Get to Know the Newest Members of the W&L Community – 9/6/23 The following individuals recently joined the Washington and Lee employee workforce.
Mauricio Betancourt, Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies – The College
Mauricio Betancourt, assistant professor of environmental studiesQ. Any favorite regional spots or activities you are excited about?
I am excited to enjoy tennis and hiking.
Q. How do you unwind or have fun? Any hobbies or hidden talents?
Playing tennis, reading, hiking and birdwatching.
Connell Cunningham, Visiting Assistant Professor of Chemistry – The College
Connell Cunningham, visiting assistant professor of chemistryQ. Tell us a little about yourself.
I have a bachelor’s degree in chemistry education from North Carolina A&T State University (Aggie Pride!), where I was a member of the North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program. I taught high school chemistry for two years prior to attending the University of North Carolina at Greensboro to earn a master’s degree in chemistry. I then obtained my doctorate in analytical chemistry from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Following graduate school, I worked in Pennsylvania at the Rohm and Haas Company and then at a contract research lab called Critical Path Services, LLC. While in industry, I was an adjunct chemistry instructor at West Chester University. Most recently, I taught chemistry at a community college in North Carolina.
Q. How do you unwind or have fun? Any hobbies or hidden talents?
I enjoy going to the gym and have a regular weightlifting routine. I have been a member of a golf league and a bowling league, and I played tuba in North Carolina A&T’s Marching Band – the Blue and Gold Marching Machine. I listen to baroque classical music, old school hip hop, jazz and gospel music. I am a fan of Sci-Fi movies, the Marvel Universe, Star Wars and Star Trek.
Q. Best advice anyone has ever given you?
From my dad who taught middle school for almost 40 years: “Make your classroom lessons fun for yourself and your students will enjoy them too!”
Anushka Daunt, Assistant Professor of Business Administration – The Williams School
Anushka Daunt, assistant professor of business administrationQ. Tell us a little about yourself.
I recently obtained my Ph.D. in entrepreneurship and strategic management from the Joseph Katz School of Business at the University of Pittsburgh. Prior to that, I earned a B.A. in mathematics from New York University and a M.S. in industrial engineering from the University of Pittsburgh, specializing in operations research.
Q. How do you unwind or have fun? Any hobbies or hidden talents?
I like to bake and decorate cakes and cookies, and I also enjoy playing board games.
Q. Anything in particular you are looking forward to at W&L?
I am excited to become a member of the campus community!
Karena Gill, Visiting Assistant Professor of Earth and Environmental Geoscience – The College
Karena Gill, visiting assistant professor of earth and environmental geoscienceQ. Tell us a little about yourself.
I’m originally from Belize and I have a Ph.D. in geology from the University of Alabama. I just completed a postdoctoral research position at West Virginia University, where I studied how biosignatures can be trapped and preserved in tiny micro-environments inside a hydrated sulfate mineral called mirabilite.
Q. How do you unwind or have fun? Any hobbies or hidden talents?
I love going on walks and hiking in nature. I’m also an avid Zumba enthusiast!
Joshua Jones, Director of Athletic Facilities – Athletics
Josh Jones, director of athletic facilitiesQ. Tell us a little about yourself.
I am an avid hunter and fisherman, and love spending time outdoors. I spend a lot of time with my wife MJ – also a W&L employee – and my son Thomas, a sophomore at Rockbridge County High School.
Q. How do you unwind or have fun? Any hobbies or hidden talents?
I love the outdoors and enjoy hunting, camping, hiking and fishing. I also enjoy spectating and playing all sports – football, baseball, basketball, softball and golf sit atop my list.
Q. Any favorite regional spots or activities you are excited about?
My favorite place in Lexington is the local store Just Games. They have a great environment and are awesome people. There are so many incredible places to visit, eat and relax. Several of my favorite restaurants are Devils Backbone, The Palms and Don Tequila.
Rachel Levit Ades, Mudd Postdoctoral Ethics Fellow
Rachel Levit Ades, Mudd Postdoctoral Ethics FellowQ. Tell us a little about yourself.
I recently completed a Ph.D. in philosophy at Arizona State University. I will be in Lexington with my husband Bret and three cats.
Q. How do you unwind or have fun? Any hobbies or hidden talents?
I like to read, enjoy food with friends, play strategic board games and make art. I also love American Sign Language.
Q. Anything in particular that you are looking forward to at W&L?
I am looking forward to being part of a close-knit community and having good conversations!
Delaney McLaughlin, Visiting Assistant Professor of Theater – The College
Delaney McLaughlin, visiting assistant professor of theaterQ. Tell us a little about you and your background.
My name is Micheala, but I go by Delaney.
Q. How do you unwind or have fun? Any hobbies or hidden talents?
I love reading and going to the movies. I am a huge comics and “Lord of the Rings” fan. I also enjoy taking on new art projects to develop my skills.
Q. Anything in particular you are looking forward to at W&L?
I am very excited to be working with the students the university hosts. I got the chance to meet a few of them during my interview process and they all seem so hard-working and dedicated to learning.
Son Nguyen, Visiting Assistant Professor of Physics – The College
Son Nguyen, visiting assistant professor of physicsQ. Any favorite regional spots or activities you are excited about?
I enjoy kayaking, water rafting and hiking.
Q. How do you unwind or have fun? Any hobbies or hidden talents?
Cooking Vietnamese foods!
Alicia Reigel, Assistant Professor of Biology – The College
Alicia Reigel, assistant professor of biologyQ. Tell us a little about you and your background.
I am originally from Wisconsin and completed my bachelor’s degree in environmental science, policy and management at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. After college, I spent about three years living on the southern Caribbean Island of Bonaire where I worked on a sailboat and taught coral reef conservation courses to tourists. In 2012, I moved back to the U.S. and earned a master’s degree in biology at Georgia Southern University and a doctorate from Louisiana State University. My doctoral work is where I began research on coral and oyster microbial communities. After all of that time in the deep south, I moved slightly northward for a three-year postdoctoral research position at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina where I’ve been researching nutrient cycling by marine sponges.
Q. How do you unwind or have fun? Any hobbies or hidden talents?
My main hobby, scuba diving, is often also part of my work, which is very special. Unfortunately, I don’t get to do it as often as I would like, but thankfully, I also enjoy hiking and I will be eagerly searching for new trails around the area. In the winter, my family enjoys snowboarding and we’re already looking forward to a few trips to ski resorts around Virginia and West Virginia.
Q. Best advice anyone has ever given you?
A mentor once told me “Don’t get distracted by every shiny research project idea or you will never graduate.” I often find myself molding this science-related advice to fit other life situations. The words remind me to stay focused on the goal (whatever it is) and not let distractions that seem exciting derail me from my path.
Joey Smith, Assistant Professor of Finance – The Williams School
Joey Smith, assistant professor of financeQ. Tell us a little about you and your background.
I am married to my wife Amy and we have three young boys.
Chris Tucker, Admissions Associate – Admissions
Chris Tucker, admissions associateQ. Tell us a little about yourself.
I am from Houston, Texas and graduated from W&L in 2023. I have an older brother, Jonathan, who also graduated from W&L in 2021.
Clyde Wang, Assistant Professor of Politics – The Williams School
Clyde Wang, assistant professor of politicsQ. Tell us a little about yourself.
Before joining W&L, I received my Ph.D. in political science from Boston University. I also have a master’s degree in China studies from the London School of Economics and a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.
Q. How do you unwind or have fun? Any hobbies or hidden talents?
I usually play with my cats when I’m not reading or writing.
Q. Best advice anyone has ever given you?
Treat the people you study not as samples, but as fellow human beings.
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