JOURNAL OF DHARMA STUDIES (SPRINGER) | BERKELEY, CA | 2018 – PRESENT

Editor in Chief (2021 – Present)

• Editorial Oversight: Steers the journal's vision, driving quality and consistency in the published material; contributing to an increase in our impact factor and broadening our readership.

• Interdisciplinary Expansion: Expanded Journal's scope to encompass diverse yet interconnected fields, leading to a richer academic discourse and a more holistic approach to Dharma studies; attracted a wider range of contributors and readers.

• Stakeholder Management: Maintain strong relationships with contributors, reviewers, and the academic community, cultivating a supportive and productive network that fuels the Journal's continuous growth and relevance in Dharma studies.

• Development: Cultivates relationships across institutions and organizations, attracting high profile senior scholars to contribute articles for publication. Networks with international scholars for executive board memberships. Organizes and participates in events, colloquia, and conferences to generate new leads, establish and initiate relationships, and create vehicles for special and thematic issues. 

• Publishing: Under my co-leadership, JDS has seen an exponential increase in readership and submissions, and we have moved from a bi-yearly to tri-yearly print and online publication schedule. 

• Management: Scouts, hires, and trains editors and editorial managers, facilitates training and education for guest editors and liaises with Springer’s publications offices. 

Editorial Administration Manager (2018 – 2021)

• Efficient Operations: Streamlined the editorial processes, enhancing efficiency in manuscript handling, peer review, and publication; reduced turnaround time for manuscripts and a marked increase in the number of published articles per issue.

• Quality Assurance: Implemented rigorous quality control measures, ensuring that each published article adheres to the Journal's high academic and ethical standards; elevated the Journal's reputation and credibility in the academic community.

• Team Leadership: Led a dedicated team of editorial staff, fostering an environment of collaboration, continuous learning, and high performance; resulted in consistent on-time publication schedules, high team morale, and low turnover.

 

SANTA CLARA UNIVERSITY | 2019 - PRESENT

Director of Assessment & Programs (August 2022 – Present)

• Program Administration & Mentoring: Steer the MTS program's online and on-campus initiatives with adept leadership, guiding 15+ MTS students, and directing thesis papers and projects. Offers personalized advisory support to nurture student growth and advance academic pursuits, thus empowering intellectual journeys and assisting in the refinement of students’ vocational vision.

• Curriculum Leadership: Innovatively helm MTS proseminar to focus on academic research methodologies and writing, providing students with the skills needed for academic success. Facilitate a learning environment that balances theory with practice.

• Assessment Management: Oversee assessment procedures across academic programs, coordinating data collection, interpreting results, and advising the dean and faculty on refining educational and institutional outcomes. Strengthened university's standing by maintaining accreditation during the 2023-2024 academic year through updated reports to the ATS accrediting agency.

• Stakeholder Engagement: Led significant revisions of curriculum alignment matrices to mirror current institutional objectives and learning outcomes. Fostered stakeholder consensus on the revision of learning outcomes and assessment processes.

• Process Streamlining: Initiated innovative revisions of assessment data collection tools, resulting in a 25% reduction in data collection time, freeing time and resources for the attainment of mission-critical objectives while increasing operational efficiency.

• Writing Program Direction & Instructional Design: Stewards the hybrid-online one-to-one writing coaching program, designs and teaches online academic writing courses and labs using tools like Absorb Create, Moodle, Canva, Slack, and Zoom.

• Recruitment & Training: Scouts, onboards, hires, trains, and retains new coaches with a strong focus on DEI, ensuring that coaches represent and reflect the diverse student body. Embeds inclusive pedagogies in coaching, fostering an environment that celebrates diversity and promotes inclusivity.

Adjunct Lecturer MTS Proseminar (2022 – Present)

• Academic Lectureship: Fuses theoretical principles with practical applications to deliver engaging and relevant MTS proseminar lectures, creating an interactive learning environment that stimulates intellectual curiosity and fosters critical thinking.

• Curriculum Design & Delivery: Implements innovative curriculum strategies, effectively translating complex academic research methods and writing concepts into easily digestible lessons, cultivating an enriching learning experience for students.

• Student Mentorship: Acts as a mentor and academic advisor to students, offering individualized guidance to support their academic success, accompanying them on their  intellectual journeys, and shaping them into competent scholars.

Writing Program Director (2020 – Present)

• Program Coordination: Orchestrates and shepherds the academic writing program for the Jesuit School of Theology (JST) as an integral part of an enduring mission to boost graduate student retention and promote successful and timely graduations.

• Student Advisory: Provide advisory services to domestic and international students on matters related to writing, theses, dissertations, and oral defense. Helps students navigate the complexities of academic writing and defense procedures.

• Team Building & Training: Scouts, hires, and retains a talented cadre of approximately ten writing coaches, fostering a collaborative environment that promotes continuous learning and excellence in coaching.

• Course and Program Development: Led the development of a concise academic writing course, addressing the critical need for intensive writing support among students. Surveys and student progress reports show yearly improvements in student writing abilities, validating the program’s effectiveness.

• Student Well-being & Skill Development: Witnessed noteworthy improvements in student academic well-being and writing skills, attesting to the program's success in nurturing holistic academic growth.

• Online Tutoring Program: Innovated a robust online tutoring program to support remote learning needs, responding to the contemporary shift in education delivery; ensured academic support remained accessible despite geographical barriers.

• Educational Material Maintenance: Established and maintained an extensive online library of video tutorials, writing materials, and student aids on Moodle.

• Retention of Tutors: Successfully retained writing tutors for over two years, reinforcing a stable and skilled coaching workforce, ensuring consistency in the quality of coaching provided, and enhancing the overall student experience.

On-Call Staff (Fall 2019)

• Advanced Academic Writing: Managed ad-hoc responsibilities, primarily focused on Advanced Academic Writing; reinforcing the curriculum, enriching the students' learning journey, and enhancing their academic writing competencies.

 

GRADUATE THEOLOGICAL UNION | BERKELEY, CA | 2018 - PRESENT

Adjunct Faculty

• Course Leadership and Development: Led and developed courses on Tantra, Woman, and Goddess, Yoga, and Tantric Shaivism. Facilitates deep explorations into the subject matter, sparking student engagement that leads to enriched understanding, lively discussion, and insightful research projects.

• Course Direction: Coordinated and taught the foundational Yoga course, incorporating both theoretical and practical aspects; deepened students' understanding of Yoga beyond a physical practice, exploring the rich historical and philosophical roots.

• Course Execution: Currently helming the Interreligious Dimensions of Hinduism course, cultivating an environment for interfaith dialogues and understanding.

• Course Management: Guided the complex course of The Yoga of Tantric Śaivism, intertwining history, philosophy, and practice; sparked scholarly interest, resulting in an influx of research proposals and dissertations in related areas.

 

NAROPA UNIVERSITY | BOULDER, CO | SPRING 2022

Adjunct Faculty - Yoga & Globalization

• Course Creation and Facilitation: Created and taught the Yoga & Globalization course, a core course requirement for Naropa’s MA in Yoga Studies program. 

 

WINDWARD COMMUNITY COLLEGE | UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII | KANE’OHE, HI | FALL 2019 & SPRING 2022

Adjunct Faculty | Guest Lecturer - Introduction to World Religions

• Course Leadership: Steered Introduction to World Religions course, utilizing a comparative approach to elucidate diverse religious beliefs, practices, and philosophies.

 

LEARNING UNLIMITED | HONOLULU, HI | MARCH 2016 – DECEMBER 2019

Assistant Director

• Talent Acquisition & Development: Orchestrated hiring, training, and retention strategies for a vibrant team of teachers; established a team of educators dedicated to fostering student success.

• Operational Leadership: Spearheaded the management of teacher schedules, meetings, and training sessions, ensuring seamless operations and continuous professional development; optimized teacher productivity and enhanced teaching quality.

• Marketing Management: Oversaw web and print marketing initiatives, effectively communicating our value proposition to prospective clients; catalyzed a growth in student enrollments and bolstered our brand recognition in the educational landscape.

• Strategic Advisory: Counseled the Director on key matters relating to hiring, marketing, management, and pedagogy, fostering a collaborative approach to decision-making; led to informed decisions that contributed to the organization's strategic growth.

• Student Development: Orchestrated comprehensive programs to prepare K-12 students academically and emotionally for private school assessments and college entry; instilled confidence in students.

• Achievement Tracking: Celebrated numerous student successes, with most of our program participants gaining acceptance into their first-choice schools within a year.

• Performance Improvement: Led initiatives to improve grades and standardized test scores, refining teaching methodologies to cater to individual student needs; improved students' academic performance, solidifying reputation for academic excellence.

 

 

 

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FELLOWSHIPS, GRANTS & SCHOLARSHIPS

 

Shared Sacred Story Project, Fetzer Institute, Michigan

2021-2022

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Editorial Newhall Fellow for the Journal of Dharma Studies, GTU, Berkeley

2021

 

Borsch-Rast Dissertation Award, GTU, Berkeley

2020

 

Presidential Scholar, GTU, Berkeley

2020

 

Center for Arts & Religion Travel Grant, Berkeley

2019

 

Interreligious Collaborative Research Fellow, GTU, Berkeley

2018

 

Newhall Fellow, GTU, Berkeley

2018

 

Center for Arts & Religion Research Travel Grant, Berkeley

2018

 

Chan Essay Award, Berkeley

2017

 

Presidential Scholar, GTU, Berkeley

2016 — 2018

 

Francis Powers Award, Honolulu

2016

 

University of Hawaii Graduate Division Achievement Scholar, Honolulu

2015 — 2016

 

Nā Hoʻokama a Pauahi Scholar, Honolulu

2014 — 2016

 

 

PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS

 

Board Member, Berkeley Art and Image Pilgrimage Project

2021 - Present

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Steering Committee, American Academy of Religion

2018 - Present

 

American Academy of Religion

2016 - Present

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SERVICE

 

Doctoral Council

2017 — 2019

Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley

 

Representative

2016 — 2017

University of Hawaii Graduate Student Organization, Honolulu

 

 

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