At its February meeting, the Luther Board of Regents approved tenure for Todd Green, religion; Michael Johnson, mathematics; Don Jones, economics and business; Ginger Meyette, social work; Ben Moore, art; and April Rowe-Neal, nursing. These six faculty were also promoted to associate professor.

President Paula J. Carlson announced promotion to full professor for Ruth Berger, mathematics; Du Huang, music; Mark Johns, communication studies; and Eric Kutz, music.

Todd Green, religion

Todd Green has taught at Luther since 2008. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Birmingham-Southern College, a master of divinity from Columbia Theological Seminary, and master’s and doctoral degrees from Vanderbilt University.

Green teaches in European and American religious history. He is the past co-chair of the Religion in Europe Group of the American Academy of Religion and serves on the editorial board for the journal Religions. He also blogs for Luther’s Ideas and Creations and the Huffington Post.

Green’s research focuses on Islamophobia, secularization, and interfaith dialogue in the West. In his most recent book, The Fear of Islam: An Introduction to Islamophobia in the West, Green surveys anti-Muslim bigotry and hostility in the United States and Europe.

Michael Johnson, mathematics

Michael Johnson has been on the mathematics faculty since 2010. He holds bachelor’s degrees in mathematics and music education from University of the Pacific and has a master’s degree in mathematics from Pennsylvania State University and a Ph.D. in mathematics from Northwestern University.

Johnson’s research interests are in the fields of dynamical systems, ergodic theory, and, more recently, cellular automata. His works have been published in the Illinois Journal of Mathematics and Ergodic Theory and Dynamical Systems. This summer he plans to collaborate with Luther students to investigate the frequency of various-sized avalanches in a sandpile model.

Don Jones, management

Don Jones began teaching in the economics and business department at Luther in 2009, focusing on marketing techniques and ethics, advertising, and sales and promotion.

He holds a bachelor’s degree from Iowa State University and a master of business administration degree from Regis University. Jones is a professional certified marketer through the American Marketing Association.

Before coming to Luther, he served as director of marketing-retail at Brunswick Corporation in Lake Forest, Ill., where he received the President’s Executive Council-Management Award five times.

Ginger Meyette, social work

Ginger Meyette has been a member of Luther’s social work program since 2009. She teaches Social Work with Groups and Families, Research Methods and the Senior Paper course, and serves as field director for Luther’s Social Work Program.

Meyette graduated with a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from the University of Northern Colorado, then went on to earn a master of divinity from the Iliff School of Theology and a master of social work from the University of Denver. She also earned a Ph.D. from the University of Denver Graduate School of Social Work.

She has taught as an adjunct professor at Metropolitan State College, the University of Denver, and Colorado State University, and she has worked as a hospice grief counselor and social worker, and as a therapist in a residential/day treatment facility for children ages 5–13 with mental health diagnoses.

Ben Moore ’02, art

Ben Moore ’02 studied at the Scuola Internationalle de Grafica in Venice, Italy, and received a master’s degree and a master of fine arts degree from the University of Iowa. He has also served as adjunct faculty at the University of Iowa and Kirkwood Community College. He returned to Luther in 2008 to teach in the Visual and Performing Arts Department, specializing in painting, drawing, foundations, and digital media.

Moore’s works have been shown across the Midwest, most recently in the MacRostie Art Center in Grand Rapids, Minn.; the Kinsey Institute at the University of Indiana; (SCENE) Metrospace Gallery in East Lansing, Mich.; and Gallery 455 in Milwaukee, Wis.

Moore is also lead artist and game designer for Random Thoughts Entertainment.                  

April Rowe-Neal ’01, nursing

April Rowe-Neal ’01 joined Luther in 2008, teaching in the medical/surgical courses and pathophysiology courses on the Rochester, Minn., campus of the nursing department.

She earned a master of science in nursing degree from the University of Minnesota and is working on a Ph.D. in nursing education from Capella University. Her dissertation explores the experience of staff nurses teaching nursing students in the clinical learning environment.

Prior to teaching at Luther, Rowe-Neal served as the student nurse preceptor for the Hennepin County (Minn.) Medical Center in Minneapolis and as Education Committee co-chair at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. She has also worked as a critical care registered nurse for St. Elizabeth Medical Center and as a staff RN for Hennepin County Medical Care Center, Mayo Clinic, and Olmsted Medical Center in Rochester.