Meet Our Faculty

Biology
Dane K. Fisher Associate Professor of Biology This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. View Faculty Profile	Luke Dollar Associate Professor of Biology This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Chemistry & Physics
Miranda Beam Assist. Professor, Chemistry (704) 463-3311 This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. View Faculty Profile	Kristin Walker Asst. Professor, Physics (704) 463-3320 This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. View Faculty Profile	James Pazun Professor, Chem. & Phys. (704) 463-3313 This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. View Faculty Profile	Lance Riddle Assoc. Professor of Chem. Chair of Chem. & Phys. Dept. (704) 463-3340 This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Communications
Deborah Burris Asst. Professor, Communication This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. View Faculty Profile	Shaun Cashman Asst. Professor, Communication This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. View Faculty Profile	Charisse Levine Asst. Professor, Communication This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. View Faculty Profile

Criminal Justice
Anna C. Cutlip, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, Criminal Justice This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. View Faculty Profile	Dennis Souther Visiting Professor, Criminal Justice This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. View Faculty Profile

History & Political Science
Michael Thompson Chair, History & Political Science This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. View Faculty Profile	Juanita Kruse Professor, History This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. View Faculty Profile	Tom Hyde Professor, Political Science This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Language & Literature
David Heckel Professor, English Executive Director, Confucius Institute This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. View Faculty Profile	Jewell Mayberry Associate Professor of English  Chair, Department of Languages and Literature This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. View Faculty Profile	Ashley Oliphant Assistant Professor, English Department Faculty Fellow, Francis Center for Servant Leadership This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. View Faculty Profile	Sylvia B. Hoffmire Assistant Professor, English This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. View Faculty Profile This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Kristi Embry Assistant Professor of English This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. View Faculty Profile	Myra Tannehill Visiting Professor, English This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. View Faculty Profile

Mathematics
Ying Yaemsiri-King Chair, Mathematics Department This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Ross Braymer Assistant Professor, Mathematics This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	John Grosvenor Professor, Mathematics This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Music and Fine Arts
Joshua Cross Associate Professor of Art This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Joseph Judge Assistant Professor of Music Director of Choral & Vocal Music This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Jean Raines Professor of Music This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Steve Harrill Assistant Professor of Music, Vocal This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Sarah Hall Visiting Assistant Professor, Music Misenheimer Campus (704) 463-3142 This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Religion & Practical Theology
Patty Meyers Professor, Christian Education This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Doug Hume Associate Professor of Religion Chair, Religion & Practical Theology This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Philip Wingeier-Rayo Associate Professor of Religion This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.	Dr. Almeda M. Wright Assistant Professor of Youth Ministry This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Dr. Kevin Taylor Visiting Assistant Professor of Religion This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Alumni Profiles

Milton Rose Alumni

Jacob Parks Salisbury, NC	Melissa Peacock '10 Biloxi, MS	Tyler Turner Shelby, NC

Molly Punk-Milton Rose Student 2011-2012

Molly Punk
Senior
Chemistry

Molly Punk is a senior chemistry major with a minor in mathematics. She plans to continue working in the lab with Dr. Riddle using HPLC to examine the sterols found in mango juice. Cholesterol is the most well known sterol, and it has numerous effects on human health.

Molly also spends much of her time playing lacrosse and tutoring for the learning center. Upon graduating in the spring, she hopes to pursue her master’s degree.

Learn more about Molly's research project.

Milton Rose Scholars

Christine Baran Freshman Biology	Christine Baran is a sophomore from Apex, N.C. She hopes to become a veterinarian, and is striving to open her own clinic in the future. She enjoys playing lacrosse on campus and spends much of my free time off campus doing volunteer foster care for canines with diseases or working in shelters in the Raleigh area. She is looking forward to working with the faculty here at Pfeiffer University. For her research she is working with Dr. Dollar studying animal behavior, specifically components of memory span in structural learning patterns. This year she will be working with Dr. Miranda Beam in the Chemistry Department, identifying new proteins through x-ray crystallography.
Zack Dyer Junior Chemist	Zach is junior chemistry and math double-major. Previous research includes the Ferric Reducing Antioxidant Power (FRAP) assay and an in depth look at early 20th century atomic models. Zach is currently finishing up a summer research stint with Dr. Riemann involving Flash Vacuum Pyrolosis (FVP) and Phenyl Popargyl Ethers (PPEs). Zach anticipates graduation in 2014 after which he hopes to pursue further education. Zach is also a peer-tutor in the learning center, an EPA-OSHA work study and a member of the honors program Learn more about Zack's research project.
Kaleigh Featherstone Junior Pre-Med	Kaleigh Featherstone is from Albemarle, N.C. She plans to graduate from Pfeiffer University in 2014 with majors in pre-med and biology. She then plans to go onto medical school. She is a member of the women’s tennis team, an honors student, a Francis Center Scholar, an Angel Tree coordinator for Pfeiffer and is involved in the Campus Crusade for Christ. As a freshman, she worked on basic microbial techniques and searched for bacteriophages from soil and water samples that would kill the S. Maltophilia bacteria with Dr. McCallum, Tyler Turner, and Jacob Parks. During her sophomore year, she continued this work and learned new isolation and enrichment techniques. This year she plans to successfully isolate and characterize a phage from the environment and also characterize phage XMM1 and SMM1. Learn more about Kaleigh's research.
Gracie Herbert Freshman Exercise Science	Emily "Gracie" Herbert is from Hughesville, Md. She plans to graduate in 2016 and is part of the Women’s Lacrosse team and the Student Athletic Advisory Committee. She plans to work with Whitney Jaffe and Dr. Justice on a project concerning the change in performance in lacrosse after non-dominant activities are added to lacrosse players’ routines through a 4 week time period.
Whitney Jaffe Freshman Exercise Science/Biology	Whitney Jaffe is from Cohasset, Mass., and anticipates graduating in the spring of 2016 with a double major in exercise science and biology. Whitney is a member of the women’s lacrosse team at Pfeiffer and is a part of the Honors Program. Upon graduating from Pfeiffer, she plans to attend medical school to receive her doctorate of physical therapy. This year, Whitney plans to work with Dr. Justice and fellow Milton Rose Scholar and teammate Gracie Herbert on a project involving non-dominant hand use (off the lacrosse field) and the correlation to the changes in the kinematics of  lacrosse players’  non-dominant fluidity and form while playing.
Samantha Jarmusch Sophomore Chemistry	Samantha Jarmusch was born in Youngstown, Ohio but now lives in Greensboro, N.C.  he plans to graduate from Pfeiffer University in 2015 with majors in chemistry and mathematics, with plans to go onto graduate school. She is a member of the women’s softball team at Pfeiffer University. When she isn’t working on her studies she is likely to be out on the softball field or spending her time outdoors.  This year she plans on continuing research under Dr. Riddle along with Sam Maness from last year on the amount of BPA found in local receipts and the amount transferred to skin.  Also researching what precautions we need to take to prevent this transfer of BPA to skin.
Lukas Janes Sophomore Biology	Lukas describes himself as a “yogi”, a title that was given to him during the 2011 preseason training for the men’s soccer team at Pfeiffer University. He is originally from Calgary, Alberta, Canada, but he has spent most of his time in the Raleigh Area. In addition to being recently elected as a senator of the freshman class, he is also currently on the men’s varsity soccer team. In the future, he hopes to expand his athletic talents and play another sport at Pfeiffer. He has recently done self- influenced research while in the international baccalaureate program in high school. In his freshman year he focused on the Red Dot Project, which consisted of increasing male urination aim accuracy. His goal was to create a sustainable project that could be used around Pfeiffer, that would create a cleaner environment. The cleaner environment would help not only students and faculty, but also visitors from prospective students to retuning alumni. His sophomore year he will figure out the most efficient way to get around campus either by walking or riding a scooter or a skateboard.
Samantha Manness Senior Chemistry/Mathematics	Samantha Maness is a senior, majoring in chemistry and mathematics. During the 2009-2010 school year, Caroline Lambeth and Samantha Maness worked together measuring the amount of calcium in various liquids such as juice and milk. During the 2010-2011 school year Caroline Lambeth and Samantha Maness started a project measuring the BPA content present on local receipts. This year Samantha Maness will continue the study on BPA with Samantha Jarmush; measuring the amount of BPA transferred to the skin by touching receipts and what actions can be taken to prevent the transfer of BPA. Samantha Maness has conducted research at the North Carolina Research Campus in Kannapolis and at University of Rhode Island's Graduate School of Oceanography. In addition to being a student, Samantha Maness is a distance swimmer and IMer for Pfeiffer University’s swim team. She is also a member of the Honors Program and residence life. After graduating from Pfeiffer University in 2013, Samantha plans to attend graduate school to study marine chemistry. Learn more about Samantha's research project.
Bianca Moeller Sophomore Biology	Bianca Moeller is a sophomore at Pfeiffer University. She is from Fredericksburg, Va.  who anticipates graduating in the spring of 2015 with a double major in Biology and Environmental Science.  She is a member of the Pfeiffer Women’s soccer team, honors program, and a student ambassador.  After graduating she plans to further her studies by attending graduate school and joining the Navy.  During the 2011-2012 school year she worked with Dr. Dane Fisher and Bailey Greene to breed tomato plants specifically focusing on heirloom and flavor components.  This year she will be working with Dr. Fisher to learn tissue culture techniques and will begin research in this area.
Rebecca Pigg Seniore Exercise Science	Rebecca Pigg is from Midland, NC. She plans to graduate from Pfeiffer with a degree in exercise science. She then plans to go onto graduate school to study physical therapy or clinical exercise physiology. She currently works part-time at INTRAFITT, a health and wellness center located in Midland, NC. Her previous research focused on contextual interference in learning a skill. She currently is researching the differences in the kinematics of running in running shoes, running barefoot, and running in Vibram Five Finger Shoes. Through her research she was able to confirm the different foot-strikes, ankle flexion and knee flexion in each condition through videotaping subjects running on a treadmill and analyzing the video with Dartfish software. She is excited to continue her research comparing these different running conditions through different methods. Learn more about Rebecca's research project.
Brittany Polly Sophomore Biology	Brittany Polly is a sophomore from Boca Raton, Fla. who currently plays for the women's soccer team. Brittany considers her passions in life to be soccer and becoming a pediatric surgeon. She hopes to graduate with honors and then attend medical school. She loves children and believes that saving lives would be a wonderful accomplishment. Brittany's goals at Pfeiffer include learning as much as possible about the medical world to help prepare her for medical school. She is looking forward to working with the professors in the biology or exercise science departments this year.

Internships

Over half of our 2010 graduates participated in at least one internship during their career at Pfeiffer University. Recent internships for biology and chemistry majors include the National Institutes of Health in Maryland, the North Carolina Research Campus in Kannapolis, and the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Crime Lab. Exercise science majors have participated in both aquatic physical therapy and cardiac rehabilitation in association with Stanly Regional Medical Center at the YMCA. Environmental science interns have worked on the construction and maintenance of Pfeiffer University’s Environmental Management System. In the future, our relationship with the North Carolina Research Campus, a nationally recognized biotechnology center, will provide additional internship placements.

Milton Rose Scholarship

Named in honor of Milton C. Rose, a long time Pfeiffer supporter and trustee, the Milton Rose Research Fellowship is provided to a select group of undergraduate students who are science or math majors at Pfeiffer. Students selected as Rose Research Fellows will, as freshmen, assist faculty with projects that are faculty-designed. Pfeiffer faculty members mentor students as their knowledge of science problems and methods deepens. By the time the Rose Research Fellows reach their junior year they will collaborate with faculty to craft a research direction for their junior/senior capstone project as a unique or contributing effort to continued research areas.  

Milton Rose Scholars have worked with faculty members to develop their own research projects and participated in summer internships at major research laboratories such as the National Institutes of Health. The Milton Rose Program has enabled Pfeiffer undergraduates to conduct research in the laboratories of the Smithsonian and at Texas Tech. One Milton Rose student received specialized training in forensic microscopy at the McCrone Institute in Chicago. Students have also conducted summer research in plant molecular genetics at the University of Florida.

Tyler Turner-Milton Rose Student 2010-2011

Senior, Biology.

Tyler Turner is from Shelby, North Carolina, and I am a senior Biology major. His Milton Rose research has been a joint project with Jacob Parks, and we have been working on anti-bacterial resistances, although this year we are focusing more on phages. His plans for post graduation are either go to graduate school to finish my doctorate in biology, or to go to Physician's Assistants school.

Melissa Peacock-Milton Rose Student 2010-2011

Senior, Mathematics and Engineering Studies.

I moved to North Carolina from Biloxi, Mississippi in August 2007. I am a senior at Pfeiffer University, majoring in Mathematics and Engineering Studies. Some activities I enjoy are acting, playing tennis, and cooking. I am part of the Math club and Honors Program at Pfeiffer. During my first two years, I worked with Dr. Dollar to examine the effects of speed bumps on roadkill number in the Ankarafantsika National Forest in Madagaskar. During my most recent Milton Rose research, I have been working with Dr. Sutlive and Dr. Walker to examine the walk-run transition and the factors that may affect this transition. In my future research, I will be examining how barefoot or shod walking affects the walk-run transition.

After graduating in December 2010, Melissa is now in the Mechanical Engineering program at Auburn University.

Jacob Parks-Milton Rose Student 2010-2011

Senior, Biology.

My name is Jacob Parks and I am a senior Biology/Pre-Medical Studies major at Pfeiffer University. I came in with the idea of being a Family Physician after Graduate School, and that is still my plan. I am from Salisbury, NC and have lived there all my entire life on my family's farm. My research over the past three years has consisted of the study of antibiotic resistances in bacterial cultures from Gibson Lake, which is on the Pfeiffer Campus. This year however, the plan is to change the research topic to bacteriophage research and study how they interact with bacterial cultures.

Zach McMichael-Milton Rose Student 2010-2011

Zack McMichael
Senior
Chemistry and Economics

Zach McMichael is a junior chemistry and economics major, with minors in accounting and mathematics. He is working with Dr. Michael Riemann using numerous propargyl ethers to find a mechanism that creates benzo-cyclo-butenes. BCBs are used mainly as an insulating coat on microchips.

While he is not studying, Zach is a competitive swimmer for the Pfeiffer swim team. He currently has NCAA D2 national time standards in the 100 fly and 200 fly. He is also the president of the newly formed Entrepreneur Club and the Vice-President of the Honors Program.

Learn more about Zach's research project.

Bailey Greene-Milton Rose Student 2010-2011

Bailey Greene
Senior
Biology

Bailey Greene is a senior from Asheboro, NC, majoring in biology with minors in math and chemistry. She has been working with Dr. Dane Fisher in the Milton Rose Program. During her freshman year, she worked on agrobacterium transformations of tobacco plants and on Coleus Cv. mutations using UV light. As a sophomore, she worked on a tomato breeding project using heirloom and specially bred tomato varieties. During her junior year, Bailey worked on a project to transform soybeans using agrobacterium, and as a senior, Bailey began work on a project to establish DNA fingerprints for different tomato varieties that could eventually be used to determine if true hybrids have been made when doing crosses.

Learn more about Bailey's research project.

Q&A with the Dean

Dr. Mark McCallum has been at the helm of the School of Natural Sciences since 2003. A Pfeiffer faculty member since 1994, McCallum has served as chair of the Departments of Health Sciences and Biology. His research interests include how bacteria become resistant to different antibiotics and how antibiotic resistance can spread within populations of bacteria. McCallum earned a Ph.D. in biology from the Georgia Institute of Technology. 

Q: What makes the School of Natural Sciences at Pfeiffer distinctive?

A: The faculty members traditionally have provided a challenging academic experience for our students.  The individual faculty members take the necessary time to serve as mentors both in research and career development for our students.  In both science and math, there is a great deal of collaboration and cooperation in shaping the curriculum.

Q: How do programs and services prepare students for careers in math/science?

A: As part of the university’s strategic plan, the School developed a Steeple of Excellence to integrate an undergraduate research/learning model for science education into our curriculum. We want to challenge our students to engage in research inside and outside of the classrooms.  Because of our small class sizes, we can spend more time mentoring students and utilizing activities that model math and science research to engage students. Our goal is to make students active participants in our classrooms and not just passive listeners.

Q: An impressive percentage number of Pfeiffer science graduates pursue advanced degrees. How do you foster this?

A: Approximately two-thirds of our students continue in graduate and/or professional programs after Pfeiffer. The success can be partially attributed to having science/math faculty who provide challenging experiences in the classroom.  However, these individuals also put forth the extra energy to engage students in research outside of the classroom and to work with students in shaping career plans—the science/math faculty work hard to appropriately advise students and take pride in being knowledgeable advisors and mentors. We are very proud of our students’ successes.

Mission and Steeple of Excellence

Steeple of Excellence—Our Vision Statement: The School of Natural and Health Sciences will develop an integrated undergraduate research/learning model for science education.

Our Steeple of Excellence model provides guidance to shape the curriculum and faculty/student interactions within our school. Pfeiffer University’s School of Natural and Health Sciences provides an outstanding undergraduate science education. The school’s curriculum reflects the faculty’s understanding of the integrative nature of the natural and health sciences and the value of interdisciplinary work across majors. Most students in the school take courses in biology, chemistry and mathematics. Graduates of the School of Natural and Health Sciences pursue degrees and careers across the country.

Welcome to the School of Natural and Health Sciences

Biology   Chemistry and Physics   Environmental Science   Exercise Science   Mathematics   Nursing