Faculty Profiles

Professor of History
When Robert Doyle was 20, a ROTC scholarship made it possible for him to study German at Pennsylvania State University. It also set the stage for the rest of his professional life. READ MORE >>

Professor of Drama
Professor Shawn Dougherty is passionate about the theatre and believes the fine arts have an important role to play in the New Evangelization. “Sometimes the fine arts are seen as a relativist area, but that’s not the case. READ MORE >>

Dr. Eugene Gan was born in Singapore, the only child of Catholic parents. He grew up with an unusual combination of talents—technology and art. When it came time for college, he could see... READ MORE >>

Associate Professor of Biology
Every athlete has heard the sage advice stretch, stretch, stretch. But does it really work? Franciscan University biology professor and cross country head coach Dr. Dan Kuebler is leading several of his students on... READ MORE >>

John N. and Jamie D. McAleer Chair in Bioethics
Director, Franciscan University Institute of Bioethics
When Dr. Patrick Lee made the decision to leave another Catholic university to come and teach at Franciscan University in 1992... READ MORE >>

Professor Don Materniak knows the world of finance from the inside out. Before making the switch to higher ed in 1984, he worked at both Ernst and Young and Merck Pharmaceuticals, two of the largest companies in the country. READ MORE >>

Associate Professor of Education
One of Dr. Mary Kathryn McVey’s best childhood memories is of going to the library with her father almost every evening. Her dad was in the Marines, so the family moved a... READ MORE >>

Professor of Nursing
Dr. Carolyn Miller says she knows Franciscan’s nursing students “better than they want” her to. “I stand by the patients’ beds with them, teach them in the classroom, and see them here on campus... READ MORE >>

Associate Professor of History
Dr. Matthew O’Brien has forged one career out of many interests: history, which he describes as “the narrative of human experience”; Ireland, the land of his ancestors; the Catholic commitment to social justice; and teaching. “I’ve been very blessed,” he says. READ MORE >>

Professor of Philosophy
One teacher can change a life forever. Dr. Jonathan Sanford, chair of Franciscan University's Philosophy Department, knows this well. In South Bend, Indiana, eighth-grade literature teacher Dr. Rollin A. Lasseter changed Sanford’s life. READ MORE >>

Professor of English
“The day I lose my passion for teaching is the day I leave the classroom.” That day, if it ever comes, will not come soon for Dr. Mary Antoinette Gallo Sunyoger. READ MORE >>

Associate Professor of Economics
Dr. Michael Welker ’89 has never found a shortage of things that interest him. Raised in Rockville, Maryland, Welker went to California to work for five years after high school, where he found an interest in Christianity, converting from Zen Buddhism. READ MORE >>