Louis University
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
The multi-directional exchange of knowledge, experience and growth with passionate and inquisitive students.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
I cherish the opportunity to return home to Pennsylvania to work with Lehigh’s brilliant faculty and staff and our College of Education students who serve as committed teachers, school leaders and educators across the region and country. Lehigh offers a unique platform to balance generative teaching and learning opportunities with avenues for impactful research and public scholarship.
What are your research interests?
Virtual mechanical characterization and testing of bone fractures using numerical simulations was my research focus as a Ph.D. student. After graduating, I decided to pursue a career that is more centered around engineering education research and pedagogy.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
ENGR5 (Introduction to Engineering Practice); MECH003 (Fundamentals of Engineering Mechanics); ME10 (Graphics for Engineering Design) and ME21 (M.E. Lab 1).
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
Lehigh University.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
I enjoy helping students grasp seemingly complex problems, and in doing so, help restore confidence in themselves. Our curriculum is challenging and students struggle, but in my role as a Teaching Assistant Professor I have the opportunity to identify this, help pick them up (through effective teaching and routine check-ins) and give them the confidence needed to keep going.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
I chose to work here because this is the school I graduated from and couldn’t be more proud of it. I know what it is like to be a student at Lehigh and because of that, I believe I can have a greater impact here than anywhere else. I have also spent a majority of my life in the Lehigh Valley and consider this community my home.
What are your research interests?
I study smart system design. I am particularly interested in developing artificial intelligence systems that can effectively collaborate with humans considering unique capabilities of humans and computational systems. I am interested in a wide range of applications from transportation to defense or healthcare systems.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
Capstone Design (ME/BOIE/BOIC/MAT/ENGR 211 & 212).
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
I was an Assistant Professor at Stevens Institute of Technology.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
I enjoy providing hands-on experience to students. Seeing them able to make tangible products is a pleasure.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
Lehigh has an excellent set of faculty in mechanical engineering with whom I can collaborate. There are also unique research opportunities through interdisciplinary research institutes.
What are your research interests?
Ethics and evolution.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
Bioethics, Ancient Philosophy, Modern Philosophy, and any others as needed.
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
Ph.D. from SUNY Binghamton.
What was your previous institution?
University of Scranton.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
The students and how they still manage to surprise me with many of their thoughtful responses.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
The philosophy faculty at Lehigh.
What are your research interests?
The overall goal of my lab is to uncover the molecular and cellular mechanisms that ensure the production of healthy eggs, a key component of successful sexual reproduction. Infertility affects about one in six adults globally, with women being more vulnerable due to the sharp decline in egg quality with age. In humans, all oocytes—the precursors to eggs—are produced in the ovaries of a developing fetus and can remain dormant for up to 50 years until hormonal cycles trigger them to resume meiosis. Meiosis is a unique and lengthy form of cell division where an oocyte reduces its genome by half to create a haploid egg. Errors in meiosis can have severe consequences, including incorrect genome content in eggs, resulting in pregnancy loss or birth defects. Thus, defective meiotic cells must be eliminated as part of a quality control process. Recent breakthroughs suggest that the nuclear envelope of oocytes plays a key role in this process. Using the powerful nematode C. elegans as a model system, we aim to elucidate how the dynamic nuclear envelope detects and responds to meiotic errors to promote quality control in developing oocytes. Using a combination of experimental approaches, we anticipate that our findings will shed light on a conserved pathway that ensures oocyte quality and could lead to therapeutic strategies to improve reproductive health.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
BIOS397 & BIOS431 (#Meiosis4Ever: Frontiers in Reproductive Cell Biology); BIOS421 (Molecular and Cell Biology I); and eventually, BIOS367 (Cell Biology).
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
University of California, Berkeley.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
Having been a teacher and a mentor, both as a grad student and as a postdoc, I firmly believe in the pivotal role that inclusive and supportive teaching and mentoring play in empowering self-motivated, active learning. I believe in the tremendous impacts teaching has in promoting the understanding of science and the scientific method among a broad audience, and the equally tremendous roles it plays in advancing a scientist’s own research by actively engaging in stimulating discussions with people from diverse backgrounds. After all, “by teaching, we learn.”
Why did you choose Lehigh?
As an undergraduate student in China, I was captivated by the microtubule cytoskeleton after reading a textbook co-authored by Lynne Cassimeris, Professor Emeritus at Lehigh University. I have been in love with cell biology ever since. It feels both surreal and incredibly humbling to now come full circle, launching my own independent cell biology research program as a tenure-track Assistant Professor at Lehigh, an institution renowned for its world-class interdisciplinary research.
What are your research interests?
My research interests lie at the intersection of social psychology and computational social science. I am particularly focused on how minority voices drive social change, exploring the psychological mechanisms behind minority influence. I’m also interested in how minority groups respond to identity uncertainty and threats, as well as their contributions to collective adaptation in times of change. My work uses both empirical and computational methods to examine these processes, and I’m passionate about applying these insights to real-world issues like promoting democracy, fostering social change and diversity, and advancing gender equity.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
Social Cognition Graduate Seminar (PSYC 406), Social Psychology (PSYC 121).
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
Prior to joining Lehigh, I was a postdoctoral fellow with joint affiliation in the School of Public and International Affairs and the Department of Psychology at Princeton University.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
What I enjoy most about teaching is the opportunity to inspire curiosity and foster critical thinking in my students. I also love the collaborative learning environment where students’ diverse viewpoints can lead to meaningful discussions that challenge and expand our understanding of the subject matter.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
I chose Lehigh because of its strong commitment to both research and teaching, which aligns perfectly with my academic goals. Lehigh fosters an interdisciplinary environment that encourages collaboration across fields, which is critical for my research in social psychology and computational social science. Additionally, the university’s emphasis on community engagement and addressing real-world issues provides an ideal platform for me to apply my work to make a tangible impact. The supportive academic culture and the vibrant student body were also key factors in my decision, as they offer a dynamic environment where both faculty and students can thrive.
What are your research interests?
Heuristic optimization, data analytics and experiential learning.
What classes are you teaching at Lehigh?
ISE 230, ISE 335/435, ISE 240, ISE 309/409
What degrees do you hold and where did you earn them?
What was your previous institution?
I was an adjunct at Lehigh University.
What do you enjoy most about teaching?
I enjoy bringing my manufacturing industry experience into the classroom to show students how the industrial and systems engineering theories we study in class translate into solving real-world industry challenges.
Why did you choose Lehigh?
It is considered one of the top technical and research universities in the country.
-Grace Roche ’25 contributed to this report.
Christina Tatu
Marcus Smith '25
The Forlenza Endowed Chair will drive innovation in health and technology to advance the mission of the College of Health and the Lehigh community at large.
The university recognizes 16 faculty members for their dedication to the Lehigh community during the 2024-2025 academic year.
Goodman was instrumental in shaping the retail landscape of the mid-to-late 20th century and a pioneer of the super-regional mall concept.
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