Four new tenure-track faculty have joined the Kenyon community, bringing with them a diversity of skills, expertise and experiences.
The new faculty members represent broad academic achievement, ranging from the natural sciences to the humanities to the social sciences.
Ethan Hillman
Assistant Professor of Biology
Ethan Hillman’s research focuses on leveraging microbes (bacteria and/or fungi) to solve real-world problems. By engineering microbes or reshaping communities of microbes, we can treat diseases with cost-effective and noninvasive methods, harvest oil with more sustainable approaches, and discover new pharmaceuticals, food additives, and biotechnologies. His research revolves around understanding the biochemical functions of both specific microbes and collections of them and how they affect their surrounding environment.
Hillman’s lab integrates molecular biology techniques, bioinformatic reconstructions of genomes, and principles of microbial ecology to discover the mechanisms behind microbial behavior. Because these principles apply to many microbial communities, his lab’s work can be applied in a range of sectors from human health and pharmaceutical to agriculture and energy. He previously served as a visiting assistant professor at Kenyon.
- Doctor of Philosophy in biological engineering from Purdue University (2021)
- Bachelor of Arts in biology and chemistry from Anderson University (2015)
Iris Howley
Assistant Professor of Computing
Iris Howley is a computer scientist and educator at the intersection of human-computer interaction, artificial intelligence and the learning sciences, with an added interest in textiles and computing. Her research, exploring how users’ understanding of their complex systems impacts their decisions, also offers insights into the most beneficial means of doing so with computing learners as well. Her educational philosophy embraces evidenced-based active learning and project-based learning.
- Doctor of Philosophy in human-computer interaction from Carnegie Mellon University (2015)
- Master of Science in human-computer interaction from Carnegie Mellon University (2012)
- Bachelor of Science in computer science from Drexel University (2008)
Elle Weeks
Assistant Professor of Mathematics
Elle Weeks’ research uses mathematical models to better understand Earth's climate, with a particular focus on the physical processes that drive climate variability and change. She works across a range of modeling approaches, from simple analytical models to complex numerical climate simulations.
Weeks enjoys helping students discover how mathematics can be used to answer questions they care about. In her teaching, she emphasizes the connections between mathematical concepts and real-world applications, encouraging students to see mathematics as a powerful tool for understanding the world around them. Her grandfather was Robert Burns H’92, professor emeritus of biology.
- Doctor of Philosophy in applied mathematics from Harvard University (2026)
- Bachelor of Arts in applied mathematics and statistics from Macalester College (2017)
Sizhao Yi
Assistant Professor of Art History
Sizhao Yi teaches courses on Asian art from ancient to modern times. Her scholarship centers on the art and material culture of early modern China, through which she explores how humans have been affectively bound to the material world across time; how people have articulated diverse forms of subjectivity through the objects they make and use; and how material objects embody and shape artistic, intellectual and cultural discourses. Her book project examines these questions through the paintings and prints of Chen Hongshou (1598/9-1652).
Before joining Kenyon, Yi was a postdoctoral teaching fellow at the University of Chicago and a curatorial fellow at the Art Institute of Chicago. She previously studied textile conservation at the Institute of Archaeology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, and worked as a freelance journalist for Quartz.
- Doctor of Philosophy in art history from the University of Chicago (2025)
- Master of Arts in the Humanities with a focus on art history from the University of Chicago (2017)
- Bachelor of Journalism from the University of Hong Kong (2016)