Eric Kyle, Ph.D.

Eric Kyle, Ph.D., came to UCO in January 2022. Kyle’s teaching, scholarship and service are primarily focused at the intersection of the following areas: 1) Faculty development; 2) Peace education; and, 3) Teaching Religion. Having served as a professional educator since 2001, his passions continue to focus on educational theories and practices that transform students and their communities to be more peaceful, just, and inclusive.

Before coming to UCO, Kyle most recently served as director of Contextual Education, an associate professor, and the Faculty Development and Online Education coordinator at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago. Before this, as an associate professor, Kyle was the founding director of the Center for Research, Education and Teaching Excellence at Nebraska Methodist College in Omaha. He was an assistant professor of theology and director of Service Learning at the College of Saint Mary in Omaha prior to this. At these various institutions, Kyle taught classes on course development methods, nonviolent peacebuilding, Christian history, and world religions. In addition, Kyle has worked with faculty and institutions in India and Iraq to help improve their educational systems.

In his spare time, Kyle enjoys spending time with family, visiting local museums and parks, being raised by his family and pets, and exercising.

Education

• B.S., Mechanical Engineering, Texas A&M University
• M.S., Mechanical Engineering, Texas A&M University
• M.Div., Religious Education, Claremont School of Theology
• Ph.D. , Religious Education, Claremont School of Theology

Certifications

• Crossroads Antiracism Training, Crossroads Regional Antiracism Organizing and Training
• Safe Space for LGBTQIA+ Students: Basics Orientation Training, University of Nebraska - Omaha
• Leadership Development for Inter-Ethnic Relations Course, Asian Pacific American Legal Center
• Teaching Online Courses, University of Wisconsin Madison
• Certificate in Blended (Hybrid) Learning, University of Central Florida
• Educational Technology and Critical Pedagogy Courses, University of Nebraska
• Quality Matters Rubric and Peer Reviewer Courses
• Certificate in Effective Instruction, Association of College & University Educators
• Fundamentals of On-Line Teaching (FoOT Program)
• Brightspace Teaching and Learning Program for Learning Environments Certificate

More Recent Publications include:

“Intersectional Peacebuilding Through Compassion: Use of the Compassion Practice in Conflict Situations,” Chapter in Essays in Honor of Frank Rogers Jr., (In-Press, 2023).

“Addressing Injustice Beyond Justice: Towards Fluid Intersectional Strategies in Education,” in Currents in Theology and Mission, 49:1 (Jan. 2022).

“Unfolding Case Studies: A New Active Learning Pedagogy.” Co-authored with Hilary Applequist, Marla Kniewel, and Kristina Eymann. Chapter in Evidence-Based Education in the Classroom: Examples from Clinical Disciplines, edited by Jennifer C. Friberg, Colleen F. Visconti, and Sarah M. Ginsberg. Thorofare, NJ: SLACK Inc. (2021)

“A Supervision of Pliable Presence During a Pandemic,” Co-authored with Melvin Baber, Joanne Lindstrom, Susan MacAlpine-Gillis, and Christina Zaker. In Reflective Practice: Formation and Supervision in Ministry, Vol. 41 (2021).

“Addressing Injustice Beyond Justice: Towards Fluid Intersectional Approaches in Education,” Virtual Ignatian Family Teach-In for Justice, online, October 2021.

Educating in the Spirit: Evidence-Based & Theological Foundations for High Impact Educational Systems (Wipf & Stock, 2019).

As an educational endeavor, I believe that it is important for faculty developers to articulate a praxis-based philosophy of teaching and learning to help guide their work. When I work with faculty, I teach them that there are at least six essential elements that they should attend to in evidence-based ways: 1) Student Backgrounds; 2) Learning Outcomes; 3) Teaching Strategies; 4) Class Assessments; 5) Course Development Processes, and 6) Professional Development. To help guide their professional development in these areas, I have synthesized a set of associated evidence-based guidelines. For my own work in faculty development, I also work to follow these guidelines for the programs that I develop.