Avery Willis Hoffman has been named the Marilyn F. Vitale Artistic Director of the Court Theatre, a professional theatre affiliated with the University of Chicago. She comes to hew new role from Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, where she was the inaugural artistic director of the Brown Arts Institute and a professor of the practice of arts and classics. Her academic expertise centers on ancient Greek and Roman drama and Shakespeare.
Dr. Hoffman is a graduate of Stanford University in California, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in classics and English. She holds a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in classical language and literature from the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom.
Rosalind Horowitz is the new Ricardo Romo Endowed Professor at the University of Texas at San Antonio. She currently serves as a professor in the university’s department of interdisciplinary learning and teaching and the department of educational psychology. As part of her new appointment, she will teach Honors College courses that examine theory and research across university disciplines, advancing experiential learning opportunities for students and helping them excel in higher education.
Dr. Horowitz received her bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, and Ph.D. all from the University of Minnesota.
Jennifer Mueller has been named the Alfred R. Schmidt Endowed Chair for Excellence in Teaching at the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in Indiana. As an associate professor of civil and environmental engineering, she researches pedagogical methods for incorporating sustainability and ethical decision making in undergraduate engineering education. She has also served as a consultant for the Environmental Protection Agency on projects regarding lead-contaminated soil removal, spill prevention and control, and environmental site assessments.
Dr. Mueller earned her bachelor’s degree in environmental engineering from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. She holds a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in civil engineering with an emphasis on environmental river mechanics from Colorado State University.
Jungmeen Kim-Spoon is the Heilig-Meyers Endowed Professor in Psychology at Virginia Tech. A Virginia Tech faculty member since 2005, she achieved the rank of full professor in 2016 and currently directs the JK Lifespan Development Lab. Drawing from the behavioral, cognitive, emotional, neurobiological, and spiritual aspects of developmental processes, she has conducted extensive research on the risk and protective factors related to young people’s mental health, substance use, and overall well-being.
Dr. Kim Spoon received her Ph.D. in developmental psychology from the University of Virginia.


