Faculty — S

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    Sabbaghi, Omid

    Omid Sabbaghi

    Associate Professor of Finance and Director of Graduate Business Programs, teaches investments and corporate finance. He received both his M.B.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Chicago's Booth School of Business, where he studied finance and econometrics. During his graduate studies, he was the recipient of an Oscar Mayer Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degrees from the University of California-Berkeley, triple-majoring in Economics, Statistics, and Applied Mathematics. He joined the University in 2009.

    sabbagom@udmercy.edu

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    Sanchez-Castano, Eliana

    Eliana Sanchez-Castano

    Clinical Assistant Professor, Division of Clinical Dentistry, teaches restorative dentistry to dental students, has a special interest in the implementation and integration of CAD/CAM dentistry technologies into the dental curriculum. She has a D.D.S. degree from University of El Bosque, Bogota Colombia, a Master’s Degree in Hospital Management, and an Implant Fellowship Certificate from The Ohio State University. She joined the University in 2010.

    sancheel@udmercy.edu

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    Santora, Michael

    Michael Santora

    Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, teaches courses on control systems, signal processing, engineering computation and problem solving, hardware & software integration and senior design. His areas of interest and expertise are analysis, modeling, and control of chaotic and complex systems. Applications range from robotic systems, electric machines, to active noise cancellation. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Gonzaga University, and a Master’s Degree and Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Idaho. He joined Detroit Mercy in 2017.

    santormj1@udmercy.edu

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    Saunders, Mitzi M.

    Mitzi M. Saunders

    Professor, McAuley School of Nursing, has been the program coordinator for the Adult Gerontology Clinical Nurse Specialist (AGCNS) program since 2010. She has over 20 years of experience as a certified Adult Clinical Nurse Specialist. Saunders is committed to growing the numbers of AGCNSs nationwide and showcasing the impact of the CNS role. She actively speaks on practice issues affecting nursing and remains involved in legislative processes at the state and national level. She is an active member of the National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists. Besides teaching in the AGCNS program, Saunders teaches an interprofessional course in health policy. Her research interests are family caregiving, CNS role and methods in on-line learning. Saunders is certified by the Association of College and University Educators in effective teaching practices in higher education.

    saundemm@udmercy.edu

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    Saunders, Timothy R.

    Timothy R. Saunders

    Clinical Professor, Division of Clinical Dentistry,  Assistant Dean of Clinic Administration. His primary responsibilities are related to the administration of the Corktown and UHC clinics. Dr. Saunders earned his D.D.S. degree from Creighton University School of Dentistry in Omaha, Nebraska in 1972. He completed his GPR training at Scott Medical Center, Scott Air Force Base, Illinois in 1973. Dr. Saunders attended the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota for his residency training in Prosthodontics and Maxillofacial Prosthetics from 1974 to 1977. Dr. Saunders spent 24 years actively practicing and teaching prosthodontics and maxillofacial prosthetics in the United State Air Force, retiring in 1995. He joined the faculty of the Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry of the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, in 1996, retiring in 2010. Dr. Saunders joined the University of Detroit Mercy School of Dentistry in 2011.

    saundetr@udmercy.edu

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    Scheys, Joshua

    Joshua Scheys

    Assistant Professor, Division of Integrated Biomedical Sciences, teaches human physiology to dental students and Integrated Biomedical Sciences to dental hygiene students. Additionally, he is the faculty advisor for the Student Research group at the dental school. His research interests include beta-cell biology and secretory signaling pathways.  Dr. Scheys received a PhD in Cellular and Molecular Biology from the University of Michigan and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Michigan Brehm Center for Diabetes Research. He joined the University in 2014.

    scheysjo@udmercy.edu

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    Schroeck, Nicholas

    Nicholas Schroeck

    Associate Dean for Experiential Learning and Associate Professor, received his J.D. from Wayne State University School of Law and his B.A. from Elmhurst College.  He joined the University in 2018.

    schroenj@udmercy.edu

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    Scott, Leslie

    Leslie Scott

    Assistant Professor of Law, received her B.A. from University of Michigan and her J.D. from American University.  She joined the University in 2019.

    scottle2@udmercy.edu

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    Serowoky, Mary L.

    Mary L. Serowoky

    Clinical Associate Professor, McAuley School of Nursing, teaches in the Family Nurse Practitioner program. Serowoky’s scholarship interests include adolescent wellness, risk and protective factors. She maintains an active primary care practice in school-based health and serves as a consultant for the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, Child and Adolescent Health Centers Program. Serowoky earned her B.S.N. from Mercy College of Detroit, her M.S.N. from University of Detroit Mercy and her D.N.P. from Wayne State University. She joined the University in 2012.

    serowoml2@udmercy.edu 

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    Shawash, Nart

    Nart Shawash

    Associate Professor of Mathematics, teaches courses such as Differential Equations, Advanced Engineering Mathematics and Multivariable Calculus, where he emphasizes geometric visualization of ideas using tools such as Matlab and Maple as means for concept motivation before derivation of formulas or proving theorems.  He received his Ph.D. degree from Oakland University in 2008, with a dissertation on symmetric interconnection networks, and his undergraduate degree is in electronics engineering from PSUT, Jordan. Current interests include graph theoretical modeling, implementing and analyzing graph drawing algorithms and dynamical processes on symmetric and random graphs. Shawash joined the Mathematics Department in 2008.

    shawasnm@udmercy.edu

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    Shaw-Gallagher, Marlene

    Marlene Shaw-Gallagher

    Marlene Shaw-Gallagher, MS, PA-C is an assistant professor in the Physician Assistant program. Professor Shaw-Gallagher teaches Diagnostic and Therapeutic Procedures I, II, III and is a clinical rotations coordinator. She is an alumnus of Detroit Mercy's Physician Assistant program and has a background in internal medicine and interventional radiology. She has been working in nephrology for the past five years and has received a grant from the National Kidney Foundation to study interventions aimed at preventing the progression of chronic kidney disease in diabetic patients. Professor Shaw-Gallagher holds a B.S. in Biology-Zoology/Biological Anthropology from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, and a M.S. in Physician Assistant Studies from Detroit Mercy. She has been at Detroit Mercy since 2017. 

    gallagmm@udmercy.edu

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    Shen, S.J., Raphael

    Raphael Shen, S.J.

    Professor of Economics, teaches courses in macroeconomics, microeconomic theory/analysis, comparative economic systems, development economics and resource economics. Shen's publications and presentations have dealt with transitional economies in Eastern Europe. His more recent publications include a book titled The Political Economy of China’s Systemic Transformation 1979-Present: Successes, Obstacles, Anomalies published by Palgrave-MacMillan, 2011, and two refereed articles. All three publications were co-authored with Victoria L. Mantzopoulos, Ph.D., professor, Detroit Mercy. Shen has also presented numerous papers at professional conferences. He holds a Bachelor of Arts from Berchmans College and a Master of Arts and a doctorate from Michigan State University. He came to Detroit Mercy in 1977.

    shenrs@udmercy.edu

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    Shepherd, Kathi R.

    Kathi R. Shepherd

    Associate Professor, Assistant Dean of Educational Development and Assessment, co-directs the dental hygiene board review and all courses in the community health curriculum. Additional teaching includes lecturing in the oral health assessment and prevention dental hygiene courses. Her publications and professional presentations focus on both dental education and dental hygiene care. She received a Certificate in Dental Hygiene and a B.S. from the University of Detroit and a M.S. from the University of Detroit Mercy. Shepherd joined the University in 1985.

    shephekr@udmercy.edu

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    Sherowski, Elizabeth

    Elizabeth Sherowski

    Visiting Assistant Professor of Law, received her B.A. from the University of Notre Dame and her J.D. from the Ohio State University.  She joined the University in 2020.

    sherowel@udmercy.edu 

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    Shoemaker, Daniel P.

    Daniel P. Shoemaker

    Professor of Cybersecurity & Information Systems, Director of the Master of Science in Information Assurance Program, Daniel Shoemaker, Ph.D., is a full-time professor at University of Detroit Mercy, director of the Master of Science in Information Assurance Program with a major in Cybersecurity, and senior research scientist at Detroit Mercy's Center for Cyber Security & Intelligence Studies. He is a former chair of the Department of Computer & Information Systems at Detroit Mercy, a role for which he served for 25 years. As the co-chair for the National Workforce Training and Education Initiative, he is one of the authors of the DHS Software Assurance Common Body of Knowledge (CBK). He also helped author the DHS IA Essential Body of Knowledge and serves as a subject matter expert for the NIST-NICE workforce framework. Shoemaker also enjoys editing journals, and his publications number are well over 100. He joined the University in 1985.

    shoemadp@udmercy.edu

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    Shounia, Tarik

    Tarik Shounia

    Clinical Associate Professor,  is the director of the mobile dental program, Titans for Teeth. He teaches clinical Pediatric Dentistry to dental students. Prof. Shounia received his B.D.S. from University of Baghdad, D.D.P.H. from Royal College of Surgeon of England, M.Sc. from London University - England, and D.D.S. from University of Detroit Mercy. His area of interest includes pediatric and preventive dentistry, and dental public health. Dr. Shounia joined the university in 2014. 

    shouniaty@udmercy.edu

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    Siddiqi, Marina

    Marina Siddiqi

    Clinical Assistant Professor,  teaches Oral Diagnosis to accelerated dental students. She co-directs, as well as lectures in didactic courses focusing on diagnosis, treatment planning, oral lesions and the link between systemic and oral health to pre-dental, first and second year dental students, and accelerated dental students

    Prof. Siddiqi earned a Bachelor of Dental Surgery from Baqai Medical University, Karachi, Pakistan. She completed a Master of Science in Oral Biology and Master of Science in Dentistry in Oral Medicine from the University of Washington. She earned her Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from University of Detroit Mercy.
    Prof. Siddiqi was one of the pioneering dental faculty at Princess Nora bint Abdulrahman University in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest all female university. Prof. Siddiqi continues to maintain an active membership in the American Academy of Oral Medicine. She joined the university in 2017.

    siddiqma3@udmercy.edu

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    Sinutko, Jaime M.

    Jaime M. Sinutko

    Instructor, McAuley School of Nursing, teaches in the classroom and online for the MSON undergraduate students. Sinutko earned a B.S.N., M.S.N. in education, and Ph.D. in educational leadership with a focus on higher education administration from Oakland University. She also assumed leadership and teaching responsibility at Oakland University, Rochester College, and Chamberlain College of Nursing. Much of her academic leadership work revolved around nursing program creation, recruitment, accreditation, and funding. Prior to these academic roles, Sinutko worked as an emergency nurse for 10 years with a passion for triage and trauma care.

    sinutkjm@udmercy.edu

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    Slowik, Linda H.

    Linda H. Slowik

    Associate Professor of Psychology and Department Chair, teaches coursework pertaining to the field of industrial/organizational psychology, as well as statistics, community development, developmental psychology and social psychology. She holds a doctorate and a master's degree in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from Wayne State University. She has expertise in the measurement of psychological concepts and applying psychology following an inclusive, interdisciplinary approach. Slowik's research focuses on applying theories and principles of motivation, with special attention to the social context, such as organizational climate, community and group dynamics. She seeks to address real-world problems by integrating principles of psychology to applied problems. Her projects have included topics such as examining the role of motivation and social support in promoting dental compliance; the dynamics of adult identity in organizational contexts, as well as community contexts; social dynamics of creativity and affectivity in the work setting; the relationship between vehicles and owners; nursing empowerment; public views of transit systems; succession planning in small companies; and work-life balance as it relates to work climate. She joined the University in 2004.

    slowiklh@udmercy.edu

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    Smoczer, Cristine

    Cristine Smoczer

    Assistant Professor, Prof. Smoczer teaches biochemistry, genetics, and nutrition to dental students. She holds a medical degree from University of Medicine and Pharmacy Timisoara, Romania and a Ph.D in Developmental Genetics from the University of Windsor, Canada. Following postdoctoral research at Wayne State University. She joined the university in 2016.

    smoczecr@udmercy.edu

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    Snyder, Katherine E.

    Katherine E. Snyder

    Dean of the College of Engineering & Science, previously served as interim dean and associate dean of Academic Affairs for the College of Engineering & Science from 2010-2017. She has held other administrative roles including the director of the Seven-year Dental Program and chair of the Mathematics and Computer Science Department.  She is the principle investigator (PI) of a $300,000 grant from the Ford Motor Company for a Ford Mobility App project, and is co-PI for the ReBUILDetroit grant, a $21.2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health. In addition, she serves on the academic board for Detroit Loyola High School.  Before joining University of Detroit Mercy as a faculty member in the Mathematics and Computer Science Department in 1994, Snyder taught high school in southwest Detroit. She earned a Ph.D. in Mathematics and Computer Education at Wayne State University. She also holds a B.S. degree in Mathematics and a M.S. degree in Computer Science from the University of Detroit. Her field of study includes the appropriate and effective use of technology in mathematics and computer science education, particularly computer algebra systems.

    snyderke@udmercy.edu

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    Sordyl, Claudine M.

    Claudine M. Sordyl

    Associate Professor, Division of Clinical Dentistry, teaches physical assessment, management of medical emergencies, basic life support (re)certification courses, pain and anxiety control, and medical history taking. She is also involved in teaching protocols on nitrous oxide inhalation/parenteral sedation preparation and monitoring the sedated patient to dental, dental hygiene and post doctoral graduate students. As a research study nurse, she coordinates study participants in pain control research involving pharmaceuticals and techniques. Her publications and local/national professional presentations deal with subject matter on preoperative assessment and emergency preparedness of sedated patients, medical emergencies in the dental office setting, local anesthesia, and nitrous oxide. She has received several speaking engagement awards. Sordyl holds a B.S. in Nursing and a M.S. in Health Services Administration from University of Detroit Mercy. She joined the University in 1989.

    sordylcm@udmercy.edu

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    Souldatos, Ioannis

    Ioannis Souldatos

    Associate Professor of Mathematics, received his Ph.D. (2008) in Mathematical Logic and M.A. (2004) in Mathematics from UCLA. He also holds a Master’s degree (2002) in “Logic, Computation and Algorithms” from the University of Athens, Greece, where he also earned his Bachelor’s (2000) in Pure Mathematics. His research interests lie in Mathematical Logic, especially in Model Theory and Set Theory. He teaches a variety of lower and upper level classes and enjoys working with students on research projects, or individual study courses. Prior to Detroit Mercy, he spent three years at Minnesota State University in Mankato, five years as an instructor/teaching fellow/teaching associate/teaching assistant at UCLA, and one year in Melbourne, Australia. He joined the department of Mathematics and Computer Science in 2011.

    souldaio@udmercy.edu

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    Spreitzer, Jil

    Jill Spreitzer

    Associate Librarian, Reference, McNichols Campus Library, provides reference services, instruction in database searching, and research skills instruction. She facilitates collection development for civil/architectural/environmental engineering, mechanical engineering, communication studies, health services administration, and digital media studies. Spreitzer holds a B.S. degree in Biology from University of Michigan and a M.S.L.S. degree in Library Science from Wayne State University. She joined the University in 1999.

    werdeljc@udmercy.edu

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    St. John, Julie

    Julie St. John

    Assistant Professor of Comparative Legal Writing and Research, has experience in civil litigation, family law, real estate, and wills and estates. She teaches Comparative Legal Writing and Research.  St. John holds a B.A. and LL.B. from University of Windsor and a LL.M. from Wayne State University.  She joined Detroit Mercy Law in 2004.

    stjohnjl@udmercy.edu

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    Stanard, Virginia

    Virginia Stanard

    Assistant Professor and Director, Master of Community Development, teaches courses in urban design, community development, and real estate development. Stanard is a principal at City Form Detroit, a Detroit-based urban design practice. In these roles, Stanard has implemented an interdisciplinary and collaborative model of teaching, research, and practice focused on community-based design and planning. Stanard received her Master of Architecture and Master of Urban Design from the University of Michigan and her Bachelor of Science in Architecture from the University of Virginia. Stanard began at the University in 2006 as an urban designer at the Detroit Collaborative Design Center and joined the faculty in 2015.

    stanarvi@udmercy.edu

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    Stanton, Tom

    Tom Stanton

    Associate Professor of Communication Studies, teaches news writing, news editing, mass communication, media ethics and Detroit sports history and journalism and advises the student newspaper, The Varsity News. He is author of several nationally recognized nonfiction books, including the 2016 New York Times sports bestseller Terror in the City of Champions and the Casey Award-winning Tiger Stadium memoir The Final Season. He has been featured on CNN, ESPN and NPR. A co-founder and former editor of The Voice newspapers, Stanton was named a Knight-Wallace Fellow at University of Michigan. He is a recipient of Michigan Library Association’s Author of the Year award, and his most recent work was named a 2017 Notable Book by the state library. He joined the University in 2008.

    tstanton@udmercy.edu

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    Steffka, Mark

    Mark Steffka

    Faculty in Electrical & Computer Engineering and Computer Science, teaches electrical/electronic circuit design, electromagnetic compatibility (EMC), and communication systems. He has extensive experience with military HF/VHF/UHF secure communications, spacecraft instrumentation, automotive control systems, and on-vehicle antenna systems for terrestrial and satellite applications. In 2018 he retired from General Motors as the global vehicle engineering technical leader for the antenna group. Prior to that, he was a team leader and EMC Technical Specialist with General Motors Global Propulsion Systems. He holds patents on methods for electromagnetic interference reduction, and vehicle antenna systems. He is the author (or co-author) of a number of publications including books and technical papers presented international conference/symposiums. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Electromagnetic Compatibility Society, a member of SAE International, and has had numerous technical and organizational leadership roles both within IEEE and SAE. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from the University of Michigan, and a Master of Science from Indiana Wesleyan University. He joined the university as an Adjunct Professor in 2006, and became a full-time faculty member in 2018.

    steffkma@udmercy.edu

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    Stevens, Jonathan

    Jonathan Stevens

    Associate Professor of Chemistry, teaches physical chemistry, general chemistry, and core curriculum chemistry for non-science and non-engineering majors. His research focuses on the application of theoretical quantum chemistry to gas-phase atmospheric reactions and photochemistry. Stevens holds B.S. degrees in chemistry and mathematics from Miami University of Ohio and a Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of Chicago. He joined the University in 1998.

    stevenje@udmercy.edu

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    Stewart, Traci

    Traci Stewart

    Assistant Professor, McAuley School of Nursing, joined the University of Detroit Mercy in 2019, teaches in the undergraduate nursing program with a focus on community health nursing. She is a board certified Adult Acute Care Nurse Practitioner and Advanced Certified Hospice and Palliative Nurse. She also holds a nurse educator certificate. Dr. Stewart earned her D.N.P. degree from Madonna University. She has a passion for working with Veterans and the LGBT populations and presented on behalf of both of these groups. 

    stewartr1@udmercy.edu 

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    Stocker-Schneider, Julia

    Julia Stocker-Schneider

    Associate Professor, McAuley School of Nursingis lead faculty and coordinator of the Health Systems Management (HSM) and Clinical Nurse Leader (CNL) graduate Nursing programs.  She has 15 years of experience teaching nursing leadership and management, quality improvement, and nursing informatics at the graduate level. Stocker-Schneider earned her doctorate from the University of Michigan with a research focus on the measurement of nursing-sensitive outcomes in the home care setting.  She gained nursing informatics experience through her work in the development of the Hands-on Automated Nursing Data System (HANDS) at the University of Michigan. She has over six years of home care leadership and quality improvement experience, including four years’ service as director of Nursing at two Medicare-certified home healthcare agencies. Stocker-Schneider is passionate about developing nurse leaders who are systems thinkers, grounded in improvement, beginning with a clinical microsystem approach, and who support informatics integration, and utilize nursing and outcomes data to inform decisions leading to systems change.  She has been a certified clinical nurse leader (CNL) since 2016.  She joined the University of Detroit Mercy in 2003.

    stockeju@udmercy.edu

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    Streit, Sigrid

    Sigrid Streit

    Assistant Professor of English and Director of Writing across the Curriculumjoined University of Detroit Mercy in 2015. Prior to this position, she taught at Stanford University and Penn State. She holds a doctorate and a Master of Arts in Rhetoric and Composition from Kent State University, and a second Master of Arts from Dresden University of Technology, Germany. In her capacity as director of writing across the curriculum, Streit collaborates with departments and individual instructors to support the integration of writing across disciplines at the University. Her research and teaching interests include the relationship of knowledge to embodied practices and teaching and learning in multimodal settings. Streit recently co-authored “Gilbert Austin’s Chironomia Revisited: Sympathy, Science, and the Representation of Movement.” Her current research explores the role of movement and its ability to form implicit arguments in the context of complementary and alternative medicine. 

    streitsi@udmercy.edu

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    Stone, Carl

    Carl Stone

    Associate Professor, Division of Clinical Dentistry

    stonecr@udmercy.edu

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    Sumner, Gregory D.

    Gregory D. Sumner

    Professor of History and Department Co-Chair, teaches courses on 20th-century American politics and culture. He is the author of Dwight Macdonald and the Politics Circle: The Challenge of Cosmopolitan Democracy (1996) and Unstruck in Time: A Journey Through Kurt Vonnegut's Life and Novels (2012), Detroit in World War II (2015) and Michigan POW Camps in World War II (2018). A fellow of the Andrew Mellon Foundation, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and the National Endowment for the Humanities, he also was selected as a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Rome (2001, 2010). He holds a Bachelor of Arts, a Master of Arts and a doctorate from Indiana University and a Juris Doctor from University of Michigan Law School. He joined the University in 1993.

    sumnergd@udmercy.edu

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    Sunghera S.J., Gilbert

    Gilbert Sunghera, S.J.

    Associate Professor of Architecture, teaches design studio and graduate seminars in his research area of sacred space and the encounter between sacred space and the public square. Fr. Sunghera worked as an architectural designer in Southern California before entering the priesthood, and currently directs the Detroit Mercy Liturgical Space Consulting Service, a national outreach effort for churches and religious congregations as they prepare to build new worship environments. Fr. Sunghera is Superior of the Jesuit Community. Fr. Sunghera holds a B.A. in Social Ecology from the University of California, Irvine, a M.Arch from the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, a M.Div from the Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley and a STM from the Institute of Sacred Music, Worship and the Arts from Yale University.

    sunghegi@udmercy.edu