Honors program faculty
Contact info and brief biography of our Honors faculty.
The honors general study program brings together top faculty from many Walla Walla University academic departments. Many honors courses are interdisciplinary and team-taught by faculty from different areas.
Sara Kakazu
Professor of English, Honors Co-director
(509) 527-2782 | sara.kakazu@wallawalla.edu
Education: MA Western Washington University, PhD University at Buffalo, SUNY
Research Interests: Poetry and American narratives, particularly 19th-century travel narratives and their role in identity formation, slave/liberation narratives, and captivity narratives
Monique Roddy
Associate Professor of History, Honors Co-director
(509) 527-2863 | monique.roddy@wallawalla.edu
Education: PhD University of Chicago, 2016; Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations
Research Interest: Iron Age Households at Khirbat al-Balua, Jordan (co-director of the Balua Regional Archaeological Project), History and Archaeology of the Ancient Near East; Households and Communities of the Iron Age Southern Levant (circa 1200 BC)
Kellie Bond
Associate Professor of English, College Writing Coordinator
(509) 527-2825 | kellie.bond@wallawalla.edu
Education: Ph.D., University of Oregon; M.A., University of Oregon
Research interests: Modern literature; modern poetry; poetics
Hilary Dickerson
Professor of History
(509) 527-2065 | hilary.dickerson@wallawalla.edu
Education: Ph.D. in U.S. history, Washington State University, 2011; M.A. in American studies, Washington State University, 2004
Research interests: Cultural exchanges between Japan and the United States between the 1920s–1950s, particularly focused on the lives of Nobuo Tatsuguchi and B.P. Hoffman; 20th century American history; Japan, particularly from the Meiji-Era to the American Occupation; America during the Cold War and World War II; United States foreign policy
Greg Dodds
Chair, Professor of History, Chair, Humanities and Multidisciplinary studies
(509) 527-2851 | gregory.dodds@wallawalla.edu
Education: Ph.D. in history, Claremont Graduate University, 2004; M.B.A. Peter F. Drucker Graduate School of Management, 2000
Research interests: The legacy and influence of Desiderius Erasmus; religion in the 17th century; the scientific revolution in England
Mathilde Frey
Professor of Hebrew Bible, Old Testament
(509) 527-2379 | mathilde.frey@wallawalla.edu
Education: BA, Seminar Marienhoehe, Darmstadt, Germany; PhD, Andrews University
Research Interests: Mathilde's academic interest is focused on close reading of the Hebrew Bible. She has written articles and book chapters on the Sabbath, has authored the Deuteronomy commentary for the Andrews Study Bible, and is currently writing a commentary on the book of Judges for the Seventh-day Adventist International Bible Commentary. Her international experience combined with pastoral ministry and academic work enriches her teaching in the classroom and her other contributions to the Walla Walla University campus.
Lauren Peterson
Assistant Professor of English
(509)-527-2861 | lauren.peterson@wallawalla.edu
Education: BA Walla Walla University, 2012, MA Western Washington University, 2015, PhD University of California, Davis, 2022
Research Interests: Victorian literature, medieval literature, composition, literary and critical theory, and film studies.
Jody Washburn
Associate Professor of Social Work and Sociology
(509) 527-2479 | jody.washburn@wallawalla.edu
Education: PhD – Near Eastern Languages and Cultures, UCLA, 2016, MA – Religion—Old Testament, Andrews University, 2010, MA – Religion—Religious Education, Andrews University, 2010, BA – Theology, Walla Walla University, 2005
Research Interests: Interdisciplinary study of ancient tombs and inscriptions, Intersections between psychological science and theology, particularly in the area of compassion and spirituality, Creative pedagogy, particularly in the areas of Bible and archaeology, Metaphor in the Hebrew Bible
Cynthia Westerbeck
Professor of English, Chair
(509) 527-2370 | cynthia.westerbeck@wallawalla.edu
Education: Ph.D., Washington University in St. Louis; M.A., Washington University in St. Louis
Research interests: The intersection between literature and the arts; environmental literature; general studies and curriculum development; Renaissance literature and 18th Century British literature