Central College has announced professor of biology Paulina Mena as the new Ruth and Marvin Denekas Endowed Chair in Science and Humanities. 

Mena joined the Central faculty in 2009. Recently, she was named the Faculty Fellow for Inclusive Pedagogy and led the faculty professional development seminar on inclusive teaching practices and other teaching-focused training and workshops. The Ruth and Marvin Denekas Endowed Chair in Science and Humanities recognizes a Central faculty member who has demonstrated exemplary teaching and scholarship, and the ability to cross disciplinary boundaries.

Established in 2006, this endowed chair memorializes the lives of Marvin Denekas, a 1932 Central graduate, and his wife Ruth Mary, who graduated from the Ohio State University and Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing in Cleveland, Ohio.