Biography: Originally from Spokane, WA, Dr. Hille first came to NNU as an undergraduate student. He left with a Biology BA in 2003 and went on to teach Environmental Science at Mission Springs Outdoor Education in Scott’s Valley, CA. Dr. Hille and his wife, Sarah, left the Redwood forests of California for the cloud forests of Costa Rica to serve as field station managers and semester study abroad coordinators for the Quetzal Education Research Center in San Gerardo de Dota, owned and operated by Southern Nazarene University. Upon returning to the U.S., he earned a Master of Science (MS) in Biology and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from the University of Oklahoma, during which he studied the population ecology and conservation of parrot populations in Nicaragua. During this time, he also co-authored Birds of Nicaragua: A Field Guide. Now a Wildlife Biology and Ecology assistant professor in the Department of Biology, Dr. Hille conducts research with undergraduate students studying the biology and conservation of the Common Nighthawk in southwestern Idaho. He’s hooked on landscaping with native plants, hammocking in the perfect outdoor locations and searching for hot springs in the beautiful expanses of Idaho.

Fun Fact: I co-authored a field guide to the Birds of Nicaragua. 

Favorite Thing About Working at NNU: It is a place where all students are invited into vocational ministry because of the holistic aspects of the Christian liberal arts education.