Accomplishments - November, 2015
Heather Brake, Student Involvement Coordinator, is writing a series for OrgSync as a blogger for the “Learn Forward” professional development series. She is writing a series on the sophomore year experience: “The Not-So-Easy Transition: Freshman to Sophomore Year.” The first of the three-blog series is on the transition from the freshman to sophomore year experience.
“Cowboy Christmas,” a feature-length documentary by H.D. Motyl, Radio, Television & Digital Media, recently earned the “Platinum Reel Award” from the Nevada International Film Festival. The film focuses on the lives of rodeo cowboys. The documentary is being distributed to the educational video market.
“Never The Same: The Prisoner of War Experience,” a documentary by Jan Thompson, Radio, Television, and Digital Media, was screened on Veterans Day, Nov. 11, as part of the 30th annual Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival, Nov. 6-22.
Qian Huang, School of Architecture, has a peer-reviewed paper titled “System Design, Analysis and Optimization of Li-Fi based Energy Harvesting Embedded Systems for ‘Internet of Things’ Applications,” accepted for presentation at the International Conference on Internet of Things and Convergence, Nov. 26-28, in Daejeon, Korea.
Deborah R. Barnett, Non-Traditional Student Services, published a series of modules, “Advocating for Pregnant and Parenting Students: How to be Proactive and not Reactive,” as part of the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) Online Learning Community. The online series, in collaboration with NASPA’s Adult Learners and Students with Children Knowledge Community, educates participants on three topics relevant to pregnant and parenting student advocacy – resources, lactation space and family friendly activities and visibility events. Barnett partnered with colleagues from Austin Peay University and DePaul University to present the section involving family friendly activities.
James Wall, Department of Radio, Television, and Digital Media, is a recipient of the 2016 International Radio and Television Society (IRTS) Faculty Fellowship. Regarded as one of the most sought-after and highly competitive faculty fellowships in the media industry, roughly only 20 faculty worldwide receive the awards. College professors will meet with industry leaders and bring cutting-edge knowledge back to the classroom. The faculty-industry seminar is in Las Vegas, Nev., Jan. 5-7.
Four faculty in the School of Architecture -- Shelby Adkinson, Siwon Cho, Laura Kidd and Laura Morthland -- have a research paper, “Developing Soft Skills through Multidisciplinary Cooperative and Situated Learning,” accepted for presentation at the 2015 Annual Conference of International Textile and Apparel Association (ITAA) in Santa Fe, N.M., Nov. 9-13.
Joseph Schafer, Criminology and Criminal Justice, recently was named a commissioner for the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, known as CALEA. The international organization dedicated to public safety accreditation was established in 1979 by law enforcement’s major executive associations to encourage various public safety agencies to voluntarily demonstrate that they meet certain professional standards. The four founding associations of the accrediting body are: the International Association of Chiefs of Police; the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives; the National Sheriffs’ Association and the Police Executive Research Forum. Board members are drawn not only from law enforcement and academia, but also from business, the judiciary and state and local government.
A paper co-authored by Siwon Cho, Fashion Design and Merchandising, entitled “Brand perception and brand repurchase intent in online apparel shopping: An examination of brand experience, image congruence, brand effect, and brand trust," has been accepted for publication in the Journal of Global Fashion Marketing. The co-authors are Jessie Chen-Yu and Doris Kincade, both of Virginia Tech.
Walter V. Wendler, director, School of Architecture, was one of six former students to receive the “Outstanding Alumni Award” from the College of Architecture at Texas A&M University on Oct. 23. Less than one percent of the architecture college’s former students are recognized as outstanding alumni.
Andy Morgan, acting associate dean of students, received training in October from the Higher Learning Commission to be a Standard and Open Pathways Peer Reviewer for 999 higher education institutions in 19 states. These institutions include research and comprehensive universities, such as SIU Carbondale, tribal colleges, community colleges, and liberal arts institutions. Morgan will review an institution's assurance agreements, identify evidence, write evidentiary statements, and work with an accreditation team to determine an institution's accreditation.
