Education:

• Master of Science in Education, M.S. Ed. – Baylor University, 2000
• Bachelor of Science in Recreation – Indiana University, 1998

Employment:

• Dean, Campus Activities & Leadership – Butler University, 2024-present
• Executive Director, Student Well-being – Butler University, 2018-present
• Director of Recreation – Butler University, 2005-2018
• Assistant Director of Recreation – City of Greenwood, Indiana, 2003-2005
• Coordinator, Intramural and Club Sports – University of Texas at Dallas, 2000-2003

Volunteer/Leadership:

• Executive Council (as Chair of Staff Assembly rep.), Butler University, 2018-2022 
• Convened Butler University’s COVID-19 Health & Wellness Response Team, 2021-2022
• Senior Management Team (SMT), Student Affairs, Butler University, 2018-present
• Staff Assembly Executive Committee (Chair), Butler University, 2018-2022
• Staff Assembly Executive Committee (Vice-Chair), Butler University, 2016-2018
• Staff Assembly Executive Committee (at-large), Butler University, 2014-2016
• House Corporation board member – Indiana University Delta Tau Delta fraternity, 2006-2023
• House Corporation board member (President) – Indiana University Delta Tau Delta fraternity, 2012-2018

Professional Organization Involvement

• ACHA, American College Health Association, 2018-present
• NIRSA, Leaders in Collegiate Recreation, 1997-present
• NASPA, Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Ed, 2018-present
• National Wellness Institute, 2019-present
• Wellness Council of Indiana, 2022-present
• IRSA, Indiana Recreational Sports Association, 2005-present
• IPRA, Indiana Parks and Recreation Association, 2003-2005

Connect With Me:

• Email – speden@butler.edu
• Work Phone – 317.940.8436
• Twitter/X – @Scott_T_Peden | Instagram – @scott.peden
• LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/pub/scott-peden/6/82a/65b

Dr. Bridget Yuhas has more than 15 years of experience in higher education functional areas such as student activities, alumni engagement, development, housing, and assessment. During her doctoral studies at Indiana University, she worked at the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) where she frequently wrote experimental item sets for NSSE’s partner survey, the Faculty Survey of Student Engagement. Since arriving at Butler University in 2018, Dr. Yuhas has created ways to measure the efficacy of BU|BeWell, Butler’s framework for student well-being, and share results of those measurements to inform stakeholders’ practices across campus. She has presented original research on student well-being at NASPA Strategies, NASPA Annual Conference, Assessment Institute, NIRSA Annual Conference, AAC&U Annual Meeting, the Annual Conference on the First-year Experience, and NIRSA’s Summer of Learning; and has partnered with the National Wellness Institute to study professional well-being practitioner competencies both within and outside of higher education. Dr. Yuhas developed the Student Well-being Institutional Support Survey (SWISS) and is that project’s primary investigator. She frequently consults with colleges and universities on how to take action based on student data in order to increase student well-being on their campuses. 

Director/Training Director, CCS

Keith received a Bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Illinois and a Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University of Rochester in 1996. Prior to working at Butler, he worked in community mental health, and he maintains a private practice outside of his work at Butler. Keith works from an emotionally-focused, interpersonal perspective in therapy. He is interested in mentoring, supervision, and professional development. His clinical areas of interest include suicide prevention, grief/loss, identity development, mindfulness, and trauma recovery.  Outside of the office, he enjoys engaging in just about any sport when he is not spending time with his partner and three children.

Christine received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Indiana University and her Doctor of Clinical Psychology (Psy.D) degree from the Chicago School of Professional Psychology. She completed her APA-accredited doctoral internship at Butler University Counseling and Consultation Services and her post-doctoral fellowship at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Christine is a Certified Clinical Trauma Professional (CCTP), Certified Grief Educator, and a Pet Loss Grief Counseling Trained Professional. Christine works primarily from a Humanistic-Existential, Psychodynamic, and Internal Family Systems framework. Christine’s clinical interests include working with clients experiencing existential anxiety and existential concerns, grief and loss, trauma, self-compassion, family of origin concerns, relationship anxiety, identity development, fostering authenticity and meaning making, and phase of life changes. Christine works with Bella, an 8 year old English Bulldog, as part of the Animal Assisted Therapy program at CCS. 

Assistant Director, CCS

Casiana received a Bachelor’s degree in psychological science from Ball State University and a Ph.D. in clinical psychology from Eastern Michigan University. She was born and raised in Indianapolis within a large, multiracial family. Casiana is interested in providing culturally sensitive and affirming mental health treatment and enjoys facilitating values identification, acceptance, and self-compassion in her clinical work with students. In her spare time, she enjoys having fun with her partner, toddlers, and three dogs, and sharing meals with her large extended family. Her favorite self-care activities include trying new food, listening to live music, practicing mindfulness, and taking long walks.

Michael completed his doctoral degree in Counseling Psychology (PhD) from Purdue University in 2022. He completed his APA-accredited doctoral internship at Butler University and post-doctoral training at Integrated Psychological Center of Indiana. His training has prepared him to work with a variety of presenting concerns such as depression, anxiety, grief and loss, family-of-origin concerns, and trauma-related symptoms. Michael is guided by an interpersonal process and emotion-focused approach to therapy and strives to create an authentic and genuine relationship with each student he supports. In his free time he enjoys distance running, podcasts, and reading. 

Madison received a B.S. degree in psychology from Drake University in 2014 and a M.S. degree in clinical/community mental health from Western Illinois University in 2017. Prior to working at Butler, she worked in private practice working with children, adolescents, and adults. Madison works from a humanistic and integrative perspective in therapy. Her clinical areas of interest include neurodiversity, mood lability, suicide prevention, grief/loss, identity development, family of origin, trauma-informed care, and social justice work. Outside of the office, she enjoys hiking/backpacking, camping, traveling, and reading thriller novels. 

Dr. Beltran is a scholar and practician in the field of Health Sciences. He completed his Ph.D. in Interdisciplinary Health Sciences at the University of Texas at El Paso with a minor in Women’s and Gender Studies, but his work experience extends beyond academia. He completed his post-doctoral training at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the Division of Adolescent and School Health and in the Division of STD Prevention. He also served three years as the deputy director of a binational, non-profit,community-based organization that provided healthcare to underserved populations. Dr. Beltran’s research and practice focuses on HIV/STI prevention, substance use/abuse, Hispanic/LatinX health disparities, and behavioral health. At Butler University, he engages in teaching, research, and service around these topics.

Author of a couple of novels,  The Lost Episodes of Revie Bryson and Do Not Go On. Co-author (with Sarah Layden) of The Invisible Art of Literary Editing. Editor of a few anthologies, My Name was Never Frankenstein: And Other Classic Adventure Tales Reanimated and An Indiana Christmas. Co-editor (with Michael Martone) of the anthology, Winesburg, Indiana. Stories have appeared in Ninth Letter, Sycamore Review, Southeast Review, and elsewhere, including New Stories from the Midwest and Best American Nonrequired Reading. Wishes he was a hawk, believes that breakfast burritos are the perfect food. 

Dr. Karina Hamamouche joined the faculty at Butler University in 2021 after teaching for two years at Belmont University. She received her PhD in Developmental Psychology from Boston College in 2019. Prior to attending Boston College, she received her BA in Psychology and French from Butler University. She primarily teaches Life Span Development and Psychological Inquiry, but also enjoys teaching Research Methods courses. Dr. Hamamouche’s research focuses on how children learn about number and time. She is interested in how these abilities develop and how an understanding of quantities relates to formal academic achievement.  She loves to travel and is an avid college basketball fan.

Mira ‘Assaf Kafantaris ميرا عساف كفنتاريس is an Assistant Professor of English and Race, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at Butler University, specializing in Premodern Critical Race Studies, Shakespeare, and Early Modern Culture. She earned her Ph.D. in English from The Ohio State University, her M.A. in English from the American University of Beirut, and her B.A. in English Literature and Language from the Lebanese University. Her trans-historical and cross-disciplinary research explores the intersections of race-making with the politics of royal marriage, foreign queens, and border-crossing in the early modern period and in our current historical moment. 

‘Assaf Kafantaris is a 2023-2024 Folger Shakespeare Library Long-Term fellow. She is completing her first manuscript, titled Royal Marriage, Foreign Queens, and Constructions of Race in Early Modern England, which is under contract with the Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies Press and will be published in 2026.

With Sonja Drimmer and Treva B. Lindsey, she co-edited an open-access special issue of the Barnard Center for Research on Women’s journal, The Scholar and Feminist Online, titled “Race-ing Queens.” Her book chapters have appeared in Race and/as Affect; The Palgrave Handbook of Shakespeare’s Queens; and The Cambridge Edition of the Works of Ben Jonson (with Richard Dutton).  A new commissioned article on the mobility of racialized foreign queens is forthcoming in The Oxford Handbook of Travel, Identity, and Race in Early Modern England, edited by Nandini Das. Her current work includes an edited collection (with Urvashi Chakravarty) on early modern queenship, premodern critical race studies, and queer theory. The volume will be published in 2025. 

For the Oxford World Series, she is writing the critical introduction to Antony and Cleopatra.

Her public humanities essays have appeared in several online publications, including Shakespeare Globe,  The Sundial, The Millions, Overland Journal, The Rambling, The Conversation, Medium-Equity, and The Platform.

‘Assaf Kafantaris currently serves as Early Modern Section Editor for The Sundial.  In 2023-2024, she is serving on the Program Committee for the Shakespeare Association of America. Her work has been supported by generous grants and fellowship from The Folger Shakespeare Library, The Shakespeare Association of America, The Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies (ACMRS), The Renaissance Society of America, The Women’s Place at The Ohio State University; The Muslim Studies Endowment (Butler), and NEH/Frederic M. Ayres Fund (Butler).

At Butler, ‘Assaf Kafantaris teaches courses on Shakespeare, early British literature, critical race studies, and women, gender, and sexuality studies. 

Past Awards:

2021: ACMRS Short-Term Fellow.

In 2021-22: Folger Shakespeare Library and Society for the Study of Early Women and Gender Margaret Hannay Fellow.

Dr. Madinger earned a bachelors degree from Valparaiso University and a masters from Ball State University. She then studied nutrient cycling in western streams at the University of Wyoming, earning a PhD. After graduate school, Dr. Madinger taught environmental science at Concordia University Wisconsin before beginning at Butler. Her current research collaboration is with the Friesner Herbarium at Butler University. Previously she has investigated many local phenomenon including 17 year cicadas, local water quality, and biofilm diversity. She teaches Ecology and Evolution (BI 230), Ecology and the Natural Environment (NW 207), Earth System Sciences (NW 260), Environmental Science (NW 205), Field Biology, and Conservation Biology (BI 419). 

Ongoing research projects include assessing the distribution of yellow-flowered teasel, testing herbicides on teasel, and coordinating local plant diversity assessments in collaboration with the Friesner Herbarium. Upcoming projects could include investigating the phenology of yellow-flowered teasel, checking local parks for yellow-flowered teasel populations, and collecting specimens of the tree diversity at Crown Hill Cemetery. 

Have you ever inflated a life-sized blue whale in a school parking lot? Talked with astronauts in real-time aboard the International Space Station with 200 third graders? Led science and social studies explorations with one thousand fourth graders around the track at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway? If you’ve had class with Dr. Catherine Hagerman Pangan – most likely you have!

Dr. Pangan is a Professor in the College of Education. She is honored to work with first-years through graduate students and many community partners around the city. Her work focuses on science and social studies methods, teacher leadership and innovation, and pre-service teaching. She is also an Innovation Fellow for Butler’s Transformation Lab.

She also has a unique role as a “Faculty-in-Residence and lives with 630 sophomores in Fairview House with her family. Dr. Pangan contributes as a columnist in The Teacher Advocate magazine as “Dr. P.” and has written curriculum for teachers for exhibits at the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis. She wrote a children’s book titled“No Peanuts for Me!” about her son’s peanut allergy. She also authored chapters for “The Power of Teacher Leaders” and “Connecting Children to Nature” and advised on a student-led publication “The Gifts of Indiana.” She serves as president of the Board of Trustees for Sycamore School. Formerly, Dr. Pangan was an elementary teacher in St. Louis, MO and Indiana. She traded in her “golden apple” teaching award for the Big Apple and helped start the NewTeacher Academy at Columbia University and worked with teachers in Harlem and Brooklyn. She received her B.S. in Elementary Education, Master’s in Educational Administration at Butler University, an endorsement in Gifted Education, and a doctorate in Curriculum and Teaching with an emphasis on policy and education law. Dr. Pangan has been working in education for over 25 years.

Education: 

Master of Science in Sport Administration – Belmont University 

Bachelor of Science in Psychology – Berry College 

Bio: 

With over 8 years of experience of dedicated leadership in student affairs and a successful track record in guiding customer experience teams outside of higher education, my focus has been on creating impactful and inclusive environments. In higher education, I have believed in championing student engagement and holistic development, while my customer experience lens has led to delivering exceptional service, resulting in increased satisfaction and loyalty. My passion for empowering individuals continues to bridge the worlds with strategic vision and commitment to excellence.

Employment: 

Director of Recreation & Wellness, Butler University: September 2023 – present

Manager of Customer Experience, U.S. Xpress: 2021 –  2023

Assistant Director of Operations & Competitive Sports, UT-Chattanooga:  2018 –  2021

Senior Coordinator of Facilities & Events, Kennesaw State University:  2015 –  2018

Education

• B.A. Psychology, Indiana University-Bloomington (2016)
• Master of Public Health (MPH), Indiana University-Bloomington (2018)

Bio

Katie joined the Butler community in 2019. As a born-and-raised Hoosier, Katie attended Indiana University-Bloomington, where she earned both her B.A. in Psychology and her Master of Public Health (MPH). She also earned her certification as a Health Education Specialist (CHES). Her time at Indiana University fostered her passion for college student well-being & ultimately prepared her for her career in university health promotion.

In her role as Health Promotion Specialist, Katie reinforces and supports a culture of well-being at Butler through specific prevention and health promotion strategies. Her professional interests include mental health advocacy and sexual health promotion.