Psychology Department History | Department of Psychology | BYU-Idaho

# Psychology Department History

Ezra Christensen Dalby | 1907-1914

Ezra Christensen Dalby was the president of the Bannock State/Ricks Academy from 1901 to 1914. In 1914, he left Ricks to serve as principal of Teton High School in Driggs, Idaho. Writing in the local newspaper, he once stated of the school, "It will shine as a beacon of light to the ends of the earth, and add beauty and glory of Zion through all the coming years."

1915-1917

There were no psychology classes taught.

Hyrum Manwaring | 1918-1954

Hyrum Manwaring taught Psychology classes. He was also an administrator and was President from 1930-1944 during the Great Depression. During these years he taught General Psychology, Educational Psychology, Applied Psychology, and Child Psychology. In 1944, Hyrum went back to the faculty and taught full time. His added curriculum included Psychology Applied to Nursing and Social Psychology. In 1946, he taught Psychology Applied to Home and Nursing, Child and Adolescent Psychology, Mental Health, and Industrial Psychology.

1923

Ricks College was made a college.

Hugh Bennion | 1948-1969

Hugh Bennion taught Psychology. 
He later served as the Academic Dean.

Jay L. Sylvester | 1950-1957

Jay L. Sylvester taught Psychology. 
He increased the department to two teachers.

Wilson Walker | 1957-1984

Wilson Walker taught Psychology. 
Department Chairman from 1961-1983.

Glade Merrill | 1961-1963

Glade Merril taught Psychology part-time and French part-time. 
In 1963, he went full-time to French.

Orrin Bates | 1964-1985

Orrin Bates taught Psychology and Religion classes. 
Retired from Ricks College in 1985. Died March 29, 2011.

Jay Risenmay | 1965-1993

Jay Risenmay director of Counseling Center. 
Taught Psychology 1/3 of his time, continued to counsel 2/3 of his time.

Ed Malstrom | 1966-1999

Ed Malstrom taught Psychology. 
Department Chairman 1984-1988. 
Division Chairman 1988-1999.

Vance Hendricks | 1966-1998

Vance Hendricks taught Psychology and Education 1/3 time and continued counseling 2/3 of his time. In 1976, he went to full-time counseling. 
Director of Counseling Center 1993-1998.

Dean Sorenson | 1967-1975

Dean Sorenson taught Psychology 2/3 of his time and did Counseling 1/3 time. Later worked in Administration but still taught part-time until about 1975. 
He became Assistant Dean of Instruction and later became Academic Vice President until 1995. 
He served as a mission president and returned as a teacher of religion.

Leon C. Young |1968-1974

Leon C. Young taught Psychology.

Gordon Timothy | 1970-2006

Gordon Timothy taught General Psychology, Stress Management, Social Psychology, and Cognition. 
Department Chairman 1989-1994. 
After teaching for 36 years, Gordon retired from BYU-Idaho in 2006. 
 
B.S. Brigham Young University, 1968. 
M.A. Brigham Young University, 1971. 
Ph.D. Brigham Young University, 1987.

1976

The Psychology Department was combined with History, Geography, and Sociology into the Social Sciences Department with historian David Crowder as Chair.

1981

The Education-Psychology Department was formed.

H. James Gordon 1971

H. James Gordon taught Education then moved to Family Living, teaching Early Childhood Education.

Merlin Madsen | 1980-2004

Merlin Madsen came in 1980 to direct the newly formed Study Skills Lab. Later he moved full-time and taught Education Psychology, Effective Living, Developmental Psychology, and Abnormal Psychology. 
Retired from BYU-Idaho in July 2004 after 24 years. 
 
B.S. Southern Utah State College, 1967 
M. Ed. University of Arizona, 1969 
Ed. D. University of Northern Colorado, 1978.

Joseph Alldredge | 1980

Joseph Alldredge taught Education.

Grant Richards | 1984-1985

Grant Richards taught Education.

Ronald Jacques | 1985-2009

Ronald Jacques taught both Education and Psychology classes from 1985-1989. Taught General Psychology, Culture and Gender, Personality, and Intro to Counseling. 
Department Chairman 1994-1999 and 2000-2004. 
Internship Coordinator for Juvenile Corrections Center. 
After teaching for 24 years, he retired in 2009. 
 
B.S. Utah State University, 1971. 
M.Ed. Brigham Young University, 1975. 
Ed.D. Idaho State University, 1980.

Edward Kinghorn | 1985-2006

Edward Kinghorn taught General Psychology, Stress Management, and team-taught Neurobiology in the Biology Department. Specialized in brain and physiology. 
Department Chair 1999. 
After teaching for 21 years, he transferred to BYU-Hawaii in August 2006. 
 
B.S. Brigham Young University, 1983. 
M.S. Brigham Young University, 1984. 
Ph.D. Brigham Young University, 1986.

1989

The Departments of Education and Psychology were divided. James Gordon became the Chair of the Education Department with Joseph L. Alldrege and Sharon Richards as other department members. Gordon Timothy became Chair of the Psychology Department with Ronald Jacques, Ed Kinghorn, Merlin Madsen, and Edward Malstrom as members.

Ruth Poole | 1991-2003

Ruth Poole worked as the 1991 Division Secretary for Behavioral and Social Science Division and Department Secretary for Psychology. 
Retired from BYU-Idaho as the secretary of the College of Education in 2003.

Kimberly Andersen | 1994-2017

Kimberly Andersen taught Principles of Learning and Effective Living. Also acted as Internship Coordinator for Sea Life Park, Dolphin Quest, Innovative Equine Therapy, and Arivaca Ranch. 
After teaching for 22 years, Kim retired in 2017. 
 
B.S., M.S. Brigham Young University, 1993.

Mark Chamberlain | 1996-1998

Mark Chamberlain taught General and Abnormal Psychology. 
He left Ricks to practice therapy.

Christopher M. Lowry | 1999

Christopher M. Lowry teaches Sensation and Perception, and Behavioral Neurobiology. 
Associate Dean 2002-2004. 
Department Chair 2004 to 2007. 
 
B.S. Brigham Young University, 1991. 
M.S. Brigham Young University, 1996. 
Ph. D. Brigham Young University, 1997.

Barbara Sharp | 1991-2015

Barbara Sharp came to Ricks College in 1991 as secretary in the Academic Office. In 2000, transferred to the Psychology Department as department secretary. 
Retired from BYU-Idaho in 2015.

Samuel L. Clay | 2002

Samuel L. Clay teaches Social Psychology, Psychology of Emotion/Motivation, and Performance Psychology. 
Department Chair 2007-2013. 
 
B.S. Arizona State University, 1986. 
M.S. Brigham Young University, 1990. 
Ph.D. Brigham Young University, 1996.

Richard Cluff |2004-2022

Richard Cluff taught General Psychology and Abnormal Psychology and acted as Internship Coordinator for the Family Crisis Center. 
Retired to serve a full-time mission. 
 
Associate Dean 2001-2014. 
Department Chair Fall 2018 to Spring 2022. 
 
B.S. University of Utah, 1983. 
M.S. Florida State University, 1987. 
Ph.D. Florida State University, 1994.

December 2004

The Psychology, Sociology, Math, History, Geography, and Political Science Departments moved from the Clarke to the new Thomas E. Ricks Building.

Eric J. Gee | 2005

Eric J. Gee teaches General Psychology and Psychological Assessment. Specializes in Evaluation Methodology. Internship Coordinator for Counseling Aids at Madison Middle School. 
 
Department Chair 2013 to Spring 2018. 
 
B.S. Utah State University, 1990. 
M.S. Utah State University, 1995. 
Ph.D. Utah State University, 1997.

Owen Anderson | 2006-2007

Owen Anderson taught Developmental Psychology and Adult Development for the Psychology Department. Moved to the Home and Family Department. Supervised the Child Lab. 
 
B.S. Utah State University, 1987. 
M.S. Utah State University, 1987. 
Ph.D. University of Tennessee, 2006.

Yohan Delton | 2007

Yohan Delton teaches History and Systems. Developed the I/O Emphasis. 
 
Department Chair Fall 2022 to now. 
 
B.S. Brigham Young University, 2000. 
M.S. Brigham Young University, 2005. 
Ph.D. Brigham Young University, 2000.

Matthew Whoolery | 2007-2023

Matthew Whoolery taught Cultural Psychology, Personality, and Special Topics in Psychology. Accepted full-time faculty position at American University in Bulgaria. 
 
B.S. Brigham Young University, 1995. 
M.S. Brigham Young University, 1997. 
Ph.D Brigham Young University, 2004.

Kynda Roberts | 2008

Kynda Roberts taught General Psychology as an Adjunct instructor in Winter 2008. Permanent faculty status in 2010. Taught Adult Development. Currently teaches Developmental Psychology Lifespan. 
 
Associate Dean of Online 2020-2023. 
 
B.S. Utah State University, 1994. 
M.S. Utah State University, 1996.

Travis Ricks | 2010-2011

Travis Ricks worked under a one-year faculty position. He taught General Psychology and Cognition and coordinated the first collaborative research poster between BYU-Idaho and Michigan State University. 
 
M.S. University of Illinois at Chicago, 2002. 
M.S. University of Illinois at Chicago, 2007. 
Ph.D. University of Illinois at Chicago, 2010.

Emily Darowski | 2011-2014

Emily Darowski worked under a one-year faculty position in 2011 to teach General Psychology and Cognition. Adjunct status from 2012 to 2014. 
 
B.A. Idaho State University, 2003. 
M.A. Michigan State University, 2007. 
Ph.D. Michigan State University, 2011.

Brady Wiggins | 2012

Brady Wiggins worked under a one-year faculty position in 2012. He gained permanent faculty status in 2013. He teaches Abnormal Psychology and Experiencing Research. 
 
B.S Brigham Young University, 2003. 
Ph. D. Brigham Young University, 2011.

Robert Wright | 2013

Robert Wright worked under visiting faculty position in 2013. He gained permanent faculty status in 2015. Wright teaches Health Psychology and Experiencing Research. He developed and supervises the Health Psychology Emphasis. 
 
B.A. Utah State University, 2008. 
M.S. Portland State University, 2010. 
Ph.D. Portland State University, 2012.

Scott D. Martin | 2014

Scott D. Martin worked in a visiting faculty position in 2014. He gained permanent faculty status in 2017 and teaches Research Methods and Experiencing Research. 
 
B.S. Utah Valley University, 2008. 
M.S. University of Rhode Island, 2012. 
Ph.D. University of Rhode Island, 2014.

Jennifer Lindsay Perkes | 2016-2019

Visiting faculty position from 2016 to 2019. Taught Cognition, Developmental Psychology Lifespan, and Special Topics in Psychology. 
 
B.A. University of Michigan, 2004. 
M.A. University of California, Irvine, 2010. 
Ph.D. University of California, Irvine, 2012.

Heidi Higgins | 2016

Adjunct position from 2016 to 2018. Permanent faculty status in 2018. Teaches General Psychology, Developmental Psychology Lifespan, and Principles of Behavioral Learning. 
 
B.S. Arizona State University, 1999. 
M.S. Brigham Young University, 2003. 
Ph.D, Idaho State University, 2020.

Jon Skalski | 2019

Full-time faculty position in 2019. Teaches General Psychology and Adult Development. 
 
B.A. St. Mary's University of Winona, 2004. 
M.S. Brigham Young University, 2009. 
Ph.D. University of West Georgia, 2013.

Jeffrey Thayne | 2020

Full-time faculty position in 2020. Teaches General Psychology and Cognition. 
 
B.S. Brigham Young University, 2009. 
M.S. Brigham Young University, 2012. 
Ph.D. Utah State University, 2016.

Celine Duffau | 2021-2022

Visiting faculty position from 2021 to 2022. Taught General Psychology and Cognition. Accepted position as full-time faculty at BYU-Hawaii. 
 
B.A. Université Rennes 2, 2014 
M.S. Université de Bordeaux, 2016 
Ph.D. Université de Bordeaux, 2019

Devon Marrott | 2015

Adjunct instructor from 2015-2016 and again 2018-2023. Full-time position in 2023. Teaches General Psychology and I/O Psychology. Supervises the Industrial Organizational Psychology Emphasis. 
 
B.S. Brigham Young University-Idaho, 2014. 
M.S. California State University, San Bernadino, 2019.

Julie Moss | 2020

Adjunct instructor from 2020-2024. Permanent faculty status in 2024. Teaches General Psychology and Behavioral Interventions. 
 
B.S. BYU Idaho, 2017. 
M.A. Ball State University, 2019. 
Board Certified Behavior Analyst, 2021.