Nine new department chairs were appointed at California State University, Northridge in fall 2015. These new chairs are: 

Joyce Burstein (Elementary Education) – Burstein, a CSUN faculty member since 2002, earlier this year became chair of the Department of Elementary Education. Burstein received her bachelor’s degree in history from UCLA, her master’s degree in education with a specialization in curriculum and instruction from CSUN, and her doctorate of education in teacher education and leadership from UCLA. She has worked as a K-8 classroom teacher in the Los Angeles Unified School District for 17 years. In 2012, she received the CSUN Distinguished Teaching Award. Burstein’s teaching and research interests are in social studies and multicultural education, the visual and performing arts, professional development schools, teacher networking, and community engagement.

Jody Dunlap (Education and Policy Studies) – Dunlap is in her seventh year as a full-time professor at CSUN. After earning her bachelor’s degree from CSUN, she received her master’s and doctorate of education from Pepperdine University. Dunlap was the K-12 graduate adviser for the MA/Tier I Preliminary Administrative Services Credential Program, prior to becoming chair of the Department of Education and Policy Studies. Her research interests include school leadership, fiscal implications of K-12 school governance and program development.

Kathryn Peckham-Hardin (Special Education) – Peckham-Hardin has been working at CSUN since 1996. She completed her Ph.D. at UC Santa Barbara in 2003. In 2008, she was promoted to associate professor at CSUN, and to full professor in 2013. Her research interests include positive behavior support, inclusive practices, instructional strategies for individuals with severe disabilities and authentic assessment.

Gabriel Gutierrez (Chicano Studies) – Before becoming chair of the Department of Chicana/o Studies, Gutierrez served as the associate chair from fall 2007 to spring 2011. Gutierrez earned his bachelor’s degree in Chicana/o studies and political science, a master’s degree in Latin American and 19th-century U.S. history, and a doctorate in Chicano/a history — all at UC Santa Barbara. This year, Gutierrez published the two-volume book Latinos and Latinas at Risk: Issues in Education, Health, Community, and Justice (Greenwood). He is also working on another book, Latinos by the Numbers, which examines statistical data in various quality-of-life areas for Latina/os within critical social, historical and political contexts.

George Law (Electrical and Computer Engineering) – Before coming to CSUN, Law earned his Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology, a Master of Science from Florida Institute of Technology and a doctorate from the University of Alabama. Law’s area of research and teaching includes digital system design, design of digital computers, microprocessor systems and VHDL.

Sylvia Macauley (Africana Studies) – Macauley, the new chair of the Department of Africana Studies, is in her first year at California State University, Northridge. Before coming to CSUN, Macauley was a history professor at Truman State University in Missouri. After earning her bachelor’s degree (honors) from Fourah Bay College, University of Sierra Leone, Macauley received her master’s and doctorate in history from Howard University.

Ahmad Sarfaraz (Manufacturing Systems Engineering & Management) – Sarfaraz received his doctorate in industrial engineering from West Virginia University in 1988 has been at CSUN since 2000. His research focuses on operations research, operations management, Analytic Hierarchy Process, Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process, and economic analysis. Sarfaraz is the author and co-author of more than 30 journal articles.

Patricia Seymour (Communication Disorders and Sciences) – Seymour has been an associate professor at CSUN since 2006. Before arriving at Northridge, Seymour received her bachelor’s degree and master’s degree from California State University, Fullerton and a doctorate from the University of Kansas.

Doug Yule (Geological Sciences) – Yule joined the Department of Geological Sciences at CSUN in 2000 and became the department chair in August. He earned his bachelor’s degree in geology from Pomona College, a master’s degree in geology from the University of Wyoming and a doctorate in geology from the California Institute of Technology. Yule’s research is field based and focuses on finding evidence of large “paleo-earthquakes” — on the San Andreas Fault system here in Southern California and the Himalayan fault system in India, Nepal and Pakistan.