Thomas Caron, associate professor of engineering

POINT LOOKOUT, MO. — College of the Ozarks started the 2020-2021 academic year with seven new professors.

Eric Bolger, vice president for academic affairs and dean of the College, said the number of new hires is typical for the start of the academic year. Two have taught at the College previously – Dr. Autumn Moody and Beth Huddleston, and two are alumnae – Melissa Sanders and Kim Tinsley.

“This is an excellent group of new professors,” Bolger said. “Two things that stand out about them are their previous association with the College and their significant experience. Finding individuals who exemplify the mission and vision of the College is a rewarding process. This year, as in previous years, we have been fortunate to hire highly qualified individuals who fully support the College’s mission and vision.”

Thomas Caron will serve College of the Ozarks as associate professor of engineering. He will teach Lean Six Sigma Concepts and industrial engineering courses. From 1998-2001, Caron served as a research and development engineer at AT&T Bell Labs and later as a senior system’s engineer at Lucent Technologies. More recently, he taught engineering courses at Metropolitan Community College of Kansas City. He received a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering from California Polytechnic State University and a Master of Science in mechanical engineering from Purdue University. Caron and his wife, Victoria, have been married since 1985 and have an adult son and daughter.

Beth Huddleston will serve College of the Ozarks as assistant professor of nutrition and dietetics. She will teach Contemporary Nutrition, Advanced Nutrition and Metabolism, Medical Nutrition Therapy 1&2, Food Systems, Food Safety, Cultural Foods, and Food Science. Huddleston has been a registered dietitian nutritionist for over 30 years and has practiced in almost every area of dietetics. From 2001-2009, she served at College of the Ozarks as the director of the didactic program in dietetics. More recently, she served as a consultant dietitian for long-term care facilities and in a hospice program. Huddleston received her Bachelor of Science in home economics and clinical dietetics from the University of Missouri and a Master of Science in administration with a healthcare emphasis from Southwest Baptist University. She has two sons and two granddaughters.

Dr. Autumn Moody will serve College of the Ozarks as associate professor of business in agriculture economics. She will teach a variety of classes, such as Agriculture Economics, Quantitative Analysis, Risk Management, Agriculture Policy, Pricing, Money and Banking, and Investments. From 1995-2002, Moody worked at Commerce Bank in Branson before serving as a business professor at College of the Ozarks until 2014. She then went on to work at Arvest Asset Management in Fayetteville, Arkansas. In 2015, she became the director of the entrepreneurship program and professor at Northwest Arkansas Community College. Over the past four years, Moody taught management and marketing at the Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas. She also taught at John Brown University and U of A, Fort Smith. Moody received a Bachelor of Arts in humanities with an emphasis in musical theater, a Master of Business Administration from Drury University, and a Ph.D. from Northcentral University in business administration with an emphasis in management. She has four sons.

Dr. Nathan Roberts will serve College of the Ozarks as associate professor of biology and will teach General Zoology and Principles of Wildlife Management. From 1998-2001, he served as a wildlife research technician for the Missouri Department of Conservation. A few years later, Roberts was the lead biometrician for the National Wildlife Refuge System for the entire state of Alaska and a wildlife research biologist for the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the National Wildlife Research Center. Roberts received a Bachelor of Science and Master of Science in fisheries and wildlife from the University of Missouri Columbia and a Ph.D. in natural resources from Cornell University. He has two adult children.

Melissa Sanders, R.N., will serve College of the Ozarks as assistant professor of nursing and will teach Health Promotion through the Ages, Foundations of Adult Care, and Advanced Care of the Adult. From 2015-2020, she served as a staff nurse at Cox Medical Center Branson and then as a clinical nurse educator. More recently, Sanders worked as an adjunct clinical nursing instructor at Ozark Technical Community College. She is an alumna of College of the Ozarks, where she earned her Bachelor of Science in nursing from the Armstrong McDonald School of Nursing. She will complete her Master of Science in nursing at Southwest Baptist University this December and is board certified in medical-surgical nursing and obstetrics. Her husband is an alumnus of College of the Ozarks, and they have three children.

Iwan Sandjaja will serve College of the Ozarks as a visiting assistant professor of computer science. He will teach Programming Fundamentals 1, Data Structures, and Operating Systems. From 2016-2018, he was a data science expert for the Australian Indonesia partnership for promoting rural income through support for market in agriculture. In September 2019, he served as a visiting assistant professor at Anderson University in Indiana. Sandjaja received a Bachelor of Science in electrical engineering from Petra Christian University in Indonesia, a Master of Science in computer science from De La Salle University in the Philippines, and a Master of Engineering in computer and electrical engineering from Baylor University in Texas. Sandjaja is from Indonesia and lives with his wife, Metta, and their dog, Tucker.

Kim Tinsley, RN, will serve College of the Ozarks as the course coordinator for Foundations of Adult Care: Healing Environments for Chronic Sickness and Reparative Process. In 1994, she served as a medical-surgical unit nurse for the North Arkansas Medical Center and afterward as a home health nurse for the Boone County Health Unit until 2000. Most recently, from 2016 to the present, Tinsley was the Director of Health Education Simulation Center (HESC) at North Arkansas College. She received a Bachelor of Science in agriculture from College of the Ozarks, a Bachelor of Science in nursing from Pittsburg State University and a Master of Science in nursing with an adult health and nursing education emphasis from Arkansas State University. She is currently pursuing a Doctor of Nursing Practice at Liberty University. Tinsley lives on a cattle farm in north Arkansas with her husband of 26 years, Ronnie.