Faculty

Concordia faculty members don't approach teaching as a job – it's a calling. They are passionate about their fields of study, as well as learning about your ambitions – what skills you bring to the table and what combination of courses, internships and research experience is going to best position you to achieve your goals. Their unofficial motto is, "We'll get you where you want to go."

Mentors and More
When chemistry professor Dr. Darin Ulness applied for a prestigious National Science Foundation CAREER grant, the NSF said his undergraduates couldn't handle the work.

"We took away that argument by getting six papers published in top-tier, peer-reviewed physical chemistry journals," says Ulness, who won the $500,000 grant, created a laser lab on campus and sent his student team members off to graduate school at Cornell, MIT, Johns Hopkins and Vanderbilt.

Concordia alumni give their professors straight A's, with 97 percent citing "quality of instruction" as the hallmark of a Concordia education. Sixty-four percent of alumni say they still keep in touch with some of their professors, even years after graduation.

With more than 2,600 students and a student-faculty ratio of 13:1, you'll be part of a learning environment where professors and students are truly partners in discovery.

Above and Beyond
At Concordia, you'll be taught by professors who are nationally recognized leaders in their fields:

  • Religion professor Dr. Roy Hammerling has written books on the history of prayer, but the Lutheran minister is equally interested in Celtic church history, women and religion, and religion in film. Several of his religion classes include exciting study abroad trips to Greece and Turkey.
  • NASA scientist and Concordia physics professor Dr. Heidi Manning worked on the NASA Cassini Mission, which took the first pictures of the rings of Saturn, and analyzed data collected by Curiosity, the Mars rover. She also mentors numerous students each year while researching cosmic dust with one of the world's four operational dust particle accelerators, located at Concordia.
  • Dr. René Clausen, music professor and conductor of The Concordia Choir, has written more than 50 commissioned choral and orchestral works that have been performed in dozens of countries around the world. "Life and Breath: Choral Works by René Clausen," a CD of his compositions, recently won three Grammy Awards. He's also a much-sought-after speaker and has addressed such prestigious organizations as the Norwegian National Choral Directors Association.
  • German associate professor Madelyn Burchill knows firsthand the importance of study abroad. A lifelong traveler herself, Burchill mentors groups of students overseas each year as they learn about other cultures and themselves on Exploration Seminars, May Seminars and the Wittenburg Summer Study Program.
  • Physics professor Dr. Bryan Luther is a pioneer in the field of neutron detection, doing cutting-edge research at the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory. He and his students built their own miniature Modular Neutron Array Detector on campus.
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Faculty Profile: Amy Watkin

Assistant English professor Amy Watkin says a liberal arts degree helps prepare graduates for any number of outcomes in a changing world.

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Faculty Profile: Dr. Susan Larson

Associate psychology professor Dr. Susan Larson says her excitement and enthusiasm for the research process helps fuel her passion for teaching students to think critically both in and outside the science lab.

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Faculty Profile: Jay Hershberger

Dr. Jay Hershberger shares his twin passions for the piano and J.R.R. Tolkien with his students as he introduces them to the majesty of piano performance or the connections to the liberal arts in the imaginary world of ''Lord of the Rings.''

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Responsibility Seminar Funded by Grant

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