The Andrew Young School welcomed 13 new faculty members at the start of the 2019 fall semester. With these hires, each of the school’s five academic departments will gain new experts and specialists. 

The Urban Studies Institute welcomed Dr. Risa Palm, who previously served as Georgia State University’s senior vice president and provost, and Dr. Prentiss Dantzler, an assistant professor who previously taught at Colorado College.

Dr. Givi Melkadze and Dr. Keith Teltser have joined the Department of Economics as assistant professors. Dr. Melkadze previously served as an instructor at Georgetown University. Dr. Teltser comes to the Andrew Young School from the University of Louisville, where he served as assistant professor of economics. The Department of Economics also welcomed Dr. Christian Imboden, a former instructor at the University of Oregon, as visiting assistant professor. 

Dr. Callie Burt and Georgia State alumna Dr. Natasha Johnson (Ed.D. ’19) have joined the Department of Criminal Justice & Criminology. Dr. Burt, an associate professor, previously taught at the University of Washington as associate professor. Dr. Johnson is a limited-term instructor. Prior to joining the Andrew Young School, Dr. Johnson taught in various capacities at the university including as an educational instructor at Georgia State’s Perimeter campus. 

Dr. Benedict Jimenez and Dr. Andrew Heiss have joined the Department of Public Management & Policy. Dr. Jimenez, a former assistant professor at Northeastern University, is an associate professor. Dr. Heiss, an assistant professor, previously served as an assistant professor at Brigham Young University.  

Among the new faculty are Sonji Brown (M.S.W., ’06), Dr. Esra Tanyildiz (Ph.D., Public Policy ’17), and Dr. Faraz Farhidi (Ph.D., Economics ’18). Brown has joined the School of Social Work as a limited-term instructor, Dr. Tanyildiz as a visiting assistant professor in the Department of Public Management & Policy, and Dr. Farhidi has joined the Department of Economics as a visiting assistant professor. 

In addition to these departmental hires, the Andrew Young School welcomed Dr. Jessica Smith to the Georgia Health Policy Center (GHPC). Dr. Smith now serves as senior research associate with the GHPC’s Medical Policy and Business team. 

“We are so pleased to welcome our new faculty to AYSPS.  We have terrific people joining us from many disciplines and look forward to their contributions to our students, research and outreach,” said Sally Wallace, dean of the Andrew Young School.