April 10, 2012

Four CAS faculty awarded tenure

Naiomi Cameron, Joel Martinez, Dawn Odell, and Freddy Vilches have received tenure and promotion to the academic rank of associate professor effective September 1, 2012.

Four CAS faculty members have been awarded tenure. Naiomi Cameron, Joel Martinez, Dawn Odell, and Freddy Vilches have received tenure and promotion to the academic rank of associate professor effective September 1, 2012.

“Each of these newly tenured faculty are nationally—and/or internationally—recognized scholars who are excellent teachers and good citizens at our college,” said Tuajuanda Jordan, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. “They are each on a trajectory to remain productive and impactful members of our community for years to come.”

Naiomi Cameron, who will be promoted to associate professor of mathematics, earned her BS and PhD from Howard University in Washington, D.C. Her primary research interest is enumerative combinatorics. In 2009 she received a Career Enhancement Fellowship for Junior Faculty from the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation. Last year she received a grant from the National Science Foundation to help fund the 2012 Northwest Undergraduate Mathematics Symposium to be held at Lewis & Clark.

Joel Martinez, who will be promoted to associate professor of philosophy, earned his BA from New Mexico State University and his PhD from the University of Arizona. His areas of specialization include ancient philosophy and normative ethics. In 2010 he received the Arnold L. Graves and Lois S. Graves Award in recognition of his outstanding teaching in the humanities.

Dawn V. Odell, who will be promoted to associate professor of art history, earned her BA from Carleton College, her MA from Harvard, and her PhD from the University of Chicago. She specializes in Chinese and early modern European art. Last year she was named the Teacher of the Year, an honor that Lewis & Clark students have bestowed upon faculty since 1993. She has also received national honors, including a grant from the American Philosophical Society, and a Robert L. Platzman Memorial Fellowship from the University of Chicago Library.

Freddy O. Vilches, who will be promoted to associate professor of Spanish, earned his BA and PhD from the University of Oregon. His research and teaching interests include literature and culture of the Americas; Latin American popular culture, music, and film; Latin American cultural studies; 20th-century Southern Cone literature; comparative literatures of the Caribbean and South Cone (specifically Cuba and Chile, respectively); and Latin American testimonial writing.

“Teaching, scholarship, and service are the three criteria on which one is judged for tenure,” said Jordan. “In addition to the teaching excellence expected in the liberal arts tradition, a professor’s scholarship or creative activities inform and enhance the assessment for tenure.”

Faculty may apply for tenure in their sixth year of employment at Lewis & Clark. The evaluation for tenure, conducted by the Committee on Promotion and Tenure, includes external reviews of the faculty member’s scholarly or creative activity from recognized scholars within the faculty member’s discipline. These reviews are made available to all tenured members of the department. The final assessment includes the outcome of a departmental discussion and a specific recommendation about tenure or promotion is submitted in writing to the dean.