faculty updates Dr. Timothy Peterson In June 2012, Dr. Timothy Peterson joined Warner Pacific as the Executive Director of Teaching and Learning. This position, funded through a $414,000 grant awarded by the M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust, will support faculty and co-curricular staff discussions of student preparedness, collaborate in the development of strategies to enhance the learning environment, and encourage research and writing on topics related to teaching and learning. Dr. Peterson earned his Ph.D. in Urban Studies at Portland State University and comes to Warner Pacific from his position as Professor of Urban Studies and Director of the Philadelphia campus of Messiah College. In that capacity he led a unique semester-long program for students coming from Messiah’s main campus in rural Pennsylvania to study in a vibrant, complex and challenging major city. Peterson brings invaluable experience in creating academic and co-curricular learning experiences for students and other faculty.
Dr. Michael Jerpbak Dr. Michael Jerpbak joined WP’s social science department as Associate Professor of Human Development and Coordinator of ADP offerings for the department. He holds a B.A. in Family Resources and Psychology from St. Olaf College, an M.Ed. in Family and Consumer Sciences Education and a Ph.D. in Education, Curriculum and Instruction, from the University of Minnesota. He comes to Warner Pacific from Crossroads College in Rochester, Minn., where he served as the chair of the Family, Youth and Community Program. He has also taught at the University of Minnesota and Concordia University, St. Paul, and served as a Human Resources Coordinator and Family and Consumer Sciences teacher in the Eden Prairie Public School District. Dr. Jerpbak led the approval process for Crossroad’s designation as a Certified Family Life Education Program, and was the Director of Research and Development for the Working Family Resource Center, serving on boards such as Minnesota Fathers and Families Network, Minnesota Council on Family Relations, National Council on Family Relations and Rochester Area Youth Ministers Network.
Dr. W. Jay Beaman Dr. Beaman earned a B.A. in Biblical Literature from Northwest University, a Master of Divinity from North American Baptist Seminary, and M.S. degrees and a Ph.D. in Sociology from Iowa State University. He previously taught sociology at Tabor College and George Fox University and served as Director of Institutional Research at Concordia University and Lewis and Clark College prior to coming to Warner Pacific as Director of Institutional Effectiveness. Chief among his duties in this role will be to monitor and assist in the development of assessment plans and reports across the College, prepare external reports for government agencies, complete surveys related to the College’s identity in higher education, and participate in the preparation of materials in support of the College’s various accreditations by external agencies.
Dr. Mark Mendez Dr. Mark Mendez joined the Warner Pacific College education department to teach the exceptional learners course, various methods courses, as well as supervising student teachers. He received his doctorate from Argosy University and holds an Ed.D in Educational Leadership with higher education teaching experience in student teacher preparation and sport and exercise psychology. Dr. Mendez has K-12 teaching experience in physical education, special education, and English as a Second Language. An avid sports enthusiast, Dr. Mendez played basketball at Monmouth College in Monmouth, Ill. and was voted the College’s Most Valuable Athlete in 1983.
Dr. Markisha Smith Dr. Markisha Smith joined Warner Pacific as the new Director of Undergraduate Teacher Education. She comes to WPC most immediately from Western Oregon University and previously from Northern Michigan University. Her areas of expertise include literacy development, education in a diverse society, multicultural education and language arts methods at the high school level. She is published in The Journal of Urban Education, Education Review, The Language Arts Journal of Michigan and in Education Research and Perspectives, and has conducted research at and training with Hannahville Indian School (Michigan) related to the teaching and preservation of the Potowatomi language. Dr. Smith holds membership in the International Reading Association, the National Council of Teachers of English, the American Educational Research Association, the American Association of College for Teacher Education, the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development and the National Association for Multicultural Education. 14