Getting to know some of UB’s newest faculty members

As an international city, Buffalo is widely recognized for its rich cultural diversity, vibrant arts scene and tight-knit, welcoming community. It is celebrated for its historic architecture, proximity to Niagara Falls, and its thriving food culture.

As New York’s flagship, UB draws scholars, researchers and educators from across the globe. Since fall 2023, UB has welcomed more than 200 full-time faculty members through an ambitious and transformative faculty hiring initiative — one of the largest in the university's history.

For the 2024–2025 academic year, UB welcomed 116 new faculty members. But who are the individuals behind these numbers? What inspired their research? UBNow sat down with some of them to learn about their journey and what it is about UB and the Buffalo Niagara region that drew them here.

Assistant professor
School of Social Work

As a student-activist at the University of Ghana, Enoch Azasu was conducting educational outreach in underserved areas, like his home region of Ada East District, when he encountered a profound and life-changing event that would set him on a different path.

“A friend from high school was struggling with bipolar disorder and had attempted suicide. She was initially directed to faith-based treatments and institutional care but advocated for psychological counseling with my support. Today, she's a successful pharmacist, and her story continues to inspire my work.”

Research Focus: Psychiatric epidemiology and mental health, with a specialized focus on suicidality.

“I work to develop and implement evidence-based interventions that enhance suicide prevention, reduce mental health stigma, and support vulnerable populations. Recently, I've integrated artificial intelligence and machine learning techniques to advance suicide risk prediction and intervention strategies.”

Impressions of UB and Buffalo: “I’m particularly impressed by the university’s strong culture of community engagement and its dedication to fostering innovation among students, staff and faculty. The collaborative environment here truly supports our mission of making meaningful contributions to both local and global communities.”

Assistant professor
Department of Counseling, School and Educational Psychology
Graduate School of Education

After gaining practical experience as a school counselor, Loury’s professional journey took a pivotal turn in Virginia, where he embraced a role in a school committed to advancing equity and access for students of color. This inspired his focus on anti-racist practices and counselor development, which he deepened through a doctoral program at Virginia Tech. Now at UB, Loury continues to bring his passion for equity and individuality into his teaching and research.

Research Focus: How identity—particularly race, ethnicity and gender—shapes counselor development and students' interactions with school environments.

An emerging area of his scholarship explores gaming culture, viewing it as a rich context for understanding values, problem-solving skills, and community building among students.

“Gaming is often pathologized as addictive or aggressive. But it’s also a space where people share values, develop skills, and foster community. I’m interested in how we can harness those strengths to better understand and support students.”

Impressions of UB and Buffalo: “The word innovative comes to mind when I think about UB. I am so excited to be here and there are just so many supports in place, particularly for new faculty.”

Loury also appreciates the region’s vibrant culture. “I’ve been enjoying the opportunity to explore the Buffalo area. I love to find a good place to eat, and I consider myself a foodie, so that just has been keeping me very much occupied, just finding different eateries.”

Assistant professor
Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering
School of Engineering and Applied Sciences

Aurora del Carmen Munguía-López has always been environmentally curious. “Even when I was very young, I was often wondering about the impacts of the materials and products we used every day. Of course, back then, I didn't really understand how everything worked or how environmental impacts were measured.”

She also never thought it was something she could build a career around.

“Researching sustainability and developing computational tools – I had no idea about that. So, while my interest in sustainability started early, my interest in process systems engineering, which is really my research focus, developed during my undergraduate studies,” says Munguía-López, who leads the Sustainable Systems Engineering Laboratory.

Research focus: Developing computational tools that provide insights into the design of sustainable products and technologies to address problems in plastics recycling, waste management, clean energy technologies, food, pharmaceuticals and textiles manufacturing.

Impressions of UB: Having been to UB a couple of times to give guest lectures, Munguía-López was somewhat familiar with the university, but she didn’t get the full picture until she moved here. “I’ve always wanted to work for a public institution, and I can tell you that I feel very fortunate to be working here.”

Munguía-López also appreciates the various resources available to new faculty, including the New Faculty Launch Mentoring Program.

Professor
Department of Global Gender and Sexuality Studies
College of Arts and Sciences

Rifkin joined UB in 2024 and says the university’s designation as a flagship university, as well as its commitment to hiring faculty with a significant research reputation, drew him here.

Research Focus: Indigenous studies, queer studies and literary studies

He focuses on Indigenous studies, particularly in relation to gender, sexuality and settler colonialism. Rifkin’s work examines how dominant notions of home, family and personhood — especially those shaped by heteronormative assumptions — are imposed on Indigenous peoples.

Impressions of UB and Buffalo: “Rifkin was drawn to UB because of its commitment to areas like gender and sexuality studies and by the university’s institutional support for the establishment of an Indigenous studies department. “I could see that there was huge work happening to build Indigenous studies. And there was a real investment in that, plus, of course, the university's interest in increasing the intellectual life on campus through hiring these well-known researchers.”

Rifkin enjoys exploring Buffalo and its fine arts scene. “There's a dense cultural life here. I live in Elmwood Village, and I like being able to go for walks. Around where I live, there are these beautiful tree-lined streets with craftsmen homes from the late 19th, early 20th century. It’s very easy to get to things like the co-op, cafes, and all of that, but also to have these beautiful spaces to go walking in.”

Professor
Department of Music
College of Arts and Sciences

As a boy growing up in Brooklyn, Jeffrey Scott was more interested in sports than music. But that all changed in middle school when his band director noticed Scott’s musical talents and wanted Scott to take lessons.

“My band director was talking to a colleague who was about to retire and said, ‘You know, I got this kid. His family doesn't have a lot of resources, but I think if we could get him some lessons…,’ and that was it, she decided she wanted to gift lessons for me,” Scott recalls.

This generous stranger funded four years of lessons for Scott. He had no idea of this incredible gesture until he was about to graduate from Stony Brook with his master’s degree. “She wanted to be anonymous. I don’t have a career if not for that woman.”

Research Focus: Before coming to UB, Scott served as French hornist of the Oberlin-founded ensemble Imani Winds for more than 20 years, a position that took him to Carnegie Hall, Walt Disney Concert Hall, the Kennedy Center, and countless other prominent stages. His work on “Passion for Bach and Coltrane” received a Grammy Award for Best Classical Compendium last spring.

Now, as a professor of music, Scott will focus on composition. “There aren’t many research positions for composers — very few in the country for tenured faculty.”

Impressions of UB and Buffalo: “We’ve always had an affinity for this area,” Scott says. He also enjoys the work-life balance UB offers and spends as much time with this wife and son as possible. “My wife gets to see me more. My little guy — I’ve got an 8-year-old son — just brightens up because he comes home from school every day, makes a beeline off the bus, and gives me a hug because he knows I’m going to be there. You can’t put a price on that.”

Associate professor
Chief, Division of Population Health
Department of Medicine
Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences

Rebekah Walker began her career as a marine biologist. After receiving her master’s degree in Maryland, she worked for the Department of Natural Resources in South Carolina for eight years.

“During that time, I started understanding environmental disparities — why environmental problems were consistently in certain communities and not in others. As I looked into what was actually being done to help different communities, I noticed that all of the research was in the health space, so I started looking into health disparities,” Walker recalls.

She was encouraged to pursue a PhD after talking to Leonard E. Egede, then a faculty member at the Medical University of South Carolina and now the chair of the Department of Medicine in the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences at UB.

“I focused on social determinants of health in my PhD program. We did a study recruiting 600 individuals with diabetes to examine the relationship between social determinants and health outcomes. If we can develop programs that help people manage their diabetes better, we can prevent complications and improve quality of life,” Walker says.

Research Focus: Diabetes and cardiovascular disease, particularly in relation to food insecurity and social determinants of health. Walker’s research is framed around community input.

Shortly after arriving at UB, Walker was awarded a grant focusing on behavioral economics in diabetes care, a field that looks at financial incentives to encourage healthier behaviors.

She will be implementing this program in Buffalo. “Financial incentives can encourage these healthier choices,” Walker says.

Impressions of UB and Buffalo: Walker enjoys the ability to collaborate with experts across disciplines at UB. “Health services research inherently involves collaboration with sociologists, economists, biostatisticians, anthropologists and medical professionals. At UB, I can reach out to people in AI, bioengineering, and other fields, which helps expand our ability to answer complex health care questions.”

Assistant Professor
School of Nursing

Growing up in an inter-generational home in Brazil, Carleara Weiss witnessed the level of care needed for her grandmother and great-grandmother, who were both living with Alzheimer’s disease.

“I think that shaped my perspective on caregiving and how I wanted to establish a career as a geriatric nurse,” Weiss recalls.

Research Focus: Factors that contribute to Alzheimer’s, including untreated or undiagnosed sleep disorders, such as obstructive sleep apnea, short sleep duration and insomnia.

Because of her perspective on family and intergenerational households, Weiss says she is compelled to share her knowledge with the Western New York community.

“I participate in caregiver groups, go out into the community to share research findings, and educate people on the importance of sleep, a healthy diet, and lifestyle changes. I also work closely with the Western New York Alzheimer’s Association. So even though my work has a strong scientific and molecular biology focus, I’m very active in the community.”

Impressions of UB and Buffalo: Weiss received her PhD from UB and when she received NIH funding for her research, she had a lot of offers to go elsewhere. But she wanted to stay here due to her strong community connections.

“I have a supportive leadership team at the School of Nursing, and that was really important to me. I see a lot of potential at UB and in the School of Nursing for collaboration across disciplines. Through my travels and conferences, I’ve realized that not every institution has the same opportunities for interdisciplinary work.”

Plus, Weiss adds, “The food here is amazing. We have so many great restaurants with different cultures — Italian, Middle Eastern, everything.”