Academe welcomes news from WSU faculty and staff about research, teaching and service activities. This column recognizes grants, honors, awards, presentations and publications, new appointments, new faculty, sabbaticals, retirements and deaths of or current and former colleagues.

AWARDS/HONORS

The Kansas Association of School Psychologists (KASP) awarded Associate Professor Nancy McKellar the Lifetime Achievement Award at the group’s annual convention Oct. 17. McKellar was nominated for the award in recognition of her outstanding service and leadership in the field of school psychology. It was bestowed on behalf of the KASP Board by President Lisa Morch, a Wichita State alumna.

Matthew Cecil, director of Elliott School of Communication, earned his Leadership Elite certificate from the WSU Center for Management Development, a continuing education program in the W. Frank Barton School of Business. The 8-week certification program focused on leadership self-assessment and best practices. Sixteen Wichita-area business and education leaders participated in the program.

Student Success Specialist and head of the new Military and Veteran Student Center, Sarah Sell, was recently named Outstanding Airman of the Year in the Senior NCO category at her Air National Guard base, Forbes Field, home of the 190th Air Refueling Wing. Sell, who was named First Sergeant in her unit earlier this year, is also competing for the Senior NCO award for the state of Kansas at McConnell Airbase.

Elliott School Associate Director Jeff Jarman has been selected as co-editor, along with Sarah Partlow-Lefevre of Idaho State University, of Contemporary Argumentation & Debate, a scholarly journal sponsored by the Cross Examination Debate Association (CAD). Editorship is a three-year term starting in 2014. CAD publishes articles on the theory and practice of debate and argumentation.

Stephanie Nicks, clinical education coordinator in the School of Nursing, was the recipient of the annual Rodenberg Award for Excellence in Teaching, given to faculty members of the college who exemplify excellence in teaching.

Phyllis Feltcher, clinical simulation coordinator for the School of Nursing, was recently honored as a “Bender of Twigs” for her 25 years of service to Wichita State and the community.

Jolynn Dowling, instructor in the School of Nursing, was awarded $500 from the Riverside Health Foundation Development Fund. The award will support a Point in Time Homeless Count CHP-IPE Service Learning Project for Sedgwick County this year.

Wilson Baldridge, professor and chair of Modern and Classical Languages and Literature, is the recipient of the WSU Foundation Faculty/Staff Fundraising Award, which recognizes faculty or staff members who have played a key role in cultivating and securing a major gift for WSU. Baldridge’s longstanding friendship with John Buck and his brother, Jim, resulted in the university receiving two estate gifts from the brothers totaling $9.5 million. The legacy gifts benefit several areas of education including aerospace engineering, fine arts, business and the French program.

Josh Barkan, assistant professor of English, had a work, “The American Chef and El Chapo,” named to the Top 25 story list by Glimmer Train magazine.

Doris Chang, associate professor of women’s studies, will serve on the editorial board of the Journal of Gender and Power, Adam Mickiewicz University Press, Poznan, Poland.

Amy DeVault, assistant professor of digital media at the Elliott School of Communication, earned two awards in the National Federation of Press Women's 2013 Communications Contest: first in overall magazines and third in page design for magazine, newsletter or other non-newspaper publication.

Marché Fleming-Randle, assistant dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, received the Office of Multicultural Affairs Unity Award. This recognition is given each year to someone who supports the mission of Multicultural Affairs and who has a commitment to diversity at Wichita State.

Mel Kahn, professor of political science, was recognized by the Student Government Association with an Individual Meritorious Commendation for his roles as educator and on-campus coordinator of the WSU Washington-Topeka internship program.

Greg Meissen, professor of psychology, was presented with the John Kalafat Award in Applied Community Psychology at the American Psychological Association Community Psychology conference. The award is bestowed upon “an individual who exemplifies John Kalafat’s unique characteristics as mentor, teacher and advocate and especially his passion in making the benefits of community psychology accessible to all.”

Jay Price, professor of history, and Fletcher Powell, KMUW producer, earned an honorable mention from the Kansas Association of Broadcasters for their collaboration, “Past and Present: Kellogg, The Lost Thoroughfare.”

Marti Smith, associate professor in the School of Community Affairs, was selected to serve on a panel to review grants for the Transportation Research Board, part of the National Research Council of the National Academies (formerly the National Academy of Science). She was also an invited speaker at the Safety in Transit Environments seminar, School of Architecture and the Built Environment, Royal Institute of Technology, in Stockholm, Sweden.

Sam Taylor, assistant professor of English, won first place in poetry from the Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Fund for his poems “American Mystic,” “Mountain Cottage” and “First Taxi.”

Michael Birzer, professor and director of the School of Community Affairs, and Jodie Beeson, assistant professor, were recently invited by Board of Regents and state Cabinet member Mildred Edwards, executive director of the Kansas African American Affairs Commission, to facilitate a juvenile justice initiative for Wyandot County. They represented the WSU Criminal Justice Department at a meeting in Kansas City, Kan., for a problem-solving session between community and government leaders.

A workgroup was recently named by the Kansas Board of Regents to review a policy regarding the improper use of social media. Among those named to the committee were Wichita State Professor Victoria Mosack, School of Nursing, and Richard Muma, associate vice president of Academic Affairs.

GRANTS

Assistant Professor Susan Parsons, School of Nursing, and Kathy Trilli, clinical educator in the Department of Dental Hygiene, have received a grant from Patterson Dental. It will be used to present collaborative oral health education and senior dental kits for older adults to their nursing and dental hygiene students.

Jim Snyder, professor of psychology, procured a National Institutes of Health grant, which will fund research to assess the impact of military service members’ deployment on post-deployment family interaction, and the adjustments of service members, spouses and children. Snyder also recently accepted an invitation to serve as a member of the Psychosocial Development, Risk and Prevention Study Section, Center for Scientific Review under the National Institutes of Health.

PRESENTATIONS

Amy DeVault, assistant professor at the Elliott School, taught at the Journalism Education Association/National Scholastic Press Association national high school journalism convention in Boston. DeVault led a pre-convention workshop on team storytelling, a concept based on the Flint Hills Media Project. She also taught a session about MOB reporting, led critiques and served as the lead judge for newsmagazine design in the national write-off competition. She also met up with Wichita-area teachers and students from East, Heights, Andover, Andover Central, Maize and Derby while in Boston.

Regents Distinguished Professor Ken Kriz, Hugo Wall School of Urban and Public Affairs, made three presentations on academic papers at the 25th Annual Conference of the Association for Budgeting and Financial Management, Oct. 3-5, in Washington, D.C: “Does Public Infrastructure Health Affect State Bond Ratings? Evidence from a Panel Data Analysis;” “How Well Does the Risk-Free Rate Predict the Future Rate of Return on Investments? Implications for Public Defined-Benefit Pension Plans;” “Assessing Spending Efficiency and Its Causes in Public Roads: Performance Measurement for Public Infrastructure.” He also presented “Is There Bureaucratic Optimism in Social Security Official Projections?” at the University of Kansas Public Administration Seminar on Sept. 9, in Lawrence.

Donna Sayman, assistant professor of special education, made a presentation, Sayman, D. (2013). “Student teachers perceptions of working with diverse students through a critical disability framework,” at the Society of Philosophy and History of Education Conference in Oklahoma City

Michael Rogers, Department of Human Performance Studies, co-authored a presentation along with colleagues from De Anza College in Cupertino, Calif., titled “Effects of home-based neck care” at the American Massage Therapy Association National Conference in Fort Worth, Texas.

Mara Alagic, associate professor in the College of Education, Debbie Thompson from USD 259 and Lynette Sharlow from USD 259 presented a poster “Partnership for Excellence in Math Instruction and Learning (PEMIL): Lessons Learned at the U.S. Department of Education Conference – 2013 Math and Science Partnerships, in Washington, DC.” The presenters reported on successes and challenges of mathematics professional development in two elementary schools, supported by the KSDE Math and Science Partnerships grant.

Jodi Throckmorton, curator of modern and contemporary art at Wichita State’s Ulrich Museum of Art, presented “From LEDs to the Internet: The Power of New Media Art,” at the Salina Art Center. Throckmorton’s presentation was an exploration of new media as a medium for art and some of today’s leading new media artists.

Assistant Professors Douglas Parham and Antje Mefferd, Communication Sciences and Disorders, presented “Timing of respiration and vocalization during the first year of life” at the 2013 American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) convention.

Antje Mefferd presented “Clear speech task effects on tongue kinematics and speech acoustics in Parkinson’s disease” at the 2013 ASHA convention.

Associate Professor Kathy Strattman, Communication Sciences and Disorders, and Professor Kathy Coufal, department chair, presented “Helping in Haiti: Interprofessional experiences for faculty, students, and international medical team” at the 2013 ASHA convention. 

Kathy Coufal, Douglas Parham, Associate Professor Trisha Self and Associate Professor Lyn Goldberg, Communication Sciences and Disorders, presented “Visual search skills of children with Autism Spectrum Disorders” at the 2013 ASHA convention.

Trisha Self, Kathy Coufal, Lyn Goldberg and Douglas Parham, Communication Sciences and Disorders, presented “Eye-gaze patterns and fast-mapping skills of children with Autism Spectrum Disorders” at the 2013 ASHA convention. 

Associate Professor Anthony DiLollo, Communication Sciences and Disorders, presented “The impact of communication disorders on the social support networks of older adults” at the 2013 ASHA convention. 

Lyn Goldberg and Douglas Parham, Communication Sciences and Disorders, presented “Investigating students’ readiness for interprofessional education” at the 2013 ASHA convention. 

Professor Raymond Hull, Communication Sciences and Disorders, presented “Inadvertent impairments in young children” at the 2013 ASHA convention. 

Raymond Hull, Communication Sciences and Disorders, presented “Influence of cardiovascular health on peripheral and central auditory function in older adults” at the 2013 ASHA convention. 

Trisha Self and Professor Rosalind Scudder, Communication Sciences and Disorders, presented “The influence of teaching methodology on CSD student’s engagement in multimedia off-task behavior during class” at the 2013 ASHA convention. 

Douglas Parham and Lyn Goldberg, Communication Sciences and Disorders, presented “Chest wall movement during utterance production in infants in the second year of life” at the 2013 ASHA convention. 

Associate Professor Julie Scherz, Communication Sciences and Disorders, presented “Bioengineering meets AAC: An interdisciplinary learning opportunity” at the 2013 ASHA convention. 

Julie Scherz, Anthony DiLollo, Douglas Parham and Lyn Goldberg, Communication Sciences and Disorders, presented “The impact of communication partner variables on supported conversation in aphasia” at the 2013 ASHA convention. 

Trisha Self, Communication Sciences and Disorders, presented “Cultivating collaboration: Innovative interprofessional education experiences in preparation for effective practice in Autism Spectrum Disorders” at the 2013 ASHA convention. 

Antje Mefferd and Rosalind Scudder, Communication Sciences and Disorders, presented “Effect of physical activity on tongue strength and endurance” at the 2013 ASHA convention. 

Associate Professor Anh Tran, Kathy Strattman and Kathy Hodson, Communication Sciences and Disorders, presented “Facilitating language and literacy development: A dual language perspective” at the 2013 ASHA convention. 

Michael Birzer, professor and director, School of Community Affairs, was the keynote speaker at the Northern Oklahoma/Southern Kansas Peace Officers Association’s quarterly meeting. Birzer has also been invited by the Kansas African American Museum to participate on a panel discussion about the Prison Industrial Complex, the dramatic growth of the U.S. prison system that disproportionally impacts poor and minority populations. 

Karen Countryman-Roswurm, assistant professor of social work and director of the Center for Combating Human Trafficking, was an invited speaker at the Cambridge University TEDx event in the United Kingdom. 

Following a refereed, blind-reviewed paper competition with a 50 percent acceptance rate, two Elliott School of Communication faculty presented at the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication annual conference. Amy DeVault, assistant professor, presented “Grab a Team, Mob Report: Using a Team Storytelling Approach for a Multimedia Journalism Experience,” and also was an invited panelist for the magazine and visual communication divisions’ joint panel, “The Ideal Visual Curriculum.” Madeline McCullough, ESC lecturer, presented “Tweeting in Haikus/Teaches Brevity and Rhythm/to IMC Class.” 

Nancy Krehbiel and Rebecca Rawls Croskey’s joint presentation, “iAdvise: Strategies for implementing a Paperless Advising Workflow,” earned the designation of “best of the best” at the Kansas Academic Advising Network conference. They will make a return presentation to the February regional meeting in St. Louis. Both are academic advisers in the Liberal Arts and Sciences Advising Center. 

PUBLICATIONS

Donna Sayman, assistant professor of special education, recently authored a publication: Sayman, D., & Krutka, D.G. (2013). A Freirean analysis of the post high school experiences of a young woman with Asperger Syndrome. Journal of Philosophy and History of Education, 63, 181-194. 

Tina Bennett, professor of English, gave an invited paper, “Code- and Script-Switching in Written Language,” at the Code-Switching in Literature Conference, University of London, Birkbeck. 

Albert Goldbarth, Adele M. Davis Distinguished Professor of Humanities, English, recently wrote “The End of Space,” a chapbook nominated for a Midwest Booksellers Association Award. 

Assistant Professor and Coordinator of Library Instruction Melissa Mallon recently published her article, Mallon, M.N. (2014). “Librarian in the Boardroom: Outreach Strategies for Executive MBA Programs.” Journal of Business & Finance Librarianship, 19(1), 15-31. 

Regents Distinguished Professor Ken Kriz, Hugo Wall School of Urban and Public Affairs, recently published his academic research, “The Two Worlds of Municipal Bonds: Are Lower Rated Bonds Punished More by Financial Crisis?” and “The Management of Defined Contribution Pension Plans in Local Government,” both in Public Budgeting & Finance, and “Do High Reliability Systems Have Lower Error Rates? Evidence from Commercial Aircraft Accidents,” in Public Administration. Kriz also submitted two works for publication, “Debt Affordability: A Stochastic Model,” to the Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, and “The Impact of Rating Recalibration on the Municipal Bond Yield Spreads” to Public Budgeting & Finance. 

NEW APPOINTMENTS

Angela Aubrey is a newly appointed administrative assistant in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction, College of Education. Aubrey graduated from Kansas State University with a bachelor’s degree in sociology, and has worked in several social service positions, most recently at a Teen Challenge Christian group home for girls in Kingman. 

Dianna Brashier has joined the Wichita Teacher Quality Partnership as early childhood liaison. She has a bachelor’s degree in Interdisciplinary Studies from Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas, and a master’s degree in Management and Leadership from Webster University. She has taught pre-kindergarten, kindergarten and first grade, and was a site director and lead teacher for Head Start. 

Kerry Wilks, associate professor of Spanish, has been named associate dean of the Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures graduate school.

Khawaja Saeed, associate professor of information systems in the Department of Finance, Real Estate and Decision Sciences, has been appointed associate dean of graduate studies in business at the W. Frank Barton School of Business.

Kimberly Engber has been named dean of the Honors College, which was recently approved by the Board of Regents and will welcome its first class in August 2014 in its new home at Shocker Hall.

MISCELLANEOUS

The Office of Academic Affairs recently announced five new emeriti faculty: Andrew Acker, professor emeritus of mathematics; Jolynne Campbell, associate professor emerita of medical laboratory sciences; Connie Morris, instructor emerita of communication; Richard Spilman, associate professor emeritus of English; Peter Zoller, associate professor emeritus of English. 

Nick Taylor, a Sport Management alum and current lecturer, along with doubles partner, David Wagner of Fullerton, Calif., won their fifth straight U.S. Open Grand Slam doubles Championship in New York this past September. The duo went on to win the International Tennis Federation Wheelchair Doubles Masters in November. 

Four members of the College of Education, Associate Professor Ashlie Jack, Associate Professor Kim McDowell, Assistant Professor Gayla Lohfink and Professor Jeri Carroll, hosted the 2013 Kansas Reading Association’s annual conference at the Eugene M. Hughes Metropolitan Complex. The successful event hosted 270 attendees representing educators from Kansas, Texas, Georgia, and Missouri. 

On Dec. 10, Bill Geist and a team from CBS Sunday Morning came to Wichita State University and interviewed Assistant Professor of Tuba/Euphonium, Phillip Black. This was part of their coverage of “TubaChristmas”, a musical event for low brass players to honor the memory of William Bell which has been happening annually world-wide since 1973. Black has hosted a TubaChristmas event as a prelude to the Wichita Symphony “Family Holiday” concert every year since he came to Wichita State in 1986. 

IN MEMORIAM

Peggy Griggs, 78, an accountant in the payroll department at WSU from March 1978-July 2000, died Nov. 9, 2013, at Susan B. Allen Memorial Hospital, El Dorado. She was born on July 29, 1935 in Towanda, the daughter of Arthur Lloyd and Margaret “Opal” McHatton Lewis, and graduated from El Dorado High School, Butler Junior College and Wichita Vo-Tech. She was a member of Crossroads Baptist Church in Wichita, and enjoyed sewing and crocheting for her family and the Wichita Children’s Home. Survivors include son, Russell Griggs; daughter, Michele Pehrson; brother, James Lewis of El Dorado; sisters, Vivian McGoyne of El Dorado, Rita Bohnert of Weatherford, Texas and Ruth Lauer of Sacramento, Calif.; seven grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren. Memorials to her memory for the Lupus Foundation may be left with Carlson Funeral Home, El Dorado, which is handling arrangements. 

Robert Town, 76, Wichita State professor of Organ, died Dec. 10, 2013. He was born Oct. 31, 1937 in Waterman, Wis. His interest in the pipe organ began when he was 3 years old, attending church for the first time. He was admitted to the Eastman School of Music and received his Bachelor of Music degree in 1960. He earned his master’s degree at Syracuse University, and began his doctoral work at the University of Michigan, where he was appointed to a teaching position. At age 25, Town won the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s Young Artist Competition, and gave a recital at Boston Symphony Hall. Town applied and was accepted at WSU in 1965 by Dean of the College of Fine Arts, Walter Duerksen, and taught until his retirement in 2006. His efforts at WSU led to the acquisition of the Great Marcussen Organ and building (Wiedemann Hall) to house it, where many of the finest organists in the world have given recitals. Memorials may be sent to Harry Hynes Memorial Hospice, 313 S. Market, Wichita, Kan., 67202 or the Marcussen Organ Maintenance Fund c/o WSU Foundation, 1845 N. Fairmount, Wichita, Kan., 67260. 

Professor Emeritus Steve Hathaway, 68, died at his daughter’s home in Maine on Dec. 26, 2013, after a week of hospice care. Hathaway taught creative writing and American literature at WSU from 1974-2012, where he was a beloved teacher, mentor and friend. No services were held at his request, but a celebration of his life will take place at the “Festival of Steve,” at Ten Apple Farm in Gray, Maine, in early June. Donations in his memory can be made to Wichita State's public radio station, KMUW, and to Levey Day School in Portland, Maine. For more information, go to http://tenapplefarm.com/. 

Professor Emeritus John Hartman, 82, of Springfield, died Jan. 25, 2014. He was born in Kansas City, Mo., on June 5, 1931, to Jacob, and Helen (Jones) Hartman. He was a professor of sociology at Wichita State, retiring in 1997 as professor emeritus after 29 years. He served as department chair for 15 years. He earned an undergraduate degree at Missouri State University and a master’s and doctorate in Sociology from the University of Missouri-Columbia. He is survived by his wife of almost 60 years, Norma; brother, Fred Hartman; sister, Mary Katherine (Hartman) Crawford. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Dr. John J. Hartman Scholarship Fund c/o the WSU Foundation, 1845 Fairmount, Wichita, Kan., 67260 or to the Parkinson's Disease Foundation.