By Kylie Lancaster
Hood College welcomed six new professors to campus this school year.
The Department of Sociology and Social Work brought on Susan Pace and Maria Taylor as assistant professors of social work.
Taylor comes to Hood with a Ph.D. in social work and has been an adjunct professor at many universities, including New York University and Long Island University.
Pace has a background in law and clinical social work. She recently obtained her Ph. D. from Fordham University in social work. She teaches courses such as Human Rights, Gerontological Social Work and Intro to Families.
As a professor, she aims for her students’ highest success.
Pace says that she uses teaching techniques such as hands-on learning, in-class discussion and post-class reflection in her classroom. By implementing these strategies, she hopes her students will continue to succeed in post-grad.
“I hope students will take not only the knowledge they have learned, but the skills, compassion, and person-centered perspective that is central to social work. I also hope my students will serve as advocates for their clients and community,” Pace said.
The Department of Counseling added Nouf Bazaz as an assistant professor in counseling and the Department of English & Communication Arts welcomed Youssef Yakoub as an assistant professor of digital media.
Bazaz has a Ph.D. in philosophy, focusing on counseling. She brings experience as an adjunct professor at Johns Hopkins University, and she is the co-founder and mental health director at HEAL Refugee Health and Asylum Collaborative.
Yakoub obtained his Ph.D. from Indiana University of Pennsylvania where he taught courses such as Introduction to Communications and Media, Podcasting and Web Design. Yakoub is on Hood College’s campus; however, he is currently unable to teach due to a delay with his work visa.
The Department of Computer Science and Information Technology has hired Randy Johnson as the program director of bioinformatics and Shahinur Alam as an assistant professor of computer science.
Johnson has his Ph.D. in bioinformatics from Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers and he has worked as a contractor at the National Institutes of Health. He teaches courses such as applied bioinformatics and data science.
Alam received his Ph.D. in Information & Communication Engineering from Chungbuk National University in South Korea. Before coming to Hood, Alam was an adjunct professor and postdoctoral researcher at Gallaudet University.
As a professor, Alam said wants his students to imagine themselves becoming the best in the industry.
“I want to see my students to be on the top of the top, like different big tech companies as well as if someone wants to do research, maybe in grad school. I also offer them if they are interested in research, they can collaborate with me as well,” Alam said.
This year, professor emerita Ellen Koitz retired after serving in Hood’s Department of Education for 40 years. Professor Tamelyn Tucker-Worgs also left Hood to take a position at Morgan State University.
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