Green Day, Sandwiches, and Horse-sized Ducks: Meet Schmid’s New Faculty
September 4, 2015
We thought you ought to know – Schmid College has some new faculty members! But rather than ask them about important things like their research and experience (
which you can find here
), we figured we’d ask them trivial things that aren’t really relevant to, well, anything. Meet the new faculty members of 2015 and if you see Dr. Justin Dressel around, be sure to ask him about his metal days!
Dr. Justin Dressel
Assistant Professor, Physics
What was the FIRST concert you ever remember attending? How old were you? Where was it?
Answer: Growing up in New Mexico, I was quite the metal-head, and went to metal concerts fairly frequently during my high school years. The three most memorable concerts I went to were probably Iron Maiden, Opeth, and Megadeth, taking place in Las Cruces, NM, Boulder, CO, and Albuquerque, NM, respectively — all were fantastic! I’m still an avid heavy metal fan to this day, though my musical tastes have expanded considerably from my high school days. For some intriguing modern evolution of the genre, I suggest fellow metal fans check out Benevolent, Alkaloid, and Babymetal.
Which would you rather fight: One horse-sized duck or 100 duck-sized horses and why?
Ducks are shockingly violent animals, with even more horrifying mating rituals. Just watch these True Facts if you’re skeptical:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6k01DIVDJlY
Evidently, a horse-sized duck would be the more disturbing opponent, to be avoided if at all possible. On the other hand, my wife Samantha has a newly minted black belt in aikido, so I’m probably safe either way.
Describe your ideal sandwich.
Does a green chile cheeseburger, with fresh green chile and grass-fed beef from Lemitar, NM, count as a sandwich? If not, ice cream sandwich is the clear answer.
What App do you use most on your phone?
The obvious candidates for most frequent use are gmail, chrome, and google maps, but those answers are boring, so I’ll nominate Camera FV-5, Super Hexagon, and Osmos HD for variety.
What would you be doing if you weren’t a professor?
In addition to training in physics and mathematics, I have training in software engineering, photography, and guitar. Different forks of my past life have explored all these topics professionally (with varying degrees of financial success), so any of them are possible alternate careers in parallel universes.
What’s been the coolest thing you’ve done over the summer vacation this year?
This past summer has been quite eventful for me. I got married, moved to Orange to start my new job at Chapman University, and helped win a multi-institution research grant!
If you had the opportunity to ask your peers a goofy question (like these ones), what would it be?
If you were to appear in the upcoming Star Wars movie as a new character, what would be your (assuredly ridiculous) name? (And no, you can’t pick Rotta the Huttlet, because that’s already taken:
http://www.starwars.com/databank/rotta-the-huttlet
)
Dr. Nicolai Bonne 
Instructional Assistant Professor, Chemistry/Biochemistry
What was the FIRST concert you ever remember attending? How old were you? Where was it?
Green Day, I was approximately 16 years old, in Oslo Norway.
Which would you rather fight: One horse-sized duck or 100 duck-sized horses and why?
One horse-sized duck, because stepping on 100 duck-sized horses seems too easy.
Describe your ideal sandwich.
Classic Club sandwich on whole wheat bread (freshly baked without preservatives or flavor enhancers)
What App do you use most on your phone?
Surfline
What would you be doing if you weren’t a professor?
Surfing, climbing and mountain biking – hopefully with sponsorship.
What’s been the coolest thing you’ve done over the summer vacation this year?
Climbed a 20 foot vertical rockface (without safety equipment), fell from near the top, missed the crashpad, almost landed on my sunbaking dog, fully hit the rock next to my crashpad whilst tumbling over into adjacent shrubbery…
Dr. Jill Dunham
Instructional Assistant Professor, Math
Which would you rather fight: One horse-sized duck or 100 duck-sized horses and why?
Can you imagine the span and strength of a horse-sized duck’s wings? Horses, on the other hand, are relatively fragile, and they’re stuck at ground level since they can’t fly or climb. I’d take on the horses.
Describe your ideal sandwich.
It has melted cheese on it.
What App do you use most on your phone?
I’m dependent on my GTD app in order to remember anything I’m supposed to be doing- currently I’m using Toodledo. I’ve also been playing a lot of Neko Atsume lately.
What’s been the coolest thing you’ve done over the summer vacation this year?
Stand-up paddleboard yoga
Dr. Jerry LaRue
Assistant Professor, Chemistry
What was the FIRST concert you ever remember attending? How old were you? Where was it?
Frankie Avalon at the Oregon State Fair. I was 4 at the time.
Describe your ideal sandwich.
Peppered turkey, roast beef, Tillamook extra sharp cheddar, avocado, onion, mayo, mustard, all on dutch crunch… yummm.
What App do you use most on your phone?
Email. Can’t fall too far behind on email.
What would you be doing if you weren’t a professor?
A writer of fiction.
What’s been the coolest thing you’ve done over the summer vacation this year?
Honeymoon in Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. Did lots of fun things, such as swim with sharks & sting rays, hanging out of Flamenco beach, traversing through a rain forest, snorkeling through amazing coral, and of course, spending quality time with the new wife.
Dr. Adwoa Donyina
Instructional Assistant Professor, Software Engineering
What was the FIRST concert you ever remember attending? How old were you? Where was it?
Band: The Moffatts
Age: 14 years old
Location: Sega city/Playdium Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
Which would you rather fight: One horse-sized duck or 100 duck-sized horses and why?
I would rather fight 100 duck-sized horses because they probably will be easy to fight; whereas one large duck beak can definitely bite me.
Describe your ideal sandwich.
Grilled Cheese Sandwhich
What App do you use most on your phone?
Lakewood Church App
What would you be doing if you weren’t a professor?
Software Engineer in Industry
Cassandra Medvedeff
Instructional Assistant Professor, Biology
Fun Facts People Should Know:
- I was a student athlete in high school (softball, ice hockey, volleyball). I played Division 1 softball my first year of college.
- I still have a flip phone.
Rene German
Instructor, Software Engineering
Fun Facts People Should Know:
- A local boy, loves to joke around, loves to sing (just ask anyone in Von Neumann Hall)
- Was 2014-15 Doti award winner
- He and Erik Linstead are the grill masters for Taco Tuesdays at Von Neumann Hall (1st Tuesday of every month)
- First concert: The Killers at Staples Center, age 21
- Sports teams: Angels & Cowboys
- Has 3 children: 1 daughter (14 y/o) and 2 sons (2 & 3 y/o)
Elizabeth Chisholm
Instructional Assistant Professor, Math
Fun Facts People Should Know:
- I play the violin
- I have two girls
- In my free time I enjoy reading fantasy/sci-fi novels
