New Faculty Members Join the College

SEPTEMBER 3, 2021

A picture of the BYU sign that says, "Welcome to Brigham Young University: Enter to Learn, Go Forth to Serve" surrounded by spring flowers

This fall, we welcome fresh faces to the College of Family, Home, and Social Sciences. Be sure to say hello to our new faculty members and spend a minute to get to know more about them and the expertise they bring. We’re glad they’re here!

Photos of Ruth Kerry, an associate professor in the Geography department; David Simpson, a visiting professor in the Geography department; and Daniel Frost, an assistant professor in the School of Family Life

Ruth Kerry, Associate Professor of Geography
Ruth Kerry grew up in the United Kingdom and did all her studies there, including a PhD in precision agriculture from the University of Reading in 2004. She specializes in soil spatial analysis and land evaluation, and precision agriculture. She was previously an affiliate assistant professor at Auburn University

David Simpson, Visiting Teaching Professor of Geography
David Simpson has a passion for making communities better. He has a doctorate degree from the University of California, Berkeley in city and regional planning and has filled many professional roles over his career, much of which was spent with the University of Louisville. Prior to moving to Utah and accepting this position with BYU, he was the chair of the University of Louisville Sustainability Council.

Daniel Frost, Director of the Integrative Writing Program and Assistant Teaching Professor, School of Family Life
Daniel Frost earned his PhD in politics from Princeton University, and his writing interests include marriage, family, sexual morality, personal identity, and moral reasoning, among others. He previously taught political science at Clemson University and BYU.

Photos of Ashley Jimenez Fraser, an assistant professor in the School of Family Life; Richard Patterson, an assistant professor in the Economics department; and Ashley Lebaron-Black, an assistant professor in the School of Family Life

Ashley Jimenez Fraser, Assistant Professor of Family Life
Ashley Fraser earned a PhD in family and human development from Arizona State University in 2021. Her research interests include childhood and adolescent development; empathy and prosocial behavior; hope, racism and equity, and media.

Richard Patterson, Assistant Professor of Economics
Richard Patterson was an assistant professor in the U.S. Military Academy at West Point before coming to BYU. He specializes in applied microeconomics, behavioral economics, economics of education, and labor economics and has a PhD in policy analysis and management from Cornell University. In his free time he enjoys mountain biking, rock climbing, and skiing.

Ashley LeBaron-Black, Assistant Professor of Family Life
Ashley LeBaron-Black specializes in family finance with a focus on family financial socialization and couple finance. She earned her PhD in family studies and human development from the University of Arizona in 2021. In her free time she enjoys studying art history, particularly French Gothic, Italian Renaissance, and French Impressionism.

Photos of Ryan Hill, an assistant professor in the Economics department; Andrea Busby, an assistant professor in the School of Family Life; and Melissa Alcaraz, an assistant professor in the Sociology department

Ryan Hill, Assistant Professor of Economics
Ryan Hill earned his PhD in Economics from MIT in 2020 and specializes in labor economics, public finance, economics of innovation, and development of scientific knowledge. He previously worked as a postdoctoral researcher for the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. Fun fact about Ryan: he stood at the highest and lowest points of the continental U.S. on the same day — he climbed Mt. Whitney, slept on the summit, hiked down, and then visited Death Valley on the way home.

Andrea Kinghorn Busby, Assistant Professor of Family Life
Andrea Kinghorn Busby specializes in developmental psychology and public policy; reducing inequality for young children, with emphasis on fathers and neighborhoods; and inequality in children’s home, school, and neighborhood contexts. Her research interests include the impact of violence on children, how children and families experience poverty in suburban communities, and how parents socialize their children about economic inequality. She earned her PhD in human development and social policy from Northwestern University in 2021.

Melissa Alcaraz, Assistant Professor of Sociology
Melissa Alcaraz specializes in the intersection between migration and family formation, with a focus on Mexico. She earned her PhD in sociology from The Ohio State University in 2021.

Photos of Liz McGuire, an assistant professor in the Political Science department; Gentry Jenkins, a visiting assistant professor in the Political Science department; and Sandie Sephton, a professor in the Psychology department

Liz McGuire, Assistant Professor of Political Science
Liz McGuire earned her PhD in political science from Yale University in 2021. She uses experimental and quantitative methodologies to study gender politics, changes in gender norms, and comparative gender norms. She is also interested in international development and is currently focusing on East Africa.

Gentry Jenkins, Visiting Assistant Professor of Political Science
Gentry Jenkins earned his doctorate degree from the University of Chicago, where he was a teaching fellow in the Committee on International Relations. His research interests include the connections between revolution, state-building, civil war, and international conflict.

Sandra Sephton, Professor of Psychology
Sandra Sephton specializes in developmental, cognitive, and health psychology; biobehavioral oncology; and mindfulness interventions. She earned her PhD in behavioral neuroscience from BYU in 1995 and previously was a professor at the University of Louisville and senior scientist at James Graham Brown Cancer Center. She is the happy owner of three horses.

Kara Duraccio. an assistant professor in the Psychology department; Dawn-Marie Wood, an assistant professor in the Psychology department; and David Romney. an assistant professor in the Political Science department

Kara Duraccio, Assistant Professor of Psychology
Kara Duraccio earned her PhD in clinical psychology from BYU in 2019. She previously worked held a General Pediatrics Research Fellowship at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. Her areas of specialty include pediatric psychology with a focus on adolescent sleep and eating behaviors.

Dawn-Marie Wood, Assistant Teaching Professor of Psychology
Dawn-Marie Wood earned her master’s degree in psychology and behavioral neuroscience at BYU in 1994, and was previously a visiting assistant teaching professor at BYU. She loves to fly fish and is an “honorary member” of the BYU Fly Fishing Club.

David Romney, Assistant Professor of Political Science
David Romney has a PhD in government from Harvard University, and was a postdoctoral fellow at Harvard’s Weatherhead Center for International Affairs before coming to BYU. He specializes in comparative politics and methods, psychology of intergroup relations, role of social media, misinformation, and conspiracy theories in the Middle East. In his free time he enjoys watching cooking shows and trying out new recipes with his wife.