About Grantham University

University Administration and Faculty

University Administration

Dr. Cynthia Hoss, Provost/Chief Academic Officer (Interim President)
Randy Willy, Vice President of Finance
Shahid Butt, Vice President, Chief Marketing Officer
Matthew Hawes, Vice President of Enrollment Management
Dr. Jeffrey Cropsey, Vice President for Strategic Initiatives
Robert Walker, Chief Technology Officer

Faculty

Grantham University’s mission is to provide accessible, affordable, professionally relevant degree programs in a continuously changing global society.  The University’s programs prepare its graduates for a variety of career fields.  A key component to student success and the University’s overall curriculum is the faculty.  The University’s faculty is comprised of full-time faculty members, who focus on teaching, curriculum development and design, and student advising; and part-time faculty members, whose primary responsibility is teaching.

Provost and Chief Academic Officer

Cynthia Hoss, Ed.D.
Dr. Cynthia Hoss serves as Provost and Chief Academic Officer at Grantham University.  Prior to Grantham, Dr. Hoss served as the Director of Federal Initiatives for Technical Education for the Kansas Board of Regents. Throughout her successful career in higher education, she has served in a variety of leadership roles in numerous academic institutions including Baker University, Kansas City Kansas Community College, and Big Bend Community College.  Dr. Hoss earned her Doctor of Education from the University of Nebraska — Lincoln and both her Master’s and Bachelor’s degrees from Fort Hays State University.

Academic Deans

Rhonda Corwin, M.B.A.
Rhonda Corwin, Dean of the Mark Skousen School of Business, holds a Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) and a baccalaureate degree in Management in Human Relations, both from Mid-America Nazarene University.  Her business background includes eight years with Sprint Corporation serving as Educational Consultant and Instructional Designer; facilitating Franklin Covey training nationwide with DST Corporate Training; and also serving as a licensed mutual fund provider with American Century.

Kim Humerickhouse, Ph.D.
Dr. Kim Humerickhouse, Dean of the College of Arts & Sciences, holds a Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration & Leadership from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, a Master of Science in Higher Education Administration and Curriculum from Fort Hays State University, and a Bachelor of Science in Liberal Arts with emphasis in education and psychology. Dr. Humerickhouse has 17 years experience in post-secondary education including positions as Associate Director for Career Technical Education at the Kansas Board of Regents, Director of Honors Education at Kansas City Kansas Community College, and Assistant Professor of Teacher Education at Sterling College, as well as instructional experience at several academic institutions in Kansas.

Carol Fagan, Ph.D.
Dr. Carol Fagan, Dean of Curriculum Development and Academic Services, holds a Ph.D. in Energy Medicine from Greenwich University, a Master of Science in Speech Communication from the University of Missouri-Columbia, and a Bachelor of Arts in Communication from the University of Bridgeport.  She is an expert in curriculum development and instructional design of programs, courses and instructional strategies for online and ground classes and has 25 years of experience in higher education as a faculty member, administrator, trainer and staff developer. 

Directors

Cheryl Hayek, M.A.
Cheryl Hayek, Associate Director of Faculty, holds a Master of Arts degree in Educational Leadership and Administration from William Paterson University.  Ms. Hayek has been working in the education field for over twenty years; her experience includes curriculum writing, course development, faculty development, and instruction. For the past ten years, she has focused her career on helping the adult learner reach his/her academic goals.  Her current responsibilities focus on best instructional practices and VIP² recognition in faculty development.

Aaron Nielsenshultz, M.A.
Aaron Nielsenshultz holds a Master of Arts and a Bachelor of Arts in Literature from California State University San Marcos and is completing his Ph.D. in Medieval Literature through the University of California Riverside.  Mr. Nielsenshultz serves as the University’s Director of General Education and Academic Assessment.  Prior to Grantham, he worked in administration for Baker University and served as faculty in the California State University system.

Cindy Otts, M.S.
Cindy Otts holds a Master’s in Higher Education Administration with an emphasis in Student Personnel from the University of Kansas and is working on her dissertation for her Doctorate in Educational Leadership & Policy Studies, also from the University of Kansas.  As the Dean of Student Services, Ms. Otts is responsible for directing the student advising efforts at the University.

Full-Time Faculty

Alexander Ames, Ph.D.
Dr. Alexander Ames holds a Ph.D. in English Language and Literature from St. Louis University, an M.A. in English Language and Literature from the University of Alabama and a B.A. in English and Studio Art from the University of Missouri, Columbia. Dr. Ames teaches English in the College of Arts and Sciences.

Amanda Knudsen, M.S.
Amanda Knudsen holds an M.S. in Academic Advising/Counseling from Kansas State University in Manhattan, KS.  As Academic Advisor, Ms. Knudsen is responsible working with students to help them select, outline and achieve educational and developmental goals.

Cynthia G. Akagi, Ph.D.
Dr. Cynthia Akagi holds a Ph.D. in Human Ecology, with an emphasis in health education, and a Master of Science in Family Life Education and Consultation, with an emphasis health education, from Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS. Dr. Akagi has more than fifteen years of experience in health education and chairs the health sciences programs at Grantham University.

Jennifer Creason, Ed.S.
Jennifer Creason holds an Ed.S. in Educational Technology from the University of Missouri. She also holds a M.A. in Curriculum and Instruction from University of St. Mary and a B.S. in Elementary Education from William Jewell College.  In addition to her teaching responsibilities, Ms. Creason also serves as the Coordinator of Faculty Development at Grantham University.

Linda Catlin, M.L.I.S.
Linda Catlin holds a Masters in Library and Information Science from the University of Texas at Austin and a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Missouri-Columbia.  She serves as the University’s Librarian.

Niccole Buckley, M.B.A.
Niccole Buckley holds a Masters of Business Administration from Webster University and a B.S. from Park University. Ms. Buckley teaches in the College of Business and works closely with other faculty in the Business programs to update and enhance courses in that area.

Orlando Rivero, D.B.A.
Dr. Orlando Rivero holds a Doctor of Business Administration in Management from Argosy University, an M.P.A. from Nova Southeastern University and a B.S. in Business Administration from Florida Metropolitan University. Dr. Rivero teaches in the College of Business.

Patricia Chernovitz, Ph.D.
Dr. Patricia Chernovitz holds a Ph.D. in Chemistry from University of Missouri, St. Louis, with minors in Math and Physics.  Dr. Chernovitz teaches in the math and science areas and works closely with other math and science faculty in the College of Arts and Sciences to update and enhance courses in those areas.

Robert Tracy, M.S.
Robert Brent Tracy holds a M.S. in Computer Studies from Northwest Missouri State University and a B.S. in Education from the University of Central Missouri.   Mr. Tracy teaches Computer Science in the College of Arts and Sciences.

Stephanie Phillips, M.S.
Stephanie Phillips holds a M.S. in General Psychology from Walden University and is working on her dissertation for her Ph.D. in Psychology.  Ms. Phillips is the developer of Grantham’s current psychology course electives.  She teaches in the College of Arts and Science.

Susan S. Fairchild, Ed.D., APRN
Dr. Fairchild holds a Doctor of Education in Higher Education from Nova Southeastern University with a Minor in Curriculum Design and Instruction and an MSN-Ed from Barry University with a Minor in Administration. Additionally, she holds a BSN and a master’s degree in Adult Education from Florida International University. Dr. Fairchild has over 35 years experience in Nursing, both as practitioner and educator. She chairs the nursing program at Grantham University.

Tina Freestone, M.A.
Tina Freestone holds a master degree in Criminal Justice from the State University of New York at Albany.  Ms. Freestone teaches in the Criminal Justice programs and works closely with other faculty in the Criminal Justice programs to update and enhance courses in that area.

Faculty

(This is not a complete list; it includes a sampling of the degrees and experience our faculty members possess. Complete List of Part-time Faculty)