Joey Oteng ’15, J.D.: Visiting Assistant Professor, Attorney, Ph.D. Candidate

“I gained useful skills in critical thinking, effective communication, and sustainable community engagement.” 

Major: Religion 

Lives in: Columbus, OH

What work looks like: “As a professor, I create, organize, teach, and evaluate students in a variety of law-related courses. As an attorney, I serve as a hearing officer in the Teen Court program, adjudicating cases for the court-operated intervention program for first-time misdemeanor youth offenders. As a Ph.D. candidate, I am completing my dissertation to graduate in May ’26 with a degree in Educational Studies in Philosophy and History of Education from the Ohio State University, where I also teach.” 

What he loves about it: “Getting to be a professor has been deeply fulfilling. I get to help students reimagine their relationship with learning and educational institutions and empower them to be co-creators in their own education. I get to serve as a mentor, an advisor, a counselor, a supporter, a challenger, and a caregiver for students on top of being professor.” 

What he gained from a liberal arts education: “I gained useful skills in critical thinking, effective communication, and sustainable community engagement. I believe that to be well-educated is to be educated in the variety of ways necessary to be an informed civic actor who is able to engage with disciplines thoughtfully, make enlightened decisions for self and community, and know the breadth and depth of their knowledge. I know where my expertise is and I know not only when I need more education, but how to gain that education. My liberal arts education allows me to be dynamic in all the roles I play.”