NICOLE ALBERTSON
News Assistant
Pepperdine welcomes 27 new faculty members at Seaver College and all four graduate campuses this fall. Hailing from places such as nearby UCLA and as far away as Greece, the new faculty Waves are collaborating their energy and spirits to revitalize and encourage Pepperdine students in their academic careers.
“I want to bring my knowledge and experience to my students,” said new faculty member Thema Bryant-Davis, assistant professor of psychology.
Bryant-Davis is just one of four new professors at the Graduate School of Education and Psychology to join Pepperdine this fall.
Pepperdine’s reputation and legacy has made its Malibu campus a desirable university for many faculty members.
“I have a great appreciation for the school’s legacy as a very collegiate place and having a wonderful reputation,” said another new faculty member, Vassilis Polimenis, associate professor of finance. Polimenis has also come together with 11 other professors hoping to educate and inspire students at Seaver.
Among the new hires are several Pepperdine alumni. Theodore Gardner became the assistant professor of psychology after he received his master’s in Psychology at Pepperdine and then his doctorate in clinical psychology from University of Oregon. Another Pepperdine alumnus, Hilary Stirman Reed joined the faculty at the School of Law this year after graduating from there with her with her law degree.
Three of these new professors adding Pepperdine to their letterhead are raising the educational bar by offering new opportunities for their students and hoping to bring the Pepperdine reputation up with them.
Another faculty member to join the Pepperdine ranks is Grant Nelson as William H. Rehnquist professor of law at the School of Law. After graduating magna cum laude with his law degree from the University of Minnesota, Nelson taught real estate law for 23 years at his alma mater. Nelson then chose a position at UCLA over an invitation to Pepperdine, teaching for another 17 years before coming to Malibu this fall.
“It was definitely not an easy decision [to chose UCLA],” Nelson said. “But I always had it in the back of my head that I would come back to Pepperdine. I have always been sympathetic with the content with Pepperdine and its morals.”
Nelson is the coauthor of 14 books and the author of 35 law review articles and book chapters. But more than his scholarly work, Nelson is looking forward to working with the School of Law Dean Kenneth Starr.
“I want to help our dean bring Pepperdine into the top tier of American Law schools,” Nelson said. “Now is the time for Pepperdine to make a quantum leap and in five or six years, hopefully, we will be in the top 50 law schools.”
Moving up the hill to the Graduate School of Education and Psychology, new professor Bryant-Davis was brought to Pepperdine this year from her assistant professor job at California State, Long Beach.
Her concentration on psychology, theology, culture and African American studies developed from her work as a post-doctoral fellow at Princeton University and at Harvard Medical Center.
Bryant-Davis is focused on maintaining her work for the United Nations, doing charity impoverished communities, continuing her private practice in Los Angeles, and working for the African Methodist Episcopalian Church.
Now that she can add Pepperdine professor to her resume, Bryant-Davis is intrigued by the new opportunities she’ll have to affect the world through her students.
“[Teaching at Pepperdine] is an opportunity to integrate my psychology and my spirituality,” Bryant-Davis said. “I want students to understand the influence of culture on mental health for trauma survivors and know how to better serve those who have otherwise been overlooked.”
Adding an international spice to Seaver College is Polimenis, who hails from Greece and will add his financial expertise to the Pepperdine curriculum.
Since his move to the United States in 1997, Polimenis has earned his master’s of science in computer science from University of California Berkeley, and an master’s of science and a doctorate in finance from Wharton Business School at the University of Pennsylvania.
He also has teaching experience from University of Pennsylvania and University of California, Berkeley.
“The United Sates is the Mecca of finance and financial education,” Polimenis said. “It is a great place for me to study and learn from finance.”
Now joining Pepperdine’s faculty, Polimenis is prepared to share his experience with Pepperdine students. He combines his students’ career ambitions with the Pepperdine code of ethics.
“Pepperdine is the highest education possible for students without compromising the morals of the students,” Polimenis said. “I plan to bring [my] determination to show students the skills of market placement and economic principles, but [doing this with] values.”
It seems that Pepperdine has been full of new additions this year, from 27 faculty members to a final senior administration change this fall.
But all of the changing, while slightly confusing, is only bringing more positive and encouraging people to Pepperdine’s campus, leading toward a successful future for students.
09-20-2007