����Ӱҵ

Ru Freeman wins grand prize at literary festival

March 21—Ru Freeman, visiting professor in the MFA Program in Creative Writing, is the winner of the non-fiction and grand prize for her essay entitled Memory, Loss at the . For seven years the prestigious literary event aims to deepen mutual understanding among writers from North America and Portugal. Freeman will receive free tuition, airfare, accommodation for the 2017 DISQUIET Program and publication in NinthLetter.com.

 

Renata Kobetts Miller writes International Women’s Day essay

March 10—Renata Kobetts Miller, associate professor and chair of the Department of English, wrote a first-person essay in response to “A Day Without a Woman” on International Women’s Day.  Her essay appears in the of the . Miller also wrote a for the “Oxford Handbook of Adaptation Studies.”

 

Victoria Frye is board member for the NCIPC

Feb. 14—Victoria Frye, associate medical professor in the Department of Community Health and Social Medicine, is appointed to the Board of Scientific Counselors at the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control () at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention () until 2020. This group is appointed by the secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services () and provides advice to the center director on research and programmatic matters.

 

The Journal of Negro Education publishes Terri Watson’s worksTerri N. Watson, assistant professor in the Department of Leadership and Special Education, published two works in titled: , where she was one of the guest editors, and her latest manuscript .

 

Stanley Thangaraj, assistant professor at the Colin Powell School for Civic and Gloabal Leadership, is the new Association for Asian American Studies (AAAS) Board Member for the mid-Atlantic region from 2017-2020.

 

Fabian Llonch wins biennial awards in Argentina and BrazilFabian Llonch, associate professor at the Spitzer School of Architecture, is awarded the and the "Nuevo Centro Cultural en Rafaela” award from The I for his 2014 Centro Cultural Viejo Mercado in Rafaela, Argentina. Lonch also received an award from his home state’s House of Representatives in Santa Fe.

 

Xi Chen is Blavatnik Regional Award finalist Xi Chen, assistant chemical engineering professor at the Grove School of Engineering, is named a finalist of the in the field of physical sciences and engineering. He will accept his award—consisting of $10,000 in unrestricted funds and a medal—at the New York Academy of Sciences Annual Gala on November 7.

 

Victoria Frye receives grant to increase access to anti-HIV drug

Sept. 21 - Victoria Frye, associate medical professor at the CUNY School of Medicine, receives a R21 grant from the for $466,000 over a two-year span. As part of the grant, Frye will develop increased access to and uptake of non-occupational (NPEP) among minority communities.

 

Jennifer Tuttle directs play about unplanned pregnancy

Sept. 20 - Jennifer Tuttle, assistant professor in the Department of Theatre and Speech, directs a play inspired by true stories of unplanned pregnancy. The play will open in November at The PIT Loft, and some proceeds will go to the Margaret Sanger Center of Planned Parenthood.

 

Chemistry professor Barbara Zajc receives $450K NSF award

Sept. 13 - Barbara Zajc, professor of chemistry and biochemistry in the Division of Science, is the recipient of a $450,000 renewal award from the National Science Foundation. She is continuing her research on the development of fluorination chemistry. Fluorine is highly important in medicine, as a biological probe, in agrochemicals, and in new materials. 

 

Elizabeth Biddinger wins $50K ECS Toyota fellowship

July 21 -- Elizabeth Biddinger, assistant professor in the Grove School of Engineering, is one of three winners nationally of ECS Toyota Young Investigator Fellowships for projects in green energy technology. Each recipient will receive a minimum of $50,000.

Biddinger’s project with the Electrochemical Society examines, in part, the use of silylamine reversible ionic liquids that have the ability to have conductivity turned off or on reversibly using carbon dioxide as a trigger for application as a reversible safety switch in high energy density batteries.

 

SOE’s Sobha Kavanakudiyil chairs AATE national conference

July 20 -- Sobha Kavanakudiyil, a lecturer in the School of Education’s Graduate Program in Educational Theatre, is co-chair of the 2016 in Boston, July 27-31. She was elected to the AATE Board of Directors and began a three-year term this month.

Kavanakudiyil is the second School of Education faculty member on the AATE Board. Jennifer Katona, program director, educational theatre, also sits on the board.  

 

Agricultural History Society meets at ����Ӱҵ

June 22 -- The Division of Humanities and the Arts is co-sponsoring the annual meeting of the on Thursday, June 23. The society is an international association of scholars interested in agriculture and rural life, said Adrienne Petty, associate professor in the ����Ӱҵ history department. “The first part of the meeting takes place on our campus, in the NAC ballroom and other breakout rooms,” she added.

 

Christine Sheffer seeks to help people make healthy choices

June 15 -- Associate Professor of Community Health and Social Medicine Christine Sheffer of the Sophie Davis Biomedical Education/CUNY School of Medicine is the lead author of “” published in the July issue of Behavioural Processes. This study used a psychological technique known as “priming” to decrease delay discounting, which is the inclination to choose smaller sooner versus larger later rewards. Decreases in discounting are associated with decreases in the frequency of many risky health behaviors such as tobacco use, drug and alcohol abuse, overeating, risky sexual behaviors, and even the non-use of sunscreen and automobile seatbelts.  A licensed clinical psychologist, Dr. Sheffer is an internationally recognized expert in the field of tobacco dependence treatment research and training.

 

Marit Dewhurst explores the intersection of art education and social justice 

June 15 -- Assistant Professor of Art and Museum Education Marit Dewhurst talks about her new book , (Harvard Education Press, 2014), in a . Dewhurst, who is also the director of art education at the School of Education, draws upon her upbringing as well as her professional career in discussing the issues she raises in her book.

 

Joshua Cohen gets Met fellowship

May 17 --Assistant Professor of African Art History Joshua Cohen will be a Jane and Morgan Whitney Fellow at the Metropolitan Museum of Art for the 2016-17 academic year. Cohen, whose research will be hosted by the Met’s Department of Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the America, will spend his fellowship year completing a book that tracks modernist appropriations of African art by European and African artists between 1905 and 1980.

 

Nickolas Pappas on “a subject people fall in love with”

April 7 -- Philosophy Professor Nikolas Pappas muses on  in a New York Times “Opinionator” column. Pappas is also the author of the recently-published “” (Routledge, 2016).

 

Gilda Barabino keynotes “Women in STEM” summit

April 5 --  Dr. Gilda Barabino, dean of the Grove School of Engineering, is the keynote speaker at the second annual on April 13 at the in upstate New York. Barabino’s speech in UB’s Student Union Theater is entitled, “Identity and Career Progression for Women in STEM.”

“Women inspiring women” is the theme of the summit which brings together women professionals in various STEM fields for workshops and panels. This year’s event also includes student poster presentations.

The summit looks to inspire girls who are studying or may be looking for a career in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields.

 

Colin Powell School’s Thangaraj publishes new collection

Assistant Professor of Anthropology Stanley Thangaraj’s new co-edited book, , features some of the biggest names in gender studies, literary studies, sociology and anthropology in a close examination of these cultures.

 

Double honor for Adeyinka M. Akinsulure-Smith

Dr. Adeyinka M. Akinsulure-Smith, associate professor and licensed psychologist in the Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership, is a keynote speaker at the annual meeting in Canada, May 17-20. She will discuss “Trauma, Resilience and Survival: Clinical Service Provision with Forced Migrants,” 1 – 2 p.m., Friday, May 18, at the Rimrock Resort Hotel in Banff, Alberta.  “Mental Health over the Life Span” is the conference theme.

On April 20, Akinsulure-Smith will receive the “Outstanding Achievement Award” from the of International House in Manhattan to mark its 25th anniversary. The honor goes to alumnae that have applied the leadership skills acquired in the WIL program, made notable and publicly recognizable progress in their field, and showed potential to continue that progress.   

 

Robert Alfano and students seek greater understanding of Alzheimer’s disease

Jan. 28 -- Professor of Physics Robert Alfano and three fellow researchers -- Lingyan Shi, Pavel Shumyatsky and Adrián Rodríguez-Contreras – published “” in the Journal of Biomedical Optics. The paper is the first instance in which molecular information on Alzheimer’s disease is obtained from THz spectroscopy.

 

Jennifer Tuttle advocates for women in theatre

Jan. 8 – Assistant Professor of Theatre and Speech Jennifer Tuttle recently joined the Stratera Foundation, which serves women in the theatre. She now oversees its new as the mentorship coordinator.

 

Lance Brown helps UN-Habitat to create new urban agenda

Jan. 20 --Professor , FAIA, of the Bernard and Anne Spitzer School of Architecture is one of 200 experts participating in the creation of the United Nation’s Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat)’s New Urban Agenda. The Agenda is a 20-year strategy that U.N. member states will negotiate at , the conference on housing and sustainable urban development in Quito, Ecuador, in October. Brown serves on the expert unit advising on Urban Ecology and Resilience.

 

Timothy Ellmore seeks understanding of how new memories are made

Jan. 16 -- Associate Professor Timothy Ellmore of the Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership is the lead author of “,” published in Frontiers in Psychology.  The paper is a further exploration of into how sleep, as well as awake offline processing, is important for the transformation of new experiences into long-term memory.

 

Harriet Senie urges reconsideration of memorials to victims of tragedies

Jan. 11 -- Professor of Art History ’s new book,  (Oxford University Press, 2016) analyzes memorials to Vietnam, Oklahoma City, Columbine and 9/11 - all events that challenged myths of national identity. Senie, who directs the M.A. program in Art History and Art Museum Studies, and also teaches at the CUNY Graduate Center, argues that these memorials conflate heroes and victims and create a class of privileged participants in the permanent memorial process.

 

Molly Emma Aitken continues her fellowship

Dec. 23 -- Associate Professor of Art Molly Emma Aitken heads into the second year of her fellowship, which she shares with Alison Renee Busch of Columbia University. Aitken, an art historian, and Busch, a literary scholar, are collaborating on an upcoming monograph, Aesthetic Worlds of the Indian Heroine.

 

Richard Bernstein wants us to know the founding fathers

Dec. 15 -- The title of Colin Powell School of Civic and Global Leadership political science lecturer Richard Bernstein’s new book, “” (Oxford University Press, 2015), says it all.

"Though many venerate the founding fathers, lately some of us want to knock them down and kick them when they're down,” he says. "I hope to show that it’s best not to revere the founding fathers nor scorn them, but to see them eye to eye. I wrote my book to show who the founding fathers were, what they did and did not do, and why we care."
 

Jonathan Pieslak publishes timely book

Dec. 14 -- Associate Professor of Music Theory and Composition Jonathan Pieslak's new book,  : An Introduction to the Music Cultures of al-Qa’ida, Racist Skinheads, Christian-Affiliated Radicals, and Eco-Animal Rights Militants" (Wesleyan University Press, November 2015), explores music’s transformational impact on the radicalization, reinforcement, and motivational techniques of violent political activists.

Pieslak, whose research was supported by a 2011 Guggenheim Fellowship, is also the author of : American Soldiers and Music in the Iraq War" (Indiana University Press, 2009). He is now working on a team project exploring the mobilizing influence of media in the jihadi-Salafi movement, funded by a Minerva Grant from the Department of Defense.

Jonathan Scelsa wins NYSCA grant

Nov. 25 -- Adjunct Assistant Professor of the Bernard and Anne Spitzer School of Architecture receives a $10,000 New York State Council on the Arts League-sponsored Independent Projects for “The Gowanus Roof-scape,” which aims to raise knowledge of the existing building makeup in the canal’s watershed.

Scelsa shares the grant award with Jennifer Birkelan, his partner in their Brooklyn-based studio, .
 

Carlos Meriles researches advances in thermal conductivity

Nov. 20 -- Physics Professor co-authored a paper, “,” in Nature Communications. “We anticipate broad impact in the field of nanoscale thermal transport, a subject of fundamental and technological importance presently hindered due to the lack of adequate tools,” the authors write in a letter to the editor of the publication.

 

Elizabeth Mazzola discusses Elizabethan education at the Folger

Nov. 5 -- Elizabeth Mazzola of the Division of Humanities and the Arts, professor of English and the department’s director of undergraduate studies, was one of several invited speakers at the Folger Shakespeare Library's recent symposium on early modern education.  She is cited in the penultimate paragraph of the of the symposium.

Marta Gutman collects another award for her book

Oct. 19 -- Professor of Architecture , the coordinator of the History & Theory Concentration at the Bernard and Anne Spitzer School of Architecture, is one of two

winners of the Urban History Association’s Kenneth Jackson Award for the best book published in North America in 2014. Gutman won the award for (University of Chicago Press, 2014).

Previously, Gutman’s book won the University of Mary Washington’s Center for Historic Preservation’s 2015 Historic Preservation Book Prize and received honorable mention from the Langham Charitable Trust’s Gene E. & Adele R. Malott Prize for Recording Community Activism.

Richard Steinberg becomes APS Fellow

Oct. 7 -- Professor , professor in the School of Education and the Department of Physics, and program director of Science Education, is now a fellow of the American 

Physical Society. The APS cites him “for contributions to understanding the teaching and learning of physics ranging from elementary school science to quantum mechanics and for using physics education research to improve K-16 instruction.”

Steinberg’s activities include teaching (science teachers, engineering students, physics majors), research in physics/science education, community outreach, and student-centered instructional reform.

 

Mehdi Bozorgmehr nabs research fellowship to continue work on “Growing Up Muslim”

Oct. 2 -- Sociology Professor of the Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership and the CUNY Graduate Center is one of 13 Advanced Research Collaborative Distinguished Fellows for Spring 2016.

The prestigious fellowship gives Bozorgmehr the chance to work with Philip Kasinitz, the executive officer and presidential professor of sociology at the CUNY Graduate Center, on the proceedings of the "Growing Up Muslim in Europe and the United States" conference that they co-organized in April 2015.

Terri Watson asks parents of NYC's public school students: "What do you need?"

Sept. 25 -- Assistant Professor of Education intends to use a new grant award to continue her research introduced in the recently published manuscript, "Reframing Parent Involvement: What Should Urban School Leaders Do Differently?” The almost $12,000 grant from the Tides Foundation allows Watson to offer parents the resources they request to deepen their involvement in their children’s education.

Stanley Thangaraj picks up ASA prize

Sept. 22 -- Assistant Professor of Anthropology of the Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership wins the American Studies Association’s 2015 Comparative Ethnic Studies Essay Prize for his paper, “White and Islam: Contradictory Racial Logics in Kurdish America.”

“Stan's essay is ethnography-in-progress of Kurdish Americans in Nashville," said University of Washington Associate Professor of Communication Ralina Joseph, the chair of the judging committee. “He deftly parses out the complexities of race, language, phenotype and ethnicity of Kurds, Arabs, Persians, Muslims and South Asians.”

Marco Tedesco investigates Greenland’s ice sheet

Sept. 17 -- Associate Professor of Earth and Atmospheric Science , along with six colleagues, published an article in Earth and Space Science News, "What Darkens the Greenland Ice Sheet?", on the effect of solar radiation on Greenland’s ice sheet.  The article considers the various impediments to gaining a true understanding of the impact of greenhouse gases on the ice sheet.

Barbara Wilks writes about the confluence of ecology and the city

Sept. 1 -- Adjunct Associate Professor of Landscape Architecture 's new book, "," was cited as a "Book of Interest" in Landscape ArchitectureMagazine's August 2015 issue. The book, noted the magazine, "highlights the components of (Wilks's) collaborative, multidisciplinary practice that have produced multiple awards."

Dominick Pilla recognized for work in South Dakota

Aug. 24 -- Bernard and Anne Spitzer School of Architecture Associate Professor and his firm DRPILLA received a certificate of recognition from the  City College of New York of Engineers Without Borders-USA. Pilla was recognized for his work with the organization as the engineer of record for the construction of a 10,000-square-foot on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota. The center will be part of the larger Keya Wakpala Waíçageyapi development.

 

 

Terri Watson considers new ways to get urban high school students

' parents involved

Aug. 12 -- In her recently published manuscript, "Reframing Parent Involvement: What Should Urban School Leaders Do Differently?", Assistant Professor of Education challenges traditional (school-centered) beliefs surrounding parent involvement and offers school leaders a literal framework to better involve and engage parents of color in their children's academic success. Her manuscript celebrates parents and the ways in which they help their children succeed in school.

Tatyana Kleyn named Public Scholar by New York Council for the Humanities

Aug. 11 -- Associate Professor of the School of Education’s Department of Teaching, Learning, and Culture has been named a New York Council for the Humanities Public Scholar for a two-year term beginning Sept. 1.   

As a Public Scholar, Kleyn will deliver a series of lectures and presentations on her areas of academic specialty, immigration and bilingual education, to nonprofit organizations across New York.
 

William Helmreich keeps on walking

July 29 -- Professor of Sociology William B. Helmreich of the Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership was recently highlighted by The New Yorker's Joshua Rothman. It's all in a day's work for Helmreich, who plans to follow up on his 2013 book, "The New York Nobody Knows: Walking 6,000 Miles in the City," with five new books, one for each borough.

Helmreich will re-walk the entire city, starting in Brooklyn. He will traverse the Borough of Kings' 45 neighborhoods for the first book in the new series, to be published in 2016.

Mitchell Schaffler to be honored by ASBMR

, CUNY Distinguished Professor and Wallace H. Coulter Distinguished Professor of Biomedical Engineering, and chairman of the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the Grove School of Engineering, will be honored by the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research later this fall. The ASBMR, the preeminent research society in the bone field, will present Schaffler with its 2015 Gideon A. Rodan Excellence in Mentorship Award for his outstanding support of young investigators pursuing independent careers in bone and mineral metabolism.

Schaffller will be presented with his award at the ASBMR's Annual Meeting in Seattle in October.

Shira Epstein's book praised by peer

July 6 -- Assistant Professor of Education ’s book, "" (Teachers College Press, 2014), received a glowing in the July 6 Teachers College Record. “The book feels as though it was written in our current time, in that it acknowledges the real world in which most teachers work,” wrote reviewer Andrea S. Libresco, professor of social studies education at Hofstra University.

 

Stanley Thangaraj's first monograph explores masculinity and sport among Asian Americans

June 29 -- Assistant Professor of Anthropology of the Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership just published his first book, , one of the first works on masculinity formation and sport participation in South Asian American communities.

{C}{C}{C}{C}{C}{C}{C}{C}{C}{C}{C}{C}{C}{C}{C}{C}

 

Elise Engler draws all of Broadway

June 8 -- Elise Engler, adjunct lecturer in the School of Education, was the subject of a "Talk of the Town" item in The New Yorker, "," that details the creation of her latest work, "A Year on Broadway."

Terri Watson discusses “No Child Left Behind”

Dr. , assistant professor in the School of Education, is the next in the “Presidential Conversations: Activism, Scholarship, and Engagement”series on Thursday, December 4.  Her talk, “No Child Left Behind: A Harlem Tale,” starts at 4 p.m. in the Bernard and Anne Spitzer School of Architecture’s Sciame Auditorium, AR-107, at City College.  

 

 

Ethan Ham conceives social deduction games for autistic players

Social deduction board games have been a big hit with young adults ever since the first game, “Mafia,” was developed in 1986. Now City College Electronic Design and Multimedia Associate Professor Ethan Ham a workshop class to create games that teach social skills to players on the Autistic spectrum.

Professor Ham’s concept has received a Research in the Classroom Idea Grant from the City University of New York. The workshop starts in spring 2015 and will be offered in the art department.  

 

Debra Auguste-led discovery may help breast cancer treatment

Researchers led by Dr. Debra Auguste, associate professor, biomedical engineering, in the Grove School of Engineering, have a molecule that could lead to developing treatment for one of the most aggressive forms of breast cancer.
 
Triple negative breast cancers (TNBCs) have a high mortality rate owing to aggressive proliferation and metastasis and a lack of effective therapeutic options.  However, Professor Auguste’s team, discovered the overexpression of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (I