Oxford grad joins SEMO religion faculty

Southeast Missouri State University has hired a new professor in the department of philosophy and religion who will provide a link between the worlds of religion and business.

Dr. Harold Oh will begin teaching courses in the fall semester, primarily in the realm of business ethics. Oh is the first full-time, tenure-track professor to be hired in the department in at least two years.

Courses like "Religion in America," "World Religions" and "Science and Religion" are nearly always full each semester, and students continue to enroll in religion courses.

When the department revamped its position description two years ago, it placed an emphasis on hiring a full-time religion professor. Now the majority of courses are taught by part-time instructors who are either campus ministers or pastors and priests serving area churches.

Oh earned an undergraduate degree from Yale and his doctorate from Oxford. His specialty is in ethics, and he is currently working on a book titled, "Ethics and Christian ethics."

Oh worked for many years as chief executive officer of Millennium Petroleum before leaving that career to study religion. Most recently he has been working with the secretary general of the United Nations in the area of ethics in international development.

Dr. Hamner Hill, chairman of the philosophy and religion department, said the university is "tickled pink to have someone with his credentials."

During a visit to campus, Oh met with students and asked to see some of their work. One student, who is pursuing a minor in religion at Southeast, even began an e-mail correspondence with him after the visit, Hill said.

"That told us a lot about him and that's the kind of faculty we're looking for," Hill said.