Latest Faculty Accomplishments
News
GRANTS (awarded in April)
Dr. Elise M. Barrella (Assistant Professor, Engineering) received $12,000 from the University of Virginia to conduct a symposium to focus specifically on transportation planning and engineering the best practices that enhance the health of the environment, a key dimension of the sustainability bottom line.
Dr. Jennifer E. Coffman (Associate Executive Director, International Programs; Associate Professor, Integrated Science and Technology) and Dr. Lee G. Sternberger (Associate Provost, Academic Affairs; Executive Director, International Programs) received $112,893 from the Institute of International Education Inc. to continue to increase linguistic and cultural understanding among ROTC students at JMU and nationwide by emphasizing intermediate and advanced Kiswahili instruction.
Dr. Idelle A. Cooper (Assistant Professor, Biology) received $132,000 from the National Science Foundation to identify how body color is correlated with abiotic habitat variables across the Hawaiian damselfly radiation, to determine whether sexual selection can explain the habitat/color correlations, to connect color with survivorship in different habitats and to test pigment function as an antioxidant.
Dr. Kenneth L. Critchfield II (Assistant Professor, Graduate Psychology) received $2,000 from the Society for Psychotherapy Research to generate pilot data, test expectations of theory and assess feasibility of a targeted, micro-analytic approach to coding of interpersonal patterns in a large psychotherapy database.
Dr. Christie J. Brodrick Hartman (Executive Director, Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability; Associate Professor, Integrated Science and Technology) received $1,075 and $500 from the Shenandoah Valley Pure Water Forum to create and post educational signage promoting water stewardship behaviors.
Dr. W. Christopher Hughes (Professor, Physics and Astronomy) and Dr. Brian H. Augustine received $95,639 from the National Science Foundation to use a range of experimental and theoretical tools to predict, design and optimize experimental conditions, resulting in polymeric surfaces that stimulate improved metal and cellular adhesion.
Patricia A. Kennedy (Administrator, Institute for Innovation in Health and Human Services) received $139,336 from the Valley Aids Network to provide university and administrative services.
Dr. Jonathan J. Miles (Professor, Integrated Science and Technology) received $10,000 from the Southeastern Coastal Wind Coalition to conduct outreach and education to stakeholders and decision makers on wind energy in Virginia and the Southeast.
Dr. Kenneth R. Rutherford (Director, Center for International Stabilization and Recovery; Professor, Political Science) received $185,000 from the U.S. Department of State to create, deliver and maintain a custom data collection and analysis system to disseminate maps and other products for Conventional Weapons Destruction programs.
Dr. David A. Slykhuis (Associate Professor, Middle, Secondary and Mathematics Education) received $25,200 from the Virginia Department of Education to offer a three-day academy for early childhood special education teachers.
Nick D. Swayne (Coordinator for External Relations, College of Education; Instructor, Learning, Technology and Leadership Education) received $10,000 from Booz-Allen & Hamilton Inc. to support the Virginia-DC FIRST LEGO League and Robotics program hosted at JMU.
Dr. William C. Wood (Director, Center for Economic Education; J.W. and Alice S. Marriott Faculty Fellow; Professor, Economics) received $66,762 from Shenandoah Valley Economic Education Inc. to improve economic literacy in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County.
HONORS
Rodney McCarter (Police Sergeant, Police and Safety) was honored as the Kiwanis Club of Harrisonburg’s Lawperson of the Year. The award, which began in 1969, recognizes a law enforcement officer each year from the Harrisonburg Police, Rockingham County Sheriff’s Office, Virginia State Police or JMU Police. McCarter was chosen for his service as a mentor through the university’s Office of Student Accountability and Restorative Practices and his involvement in the Combined Harrisonburg and Rockingham Gang Enforcement Unit.
PRESENTATONS
Dr. Noorie K. Brantmeier (Assistant Professor, Learning, Technology and Leadership Education) and Dr. Edward J. Brantmeier (Assistant Director, Center for Faculty Innovation; Associate Professor, Learning, Technology and Leadership Education) presented “Paradigmatic dialogues, spirituality, inter-subjectivity, and nonduality in qualitative inquiry” at the Comparative and International Education Society Conference in Washington, D.C. N. Brantmeier and E. Brantmeier also presented “From head to hand to global community: Social media, digital diplomacy, and post conflict peacebuilding in Kosovo” at the same conference with Dr. Jayson Richardson and Behar Xharra.
Jae Seung Cha (Graduate Student, Graduate Psychology) presented “Digital Media and Children: Implications for School Psychology Practice” at the National Association of School Psychology Conference in Orlando, Fla., in February 2015.
Teal Golden (Graduate Student, College Student Personnel Administration) and Dakota Bennett (Graduate Student, College Student Personnel Administration) presented “Using Brief Counseling in Appreciative Advising: Techniques and Resources for the New Advisor” at the NACADA Conference in Richmond, Va., March 2015.
Sevinj Iskandarova (Graduate Student, Education Programs) presented “Diversity and Difference: A Study of International Students Attending US Graduate Programs” at the Graduate Research Symposium at the College of William and Mary in March 2015.
Joshua Kingett (Graduate Student, Political Science) presented “STEP IT UP: Improving Health & Nutrition Outcomes for At-Risk Youth” at the Beyond School Hours National Conference in Orlando, Fla., February 2015.
Jennifer Mills (Graduate Student, Graduate Psychology) and Lindsay Anmuth (Graduate Student, Graduate Psychology) presented at the symposium “Assessing and Addressing the ‘College Student Mental Health Crisis’” and presented a poster, “What Works: Evidence-Based Drug and Alcohol Prevention Programs for Children and Adolescents” while attending the Eastern Psychological Association’s annual convention in Philadelphia, in March 2015.
Tara Ott (Graduate Student, Art, Design and Art History) and Patricia Drummond (Graduate Student, Art, Design and Art History) presented “Adult ‘Tamper’ Tantrum” at the Society for Photographic Education National Conference in New Orleans, March 2015.
Mark Pataky (Graduate Student, Kinesiology) presented “The Influence of Caffeine Ingestion and Mouth Rinsing on 3km Cycling Performance” at the SEACSM conference in Jacksonville, Fla., in February 2015.
Alexandra Short (Graduate Student, Audiology) presented “Relative Weight of Temporal Envelope for Speech Perception Across Speech Frequency Regions in Children and Adults” at the Association of Research in Otolaryngology (ARO) Mid-Winter Meeting in Baltimore, February 2015.
PUBLICATIONS
Dr. Bradley A. Striebig (Associate Professor, Engineering), Dr. Bayo A. Ogundipe (Assistant Professor, Engineering) and Dr. Maria Papadakis (Professor, Integrated Science and Technology) published the textbook “Engineering Applications in Sustainable Design and Development.” The book focuses on many methods of sustainability by blending aspects of engineering design, environmental science and the social context of engineering.
