Faculty Field Professionals

Rodney Sonderman serves as an adjunct faculty member teaching Fire Science Leadership and Management in Fire and EMS. He is passionate about teaching online because it allows him to share lessons around the world. Sonderman also serves as Deputy Fire Chief at the Hershey Volunteer Fire Company where he responds to emergency incidents as incident commander or fire ground/rescue officer, NFIRS and annual reporting, pre-plans, grant writing, public speaking and presentations, fire prevention officer, training officer, safety officer, IMT and EMA staff with real-world experience, and department ISO coordinator.

Sonderman achieved the EFO, Executive Fire Officer from the National Fire Academy in Emmitsburg, MD. He also earned a Master of Science in Homeland Security and Emergency Management from Kaplan University. He has several publications that can be found in the National Fire Academy. Sonderman has also achieved the following certifications: Fire Officer IV, Fire Instructor III, Fire Inspector II, Plans II, UAS Pilot, UAS Visual Observer, EMT-B, NFA: Fire Safety Officer, Logistics Section Chief(3), and FAA Small Unmanned Aerial Pilot (107). He is a member of the Pennsylvania Fire & Emergency Services Institute.

Robert Wilson has served the Purdue Global team since 2011 as an adjunct faculty member in the Fire Science program. With a Master of Science degree in Fire Service Executive Leadership coupled with vast experience as a fire officer, emergency medical technician, and incident commander, Wilson teaches a wide variety of fire science courses in subject areas such as fire service principles, hydraulics, and emergency management. With a passion for education, he continues to serve in fire course development, oversight, and revisions as needed. Wilson has earned many certifications in the industry including: Executive Fire Officer, Emergency Medical Technician, Incident Safety Officer, Fire Instructor I, and Blue Card Instructor. He is also a member of the International Association of Fire Chiefs.

Greg Eaton’s career spans four decades, with more than 30 years of service in the U.S. Navy and seven years driving agency-wide improvement initiatives at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Trusted by agency and private-industry senior leadership to direct complex disaster assistance support, Eaton has led multiple large-team disaster response and recovery operations across the U.S.

Eaton, an adjunct professor who teaches emergency management courses in the Public Safety program within Purdue Global’s College of Social and Behavioral Sciences, has a broad background in reviewing, revising and implementing emergency management policies and procedures, and in driving collaborative partnerships with state and local agencies.

Adjunct Professor, Purdue Global

Paula Royster began her teaching career at Purdue University Global in 2021 in the Humanities and Social Sciences Department now known as the School of Multidisciplinary and Professional Studies. She has taught various coursework in American Government and Public Policy, Engagement and Citizen-Driven Public Policy, American Women, and Social Problems.

Royster’s research interests examine how historical productions of identity (cultural, national, transnational and racial) are interpreted, articulated and re-articulated in canonical texts. Through various research design models and comparative analysis, she leads conversations on building new narratives with the hopes of improving our interactions with one another.

In service to academia, she has been to mentor doctoral candidates. As a leader in her home community, she is actively engaged in historic and cultural preservation projects that create opportunities for asking new questions.  In addition to receiving numerous awards for her research, she is a seasoned educator, the author of Decolonizing Arts-Based Methodologies Researching the African Diaspora (2020) and co-author of African Abolitionist T. J. Alexander on the Ohio and Indiana Underground Railroads (2023).

Royster earned her interdisciplinary PhD in Humanities and Culture with areas of interest in the history of the African Diaspora, cultural anthropology and visual culture. She also has a secondary focus in public policy and social justice. Royster is a two-time Fulbright Scholar grantee and has been awarded two Diversity Speaker grants through the U.S. Department of State’s Diversity Speaker’s Program.

Adjunct Professor, Purdue Global

Marisa D. Aguiar joined the Purdue Global team in 2020 as an adjunct faculty member in the School of Aviation. With a background in Aviation Organizational Management coupled with expertise in Safety Management System integration and management, Aguiar teaches a wide variety of aviation courses in subject areas such as economics, finance, and management. With a passion for education, she continues to serve in aviation course development, oversight, and revisions.

Adjunct Professor, Purdue Global

Kristin Ahrens has been a part time adjunct faculty member at Purdue Global for over two years. Ahrens is an instructor in the MSN program, specifically working with FNP students in their pediatrics courses. She is also currently serving on the curriculum committee. Ahrens previously taught Family Nurse Practitioner students in pediatrics, research, and theory and has worked in higher education for more than 10 years. For the past 25 years, Ahrens has worked in a school based health clinic as a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner where she specializes in adolescent health and education. At the beginning of her career, she worked in a pediatrics office, at a summer camp, and for an immunization clinic.