Instructors in SPI

Engaging Difficult Conversations & Facilitating Social Transformation - PAX 684

Dr. Catherine Barnes has worked for conflict transformation and social justice for more
than thirty years. She is an affiliate faculty member of the Center for Justice and
Peacebuilding at Eastern Mennonite University and a freelance facilitator, trainer and
researcher. Catherine has extensive experience facilitating conversations on
challenging topics, in locations ranging from the UN General Assembly Hall to village
gathering places. She is increasingly focused on designing whole-of-system deliberative
dialogue processes and training other practitioners in these skills. She delights in
holding spaces where each person can feel valued, find connection, and experience
rooting and shifting into change.

Examples of recent processes she has helped to design and facilitate range from
workshops for the Afghan High Peace Council, the Mennonite Church USA’s Future
Church Summit, a sustained public dialogue for ‘culture war’ conflict in a Virginia public
school system, support to advocacy coalitions to re-discover their dynamism and
purpose, and ongoing bridge building and community dialogue for racial healing in her
home town in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley. She finds that underlying process design
principles can span these widely divergent contexts.

As teacher, trainer, researcher, policy advocate and consultant, she has worked with
civil society activists, diplomats and politicians, and armed groups in more than 30
countries to support their capacities for preventing violence and using conflict as an
opportunity for addressing the underlying systems giving rise to grievance.

She has written widely on peace processes, civil society roles in peacebuilding, and on
issues related to statebuilding, conflict prevention, genocide and minority rights. She is
currently collaborating on a project with University of Notre Dame's Peacetech and
Polarization Labworking to develop a Handbook on Deliberative Tech and Process
Design. She is also writing a book entitled: Ending Our Addiction to Coercion:
Understanding Conflict Habituated Systems and How to Transform Them.

Catherine holds a doctorate in Conflict Analysis and Resolution from George Mason
University. A freelancer now (www.catherinebarnes.space), she has worked with
numerous peacebuilding and human rights organizations, including Conciliation
Resources and Minority Rights Group International.

She now lives in Staunton Virginia with her husband and son, and extended family and
friends, with whom she loves to garden, to cook, to make music and to retreat into the
wilds of the surrounding mountains.

Strategies for Trauma Awareness and Resilience (STAR), Level 2 - PAX 640

Ram Bhagat, Ed.D. (he, him, We) is an educator, arts innovator, peacemaker, and community healer. He is a national leader in restorative justice, specializing in collective healing circles for gun violence survivors and perpetrators.

Dr. Bhagat served as the Manager of School Culture and Climate Strategy for Richmond Public Schools for 4 years. Previously, he served as a high school science teacher for 31 years. Dr. Bhagat was a Teacher-Leader-Innovator in DC Public Schools, an award-winning Chemistry teacher in Richmond Public schools, and a Biology and Chemistry teacher in Henrico Public Schools. He was an expert in the practice of culturally responsive science pedagogy and arts
integration. Dr. Bhagat designed innovative curriculum units for the Yale National Initiative to
Strengthen Teaching in Public Schools. Through his roles as an educator, arts activist, circle
practitioner, and visionary leader, Dr. Bhagat strives to create a culture of compassion,
collaboration, and change for schools, communities, and society.

Dr. Bhagat is founder and artistic director of the non-profit Drums No Guns Foundation,
based in Richmond (VA). The mission of Drums No Guns Foundation is to break the cycle
of violence caused by gun violence trauma, through the healing power of rhythm and
restorative justice practices. For more than 30 years, Drums No Guns has been driven to
heal, uplift, and empower communities in the wake of gun violence. Through the power of world
rhythm music and storytelling, DNG has opened doorways to help people understand the roots
of violence, repair harm, and facilitate healing to prevent future pain. Dr. B. has developed drum
circles, classes, seminars, talks, edu-concerts, and workshops for groups of all ages and
backgrounds throughout the United States, in Switzerland, and most recently in Brazil. His
soulful sessions invite participants to share their stories authentically, bravely, and creatively in
sacred safe spaces.

Dr. B holds an EdD in Leadership from Virginia Commonwealth University, Post-graduate
certificate in Restorative Justice from the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding at Eastern
Mennonite University, Post-Master’s Certificate in Administration and Supervision from Virginia
Commonwealth University, an MEd in School and Community Counseling and a BS in
Microbiology from Virginia State University. He is a candidate for an MPH in Community Health
Science from Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine. He is committed
to healing gun violence trauma

Dr Ram offers Mindfulness Based Restorative Practices and Trauma Responsive
Engagement through yoga and communal rhythm to those seeking healing in an arts-integrated
environment, guided by a visionary leader with a grounded voice, helping them feel rejuvenated
and impelled to act.

Strategies for Trauma Awareness and Resilience (STAR), Level 1 - PAX 540

Hyojin Chang is a teacher, facilitator, and researcher with a focus on peace education, restorative justice, and trauma awareness in peacebuilding. Before moving to the U.S., she worked with educators across South Korea, introducing restorative justice practices and leading circle processes in schools nationwide.

Joe Cole is an Associate Professor in the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding at Eastern Mennonite University. Joe graduated with a Ph.D. in Philosophy from Duke University. His research and teaching interests include restorative justice and restorative practices, nonviolent social change, racial equity and social justice, and ecovillages and sustainable communities. In addition to his teaching, Joe is a facilitator who supports communities in developing cooperative skills, collaborative governance, and conflict transformation. He is the author of “Skill Building for a Culture of Collaboration,” Communities magazine #181; “Ecovillages, Sustainability, and Social and Environmental Healing,” in Rinker & Lawler (Eds.), Realizing Nonviolent Resilience (Peter Lang, 2020); “Photography, Healing, and Justice in Appalachia,” in the Journal of Transdisciplinary Peace Praxis, (Vol. 3, No. 1, 2021); and “What’s in a Name? Connecting Sustainable Community and Racial Justice,” in Ruiz (Ed.), Comunidades Intencionales: Utopias Concretas en la Historia, (Autonomous University of Madrid, 2023).

Meet Dr. Lisa Collins, Ed.D., an absolute powerhouse who has mastered the art of blending education, trauma healing, and environmental advocacy into a unique career mix, with a solid foundation of over 30 years in education, including teaching, leadership, and educational research publications. Lisa holds degrees in psychology and education from California State Long Beach, National University, and Lewis and Clark College; she's not just an assistant professor at Lewis and Clark College but also a sought-after business consultant in workforce development.

Lisa's not just your everyday professor. She's a staunch advocate for trauma healing and racial reconciliation. She puts her immense knowledge to work, fostering community bonds and promoting healing. If you fancy a TEDx Talk or a good read, you can catch a glimpse of her work titled "Love of Light: A Guide to Peace and Oneness" or her forthcoming book "The Truth About Trauma" (Llewellyn 2025). Or you could tune into her podcast "Love and Light with Dr. Lisa: Everyday Living in Peace," where she delves into the world of uplifting healing practices.

But Lisa doesn't stop there. She's also devoted to exploring the environment and advancing racial healing. Her collaboration with the nonprofit Love Is King, where she serves as a guide assistant, is a testament to her commitment. She works tirelessly to encourage BIPOC leaders to dive into the natural world, acknowledging the therapeutic value of such experiences.

However, Lisa's talents extend beyond her professional roles. She's also a creative force, which she passionately expresses through her work as a playwright. Her works have graced stages in New York and Portland. Her acclaimed short film, "Be Careful What You Ask For," sparks critical conversations
on race, showcasing her diverse talents and interests.

When she's not teaching, consulting, healing, advocating, or creating, Lisa contributes to various boards and committees. Some of them include the Oregon Assembly of Black Affairs, where she was a board member and secretary, the Trauma Awareness and Resilience Strategies advisory board at the Center for Justice and Peace building in Virginia, where she collaborated on updates to the model, and the Alaska Wilderness League, where she works on protecting Alaska's people, land and animals.

In summary, Dr. Lisa Collins, Ed.D., is a multi-talented professional who intertwines academic, therapeutic, and creative elements into a rich tapestry of service. Her significant contributions to education, healing, and environmental advocacy, particularly for underserved communities, underscore her versatility and the profound impact she has on society. Her dedication to these communities
is truly inspiring.

The Art of Slow Leadership - PAX 687

Dr. Christine Crouse-Dick is a generalist with broad research interests. However, she is particularly intrigued by the ways organizations and people curate their public images. Specifically, her research focuses on purity culture rhetoric, infertility discourses, pedagogy and mentorship in the small liberal arts communication classroom, and the #ChurchToo movement.

At Bethel College, she teaches Public Speaking; Intro to Communication; First-Year Seminar; Media Analysis; Communication Theory and Research Methods; and Gender, Race, Class and Media.

Decolonial and Indigenous arts based approaches - PAX 692
Global Challenges - PAX 635

Paula Ditzel Facci serves as assistant professor of peacebuilding at the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding at EMU. She holds a PhD in Peace and Conflict Studies from the University Jaume I (Spain). She was a visiting research fellow at the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, University of Notre Dame, and a visiting scholar at CJP, EMU (USA).

Paula has taught at the Unit for Peace and Conflict Studies, University of Innsbruck (Austria), the Academy for Conflict Transformation (Germany), and the Instituto Paz e Mente (Brazil). She has also facilitated workshops on creative approaches for conflict transformation with focus on dance and movement for students, peacebuilders and communities.

Paula is the author of Dancing Conflicts, Unfolding Peaces (2020), and On Human Potential: Peace and Conflict Transformation Fostered Through Dance (2011). She published a Practitioner’s Toolkit: Gender in Peace and Conflict (2020), and co-edited the special issue “Transrational Perspectives in Peace Education”, of the Journal of Peace Education (2019). She authored chapters in culture of peace for educators and youth and worked as a consultant in Reports on Human Rights Education of the InterAmerican Institute of Human Rights, Costa Rica. Previously, Paula worked for five years with social and educational projects in Brazil, her native country.

The Art of Slow Leadership - PAX 687

Dr. Rachel Epp Buller maintains a dual critical and creative practice as an art historian and visual artist.

Much of her practice focuses on intersections of art and the maternal. She publishes, curates exhibitions, and lectures internationally on the maternal body and feminist care in contemporary art. Her edited books include Reconciling Art and Mothering (Ashgate, 2012), Mothering Mennonite (Demeter Press, 2013) and Inappropriate Bodies: Art, Design, and Maternity (Demeter Press, 2019). Her bilingual exhibition catalogue, Alice Lex-Nerlinger: Fotomonteurin und Malerin / Photomontage Artist and Painter, was the product of a Fulbright Fellowship to Berlin. Thanks also to the financial support of the Gerda Henkel Stiftung and the Berlin Hauptstadtkulturfond, she had the opportunity to curate the first-ever retrospective of Lex’s work, exhibited at Das Verborgene Museum in Berlin in 2016.

As an artist, Rachel participates in exhibitions and residencies around the world, with her most recent solo shows at Borough Road Gallery in London (2019) and the Salina (Kan.) Art Center (2020). In her teaching role at Bethel College, she emphasizes active learning experiences, regularly inviting visiting artists to conduct hands-on workshops with students and working with museum colleagues in the area to provide additional learning opportunities for studio art and art history students. She is also a board member of the national Women’s Caucus for Art, and a regional coordinator of the international Feminist Art Project.

Community Organizing - PAX 694

Formation for Peacebuilding Practice - PAX 532 

David Malual is a dedicated and experienced professional with over 17 years of progressive experience in humanitarian program management, conflict transformation, social cohesion, and peacebuilding within humanitarian contexts across conflict affected communities in Sub Saharan Africa.

Born and raised during the Sudan civil war, David vividly understands the dynamic of living in a country multiply wounded by man-made conflicts and natural disasters. This experience motivated him to study a conflict transformation course and to engage with peacebuilding networks across the world. David is passionate about building resilient and peace-loving communities capable of living cohesively and addressing differences constructively.

David is a seasoned conflict analyst, peacebuilder and economics educator. He holds a Master
of Arts in Conflict Transformation, from the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding, Eastern
Mennonite University, VA, USA and Master of Vocational Pedagogy focusing on economics
education from Oslo Metropolitan University, Norway.
 
In 2024, he conducted research on the drivers of conflict across the Karamoja cluster (borders
of Ethiopia-Kenya-South Sudan and Uganda). His other recent publications include From a
culture of Revenge to a Garden of Peace in South Sudan (co-authored with Robert Groelsema,
CRS, 2023) and Trauma Awareness and Social Cohesion Strengthening in Jonglei State (co-
authored with Robert Groelsema, CRS, 2022)

Analysis: Understanding Conflict - PAX 533

Gaurav J. Pathania is an assistant professor of Sociology and Peacebuilding at Eastern Mennonite University in Harrisonburg, Virginia. Gaurav has also been a visiting scholar at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and the University of Southern California. His first book, The University as a Site of Resistance: Identity and Student Politics (Oxford University Press, 2019), explores student resistance in higher education in India. Currently, his research focuses on the socio-political activism of the South Asian diaspora in the US and UK. Dr. Pathania serves as a deputy editor for South Asia Research, a journal published by SOAS, University of London. He is also an anti-caste poet and activist, community organizer with his social justice writings featured in The Boston Globe and he has been interviewed by PBS and BBC on diaspora issues in the United States. Gaurav won the national poetry award for 2016 organized by the Poetry Society of India. His anti-caste poetry appears in J-Caste journal published by Brandeis University. Gaurav made his Hollywood debut in Ava DuVernay’s film ORIGIN, portraying Dr. Ambedkar, the architect of the Indian Constitution. Gaurav and his team have embarked on a series of publications, including Caste & Race with Bloomsbury Publishing.

ORCID ID
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Analysis: Understanding Conflict - PAX 533
Formation for Peacebuilding Practice - PAX 532         
                                                 
Gloria Rhodes is associate professor of peacebuilding and conflict studies at EMU. As a faculty member at the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding, she teaches conflict and peacebuilding theory, personal formation for peacebuilding practice, and conflict analysis. She also teaches courses in conflict transformation and peacebuilding for the undergraduate program and the Masters of Nursing program.  She has led semester and summer cross cultural programs in Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, Russia, South Korea and the Navajo Nation. She has served as Department Chair of EMU's Applied Social Science Department, Administrative Director of the Summer Peacebuilding Institute at EMU and as a program assistant for the National Conference on Peacemaking and Conflict Resolution. Her areas of expertise include peacebuilding curriculum development and pedagogy, conflict assessment and situation analysis, practice-related research, group facilitation and mediation, enneagram training, and cross cultural education. She holds a PhD in conflict analysis and resolution from George Mason University.

Analysis: Understanding Conflict - PAX 533

Power, Difference, and Restorative Justice in Practice - PAX 671

The Art of Slow Leadership - PAX 687

Sheryl R. Wilson has been described as a resourceful facilitator and mediator, consistently recognized for excellence in building effective relationships. She has a background in all aspects of organizational communication, specifically in providing constructive feedback. Known for exceptional presentation and training skills with the ability to work on a national or international scale, Sheryl is a self-directed, assertive professional who loves a challenge.

Sheryl has been a practitioner, trainer and educator in restorative justice for more than 15 years and has had the honor of working with individuals from around the world in her practice. She holds both a Bachelor of Science degree in mediation and communication studies and a restorative justice-based Master of Liberal Studies degree from the University of Minnesota.

Beginning her restorative justice career as a trainer and research associate at the Center for Restorative Justice and Peacemaking in the School of Social Work at the University of Minnesota, Sheryl developed and facilitated Victims, Offenders, Community, A Restorative Experience (VOCARE) dialogues in Minnesota correctional facilities. She also worked as a community mediator with the Victim Offender Conferencing program in Washington County, Minnesota.

As a researcher, she was actively involved in the evaluation of the VOCARE prison-based program. Her work in victim offender dialogue at Minnesota Department of Corrections is featured in an A&E Network pilot, Confrontation.

She has served as a special projects coordinator for the Georgia Council for Restorative Justice (GCRJ), a program of Georgia State University. As executive director of Southern Truth and Reconciliation (STAR of Atlanta, GA), she was able to work with communities affected by historical harm.  

In the summer of 2008, Sheryl coordinated a group of victim offender facilitators to serve as support people for witnesses who gave testimony to the Liberian Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) during hearings for the United States diaspora, held at Hamline University, St. Paul, Minn. She continued working with a contingent of the Liberian TRC residing in the Atlanta area through her work as executive director of STAR. In recent years, Sheryl has worked as a certified Parents as Teachers parent educator of a teen parenting program in the Montgomery (Ala.) public schools. In North Carolina, she reprised her role as a trainer in victim offender dialogue. Sheryl currently serves as president of the National Association of Community and Restorative Justice, a professional organization for restorative justice practitioners.

In the fall of 2017, Sheryl began her role as director of the Kansas Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution (KIPCOR). So far in her tenure, she has mediated in conflict resolution cases, taught classes, served as a trainer and facilitator on multiple topics and in several capacities, spoken at various events, and made it a priority to become better acquainted with those in the Bethel College community.

In her spare time, Sheryl is working on various writing projects that explore the relationship between the restorative justice movement and racial reconciliation. She contributed a chapter to Colorizing Restorative Justice, a book about restorative justice practitioners of color and the challenges they face, published in June 2020. Sheryl and her husband LeRoy are the parents of two sons.