Two beloved faculty members recognized for their accomplishments
December 2020 – Drew Theological School is proud to announce the promotions of Dr. Angella Son and Dr. Kevin Newburg. Drew University’s Board of Trustees approved the recommendation of Dean Javier Viera and the Committee on Faculty of the Theological School to promote Son to professor psychology and religion and Newburg to associate teaching professor in the history of Christianity and Methodist studies, effective with the fall 2020 semester.
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Son’s promotion to full professor marks her high achievement in the field of pastoral theology and psychology. An ordained Presbyterian minister and an ACPE psychotherapist, Son earned a PhD from Princeton Theological Seminary and joined the Drew Theological School faculty in 2001. She was awarded The Presidential Award for the Theological School Teacher/Scholar of the Year in 2019 and the Award of the Open Rank Research Grant from the Yale Center for Faith and Culture in 2017.
Son’s publications include Spirituality of Joy: Moving Beyond Dread and Duty, Stories That Make History: The Experience and Memories of the Japanese Military Comfort Girls-Women and Pastoral Care in a Korean American Context. In addition, Son has published numerous book chapters, articles and blogs and serves on the editorial boards for several scholarly juried journals including the Journal of Pastoral Theology and Pastoral Psychology.
When not teaching, you can find Son on her Coping with Anxiety podcast for the Dialogue on Teaching Podcast of Wabash Center for Teaching and Learning in Theology and Religion, or working on her Comfort Girls-Women website—a project she created with her students.
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Newburg’s promotion honors his valuable contributions to the teaching mission at Drew. An elder in The United Methodist Church, Newburg earned a MPhil and PhD from Drew Theological School. Newburg started his career at Drew as the interim Methodist research assistant at the Methodist Library, and the assistant research archivist at the General Commission on Archives and History of The United Methodist Church, both located on the Drew University campus. Newburg teaches courses in the integrative required MDiv curriculum as well as in church history and United Methodist history, doctrine and polity.
Newburg, who has over 30 years of pastoral experience, also serves as pastor at the Livingston United Methodist Church in Livingston, NJ.
Interim Dean Melanie Johnson-DeBaufre congratulated the accomplishments of her faculty, “The work of these two teacher-scholars exemplifies the student-centered, interdisciplinary and faithfully courageous curriculum of the Theological School. We celebrate their promotions and look forward to many more years of research, teaching and learning together.”
