Faculty and staff sketches

July 16, 2024 (Volume 47, Number 20)

Faculty and staff members who have given presentations, were recognized for outstanding contributions or had their research published are detailed below. The campus community can submit a sketch online for future publication. 

In the News

Astro Anchors successful at NASA challenge
Grand Valley's student chapter of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers successfully deployed their lunar flagpole during the Micro-g NExT Challenge at the Johnson Space Center in Houston in June. Sanjivan Manoharan, associate professor of engineering, said the Astro Anchors were the only team to deploy the flagpole to withstand applied force. For their efforts, team members earned the outreach award, which recognizes their STEM engagement with Allendale High School and others in the community.

University Communications staff Sarah Dudinetz, Tony Packer and Kendra Stanley-Mills received a bronze award in the 2024 CASE Circle of Excellence Awards for communication initiatives around "Water in the West." The story of a faculty-led, experiential learning program was published on GVNext, Grand Valley Magazine and social media.

University Communications photographers Kendra Stanley-Mills and Amanda Pitts received numerous awards from the University Photographers Association of America: "Online Photo Essay," first and third place, two honorable mentions for Exposure stories of Water in the West, Pride of the Midwest, Cuts at the Clock and Return of Wrestling; "News and College Life," first and second place for photos of the marching band and campus life; Pitts also received a Master of the Profession award.

Dan Giedeman, professor of economics, was interviewed by WalletHub for a story about secured credit cards.

Peter Wampler, professor of geology, was interviewed by WXMI-TV for a story about why West Michigan dunes and beaches squeak.

WGVU Public Media received a 2024 Michigan Emmy in the military category for its feature "Mutually Inclusive: Virgil Nishimura Westdale & The 442nd." The program explored the stories of Nisei soldiers, Japanese Americans who served during World War II, and features the first-hand account of Virgil Nishimura, a West Michigan native who served in the 442nd battalion.

Lisa Perhamus, director of the Padnos/Sarosik Center for Civil Discourse and professor of educational foundations, was interviewed by WZZM for a story about calls for a shift in political rhetoric following the attempted assassination attempt on former President Trump.

Paul Stansbie, associate dean, College of Education and Community Innovation, was interviewed by WalletHub for a story about credit cards with high annual fees.

Erika Tellez-Gonzalez, program specialist for TRIO Laker Educational Opportunity Center, was interviewed about TRIO programs by WKTV for the station's "Soundbites- en Español" program.

Sketches
Michael P. Lombardo, professor emeritus of biology; Sango Otieno, professor of statistics; and students Nathan Wagner, Jared Laughlin, Levi Rosendall, Clara Voetberg and Alejandro Hoban were authors of an article, "First Egg Dates of Tree Swallows (Tachycineta bicolor) Nesting in Boxes in West Michigan Advanced with Increasing Spring Temperatures between 1993-2018," published in the Journal of Field Ornithology.

Adeline Borti, assistant professor of English education, was a co-author of an article, "Using Ubuntu as a Research Paradigm to Unpack How Ghanaian Novice Teachers and Their Collaborators Engaged Virtually in Collaborative International Qualitative Research," published in the International Journal of Qualitative Methods.

David VanderSloot, director of Conference Planning and Hospitality Services, led a panel discussion, "Campus Conference Centers: How Does Yours Match Up?" at the Association of Collegiate Conference and Events Directors-International conference in Providence, Rhode Island. 

Azizur Molla, professor of public health, was a co-author of an article, "Sea Level Rise from Climate Change is Expected to Increase the Release of Arsenic into Bangladesh's Drinking Well Water by Reduction and by the Salt effect," published in PLOS.

Charter Schools Office staff members Barry Hall II and Matt Missias gave a presentation, "Leveraging Education Systems to Create Equitable Lifelong Learning for All Students," at the annual Carnegie Foundation Summit on Improvement in Education in San Diego, California.

Martin Burg, professor of biomedical sciences, and students Lydia Cruce and Margaret Cubitt gave a presentation, "Disruption of the AANATL-7 Gene Identifies an Additional Metabolic Pathway for Histamine Inactivation in Drosophila Melanogaster" at the Allied Genetics Conference. Burg gave another presentation, "The Genomics Education Partnership: A Path to Classroom Research Experiences in Person or at a Distance."

Jeremy Paul, assistant director of Student Life, gave two presentations at the Association of Fraternal Leadership & Values and National Black Greek Leadership Conference: "From Values to Action: Fostering Accountability in F/S Orgs" and "Guiding the Divine Nine: Insights on Navigating Non-NPHC Advisors." 

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Faculty & Staff Sketches

This article was last edited on July 16, 2024 at 8:35 a.m.

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