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Hastings College welcomes home new faculty, administrators, Part II

President’s Cabinet
Dr. Gilbert Hinga
Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students
Dr. Hinga comes to Hastings College from serving as Associate Vice President of Student Life at Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas. Dr. Hinga earned his BA in psychology at Warren Wilson College in North Carolina and later earned his PsyD in psychology from Wright State University in Ohio. He has had considerable experience with strategic planning, with helping to integrate curricular and co-curricular experiences, and with enhancing a student learning environment. Dr. Hinga and his wife, Beth, and their family joined the college community on July 1, 2012.

Dr. Gary C. Johnson
Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the Faculty
Dr. Johnson brings to the position considerable experience as both a professor and an administrator. He earned his BA in Comparative Literature at The University of Virginia and later earned his PhD in Comparative Literature from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.  He has taught English at The University of Findlay since 2000, even as he served in the university’s administration.  
 
As Dean of the College of Liberal Arts at the University of Findlay, he has facilitated professional development activities for faculty, led strategic planning initiatives, and ensured the viability of the six academic departments. He and his wife, Emily, and their family, joined the college community on July 1, 2012.

Administration
Shawn Baker
Registrar
Mr. Baker comes to Hastings College from Gettysburg College (Penn.), where he has served as Assistant Registrar for five years. Prior to his work at Gettysburg College, Mr. Baker served as the transfer evaluator at DeVry University and as Student Loan Coordinator and then as Registrar at York Technical Institute in Pennsylvania. He studied at Gettysburg College, earning a BA in history in 1995, and at Mount Saint Mary University, earning his MBA in 2012.

Dr. Elizabeth Frombgen
Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs
Since joining the Hastings College faculty in 2001, Dr. Liz Frombgen has built a solid reputation in the classroom and in service to the College. She has served as Chair of the Political Science Department; as Lead Co-Chair for the Pathways Pilot Program, a College endeavor exploring new ways to engage students; as Faculty Senate President for two terms; as member of several faculty search committees; and as faculty sponsor to various student groups.

Dr. Frombgen earned her BA in political science from Western Washington University and her MA and PhD in political science from Purdue University. Liz is married to Associate Professor of Economics Dr. Douglas Kinnear. Additionally, she is step-mom to Lana and proud to be owned by three Jack Russell Terriers.

Jerry Schmutte
Athletic Director
Mr. Jerry Schmutte comes to Hastings College from Morningside College, where he served as athletic director, since March 2001. He was put in charge of the Mustangs’ athletic department during an historic period as the college began competition as a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) in 2002 and as a member of the Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) during the 2003-2004 academic year. Mr. Schmutte was named the 2007-2008 Hauff Mid-America Sports/GPAC Athletic Director of the Year. Under his direction, the Mustangs claimed the 2007-08 and 2006-07 GPAC All-Sports Trophies.

Faculty
Megan Arrington
Adjunct Faculty for Journalism and Media Arts
Ms. Arrington ’09 graduated with a degree in mass communications with an emphasis in print journalism and minors in Spanish and philosophy. Throughout her time at Hastings College, Ms. Arrington led the award-winning Collegian as editor-in-chief from her sophomore through senior year. More recently, she has founded a web design and development company, Prairie Interactive, which located in Hastings. She serves as co-founder and project manager for the company started by all HC alumni. From 2010-2011, she worked in the College’s Admissions Office.

Dr. Ingrid Bego
Assistant Professor of Political Science
Dr. Bego comes to Hastings College from teaching at the University of Wisconsin, Green Bay. Originally from Albania, Dr. Bego’s undergraduate degree in German and Spanish is from Washburn University, where she earned an MA in political science in 2006. Her PhD in political science (with distinction) is from Washington State University.

Susan Bokermann
Adjunct Faculty for Business and Economics
A 2009 graduate of American University’s Washington College of Law, Ms. Bokermann currently works at Sullivan Shoemaker, P.C., L.L.C., in Hastings, Neb., where she handles a variety of legal areas. She earned her undergraduate degree in English literature and history with a minor in government from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.

Matt Buttermore
Head Volleyball Coach
Coach Buttermore spent three seasons as Assistant Coach at Bellevue (Neb.) University preceded by three seasons at Concordia University in Seward, Neb., prior to coming to Hastings College. Additionally, he has coached numerous volleyball club teams and served as a clinician at summer camps in Nebraska and Iowa. He honed his expertise in volleyball while playing NCAA Division I men’s volleyball at the University of Findlay. In addition to his undergraduate degree in English, he completed an MA in Leadership at Bellevue University, where he developed a leadership program for collegiate athletes.

Billie J. Cotterman
Librarian
Billie Cotterman is responsible for technical services and instruction in the use of computer software programs and shares in responsibilities for bibliographic instruction, web page development, reference services and collection development. She is finishing her MA in Library and Information Science at the University of Iowa. She also has an MA in classics from the University of Iowa and an MA in Latin from the University of Florida.

Doyle D. Daiss
Adjunct Faculty for Psychology
A licensed independent mental health practitioner and licensed drug and alcohol counselor, Mr. Daiss is associated with Compass Point Counseling in Hastings, Neb. He graduated from Hastings College in 1999 and then earned his MS Ed. from the University of Nebraska-Kearney in 2002. He also has experience in law enforcement, having served as an officer in both Hastings and Harvard, Neb.

Kathryn Decker
Adjunct Faculty for Teacher Education
Ms. Decker taught elementary school for Grand Island Public Schools for 34 years. She earned her BA and her Master of Curriculum and Instruction from Doane College.  Additionally, she has been active in monitoring whooping crane migrations.

Mark Hiemenz
Head Coach for Women’s Soccer   
A 1997 alum of DePauw University in Greencastle, Ind., Coach Hiemenz has spent the previous five seasons as an assistant coach for the Boise (Idaho) State Broncos, assisting with the day-to-day operations of the program and on field coaching. In addition, he served as the recruiting coordinator and goalkeeper coach. Coach Hiemenz has a strong collegiate coaching background following five years as the head coach at Carroll College in Montana where he amassed a 56-30-7 record and coached 19 academic All-Americans, 15 NAIA all-region selections and nine honorable mention All-Americans. The team also won an NSCAA Team Academic Award four years in a row by maintaining a 3.0 team GPA or higher.

Dr. Beth Hinga
Adjunct Faculty for Biology
Dr. Hinga holds BS and MS degrees in geology from Baylor University, and a PhD in geological sciences from Southern Methodist University.  Dr. Hinga’s fields of expertise are volcanology and seismology. She was on the faculty of Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas, for 16 years, teaching both general education courses in geology and a variety of courses toward the BS degree in geosciences.  She served as Department Head of the Department of Chemistry, Geosciences, and Environmental Science from January 2010 until she and her husband left the institution at the end of June 2012. She is currently writing a book, Ring of Fire: An Encyclopedia of the Pacific Rim’s Earthquake, Tsunamis, and Volcanoes for ABC-CLIO Publishers.    

Carrie Hofstetter
Head Coach for Women’s Basketball
Since 2008, Coach Hofstetter has served as Head Assistant Women’s Basketball Coach at Fort Hays State University. Previously, the Edgar, Neb., native distinguished herself as a scholar-athlete at HC, playing on Bronco teams which amassed two NAIA Division II National Championships.  During her senior year, she earned NAIA 1st Team All-American honors. After graduation, she served four years as Head Assistant Coach for the Bronco Women’s Basketball team during which time the team made four consecutive national tournament appearances, two Final Four appearances and the 2006 national championship.  

Roxann Holliday
Adjunct Faculty for Business/Economics
In addition to teaching as an adjunct at Hastings College, Ms. Holliday teaches online business courses for Iowa Western Community College where she is Program Chair and Assistant Professor of Business Administration & Accounting.  She earned both her BS and her MBA from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and is a member of the Hastings Public Library Board of Trustees.  

Antonio Marino
Adjunct Faculty for Teacher Education
Mr. Tony Marino earned his BA from Hanover (Ind.) College where he majored in history and received a teaching certificate. He then earned an MS in education from Indiana University Southeast. Currently, he is employed by Minden Public Schools where he teaches social studies and coaches football.  Previously, Mr. Marino taught at Carroll County High School in Carrollton, Ken., Holyoke Public Schools in Massachusetts, and Franklin County Technical Schools in Turners Falls, Mass.  

Michella Marino
Assistant Professor of History
Dr. Michella Marino received her BA in history from Hanover College in southeastern Indiana in 2004 and her MA in History from the University of Louisville in 2007. She is working on her doctorate at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst and plans to defend her dissertation entitled “Sweating Femininity: Women Athletes, Masculine Culture, and American Inequality from 1930 to the Present” this upcoming academic year. Her research and teaching interests span the fields of American History, Women’s History, Sports History and Oral History. When not studying sports, she enjoys playing them.

Rich Mayson
Assistant Football Coach, Recruiting Coordinator
Coach Mayson was previously the offensive coordinator for MacMurray College (Ill.). A native of Mexico, Mo., he played wide receiver and tight end for the Truman State University Bulldogs and served as team captain in 2005 and 2006. In addition to his season with the Highlanders, his resume also includes stints at Northwest Missouri State and at Montana Tech, where he also served as Sports Information Director. Coach Mayson and his wife, Kristin, have a daughter, Jordin.

Michael McCoy
Adjunct Faculty for Physical Education
Currently the General Manager for the Nebraska Danger Indoor Professional Football team, Mr. McCoy brings a wealth of sports management and coaching experience at the high school, collegiate and indoor arena professional levels to the classroom. He is a 1974 graduate of the Southwestern College in Winfield, Kans., and earned his MS at University of Kansas.

Dr. Patricia Oman
Assistant Professor of English
Dr. Patricia Oman has previously served as a visiting assistant professor at the University of Illinois at Springfield. She received her BA from the University of Illinois, with majors in classics and comparative literature. Her MA is from the University of Leicester (United Kingdom) and her PhD in English is from the University of Oregon.  

Jamie K. Read
Assistant Professor of Accounting
Ms. Read comes to Hastings College from her position as Controller at Christian Relief Services Charities in Alexandria, Virginia. She is a CPA and has a master’s degree in accountancy from Abilene Christian University.

Lisa Smith
Adjunct Faculty for Teacher Education
Ms. Lisa Smith started teaching elementary students in 1991 and spent nine years working with all grades, Pre-Kindergarten through 6th as a classroom teacher and lead teacher in a pilot project school in Texas.  Ms. Smith also worked with a national curriculum and instruction company out of Seattle, Wash., and served as a teacher consultant and conference presenter for educators across the country.  Upon returning to Nebraska to serve as a staff development specialist for Educational Service Unit 9 and support liaison for the Nebraska Department of Education, she completed her first Masters in Curriculum and Instruction and a second in Educational Leadership through Doane College.  While currently serving as the Director of Professional Development for the ESU, Lisa is again a student at Doane and is pursuing an Educational Specialist degree.

Steven J. Snell
Assistant Professor of Art
Mr. Snell comes to Hastings College from Spartanburg, South Carolina, where he served as Artist-in-Residence at The Hub-Bub. He graduated from Miami University (Ohio) in 2006 with a BFA in painting and a BS in Art Education. He then traveled to the great land of Alaska seeking adventure and eventually became the sole art teacher in the remote village of Yakutat. In 2011, Mr. Snell received his MFA in Studio Art from the University of Massachusetts Amherst. His work has been shown in galleries and film festivals throughout the Midwest, East Coast and the South.

Eric Tucker
Adjunct Faculty for English and Journalism and Media Arts
Mr. Tucker completed a BA in creative writing at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a master’s degree in journalism at the University of Oregon. He has taught writing at the University of Oregon, Western Illinois University, and the University of Illinois at Springfield and has worked as an editor and writer for over ten years.

Annette Vargas
Assistant Professor of Theatre
Ms. Vargas comes to Hastings College from Illinois Central College. She has an MFA in theatrical design, with a concentration in scenic and lighting design, from Pennsylvania State University and an undergraduate minor in music education. 

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