Published: October 09, 2006 08:27 am      

New faculty members begin teaching at ECU

Fourteen new faculty members have begun teaching this semester at East Central University. Another four faculty members are beginning their first full year after coming to ECU last spring, and two staff positions have been filled.

New faculty members include:

Wade Alexander

Wade Alexander, instructor of health, physical education and recreation, also is assistant men's basketball coach. He taught part time last year in ECU's health, physical education and recreation department and was an assistant basketball coach. He was an assistant coach in men's basketball at Texas A&M University-Kingsville in 2004-05 and at Bacone College from 2002 to 2004.

He received a bachelor's degree in health, physical education and recreation/exercise science in 2001 and a master's degree in secondary education with emphasis in sports administration in 2003, both from ECU.

Destini Anderson

Destini Anderson, instructor of health, physical education and recreation and head women's softball coach, came to ECU from Canyon (Texas) High School where she taught and coached softball since August 2003. Her teams had a 72-23 record in three seasons and had their first two district titles and regional appearances in the school's history.

She was a graduate assistant softball coach at Southwestern Oklahoma State University from 2001 to 2003 where she earned a master of education degree in health and physical education. She received a bachelor's degree in sports medicine from Oklahoma Baptist University in 2001. She was captain of OBU's softball team and holds 16 school records, including most strikeouts in pitching and the most RBIs and home runs in hitting.

Satara M. Armstrong

Satara M. Armstrong, assistant professor of human resources, had been chair of the sociology and social work programs at North Central Missouri College since 2004. She taught from 1998 to 2002 in the Strategies for Academic Excellence program at Kansas City Community College.

She also has been an adjunct instructor at Kansas City Community College and Avila University in Kansas City. She was a program manager and student liaison for Primary Care Resource Initiative for Missouri (PRIMO) from 2000 to 2004.

Armstrong has completed work toward a doctorate in community health at Capella University and holds a master of social work degree from the University of Kansas and a bachelor's degree in psychology from Baker University.

Dr. Jaime L. Burns

Dr. Jaime L. Burns, assistant professor of human resources, has been a teaching assistant and teaching associate in the department of sociology at Oklahoma State University where she received a master's degree in sociology in 2002 and a doctorate in sociology this year. She earned a bachelor's degree in sociology and history from Ouachita Baptist University in Arkansas.

Burns also had one-year stints at OSU as a research assistant and a mentor for student athletes. She was a correctional officer at the Cimarron Correctional Facility in Cushing from 2000 to 2002.

Janna Byrd

Janna Byrd, assistant professor of human resources, has been ECU's director of deaf student services since 1995 and has taught part-time in the services to the deaf/counseling program since 1999. She came to ECU in 1978 as a staff interpreter and became lead staff interpreter in 1986. She also taught American sign language from 1980 to 1982 at the Oklahoma School for the Deaf.

Her certifications include the National Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf, Comprehensive Skills Certification and State QAST Interpreter-Level V. She has completed all course work at Oklahoma State University toward a doctorate in education in occupational and adult education. Her bachelor's degree in special education/elementary and master's degree in human services counseling are from ECU.

Donna Cox

Donna Cox, instructor of health, physical education and recreation, returns to ECU after 25 years as an elementary and secondary physical education instructor and coach for Ada public schools. She was an adapted physical education instructor at ECU from 1977 to 1980. She has taught water safety and theraerobics and directed tennis and basketball camps for ECU's Center of Continuing Education since 1977.

She earned a bachelor's degree in education from Texas Woman's University in 1975 and a master of education degree/secondary education in 1978.

W.T. Skye Garcia

W.T. Skye Garcia, instructor of music, has been an adjunct instructor at ECU since 1987. He is a composer and arranger for Alfred Publishing Co. and FJH Music Co. with combined sales of more than 150,000 solos and books. He has been director of his private piano and composition studio, Creative Expressions, since 1984.

Garcia's "Oklahoma Centennial: A Suite in Five Movements" for solo piano and the arrangement for bands, the "Oklahoma Centennial Suite for Band,"which was premiered by the ECU Wind Ensemble last April 22, were designated by the Oklahoma Centennial Commemoration Commission as official Centennial Projects.

Garcia has 130 credit hours of general studies from the U.S. Air Force Academy and earned a bachelor's degree in physics from Colorado State University in 1975. He was a research nuclear physicist in Richland, Wash., in 1976-77 before earning a master of church music degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in 1981 and a master of music degree (piano) from Hardin-Simons University in 1983. He also has held various local church music positions.

Rebecca Gatz

Rebecca Gatz, instructor of communication, was an adjunct instructor in news writing last year at Arkansas State University and received a master's degree this year in mass communications from ASU. She also was an adjunct instructor in 2005 at Black River Technical College. She received a bachelor's degree in English/professional writing cum laude in 2000 from the University of Houston-Downtown.

Gatz was the advertising director in 2002 for the Paragould (Ark.) Daily Press. She was a communications consultant from 1998 to 2001, working on several projects for the University of Houston-Downtown. Between 1982 and 1998 she was a media director/planner/buyer for various agencies, a marketing research supervisor for the Houston Chronicle, director of market research and product line development for Columbia/HCA Healthcare and a client service manager at Uncle Ben's Rice.

Dr. Joshua Grasso

Dr. Joshua Grasso, assistant professor of English, was a teaching associate from fall 2002 to spring 2005 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, where he received his doctorate this year in English language and literature. He also taught two summers at Xavier University's Center for English as a Second Language.

Grasso also has been a scriptwriter for an advertising company, a translator/assistant for Russian poet/professor Yevgeni Yevtushenko at the University of Tulsa and an educational director for the Wayward Theatre Company in Tulsa. He received a bachelor's degree in English in 1998 and a master's degree in English language and literature in 2002, both from the from the University of Tulsa.

Heather D. Hannah

Heather D. Hannah, assistant professor of mathematics, has been either a teaching assistant or instructor at the University of Notre Dame since fall 2003.

She earned a bachelor's degree in mathematics from ECU in 2002. She completed a master's degree in mathematics at the University of Notre Dame in January 2005 and expects to complete a doctoral program in mathematics next year. At ECU she participated in the McNair Scholars program and the ECAMP Summer Research program.

Michael J. Hurt

Michael J. Hurt, instructor of health, physical education and recreation and head baseball coach, came to ECU from Del City High School where he has been an assistant coach and head coach in both softball and baseball.

He has coached in Edmond, Tupelo, Allen and Carter and has a 363-258 record in 18 years as a head baseball coach and a 272-167 record as a head softball coach. He also has coached basketball. His teams have made seven state tournament appearances and won four Mid-state Conference championships and seven regional championships.

Hurt was an assistant baseball coach at ECU in 1984-85. He received a bachelor's degree in education from ECU in 1981 and returned to earn a master of education degree with an emphasis in counseling in 1986.

Sandra K. Looper

Sandra K. Looper, who taught online courses for North Seattle Community College from 1998 to 2006, returns to ECU as an instructor of education. She taught at ECU in 1997-98, and was the associate director from 1994 to 1997 of Teachers Educating and Motivating Students (TEAMS), a state regents-funded Quality Initiative Grant at ECU.

From 1985 to 1993 she was the principal at Homer-Byng Elementary School. She was a classroom teacher from 1971 to 1985 at Butler, Arapaho, and Byng Schools. Looper received a bachelor's degree in elementary education from Southwestern Oklahoma State University in 1971 and a master of education degree in counseling from ECU in 1982.

Jeffrey D. Means

Jeffrey D. Means, assistant professor of history, has been an instructor at the University of Oklahoma since 2003. He was a teaching assistant or interim instructor in the OU history department from 1997 to 2003.

He has received numerous fellowships and research grants during his graduate study at OU, where he almost has completed requirements for a doctorate in American history, and at the University of Montana, where he received a master's degree in history in 2001. He earned a bachelor's degree in history summa cum laude from Grand Canyon University in 1995.

Debra S. Ollila

Debra S. Ollila, instructor of nursing, came to ECU from Rolling Hills Hospital in Ada where she has worked since 1994 as an adolescent and adult psychiatric and mental health nurse and a charge nurse. Since 2004 she also has been the staff development coordinator.

She was a home health nurse in Claremont, Calif., from 1990 to 1992. She worked at Doctors Hospital in Montclair, Calif., from 1977 to 1990 as a medical-surgical nurse, first as a licensed vocational nurse then as a registered nurse. She is a registered nurse in Oklahoma.

Ollila received an associate degree in nursing from Chaffey Community College in California in 1984 and completed a bachelor's degree in nursing at ECU in 2003. She is working on a master's degree in nursing with a double major in nursing education and clinical curse specialists in psychiatric and mental health at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center.

Faculty beginning first full year

Faculty members who came to ECU last spring and are beginning their first full year at ECU include Dr. Sarah A. Holmes, Jeff McGaha, Kurt Nichols and Sandra Weiland. Rebecca A. Collins, who was a half-time lecturer in psychology last year, is a full-time assistant professor of psychology.

Dr. Sarah A. Holmes

Dr. Sarah A. Holmes, chair of the accounting department and the Crabtree family professor in business, was the Andersen professor of accounting at Texas A&M University from 1984 to 2005.

She held a teaching fellowship at the University of North Texas from 1979 to 1984, when she earned a doctorate in accounting, and was a graduate assistant at Texas A&M when she received a master of business administration degree in 1979. She earned a bachelor's degree in accounting from Duke University in 1963. She is a CPA.

Holmes worked in the Texas State Auditor's Office from 1968 to 1976 and in several accounting firms between 1963 and 1968.

Jeff McGaha

Jeff McGaha, instructor of health, physical education and recreation and assistant women's basketball coach, had been a teacher and assistant high school basketball and baseball coach and junior high basketball coach at Konawa from 2002 until coming to ECU last January. He also taught and coached for Watonga and Lexington schools between 1995 and 2002.

McGaha earned a bachelor's degree in health, physical education and recreation with a teacher certificate in 1995 and a master of education degree in secondary counseling in 1999, both from ECU.

Kurt Nichols

Kurt Nichols, instructor of health, physical education and recreation and head football coach, was head football coach, athletic director and head of the department of kinesiology at Cisco Junior College from July 2000 to last December. He was assistant head coach at Tarleton State University from 1999 to 2000, linebacker coach at Arkansas State University in 1998-1999, assistant head coach at Navarro College from March 1996 to July 1998, and head football coach at Ranger Junior College from February 1994 to March 1996. He also held similar positions at Northwest Mississippi Community College, Southwest Baptist University, East Mississippi Community College and Jacksonville State University.

Nichols earned a bachelor's degree in graphic arts from Jacksonville (Ala.) State University in 1986 and a master of education degree from Southwest Baptist University in 1999.

Sandra A. Weiland

Sandra Weiland, instructor of nursing, is a family nurse practitioner with a background in primary family health care, ICU and medical-surgical. A native Australian, she has practiced in Australia, New York, Texas and Oklahoma. She holds an advanced practice license in both Oklahoma and Texas. She is nationally certified as a family nurse practitioner and has been certified in critical care and medical-surgical.

Weiland received a bachelor's degree in nursing with honors from ECU in 2001 and a master's degree from the University of Oklahoma in 2003. She is pursuing a doctorate in nursing from Texas Woman's University with an interest in advanced practice nursing.

Staff Appointments

Staff appointments include Andrea Bryant and Frank Williams.

Andrea R. Bryant

Andrea R. Bryant, program coordinator/academic advisor at the Ardmore Higher Education

Center, had been director of information services at the Oklahoma State University Alumni Association since January 1998. She has worked with student and alumni programs at the OSU Alumni Association and served as a liaison for the association to the OSU Foundation.

Bryant received a bachelor's degree in 1998 and a master's degree in agricultural education in 2002 from Oklahoma State University.

Frank Williams

Frank Williams, director of information technology, had been coordinator for management information systems at Missouri State University since 2002. He previously was program coordinator/faculty member for information technology for five years at Oklahoma State University-Okmulgee. He was programming manager in the management information systems department for Oklahoma City Public Schools for 11 years and manager of computer services at OSU-Okmulgee for two years. He also has taught data processing and operated his own businesses.

Williams earned a bachelor's degree in computer science in 1992 and a master of business administration degree in 1998, both from the University of Central Oklahoma.