Three African American Scholars Take on New Faculty Roles

Bryana French has been appointed associate chair in the Graduate School of Professional Psychology of the College of Health at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota. She joined the university’s faculty in 2014. Her interests focus on multicultural counseling, social justice advocacy, and sexual violence recovery.

Dr. French is a graduate of Hamline University in St. Paul, Minnesota, where she majored in psychology. She holds a master’s degree in educational psychology and a Ph.D. in counseling psychology from the University of Illinois.

Creston Herron was named director of orchestral activities at the University of Kansas School of Music, effective for the 2023-24 academic year. He has been serving as the director of fine arts for the Klein Independent School District in Harris County, Texas, and the conductor of Rice University’s Campanile Orchestra in Houston.

Herron received a bachelor’s degree in music performance from the University of Kansas. He holds a master’s degree from the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University and a master’s degree in school leadership from Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas.

Jamie Waters is a new associate professor of Old Testament studies in the School of Theology and Ministry at Boston College. Before joining the faculty at Boston College, Dr. Waters taught for nine years in the department of Catholic studies at DePaul University in Chicago.

Dr. Waters graduated from Boston College with a double major in theology and philosophy. She earned a master’s degree in religion from Yale University and holds a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in Near Eastern studies with a focus in Hebrew Bible/Old Testament from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore.

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