Indiana University East is pleased to welcome new faculty and staff beginning this spring semester.

School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics
Parul Khurana is a visiting assistant professor of Cell Biology. Khurana received her Bachelor of Science in Botany and her Master of Science in Plant Molecular Biology from the University of Delhi, in India. She completed her Ph.D. in Plant Cell Biology from Purdue University in 2010.

While working on her master’s degree and also as a research fellow, Khurana worked in the Department of Plant Molecular Biology at the University of Delhi South Campus. Her research included the sequencing and annotation of BAC clones of rice under the Indian Initiative for Rice Genome Sequencing (IIRGS) that was part of the International Rice Genome Sequencing Project (IRGSP).

Khurana continued her research at Purdue University while she worked on her Ph.D. Her research involved the characterization of the actin binding protein, VILLIN3 from Arabidopsis at the biochemical level, understanding the molecular mechanism of the regulation of the actin cytoskeleton at the single molecule level, studying the differences in villin isovariant functions and characterization of the VILLIN gene family at the genetic level.

Her most recent published articles appear in Plant Cell, Current Opinion in Plant Biology, Journal of Cell Biology, and Nature.

School of Humanities and Social Sciences
Rachel Ramer is a visiting lecturer in English, and will teach first-year writing courses. She received her Bachelor of Arts in English from Indiana University East and her Master of Art in Rhetoric and Composition from Ball State University.

Ramer was previously an adjunct instructor at IU East and an adjunct at Ivy Tech Community College in Muncie, Ind. Ramer has also been a writing instructor for Brave Writer.

School of Business and Economics
Darla Randall, assistant to the dean, received her Bachelor of Arts in Bible/Counseling from Johnson Bible College and her Master of Science in Management from Indiana Wesleyan University. She also received a Certificate in Fundraising Management from the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University.

Randall was previously the executive director of Birth-to-Five in Richmond.

Office of Admissions
Lori Current is an assistant director of Admissions. She will primarily work with prospective students who are applying for admission to IU East in the online distance education programs, along with other transfer students.

Current earned her Bachelor of Arts in Education from Taylor University in Fort Wayne. While at Taylor, Current worked in the admissions office there in guest assistance. Previously, she worked at Elder-Beerman in Richmond as the assistant area sales manager.

Current has also worked with Meridian Services as the case manager for its Community Support Program.

Office of Financial Aid
Amy Jarecki is the assistant director of Financial Aid. Jarecki counsels students and families concerning financial aid procedures, programs, and policies, as well as, determines students’ eligibility for scholarships and Title IV programs.

Jarecki has previously held positions at IU East with Twenty-first Century Scholars, Student Support Services, and Area 9.

Jarecki received her Master of Occupational Therapy from the University of Indianapolis and her Juris Doctor from Indiana University School of Law and her Bachelor of Science in Management from Indiana University.