A dozen new faculty joined Pomona College in tenure-track, tenured and coterminous positions ahead of the 2026-27 academic year.
Three professors—including an alumnus—taught at the College previously.
Nic Benacerraf, assistant professor of theatre, is a performance scholar and professional scenic designer who creates environments for live events. He earned his MFA from CalArts and is completing his Ph.D. from The Graduate Center, City University of New York.
Paul Bump, assistant professor of biology, earned his Ph.D. in biology from Stanford and is a developmental, cellular, and molecular biologist who leverages novel animal systems to understand universal principles in regeneration biology.
“What attracted me to Pomona was how bright and inquisitive the students are,” Bump says. “I’m excited about what I’ll be able to teach the students, but also how they will help me to think critically and creatively about our work together.”
Aaron Colton, director of college writing and assistant professor of English, studies representations of writers and writing in the last century of American literature and popular culture. His first monograph, Writing Through Writer’s Block: Lessons from Modern American Fiction, was published in 2025 by the University of Iowa Press. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Virginia.
Karla Cordova, assistant professor of economics, started teaching at Pomona in 2021 and was a Chau Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow in the Economics Department during the 2024-25 school year. Her research examines how immigration policies and local economic conditions affect Hispanic children and families, as well as how pension rights affect the gender wealth gap. She earned her Ph.D. from the University of Arizona.
Cyril Creque-Sarbinowski, assistant professor of physics and astronomy, earned his Ph.D. from Johns Hopkins University and focuses his research on developing novel statistical and analytic tools to investigate theories beyond the Standard Model in particle physics and cosmology.
Joseph Gonzalez, director of sports medicine and assistant professor of physical education, directs all aspects of the Sports Medicine program, including supervision of the athletic training staff, management of the athletic training facility, coordination of medical services and continued development of comprehensive health and wellness initiatives.
Ernesto R. Gutiérrez Topete ’17, assistant professor of linguistics and cognitive science, double majored in Spanish and linguistics at Pomona before earning his master’s and Ph.D. from UC Berkeley. He was a Chau Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow at Pomona from 2023-25, a visiting assistant professor in 2025-26 and his research focuses on the phonetics of bilingualism and second language acquisition across language pairs.
“When I was a student, I got to experience Pomona’s mission in action: faculty, students and support staff coming together today to educate and prepare the next generation for making a better world tomorrow,” Gutiérrez Topete says. “I realized back then that I wanted to continue to be a part of that story—putting Pomona’s mission into practice.”
Peter Haproff, associate professor of geology, is a field geologist who studies mountain building, rifting and volcanism driven by plate tectonics throughout Earth’s history. He earned his Ph.D. from UCLA.
Louise Ince, assistant professor of neuroscience, earned her Ph.D. from The University of Manchester. Her research examines how the body’s internal biological clock shapes neuroimmune function and health.
“I wanted to join somewhere that I could provide sustained mentorship and help students grow from curious first-years to independent researchers; the combination of close community and academic rigor here makes that possible,” Ince says. “I especially want students to see a scientific career as reachable, whatever their starting point, and Pomona’s commitment to increasing access to higher education strongly aligns with this goal.”
Noah Kwicklis, assistant professor of economics, studies how the distribution of wealth and income shapes the macroeconomy and alters the transmission of fiscal and monetary policy over the business cycle. He earned his Ph.D. from UCLA.
Alexandra Lippman, assistant professor of anthropology, started teaching at Pomona in 2020 as a visiting assistant professor. She is a multimodal anthropologist whose work explores media technology, race and sound in Latin America. Her book, Funk Power: Sound, Sovereignty, and Blackness in Brazil, is forthcoming from Duke University Press.
Danielle Lynch, director of athletics, chair of the Physical Education Department and assistant professor of physical education, leads the 21 NCAA Division III varsity sports at Pomona-Pitzer. Her doctoral research examined the lived experiences of Black male professional athletes during ongoing social justice movements, exploring how identity, activism and sport intersect.