Pacific University offers congratulations to faculty members who were granted indefinite tenure in Spring 2025. The Board of Trustees approved tenure for the following faculty members, upon review and recommendation from the University Personnel Committee, the provost and the president.
Talina Corvus
Assistant Professor, PHD in Education and Leadership
College of Health Professions
Dr. Talina Corvus, PhD, DPT, Board-Certified Geriatric Clinical Specialist, is currently serving as the Interim Director of the Education and Leadership PhD program and is faculty to the Interprofessional Education program and Doctor of Physical Therapy program in the College of Health Professions. Her teaching spans topics in research design, clinical and educational practices, interprofessional collaboration, and diversity, equity, and inclusion in health and education. She serves on the Interprofessional Education Steering Committee, as an editor for the Journal of Health, Interprofessional Practice, and Education, and on the LGBTQIA2S+ Subcommittee of the Governor's Commission on Senior Services. She has co-authored publications in The Academy of Geriatric Physical Therapy’s GeriNotes, the Journal of Allied Health, and the Journal of Best Practices in Health Professions Diversity. Dr. Corvus mentors students in the Education and Leadership PhD program and the Doctor of Physical Therapy program, and is an engaged member of Pacific University’s faculty and staff community of inquiry and innovation.
Michael Espiritu
Assistant Professor, School of Pharmacy
College of Health Professions
Dr. Espiritu received his PhD from the University of Hawaii at Manoa in Molecular Biosciences and Bioengineering. He has 10 years of experience in pharmaceutical research, teaching, and natural product chemistry and has mentored 21 students in the laboratory including undergraduate, master’s, and pharmacy students. His research is focused on identifying novel compounds capable of altering pain pathways and his research has resulted in the discovery of several new bioactive compounds, including a novel norepinephrine transporter inhibitor. He has served on school, college, university, and professional committees and is currently the Director of the School of Pharmacy’s summer undergraduate research program.
Diana Honorat
Assistant Professor, School of Occupational Therapy
College of Health Professions
Dr. Diana Honorat earned her post-professional clinical doctorate in Occupational Therapy from St. Catherine University in St. Paul, Minnesota. Her current interests and final project involved curriculum evaluation of international occupational therapy programs using World Federation of Occupational Therapy Accreditation standards. Dr. Honorat served as a clinical pediatrics occupational therapist in outpatient pediatric, home health and school-based settings. She has also worked with adults in home health and skilled nursing facility settings. She holds an advanced practice certification in Sequential-Oral -Sensory (S.O.S) feeding. Dr. Honorat currently holds her 200 RYT yoga certification and is a Reiki Level II certified Practitioner. Dr. Honorat is passionate about international work and occupational therapy and program development geared around novel community-based practice that promotes occupational and social justice through health promotion and wellness. She has presented at American Occupational Therapy Association Conferences on the development of Occupational Therapy Education Program in Haiti and the impact of global partnerships applying World Federation of Occupational Therapy Accreditation Education standards.
Carrie Larson, EdD
Assistant Professor, School of Learning & Teaching
College of Education
Dr. Carrie Larson joined the School of Learning and Teaching (SLT) within the College of Education in 2017. With over two decades of experience in education, she brings a rich background in multilingual education and social justice teaching. Her journey began as a middle school teacher in Chicago and Guatemala and continued to various roles teaching in Oregon's public schools. Her research focuses on bilingual teacher preparation, culturally responsive teaching practices, and the experiences of multilingual educators. She is particularly interested in how multilingual educators enact culturally sustaining teaching practices in elementary classrooms. At Pacific University, Dr. Larson has served in multiple leadership roles, including Coordinator of the Bachelor of Education and English Language Learning program in Woodburn (2017-2024). She chairs the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee and serves on the University Study Abroad Committee. Dr. Larson actively serves the profession in multiple ways, for example, as a board member of the Oregon Association for Bilingual Education (OABE) and Oregon’s Collaborative for SEL in Educator Preparation (OCSEP). Her current research, funded by the Oregon Department of Education, examines the history and current state of bilingual education in Oregon, furthering her commitment to advancing equitable educational opportunities for multilingual learners.
Caroline McCarty
Assistant Professor, School of Occupational Therapy
College of Health Professions
Dr. Caroline Harkins McCarty is a faculty member in the School of Occupational Therapy, where she has taught coursework including Occupational Science, Occupational Justice, and Psychosocial and Pediatric Practice. She represents the College of Health Professions on the Faculty Senate, serves as a reviewer for the Journal of Occupational Therapy Research, and is a member of the Research Committee and Student Research Grant Subcommittee for the Society for the Study of Occupation: USA. She has co-authored publications for the Journals of Occupational Therapy in Mental Health, Occupational Therapy in Healthcare, the Journal of Occupational Science, and the Canadian Journal of Occupational Therapy, and a forthcoming chapter in the textbook Occupational Therapies Without Borders (3rd Ed.). She mentors doctoral students in Pacific’s School of Occupational Therapy, PhD in Education and Leadership, and Doctor of Health Science programs. Dr. McCarty’s goal for her work at Pacific is to co-create community, facilitate student experiences of belonging, and collaborate with and mentor faculty and staff in practices that center inclusive and transparent pedagogies and holistic admissions and retention.
Adelle Monteblanco, PhD
Assistant Professor, Public Health, School of Social Sciences
College of Arts & Sciences
Dr. Adelle Monteblanco is an Assistant Professor of Public Health at Pacific University. She earned her PhD in Sociology at the University of Colorado Boulder and completed postdoctoral training at the University of Texas at El Paso. Her primary research interest is in inequality, particularly at the critical nexus of health, gender, and the environment. She hones in on this intersection through hazards and disaster studies. Currently she studies extreme heat, examining its health impacts on vulnerable populations, such as pregnant people and youth. Such work aims to contribute to healthier, more sustainable, and resilient communities. Adelle has taught at the college level for 16 years, including diverse service and upper-division courses such as Epidemiology, Environmental Health, and Capstone. Her passion for teaching is evident through several teaching awards and fellowships, as well as her many contributions to the scholarship of teaching and learning.
Brandy Pestka, MS, PA-C
Professor, School of Physician Assistant Studies
College of Health Professions
Brandy Pestka, MS, PA-C has a clinical practice background in internal medicine, emergency medicine and family medicine. She has been a PA educator since 2016, when she started working at Pacific University’s School of Physician Assistant Studies. She has held positions in both the clinical and didactic portions of the curriculum. In addition to her School, College, and University committee work, she serves on the board of the Oregon Society of Physician Associates as Treasurer. Her scholarly interests include student professionalism and diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Michelle Pliske, DSW
Assistant Professor, Social Work, School of Social Sciences
College of Arts & Sciences
Michelle M. Pliske completed her doctoral education at the University of Pennsylvania, School of Social Policy and Practice. She currently serves at Pacific University as an Assistant Professor in the College of Arts and Sciences, School of Social Sciences. Dr. Pliske believes in service to the greater Forest Grove community and profession. She serves as a clinical supervisor for the Firefly Institute, directing mental health services at their Hillsboro and Forest Grove locations. Dr. Pliske is a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) and Registered Play Therapy Supervisor (RPT-S™). She is a past president for the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Oregon and currently serves on the National Board of Directors for NASW in Washington DC. Dr. Pliske is the chair of the Bylaws Committee for NASW. Dr. Pliske serves as the National Conference Chair for the Association for Play Therapy overseeing the annual international play therapy conference.
Alisa Sheth
Assistant Professor, School of Occupational Therapy
College of Health Professions
Dr. Alisa Jordan Sheth is an Assistant Professor at Pacific University’s School of Occupational Therapy, where she has also served as the Doctoral Capstone Coordinator since 2019. She holds a Ph.D. in Disability Studies from the University of Illinois at Chicago and both a BS and MS in Occupational Therapy from Boston University. Dr. Sheth is deeply committed to advancing the field through research, education, and mentorship. Her publications include peer-reviewed articles in prestigious journals such as the British Journal of Learning Disabilities and the American Journal of Occupational Therapy, focusing on topics such ableism and disability in occupational therapy and the experiences of individuals with intellectual disabilities and dementia. Dr. Sheth has received several accolades, including the Early Career Professional Scholarship from the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities and holds several state and national service and leadership positions. She is actively involved in grant-funded projects aimed at enhancing disability studies-informed occupational therapy education and promoting dementia-capable care for adults with intellectual disabilities.
Kathrin Theumer, PhD
Assistant Professor, World Languages and Cultures, School of Arts and Humanities
College of Arts & Sciences
Kathrin Theumer is a teacher-scholar specializing in all levels of language instruction, and Latin American literature and cultures. Her research on Cuban identity and literary modernity centers non-conformist writers, exploring how their work disrupts hegemonic concepts of nation, race and gender. Her other interests include open pedagogy, transparent teaching practices, and international education. She enjoys collaborating with students, colleagues, and the Forest Grove community on innovative and inclusive approaches to teaching and learning Spanish at home and away.
Linda Venenciano, PhD
Professor, Interim Director for the School of Learning & Teaching
College of Education
Dr. Venenciano joined the faculty in 2022 as an education professor and program coordinator for the Eugene campus and in 2024, she was appointed Interim Director for the School of Learning & Teaching. Dr. Venenciano participated as a faculty representative on the Restructuring Task Force and currently serves on the University Finance Committee. Dr. Venenciano previously worked as a professor of mathematics education and the interim director at the Curriculum Research & Development Group at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. Her research centers on equity, identity, and a sense of belonging in the mathematics education community. Her publications include an algebra curriculum for students who have struggled with learning mathematics and a chapter about an online microteaching model to develop equity strategies. Dr. Venenciano has taught students from first grade through graduate levels and delivered numerous professional development workshops for teachers, both locally and nationally. Dr. Venenciano serves on the editorial board of Investigations in Mathematics Learning.
Jongsun Wee, PhD
Associate Professor in the School of Learning & Teaching
College of Education
Dr. Jongsun Wee is a former classroom teacher in elementary and middle school and a supervisor at two universities’ reading clinics. Her teaching background and experiences as a multilingual learner inform her research, which has been centered around literacy education, where children and preservice teachers read and discuss diverse children’s literature. She served on Jane Addams Children’s Book Award for the 2021-2024 lists as a selection committee and the United States Board on Books for Young People (USBBY) Outstanding Books for Young People with Disabilities List Committee as a member for the 2022 list and as a chair for the 2024 list. She currently serves on the International Literacy Association (ILA) Children’s and Young Adult Book Awards Committee, the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) Children’s Poetry Awards Committee, and the Children’s Literature Assembly Breakfast Committee.
Aimee Wodda, PhD
Assistant Professor, Criminal Justice, Law and Society, School of Social Sciences
College of Arts & Sciences
Aimee Wodda, PhD, is an Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice, Law and Society at Pacific University. Her research focuses on the intersection between institutionalized forms of harm and gender, sexuality, and the law. She is the author of Sex-Positive Criminology with Vanessa R. Panfil.