ACU has hired many new faculty and staff to help with the large number of students and also bring a variety of backgrounds on to the campus.

A total of 15 faculty and staff have been hired across the campus, from the Political Science Department to the Music Department.

The Physics and Engineering Department added two new teachers to accommodate its growing number of students, which has almost doubled this year.

Dr. Matthew Steele, assistant professor in that department, is new to ACU. He said he chose the university because of its great environment and Christian community. It was the only university he applied to.

Steele, who has been working for a Livestock Association firm in Kansas, said he is hoping to use his real world experience to help students and bring them more opportunities to learn.

He said everyone has really been looking forward to this semester, and his first day went well.

“Everybody was excited to be there and ready to go,” he said.

Dr. J. Darby Hewitt, another new assistant professor in the Department of Engineering and Physics, is a returning alumnus. He graduated from ACU with his undergraduate degree in 2008.

His aspiration to be a professor at ACU started when he was a student.

“I always new, well, that ideally I wanted to come back here and teach,” Hewitt said. “I appreciated that education was a high priority.”

Hewitt said he is eager about teaching at a smaller school because he will have the ability to work one-on-one with students and present each of them with unique opportunities.

Attending the Opening Chapel was a special homecoming for Hewitt because he said it reminded him of his loyalty to ACU.

“I felt sort of this sense of belonging to the school,” he said. “I’m real excited about being here.”

The College of Arts and Sciences hired seven new faculty and staff to help with the large incoming freshmen class.

“I am really glad that they are here,” said Dr. Gregory Straughn, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. “I think this is a great time for the university as we look at a large class and the opportunity to engage with students.”

Straughn said the new faculty gives more students the opportunity to come to ACU and to discover ways to inspire others as they prepare for their careers.

“I’m thankful for the faculty being here,” Straughn said. “I think they represent, in some ways, the future of the university.”

New Faculty for 2013-2014:

Brian Brown

Instructor of Language and Literature

Dr. Anita Broxson

Assistant Professor of Nursing

Jeff Goolsby

Instructor of Music

Dr. Kristen Guillory

Assistant Professor of Social Work

Rachel Hewett

Instructor of Music

Dr. J. Darby Hewitt

Assistant Professor of Engineering and Physics

Dr. Hope Martin

Associate Professor of Occupational Therapy

Dana Mayhall

Instructor of Teacher Education

Dr. Stuart Platt

Assistant Professor of Political Science

James Prather

Instructor in School of Information Technology and Computing

Dr. Trey Shirley

Instructor of General Education

Dr. Jessica Smith

Associate Professor of Journalism and Mass Communication

Rachel Smith

Instructor of Communication Sciences and Disorders

Dr. Matthew Steele

Assistant Professor of Engineering and Physics

Dr. Charles Wadlington

Assistant Professor of Psychology