Dr. Renate Viveen Hood loves students. She teaches New Testament courses, Old Testament courses, intercultural studies (missions), Greek, and biblical interpretation. Innovative teaching and research are among just a few of her many areas of interests. As a native from the Netherlands, she was formerly trained as a biotechnological engineer and has traveled extensively. Dr. Hood has taught on three continents and spent two years as a missionary in Indonesia. The Hood family has served and taught in various ministry venues. Dr. Hood is the Program Coordinator for Intercultural Studies (Missions) at UMHB, the chair of the Academic Teaching and Biblical Studies Unit for the annual meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature, and the former president of the Southwest Commission on Religious Studies.