Office of the Dean
The College of Social and Behavioral Sciences Office of the Dean is a hub of leadership and operations for all SBS programs and departments. Led by a passionate and dedicated dean, this office is focused on creating a transformative academic experience for all who pass through our college’s doors. With leading research, community partnerships, and a commitment to social justice, the Office of the Dean is a dynamic center of information, learning, and discovery.
Deanne (“Deedee”) R. Pérez-Granados, Ph.D, Dean for the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences
Dr. Deanne (“Deedee”) Pérez-Granados has a long-standing 25-year career as an educator and leader in higher education. Prior to joining Northern Arizona University as dean of the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences (SBS), Dr. Pérez-Granados served as associate dean at California (Cal) State University, Bakersfield, and held faculty positions at Purdue University, Stanford University, and California State University (CSU), Monterey Bay. In her role as associate dean for the School of Social Sciences and Education at Cal State, Bakersfield, Dr. Pérez-Granados focused on initiatives to enhance student well-being and academic support systems during the post-COVID transition back to in-person teaching and student presence on campus, to improve university-wide academic data systems to examine and improve student outcomes, and to advance student success practices to more equitably and effectively serve all students, particularly the diverse populations of underrepresented and underserved students.
During her 14 years of service at CSU, Monterey Bay, Dr. Pérez-Granados served two terms as the Liberal Studies Department chair in the College of Education. She played impactful college and university faculty leadership roles contributing to academic program development and implementation, university assessment, accreditation, enrollment management, and student outreach and support. Most notably, she was the project director for two diversity and equity-oriented, cross-university and cross-institutional collaborative initiatives that were supported through successful multi-year foundation and Title V HSI national grants (Teacher Pathway programs and the MAESTROs project).
Dr. Pérez-Granados earned a master’s and doctoral degree in developmental psychology from the University of California, Santa Cruz, and a bachelor of arts degree in Psychology from Stanford University. Her research agenda focuses on young children’s early language and literacy development in family and early education contexts with a particular focus on families from low-income and Mexican-descent communities, and the role of new technologies on toddlers’ and preschoolers’ language and literacy learning. Her applied scholarly work in children’s learning and development in home, school, and community contexts led to faculty positions in the Department of Human Development and Family Studies at Purdue University (1996–2000), the Graduate School of Education at Stanford University (2000–2007), and the Liberal Studies Department in the College of Education at Cal State, Monterey Bay (2007–2021).
Dr. Pérez-Granados is honored to join NAU to serve as dean of the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences, and to make contributions to the intentional, focused priorities of NAU’s 2025 Elevating Excellence strategic plan for transformational social impact and economic mobility for students, and the pervasive commitment of the 2020 Diversity Strategic Plan for equity and inclusion. She looks forward to engaging with the SBS community of changemakers who are driven by their collective and personal responsibility to advance the college’s 2022 Strategic Plan for social justice and equity through transformational learning and excellence in scholarship. Additionally, Dr. Pérez-Granados looks forward to working collaboratively with the SBS faculty, staff, and leadership to sustain the many SBS successes and build new college initiatives and opportunities for continual improvement and growth.
Lynn Jones, Associate Dean for Personnel and Graduate Programs
Lynn Jones serves as the Associate Dean for Personnel and Graduate Programs in the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences (SBS) and is Professor in the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice. She previously served her home department as Associate Chair, Interim Chair, and graduate coordinator for the department’s M.S. in Applied Criminology program.
Throughout her career, Lynn has been involved in advocating for inclusive and equitable processes and policies that support students and faculty, such as through her leadership chairing the SBS Promotion & Tenure committee, co-chairing the University Hearing Board, and advising on the university’s Campus Climate Survey.
Lynn received her master’s and doctoral degrees in Sociology at the University of Arizona, where she studied the dynamics of law and policy in justice professions, including emotion management in victim services and cause lawyering among social movements. Her continued research interests emphasize gender, difference, and justice, with a particular interest in how justice professionals and activists advocate for legal and social change.
Examples of her work include the textbook Investigating Difference: Human and Cultural Relations in Criminal Justice, and research publications in the Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice, Journal of Criminal Justice Education, Violence and Victims, and Theoretical Criminology. Her collaborative community-based work has been funded by the Department of Justice Office for Victims of Crime and the Center for Victim Research, and she enjoys supporting faculty and facilitating their research opportunities in her associate dean role.
T. Mark Montoya, Associate Dean for Curriculum and Student Affairs
T. Mark is the associate dean for curriculum and student affairs and associate professor of Ethnic Studies in the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences. This year, he will serve as a provost’s leadership fellow (2022–23). Previously, he served as a past director of Ethnic Studies. A first-generation college student, T. Mark attended New Mexico State University (NMSU), where he received a bachelor of arts in history and a master of arts in government. He moved to Arizona to complete his PhD in political science at NAU, which he earned with distinction in 2009.
T. Mark’s interests center broadly on the US-Mexico borderlands, borderlands pedagogy, citizenship, ethnic studies, Latinx studies, DACA, hip hop, and first-generation student experiences. At NAU, T. Mark is most involved with the first-generation learning community, the Teaching Academy, and the Commission on Ethnic Diversity. He also serves as president of the Association for Borderlands Studies and chair of the Northern Arizona Dream Fund, and he sits on the editorial board for the Journal of First-generation Student Success.
T. Mark has earned many awards for his teaching and support of students including the Dr. Alfredo G. de los Santos Jr., Outstanding Latina/o Faculty: Service/Teaching in Higher Education Award (2019); Commencement Speaker for SBS and University College (2016); SBS Teacher of the Year (2015); Outstanding Advocate Award for First-Generation College Students (2013); and the NAU President’s Award for Ethnic Diversity (2012). He is honored to be named a President’s Distinguished Teaching Fellow (2022) and looks forward to advancing student success in his associate dean role.
Meredith Heller, Assistant Dean for Curriculum
Meredith Heller serves as the Assistant Dean for Curriculum in the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences and is an Associate Teaching Professor in the Department of Sociology, where she coordinates the Bachelor of University Studies (BUS) Program.
Meredith earned a Ph.D. in Theater Studies with a Doctoral Emphasis in Feminist Studies from the University of California, Santa Barbara. An expert on social identity formation, she has devoted a decade to studying expressions of sexuality and gender within an intersectional feminist frame, then applying to digital media, performance, and popular entertainment. Meredith’s book, Queering Drag: Redefining the Discourse of Gender Bending, published in 2020 by Indiana University Press, won the 2021 John Leo and Dana Heller award for Best Book in LGBTQ Studies from the Popular Culture Association and was named one of NBC’s “10 LGBTQ books to watch out for in 2020.” Her work has also been featured in The New Books Network podcast, Feminist Media Studies, Social Semiotics, Gender & History, QED: A Journal of GLBTQ Worldmaking, and The Sage Encyclopedia of Trans Studies.
Meredith extends her DEI experience to her faculty affiliation with the Institute for Public and Professional Ethics in Leadership, diversity auditing work with Common Sense Media, and her role as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA). She and looks forward to supporting faculty and students in her assistant dean position.