William Jessup adds new faces to university staff

New staff members will join the faculty at William Jessup University, the Sacramento area's only residential four-year private university. Joining the staff are Dr. Dennis Jameson, who was named vice president of Academic Affairs, Dr. Jeffrey A. Stone, who has been named chair of the Counseling Psychology Program in the School of Professional Studies; and Dr. David Timms, who has been named a full time associate professor of Bible and Theology.Currently an adjunct professor, Dr. JoLynn Britt has been named a full-time professor in the University's Liberal Studies and Credentialing Department. Also joining the teaching staff will be Phillip Escamilla, a full-time professor in the University's Public Policy Department and Albert Yee, who will teach math and science at the Rocklin campus.Dennis JamesonDr. Dennis Jameson comes to William Jessup University after serving in leadership positions at Trinity Western University in British Columbia since 1999.At Trinity, he served as provost of the university and its chief academic, program and operating officer since 2007. He holds a Ph.D. from the UCLA Graduate School of Education, and a Doctor of Ministry from Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena. Dr. Jameson also holds three master's degrees in counseling, New Testament, and theology and leadership and a bachelor's degree from Bethany University."The faculty is thrilled to work with Dr. Jameson to craft an even stronger academic future for William Jessup University," said Rhonda Capron, a professor of business who has served as interim Vice President of Academic Affairs. "Dr. Jameson is an academic engineer, a description that properly describes his experience and accomplishments in his career."Jeffrey Stone Dr. Jeffrey A. Stone will serve as the chair of the university's Counseling Psychology Program in the School of Professional Studies.A licensed psychologist who earned his Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology from the University of Houston, Dr. Stone will start on Sept. 1. He has been director of the Master's program in Marriage and Family Therapy for Brandman University for the past three years at the Roseville and Yuba City campuses. Dr. Stone also has a private practice at Cornerstone Psychological Center since 2007."Dr. Stone is one of the most respected professionals in the field of Psychology both as a counselor and educator in the Sacramento region," said Samuel J. Heinrich, director of the School of Professional Studies for William Jessup University. "His leadership will greatly enhance the quality of our Counseling Psychology program and provide students with an exemplary program experience within a Christian framework."Dr. Stone earned his B.A. in economics from Stephen F. Austin University in Nacogdoches, Texas. He received his master's degree in Counseling and Psychological Services at Georgia State University in Atlanta. Dr. Stone conducts psychological assessments for pastoral candidates seeking ordination in the Presbyterian Denomination for Northern California and Nevada, and has been an adjunct professor for Fuller Theological Seminary in Sacramento since 1994.David Timms Dr. David Timms has been named a full time associate professor of Bible and Theology at William Jessup University.Timms leaves his post at Hope International University in Fullerton, where he served as professor of New Testament and Theology since 2001. While in Fullerton, Timms was chair of the Graduate Ministry Department and the School of Graduate Studies. He taught more than 27 distinct courses while at Hope and built and developed online courses for 11 of those.Timms holds a PhD in Ancient History/New Testament from Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia. He has published various articles and e-publications as well as authored four books, including his most recent work, "The Power of Blessing: How a Carefully Chosen Word Changes Everything."In addition, Timms is a frequent speaker at various churches, retreats, conferences and special events.Prior to his career in academia, Timms was a pastor and church planter for seven years.Timms will relocate from the Southern California area with his wife and three children.Jolynn BrittJoLynn Britt, Ph.D, will join the Rocklin campus as a full-time professor in the University's Liberal Studies and Credentialing Department.Dr. Britt is a longtime educator and researcher, entering the profession in 1995. She started her career as a sixth-grade language arts and reading teacher to most recently teaching quantitative research methods to doctoral students and serving on dissertation committees.She has served as an adjunct professor and lead supervisor for Language Arts since 2008.She is a "popular adjunct professor, serving on a variety of university committees," said Tim Gillespie, director of Liberal Studies and Credentialing for William Jessup. "In her new position, Dr. Britt will have an even greater opportunity to significantly impact WJU students and enrich the programs."She has also been an adjunct professor and lecturer since 2008 at the College of Education at California State University, Sacramento.Dr. Britt completed her B.A. in Elementary Education from Bethel College in Mishawaka, Ind., and received her master's degree in Teacher Education from Eastern Oregon University in La Grande, Ore. She earned her Doctorate degree in Education and Human Resource Studies with a specialization in Educational Leadership at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colo. Britt has authored more than 10 research papers, most recently Needs of Adult Learners and Issues of the Athletic Department, both for publication in Community College Leadership and Administration: A Case Study Approach to Applying Theory to Practice.Philip EscamillaPhillip Escamilla will become a full-time professor in the University's Public Policy Department. Escamilla is already a familiar face on the Rocklin campus, having served as a part-time adjunct faculty member for Public Policy since 2008. He has a decade of legislative, policy, and education experience at the local, state, and national levels. Most recently, he worked for the California School Boards Association as a legislative advocate and federal relations liaison. Escamilla received a B.A. in English from University of California-Berkeley, a Master's degree in Education from Harvard University, and a Juris Doctorate at Boston College School of Law. For the past seven years, Escamilla has served as the Director of Young Adults, Singles' Ministry at Bayside Church in Granite Bay. He was the pastor for young adults and his responsibilities included teaching, counseling and leadership duties. Escamilla's career also includes working for the National Governors' Association in Washington, D.C. and the Massachusetts Department of Education. He also taught in the Boston Public Schools and served as a consultant to the Boston Private Industry Council. Escamilla and his wife, Lisa, an emergency room nurse, live in Roseville with their daughter. Albert YeeAlthough his work was behind the scenes as a senior research and development engineer with the Thoratec Corporation, Dr. Albert Yee took great satisfaction in helping aid the advancements of artificial hearts being made by the Pleasanton-based company.Educated at highly acclaimed Stanford University and the University of California, Yee is leaving the laboratory and returning to his roots on a college campus as a professor teaching math and science at Jessup.Yee was an adjunct professor at William Jessup in 2007-08. Yee grew up in Manhattan, Kansas where his father was a math professor at Kansas State University for more than two decades. After graduating high school, Yee received his B.S. and M.S. in mechanical engineering from Stanford and later earned a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from Cal-Berkeley.Yee says his style of teaching will incorporate some non-traditional methods of presenting math."One of my goals is to show students the relevancy of math in their everyday life," he said. "I'll be educating them about credit card debt ad compound interest. We will also discuss how understanding math is helpful when assessing a political campaign and how the numbers can be misleading." Prior to his role with Thoratec, Yee was an automation engineer at both Perlegen Sciences and Antara Biosciences, where he developed equipment and procedures for high throughput genomic sample preparation. Yee was also a research and development manager and engineer at Fanuc Berkeley Laboratory, focusing on robotic sensors. He developed two patents while at Fanuc.Yee lives in Davis with his wife, Angela, and two children. Angela has been the Adult Ministries Pastor the last three years at the University Covenant Church in Davis.Founded in 1939 by William Jessup, the University moved to Rocklin, in August 2004. It is the first and only WASC-accredited private, four-year university to have its main campus located in the greater Sacramento area, offering degrees in many different disciplines.~ Staff report