Meet the Leadership Team
School of Interdisciplinary Studies Central Leadership
Dr. Jack Mangala, Director and Chair, School of Interdisciplinary Studies
Jack R. Mangala is Professor of Interdisciplinary Studies and of Political Science. His previous leadership positions and significant service at Grand Valley include Chair of the Area and Global Studies Department, Director of the African and African American Studies Program, Chair of Brooks College Personnel Committee and Endowed Professor of Civil Discourse. A former NATO-EAPC fellow, he holds a doctorate in international law from the Catholic University of Louvain in Belgium as well as graduate degrees from the University of Montpellier in France and the Geneva International Peace Research Institute. He completed post-doctoral work at the University of Michigan Law School. Dr. Mangala’s scholarly interests center on the nexus between international law and human security. His current line of research explores the emerging global governance of migrations with a particular emphasis on diaspora engagement policies. He is the recipient of the Pew Teaching Excellence Award (2011), the Outstanding Teaching in Political Science Award (2011) and the Distinguished Contribution in a Discipline Award (2021). International commitments include Associate Professor, Laws and Migrations, Catholic University of Louvain and Visiting Professor, John Cabot University, Rome.
Justin Pettibone, Assistant Director, School of Interdisciplinary Studies
Justin Pettibone is a senior affiliate faculty member and has taught full-time in the Brooks College of Interdisciplinary Studies since 2008. He holds a M.A. in Philosophy from Miami University (2007), B.A. in Liberal Studies from GVSU (2003) with academic certifications in Spanish and French language and culture from Universidad Pablo de Olavide in Seville, Spain, Université de Provence in Aix-en-Provence, France, and Université de Genéve in Geneva, Switzerland. Justin previously served as assistant chair of the Integrative, Religious, and Intercultural Studies Department from 2020-2023.
Each spring, Justin co-directs an annual study abroad opportunity in Spain, in collaboration with the Intercultural Communication Certificate Program. He is the Pew FTLC Faculty Fellow for Adult and Lifetime Learning, supporting faculty mentoring in LEADS for AY2023-2024.
SIS Program Support
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Mary Williford, School of Interdisciplinary Studies Administrative Assistant
Mary Williford (PSS) is the lead PSS and Administrative Assistant for the School of Interdisciplinary Studies.
Mary joined Grand Valley in January 2020. A West Michigan transplant, Mary's background is in managing daily operations for museums, archives, and local history initiatives. She holds a BA in American Studies from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an MA in Museum Studies from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. In her spare time, Mary enjoys horror movies, exploring quirky regional history, and unwinding with her cats.
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Ginele Johnson, Academic Program Coordinator
Ginele Johnson supports the following programs and program directors: Digital Studies & Data Literacy, Integrative Studies, Leadership & Professional Innovation, and Women, Gender, & Sexuality Studies.
Ginele is a Grand Valley alumna with a B.S. in Communications. Since 2019, Ginele has worked in a range of support positions within Brooks College, including office coordinator for the Office of Community Partnerships & Student Professional Development and as Academic Office Coordinator for Digital Studies and Human Rights. Prior to joining the team in Brooks College, Ginele served as a marketing administrative assistant in the grocery industry and collegiate athletics, was a small business owner as well as working in the K-12 public school system.
Arnie VandeBrake, Academic Program Coordinator and Program Assistant
Arnie VandeBrake supports the Environmental and Sustainability Studies program and manages annual scheduling and outreach for the School of Interdisciplinary Studies.
Arnie joined Grand Valley in 2024. She comes to GVSU with a professional background in ticketing and live entertainment administration, most notably with Broadway Across America at the Hippodrome Theatre in Baltimore, Maryland and the Tilles Center for the Performing Arts at Long Island University in Brookville, New York. She earned a B.F.A. in Theatre Arts from DePaul University, along with minors in Women's and Gender Studies and LGBTQ Studies.
School of Interdisciplinary Studies Program Directors
Majd Al-Mallah - Area & Global Studies Programs
Programs: Global Studies & Social Impact major (B.A., B.S.); African & African American Studies minor; East Asian Studies minor; Human Rights minor; Latin American Studies minor; Middle East Studies minor; Religious Studies minor.
PSS: Ryan Moore, Academic Program Coordinator
Majd Al-Mallah is Professor of Arabic Language and Literature at Grand Valley State University, Michigan. He currently serves as the Director of Area and Global Studies as well as the Coordinator of the Arabic Program. He teaches a variety of Arabic and Middle East Studies classes at GVSU. His research focuses on classical Arabic poetry, with a current focus on women poets in al-Andalus. He is the author of In the Shadows of the Master: Al-Mutanabbi’s Legacy and the Quest for the Center in Fatimid and Andalusian Poetry and the co-editor of the Dictionary of Literary Biography: Twentieth-Century Arab Writers. He is also the author of numerous articles on classical and modern Arabic literature.
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Faculty Program Coordinators - Area & Global Studies
Each of the minor programs within the Area & Global Studies Programs also has a faculty program coordinator. These include:
- Dr. Jakia Marie, African & African American Studies
- Dr. Meghan Cai, East Asian Studies
- Dr. Brian Johnson, Human Rights
- Dr. Andrew Schlewitz, Latin American Studies
- Dr. Chad Lingwood, Middle East Studies
- Marie Burnside, Religious Studies
Denise Goerisch - Integrative Studies
Programs: Integrative Studies major (B.A., B.S.), including LEADS; University Studies (US-prefix courses). Interdisciplinary Studies (IDS-prefix courses).
PSS: Ginele Johnson, Academic Program Coordinator
Dr. Denise Goerisch received her PhD in Geography from San Diego State University and University of California, Santa Barbara. Her research focuses on the socio-economic lives of children and young people. She is currently researching college students’ engagements with the costs of pursuing higher education in the US, labor practices on university campuses, and care ethics in higher education. She has published on topics related to online learning, mentoring, faculty labor, emotional labor and girlhood, children’s work and play, and leadership in informal educational spaces.
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Laurence José - Digital Studies & Data Literacy
Programs: Digital Studies minor
PSS: Ginele Johnson, Academic Program Coordinator
Laurence José serves as the Director of the Digital Studies program and is an Associate Professor of Writing. She holds a PhD in Rhetoric and Technical Communication and joined Grand Valley State University in 2010. In Writing, she teaches courses such as multimodal composing, design and visual rhetoric, and writing in the global context. In Digital Studies, she teaches DS 202, Digital Data and Design, and DS 495, Digital Studies Capstone. Her research interests include curriculum design, data humanism, and the influence of technology and global contexts on communication and culture.
Julia Mason - Women, Gender, & Sexuality Studies
Programs: Women, Gender, & Sexuality Studies major (B.A., B.S.) and minor; LGBTQ Studies minor
PSS: Ginele Johnson, Academic Program Coordinator
Dr. Julia M. Mason is an Associate Professor and Director of Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. Her teaching interests include gender and popular culture; sustainability; contemporary feminist theory; and women’s health. Currently Dr. Mason conducts research on the representation of motherhood in popular media which she has presented at numerous regional, national, and international conferences. Her research has been published in peer reviewed publications including the Journal of Popular Culture; the Journal of American Culture; and Gender Forum. Since arriving at GVSU in 2003, Dr. Mason has worked in collaboration with numerous faculty colleagues to grow and strengthen WGS including the development of the WGS major (2006) and the LGBTQ minor (2015). Dr. Mason earned her doctorate in American Culture Studies (2003), with graduate certificates in Women’s Studies and Ethnic Studies, from Bowling Green State University and a Master of Arts in American Indian Studies (1994) from The University of Arizona.
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Amy McFarland - Environmental & Sustainability Studies
Programs: Environmental & Sustainability Studies major (B.A., B.S.) and minor; Sustainable Food Systems Certificate
PSS: Arnie VandeBrake, Academic Program Coordinator
Dr. Amy McFarland is an Associate Professor in the School of Interdisciplinary Studies and the Director of the Environmental and Sustainability Studies Program. She earned a PhD in Horticultural Sciences from Texas A&M University, a Masters of Education in Agricultural Education from Texas State University, and a B.A. in Psychology & Women and Gender Studies from Rice University. Her research interests include urban greening, and the social and environmental impacts of food systems, from production to consumption.
Santos Ramos - Leadership & Professional Innovation
Programs: Leadership & Business Fundamentals major (B.A.S.); Professional Innovation major (B.A.S.); Intercultural Competence & Communication Certificate and Badge; Leadership Certificate.
PSS: Ginele Johnson, Academic Program Coordinator
Dr. Santos Ramos is an Assistant Professor and Interim Director of SIS’s Leadership & Professional Innovation programs. He teaches and researches in the areas of Latina/o Studies, distance learning, digital studies, and food studies, receiving his PhD in 2018 from Michigan State University’s Department of Writing, Rhetoric and American Cultures.
