CLASS ACT: Fall Semester Roundup of Faculty Achievements
December 14, 2022
Dr. Amy Davis Abdallah
A new book by professor of Bible and theology Dr. Amy Davis Abdallah, Meaning in the Moment: How Rituals Help Us Move through Joy, Pain, and Everything in Between will be released by Brazos Press in the fall of 2023. “Navigating our life-journey well can be overwhelming, says Dr. Davis Abdallah. “We need the symbolism and embodiment that rituals provide because they mark life’s accomplishments, losses, and in-betweens. Our lives are better when we enact historic Christian rituals and invent new ones to help and unite us.”
Dr. David Emanuel
Dr. Emanuel was a presenter at the Society of Biblical Literature in Denver, CO. He presented a paper entitled, “Close Juxtaposition Strategies in Book I of the Psalter.” He is also the author of An Intertextual Commentary to the Psalter: Juxtaposition and Allusion in Book I (Eugene, Oregon: Pickwick, 2022). A member of the AU faculty for more than a decade, he teaches Old Testament and Hebrew courses.
Dr. Jeffrey P. García
Dr. García, who is chair of the Department of Biblical and Theological Studies, authored a paper, “Constructs of Giving to the Poor: Monobazus and Jesus on Storing Treasure in Heaven” which was presented on his behalf at the Society of Biblical Literature conference. His article, “A Voice Cries Out: Reassessing John the Baptist’s Wilderness Relationship to Qumran,” will be published before the start of the spring semester in the Journal of the Jesus Movement in Its Jewish Setting. The 2005 AU alumnus is also Associate Professor of New Testament and Second Temple Literature.
Dr. Antoinette Gines-Rivera, dean of the Alliance Graduate School of Counseling (AGSC) and AGSC Dr. George James Ramos, co-wrote a chapter, “Culturally Responsive Counseling for Clients of Latinx Descent” to the book, Multicultural Counseling Responding with Cultural Humility, Empathy and Advocacy, edited by LaTonya M. Summers and Lotes Nelson. Described as “the first multicultural counseling book to use a strengths-based perspective, this innovative text emphasizes culture and diversity as an asset to be nurtured and approached with humility, empathy, and culturally responsive interventions.”
Dr. Lauren Lebo
Congratulations are in order for Assistant Professor Lauren Lebo, who successfully defended her doctoral dissertation. Dr. Lebo teaches pharmacology, pediatrics, clinicals and management and leadership at AU’s School of Nursing. She is also a nursing supervisor at Blythedale Children’s Hospital in Westchester County, New York.
Dr. R. Steven Notley
Dr. Notley made a presentation at the annual conference of the American Schools of Overseas Research in Boston in a special session dedicated to the Bethsaida Debate. His paper was entitled, “An Arc of Remembrance: Historical Geographical Evidence for the Site Identification of Bethsaida-Julias.”
At the annual Society of Biblical Literature conference, he delivered two papers. In the Synoptic Gospels session, he spoke on “The Sin Against the Spirit” and in a combined session, Archaeology of Roman Palestine / Archaeology of Religion in the Roman World, his presentation was, “Byzantine Bethsaida and the House of St. Peter.”
Dr. Notley was a panelist in a session of the National Association of Professors of Hebrew for the premier showing of “The Samaritans: A Biblical People” sponsored by Steven Fine and Yeshiva University.
With his colleague Dr. Mordechai Aviam, Dr. Notley will be featured at the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C. on January 26, 2023 in a presentation of “Byzantine Bethsaida and the House of St. Peter.” They will explore the historical and religious implications of the fifth to eighth-century basilica excavated at Khirbet el-Araj (Bethsaida) from 2019 to 2022.
Dr. Ron Walborn, dean of Alliance Theological Seminary, completed his first marathon with his daughter, Karly Schoch, (AU, ’16) in November.
He shares, “I have done two half marathons. I started running at age 57 after losing 130 lbs. My dream goal was to finish this marathon in under five hours. I knew the chip time would be close as the wind gusts were fierce. I crossed the line at 4 hours 53 minutes on my app time and 4 hours 59 minutes and 53 seconds on the chip time! Karly came in at around 4 hours 40 minutes!”
“Cool Runnings,” Part 2
“Exactly three weeks after the Philly Marathon, Wanda (Dr. Wanda Walborn, Associate Professor of Spiritual Formation, Metro C&MA Empower Director) and I went to Atlantic City to do a half marathon and a 5K. This was Wanda’s first race since breaking her foot last year. I am so proud of her. I had my best half time ever!”
Congratulations to #TeamWalborn on hitting their marathon goals!
Rev. Kelvin Walker
Named C&MA Metro District Superintendent in 2018, Rev. Walker was re-elected to the role this fall for a second term. The AU and ATS alumnus became a licensed C&MA worker in 1988. The many hats he has worn as an AU leader include a season as campus pastor, chapel speaker, adjunct professor and ATS chapel service coordinator. He is also the former pastor of Bedford Community Church in Westchester County, NY.
These men and women, each one a class act, consistently achieve impressive personal and professional goals.
Kudos to all!
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