Cedar Crest College prides itself on academic excellence, and that starts with recognizing the dedicated faculty that make the College shine. On April 10, 2025, the College did just that–taking time to honor its accomplished faculty during the annual Promotion and Tenure Ceremony.
These faculty are pillars of our community, representing the diversity of thought fostered across our campus. They’re more than educators–they’re trailblazers who have made lasting impacts in their fields and in the classroom. Their continued service to Cedar Crest reflects a deep commitment to empowering students, advancing knowledge, and inspiring the next generation of leaders.
Janine Kishbaugh, MSFS, was promoted to Senior Instructor of Forensic Science
A Cedar Crest alum, Kishbaugh graduated from the College in 2004 with a Bachelor of Science in Genetic Engineering. After graduation, she started working for the Forensic Science program as a technical specialist and later completed her Master of Science in Forensic Science in 2009.
Kishbaugh is a Fellow of the Criminalistics section of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences (AAFS) and a Member of the Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists (NEAFS), serving as the current site chair for the latter. Additionally, she’s a professional member of the International Forensic Science Honor Society, Delta Delta Epsilon. She has presented at the American Academy of Forensic Sciences and the Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists annual meetings on topics including forensic science education and Y Chromosome STRs. She has co-authored six peer-reviewed articles in forensic science journals.
Lauren Braun-Strumfels, Ph.D., was awarded tenure in the Department of Humanities, Political Science, and Global Studies
Dr. Braun-Strumfels is an Associate Professor of History, a specialist in transnational US history, and an accomplished writer concentrated on the subject. She is the author of Partners in Gatekeeping: How Italy Shaped US Immigration Policy over Ten Pivotal Years, 1891-1901 (University of Georgia Press, 2023), co-editor and contributor of Managing Migration in Italy and the United States (DeGruyter, 2024), and author of “On the Border in New Orleans” in Rituals of Migration: Italians and Irish on the Move (New York University Press, 2025), a book that inspired her course for the 2024 Sophomore Year Expedition to Dublin.
Her innovative methodology uses foreign archives to fill holes in the US record. Her next book, The Forgotten Solution to America’s Immigration Problem: Italians, Distribution Policy, and the South in the Progressive Era, is under contract with University of North Carolina Press and expected to publish in fall 2026. Dr. Braun-Strumfels has been awarded a full year sabbatical in 2025-2026 to work on her upcoming book, Between the Lines: Railroads, Facilitated Migration, and the Infrastructure of Racial Capitalism in the New South.
William Wrightsman, ScD, was awarded tenure and promoted to Associate Professor of Occupational Therapy
Dr. Wrightsman joined Cedar Crest College as the founding director for the entry-level Occupational Therapy Doctorate program and has shaped the program into what it is today. Prior to joining Cedar Crest, he was the founding doctoral capstone coordinator for Touro University Nevada, where he taught for ten years.
Dr. Wrightsman has completed the American Occupational Therapy Association’s (AOTA) Academic Leadership Institute and the Lehigh Valley Association of Independent College’s (LVAIC) Higher Education Leaders Institute. He has also earned his Certificate in Effective College Instruction, awarded by the Association of College and University Educators and the American Council on Education.
Diane Moyer, Ph.D., was promoted to Professor Emerita of Psychology, effective upon her retirement from the College
A professor in the Department of Psychology since 1996, Dr. Moyer has long been a leader at the College. She received the Excellence in Teaching Award from Cedar Crest in 2004 and held key leadership roles, serving as both the director of the First Year Seminar program and as the NCAA Faculty Athletic Representative.
Before joining Cedar Crest, Dr. Moyer was a member of the USA Field Hockey Team, competing in the World Cup Championship and representing the U.S. in the 1980 and 1984 Olympic Games. Her team won the Bronze at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles, a feat she was later inducted into several Hall of Fames for, including the United States Field Hockey Hall of Fame, LaSalle University’s Hall of Fame, the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame, and Muhlenberg High School’s Hall of Fame.
Suzanne Weaver, MSW, was promoted to Professor Emerita of Social Work, effective upon her retirement from the College
Dr. Weaver came to Cedar Crest in 1987 and currently serves as a Professor of Social Work and the Chair of the Social Sciences Department. Her expertise has taken her across the globe, allowing her to present at numerous national and international conferences and travel to a total of 36 countries in counting.
After receiving the Visiting Scholarship Award from the Center for Applied Ethics at Hong Kong University, Dr. Weaver spent a summer in China lecturing and conducting research on a cross-cultural analysis of biomedical ethics. She has participated in humanitarian aid work in Nepal, Liberia, South Africa, and Nicaragua. This rich experience made her particularly equipped to help develop the Living Learning Communities, Ethical Life, Junior Seminar, and the Sophomore Year Expedition (SYE)–where she’s traveled with students to Brazil, Greece, Costa Rica, Morocco, Ireland, and Portugal.
Kerrie Q. Baker, Ph.D., was promoted to Professor Emerita of Psychology, effective upon her retirement from the College
Dr. Baker came to Cedar Crest in the fall of 2001, starting as an adjunct faculty member before being promoted to Professor of Psychology in the spring of 2014. She teaches interdisciplinary courses focused on research and statistics, workplace issues, forensic psychology and profiling, and professional ethics. Over the years, she has served on multiple school committees and task forces and was quite active in the Lehigh Valley Research Consortium (LVRC).
Dr. Baker is a co-founder of the College’s Center for Police Innovation and Community Engagement (CPICE). The Center has been the recipient of numerous federal and local grants to conduct applied research specifically designed to assist healthcare, first responder, and other service organizations in the community.
Kathleen Boland, Ph.D., LCSW, ACSW, was promoted to Professor Emerita of Social Work, effective upon her retirement from the College
Dr. Boland started at Cedar Crest in the fall of 2000 after a two-decade-long career in healthcare. She taught several classes in the Social Work field, including research methods, human behavior, and victimology. She has presented locally, regionally, and nationally on topics related to ethics in professional practice and on Child Abuse Recognition and Reporting.
Additionally, Dr. Boland has published numerous articles in peer reviewed journals such as the Journal of Social Work Values and Ethics, Journal of General Education, and College Student Journal, as well as having written several continuing education modules that have been approved by various professional licensing organizations.
Please join us in congratulating these distinguished faculty!
