Eight new tenure-track professors join Macalester’s faculty

Eight new tenure-track professors will be joining the Macalester faculty in the coming months: Joe Anderson, Economics; Anika Bratt, Environmental Studies; Yariana Diaz, Mathematics, Statistics, and Computer Science; Haci Osman Gündüz, Classical Mediterranean and Middle East; Jessica Kiser, Economics; Mindy Price, Environmental Studies; Brian Rood, Psychology; and Melanie Yazzie, Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. 

Professor Anderson is a macroeconomist who specializes in fiscal-monetary policy interactions and public debt management. His current research employs game theoretic concepts in macroeconomic models to understand historical relationships between Congress and the Federal Reserve. Dr. Anderson will teach intermediate macroeconomics and eventually an upper-level course on the coexistence of distinct tax and interest rate policies. He grew up in Dallas, Texas and Atlanta, Georgia and holds a PhD in economics from the University of Virginia, an MBA from Creighton University, and a BBA in economics from the University of Georgia.

Professor Bratt is an ecologist who focuses on aquatic and urban ecologies. Part of her research focuses on how redlining maps and the location of minoritized neighborhoods might relate to water-quality disparities in cities. Dr. Bratt will teach aquatic ecology, ecosystem ecology, Sustainable Cities, and Lakes, Streams, and Rivers. She has been a Wallin Postdoctoral Fellow at Macalester since 2021.  From Bird Island, Minn., she was a postdoctoral research fellow at Duke University and a visiting assistant professor at Davidson College. Professor Bratt earned her Ph.D in ecology, evolution, and behavior from the University of Minnesota, and her BA in biology from St. Catherine University. 

Professor Diaz is an algebraic mathematician who focuses on quiver representation theory and topological data analysis. Her current research includes working on the discovery of better methods for identifying the topological features of a dataset that describes the North Atlantic Jet Stream. Dr. Diaz has been a postdoctoral fellow at Macalester since 2023 and will teach courses in calculus, algebraic structures, discrete mathematics, and quiver representation theory. She was born in Panama and grew up in Ashland, Massachusetts, and earned her doctorate in mathematics from the University of Iowa and her BA in mathematics and music from Amherst College. 

Professor Gündüz is a literary historian with a focus on Ottoman-era Arabic literature, particularly from 16th century Damascus. He has also taught Arabic since 2009. Dr. Gündüz’s current research examines the Inḥiṭāṭ period, which is often thought of as a period of decline in Arabic history, and the work of poet Māmayya al-Rūmī. He will teach introductory and advanced Arabic language courses, as well as courses in Arabic literature, including one about the classic Arabian Nights. Professor Gündüz grew up in Bayburt and Erzurum, Turkey and earned his doctorate in Arabic and Islamic studies from Harvard University, his MA in international relations from Old Dominion University, and his BA in Arabic language and literature from Atatürk University. 

Professor Kiser is a health economist with a primary focus on access to health care for vulnerable populations. Her current research examines state licensing laws that allow non-nurse midwives to practice and their effects on rates of home births and health outcomes for infants. Dr. Kiser will teach principles of economics and health economics. From Spanish Fort, Ala., she earned her doctorate in economics from Vanderbilt University and her BS in economics from Auburn University. 

Professor Price is a political ecologist who specializes in the politics behind environmental decisions. Her areas of research focus on the intersecting spheres of climate change, food, and agriculture, particularly in the Arctic and subarctic regions. Among the courses she will teach include Political Ecology of Natural Resources and Food Justice and Sustainability. Professor Price has roots in the Midwest and Southeast. She earned her doctorate in environmental science, policy, and management from the University of California, Berkeley, her MPH from the University of South Florida, and her BA in sociology from Emory University. 

Professor Rood is trained as a clinical psychologist and public health practitioner, with expertise in health disparities and health inequities. Having worked previously as a research and clinical director for Allina Health and UnitedHealth Group, Dr. Rood is also an expert on the healthcare industry. His research will focus on interventions to improve health disparities in queer and transgender communities, and other marginalized groups. He will teach Clinical and Counseling Psychology, LGBTQ+ Health, Directed Research, and Distress, Dysfunction, and Disorder. From Phoenix, Ariz., Professor Rood earned his PhD in Clinical Psychology from Suffolk University, his MPH from DePaul University, and his BA in English and BS in Psychology from Drake University. 

Professor Yazzie specializes in Indigenous, queer, and feminist studies with a background in political and social theory. Her current book project looks at the history of 20th century Navajo studies. Among the courses Dr. Yazzie will teach include Indigenous Feminisms and Queer Ecologies. A citizen of the Navajo/Diné Nation, she grew up in Kingman, Ariz. and Craig, Colo. Professor Yazzie previously held tenure-track positions at the University of Minnesota, University of New Mexico, and University of California, Riverside. She earned her doctorate in American studies from the University of New Mexico, an MA in American Studies from Yale University, and a BA in political science from Grinnell College.