2025 Retiring Faculty
Honoring Our 2024-25 Retiring Faculty Members
Dean Brian Fabien, PhD Dean, Shiley School of Engineering
Brian Fabien is a professor of mechanical engineering, an expert in dynamic systems modeling and has worked in the private sector. He received his PhD, master of philosophy, and master of science in mechanical engineering from Columbia University in New York City and a bachelor of engineering with honors from the City College of New York.
Fr. Mark Ghyselinck, CSC Instructor, Performing & Fine Arts
A native of South Bend, Indiana, Fr. Mark Ghyselinck has long had connections to the Holy Cross community. Before coming to UP 20 years ago, he taught at Holy Cross College at Notre Dame and served at Holy Cross Parish in South Bend and Sacred Heart Parish on Notre Dame’s Campus. Joining UP’s Holy Cross community, Fr. Mark became a pillar of the Fine Arts program, leading countless fine arts classes and going on to become the Program Director.
Randy Hetherington, EdD Assistant Professor, School of Education
For Randy Hetherington, his passion for teaching began in third grade. “A lot of people have that teacher who makes an impression on them, and for me it was Mrs. Petri,” he says. “She was so kind, and at that early age, I knew that was what I wanted to do—I thought, ‘if I could make people this happy, that would be a good job for me.’ It’s all I’ve ever wanted to do.”
Gary Laustsen, PhD, FNP, RN, FAANP, FAAN Professor, School of Nursing & Health Innovations
Gary Laustsen always wanted to be a teacher. He began his career as a high school science and biology teacher before getting involved with environmental education and working as an EMT for several years. “I was always an educator who went into nursing,” he says. “Nursing is my subject area, but I consider myself an educator first.”
Kenneth Lulay, PhD Shiley School of Engineering, Margaret and Vincent Aquino Endowed Associate Professor
For Dr. Ken Lulay, UP has always been a family place. “My grandparents got married in Christie Hall in the 1920s, and some of my oldest memories are of picking up my sisters in the 1960s from campus,” he says. “They were some of the first residents in Mehling Hall.” A UP alum himself, Lulay met his wife at Freshman Orientation dinner, and between them and their two sons, they have 6 degrees from the university, including his BS and MS in Mechanical Engineering.
Dakshina Murty Vuppuluri, PhD Professor, Shiley School of Engineering
Dr. Dakshina Murty Vuppuluri graduated from the Indian Institute of Technology in Kanpur, India in 1974, before moving to Norman, Oklahoma to obtain two master's degrees in Nuclear Engineering and Mechanical Engineering at the University of Oklahoma. He began his career at the University of Portland in 1981, when he was hired as an Assistant Professor at the Shiley School of Engineering.
Stephanie Sideras, PhD, RN Instructor, School of Nursing & Health Innovations
From an early age, nursing and education have played a large role in Stephanie Sideras’s path. The child of teachers, she worked at a neurosurgeon’s office in high school to pay for college and was struck by the independent nature of the nurse who worked there. In her time at UP, she has dedicated herself to developing students and faculty alike on simulation methodologies and education, a practice that she has taken to other colleges across the country as they implement their own simulation programs.
Isabelle Soule, PhD, RN Associate Professor, School of Nursing & Health Innovations
Isabelle Soule swore she would never be a nurse. The choice to pursue a degree in nursing was one of necessity— “there weren’t a lot of options for me, as a female in a very conservative community,” she says—but it ended up being a good one. “I have loved being a nurse,” she says of her over forty years in the profession.
Fr. Art Wheeler, C.S.C, PhD Associate Professor, History
In his 38 years on The Bluff, Fr Art Wheeler has served in a myriad of roles at UP, from Pastoral Resident in Kenna and Mehling, Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, to the Director of Studies Abroad. “I have been fortunate to spend a great deal of life working directly with students,” he says. “Being accessible to students has long been a charism of Holy Cross priests.”
