Two Pitt-Bradford Faculty Members Promoted to Associate Professor

BRADFORD, Pa. – The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford has promoted two members of its faculty from assistant professor to associate professor.

Those who were promoted were Dr. Jonathan Chitiyo, special education, and Dr. Ovidiu Frantescu, environmental science.

Chitiyo is the director of First Year Experience. He earned his doctorate from Southern Illinois University Carbondale. His teaching experience started in Zimbabwe and Malawi, where he served as a substitute high school teacher before moving to the United States to pursue graduate studies.

Chitiyo’s research interests include inclusive education, factors affecting the education of vulnerable students and the development of special education systems in developing countries. He teaches Development of Children and Educating Children, among other courses, and supervises student teachers

Frantescu is the founding director of Pitt-Bradford’s environmental science major and the Allegheny Institute of Natural History. He earned his doctorate in applied geology at Kent State University.

Frantescu first became interested in earth sciences as an undergraduate at the University of Bucharest, Romania. His research is focused on invertebrate paleontology, but he is interested in everything related to earth science.

He teaches Advanced Geographic Information Systems, Mud Logging and Enhanced Hydrocarbon Recovery, among other courses, and teaches in the petroleum technology program as well as environmental science and geology.