The Pharos: October 2021

 

FACULTY AND STAFF ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND BEST PRACTICES // OCTOBER 2021 IN PRINT President Scott D. Miller is in his 18th year as co-Executive Editor of the President to President series along with Dr. Marylouise Fennell. The 2021-2022 series is titled “The Vitality and Power of Higher Education,” and will examine how colleges are approaching their missions with new vigor and re-examining their role in the community. In the newly released second chapter, “Higher Education’s Responsibility to Generate Social Mobility,” DePaul University President A. Gabriel Esteban, Ph.D., explores how colleges can help address social inequities within education and beyond. Esteban shares strategies that have worked for his university, explaining how these initiatives support students as they work to overcome barriers and achieve their academic and professional goals. President Miller's daily blog, Dialogue, can be found at prezscottmiller.blogspot.com. Ben Haller's article on the reception of Euripides' 'Medea' in a recent film is under contract and forthcoming in the classics journal, Arethusa. Taryn Myers had two chapters published by the Society for the Teaching of Psychology in the ebook "Teaching Psychology Online," entitled "Unique assignments in an online Psychology and the Law course" and "But what should you DO with a degree in psychology? Creating a capstone course in Ethics and Professional Issues."  PRESENTATIONS AND PANELS Jennifer Slivka presented a paper titled "Paradoxical Freedom in This Hostel Life by Melatu Uche Okorie as part of a panel discussion at the International Association for the Study of Irish Literature's conference held by the University of Lodz, Poland. She also chaired a panel titled, "Silenced voices and social margins in Irish fiction." Benjamin Dobrin was a panelist on the podcast Crime Stories with Nancy Grace, entitled "Boyfriend Brian Laundrie Goes on Camping Trip With Parents After Gabby Reported Missing". Dobrin spoke about police dive teams and evidentiary searches. As a co-founder of the Virginia Joint Coalition of Learning Disabilities and Literacy (VJCLDL), Mindy Gumpert facilitated a webinar for educators with nearly 100 attendees, presented by Dr. Tiffany Hogan on Developmental Language Disorders and Dyslexia. Members of VJCLDL include three state organizations supporting students with learning disabilities and dyslexia, three NAACP branches, and The Reading League Virginia. Craig Wansink and Terry Lindvall kicked off the VWU semester of INTEL (Innovative Teaching and Engaged Learning) presentations with "Humor: How to Use Humor in the Classroom and Why It's a Good idea."  GRANTS Brian Kurisky received a grant of $300 for VWU from the Alliance for Youth Organizing for civic engagement with the 2021 Commonwealth of Virginia Elections. Kurisky also received a $3,000 grant from Students Learn, Students Vote for civic engagement events for the 2022 election cycle. OTHER ACCOMPLISHMENTS Benjamin Dobrin attended the Mid-Atlantic Public Safety Dive Forum. He assisted in leading a training module entitled "Advanced Buoyancy for the Public Safety Diver." Brian Kurisky was recently appointed as the inaugural President for the Virginia ACPA (Student Affairs International) Chapter. Stephen Emmanuel was interviewed about his book, Philosophy's Big Questions: Comparing Buddhist and Western Approaches, Columbia University Press) for the American Philosophical Association Blog. Each installment features books chosen by the editors for its "Recently Published Book Spotlight." Clair Berube has been named to the Board of the Rowman & Littlefield School Leadership Series with the Board Director Jeffrey Glanz, at Michlalah-Jeruselum College in Israel. In a partnership with The Chrysler Museum of Art, Craig Wansink was asked to train docents on how to approach the challenges of interfaith discussions and tours. This resulted in the creation of four distinct tours: “Nevertheless, They Persisted: The Feminine in the World’s Religions:” ”There’s Something About Mary: An Interfaith Dialogue Between Roman Catholics and Protestants;” “Jews and Christians: Same Art, Different Responses;” and “Dragging You Into the Story: Biblical Art That Expects Your Response.” Those tours will also be regular parts of various religious studies courses at the university. Craig Wansink led 30 Chrysler visitors on a tour entitled “Dragging You Into the Story: Biblical Art That Expects Your Response.” Craig Wansink traveled to Sioux City, Iowa for the three-day fall board meeting at Morningside University, where he has served on the Board of Trustees for 18 of the last 20 years. He currently serves on the External Relations Committee, on the Graduate and Nontraditional Programs Committee, and as Board Liaison to the Higher Learning Commission. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT Elizabeth Malcolm's research students organized a citizen science research project to measure the urban heat island across Virginia Beach. Thirty volunteers including VWU students, staff, alumni, and community members participated. The data will be used to identify communities that are disproportionately impacted by extreme heat and should be targeted for interventions such as tree planting. Read the current issue or archives of The Pharos