August 11, 2009

Six join Applied Sciences and Arts faculty

by Christi Mathis

CARBONDALE, Ill. -- The College of Applied Sciences and Arts at Southern Illinois University Carbondale welcomes six new full-time faculty members for the fall 2009 semester.

In the architecture school, Siwon Cho is the new assistant professor for the fashion design and merchandising program. She will teach courses in fashion careers, clothing design basic principles, textiles, fashion product analysis and textile and apparel economics. Her research focuses on topics including the consumer purchase decision process, customer satisfaction and preference, self-concept, brand image and online shopping

Cho earned her bachelor’s degree in clothing and textiles from SIUC in 1997. She also acquired a master’s in clothing and textiles in May 2001 and a doctorate in apparel, housing and resource management, both at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Va.

Cho’s background includes experience as a guest lecturer, instructor and graduate teaching assistant at Virginia Tech.

Margaret DiCocco is an assistant professor in the Physician Assistant Program. She will teach courses in applied research methodology, interpreting statistics and fundaments of evidence-based medicine and she’ll also be involved in program and independent research.

She earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology in 1995 and her master’s degree in 1998, both in psychology, at the University of Texas at San Antonio. She is working on her doctorate in philosophy at SIUC.

DiCocco has served as a graduate assistant, teaching assistant, guest lecturer and lecturer at SIUC in the psychology department and in the physician assistant program during the past four years. She’s also been a lecturer and teaching associate at the University of Texas at San Antonio and was an adjunct faculty member at Northwest Visa Community College at San Antonio, Texas. Her experience also includes work as an associate with SIUC’s Applied Research Consultants and as a statistician and database manager and a social science research associate for the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio.

The School of Information Systems and Applied Technologies welcomes two new faculty members this fall: Andrey Soares and Kevin Roth, both assistant professors.

Soares will teach in the information systems technologies program. He is completing his doctorate in information science and technology at Pennsylvania State University and holds a master’s in computer science from 2001 and a graduate diploma in computer networks issued in 2001 from the Federal University of Santa Catarina in Florianópolis, Brazil. He also earned his bachelor of science in computer science at the University of Valley of Itajai in Brazil in 1994 and his associate in systems analysis in 1994 at the Catarinense Association of Education and Informatics in Brazil.

Soares was a research assistant at Pennsylvania State University and the University of Valley of Itajai and an instructor at Pennsylvania State, University of South of Santa Catarina, Federal Technical School of Santa Catarina and Tupy Technical School, all three Brazilian institutions. He also has been a teaching assistant at Pennsylvania State and acquired experience in industrial settings as a researcher, systems administrator, software engineer and more.

Roth will teach in the Technical Resource Management Program. He received an associate degree at John A. Logan College in Carterville in 1977 and then earned a bachelor of arts in architecture in 1979 and a master of science in civil engineering and master of arts in architecture in 1984, all at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

A certified interior designer in Illinois, Roth is a licensed architect in Illinois, Nevada, Indiana and Missouri, with Mississippi pending, and he holds several other certifications relative to design and construction. Working with Desert Dawg Solutions Inc. since August 2008, he has provided professional energy and sustainability consulting services.

His previous experience includes employment with The Walton Group in Springfield, as director of architectural services for the building and facilities department at Hanson Professional Services Inc. in Springfield, as university architect and as director of facilities planning, acting director of facilities planning, and assistant university architect at SIUC. In addition, Roth has worked as an architect for the Illinois Department of Corrections, a principal in Thompson/Roth Associates Inc. (architects and engineers) in Troy, as an instructor at Belleville Area College, and in other posts in a career filled with architecture and engineering positions dating to the 1970s.

Two new faculty join the School of Transportation. Eugene R. Talley is an assistant professor in the Department of Automotive Technology. He will teach courses in automotive air conditioning systems and automotive drive trains.

Talley comes to SIUC from Chrysler Corp., where he was a warranty specialist with corporate quality in Auburn Hills, Mich. He has 13 years experience in automotive diagnostics repair and service. Prior to becoming a warranty specialist in September 2005, Talley worked for the company as a service engineer. He also was a technical training instructor with DaimlerChrysler Corp. from 2001 to 2005.

Talley earned his master’s of business administration in industrial management in March from Baker College. He earned his bachelor’s degree in advanced technical studies from SIUC in 1993, and an associate degree in automotive technology from SIUC in 1991.

Samuel R. Pavel is an assistant professor in aviation management. This fall he’ll teach aviation industry regulations, air traffic control and aviation management.

Pavel holds a philosophy doctorate in economics, earned at the University of Notre Dame in 2001 where he also completed a master of arts in (institutional) economics in 1997. He previously completed a master’s in economics at the University of Denver in 1994. Along with a master’s of divinity in 1994 from the Iliff School of Theology, he completed his bachelor’s in aviation science management at Central Washington University in Ellensburg, Wash., in 1985.

Pavel brings to the post experience as an air traffic controller and teacher. He has been an assistant professor of business at Purdue University North Central, an assistant adjunct professor of economics at the University of Notre Dame and been visiting assistant professor of economics at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo College and the University of Denver.

He’s been an air traffic controller for the Federal Aviation Administration and also for the city of Elkhart, Ind. Pavel is a licensed private pilot and certified control tower operator.