Accolades News for Researchers
Posted June 1, 2018 by Ashley Washburn
Awards, Honors and Recognitions
Ted Hamann, teaching, learning and teacher education, received the inaugural Spotlight Award from the Lincoln Education Association on May 17. He was honored for his role in successfully nominating Lincoln High School for a Schools of Opportunity Award from the National Education Policy Center. Hamann and his graduate students volunteered to research and draft the nomination.
Katherine Nashleanas, geography, received the Higher Education Distinguished Teaching Award from the National Council for Geographic Education. The honor, which recognizes and supports excellence in geography teaching among college and university educators, will be presented at the National Conference on Geography Education, Aug. 6-10 in Québec, Canada.
Kristen Olson, sociology, was named a fellow of the American Statistical Association. The association grants fellowship to no more than one-third of 1 percent of its membership each year.
Jay Puckett, director of the Durham School of Architectural Engineering and Construction, was named Wyoming Eminent Engineer for 2018 by the Wyoming Alpha chapter of Tau Beta Pi, the national engineering honor society. The annual award honors an individual who has provided significant service to Wyoming’s College of Engineering or the state of Wyoming in the engineering field. Puckett served the University of Wyoming from 1983 to 2015, before starting at the Durham School.
Kamlakar Rajurkar, mechanical and materials engineering, received the M. Eugene Merchant Manufacturing Medal from the American Society of Mechanical Engineers/Society of Manufacturing Engineers. The award honors individuals who have significantly improved the productivity and efficiency of manufacturing operations. Rajurkar will receive the award at the ASME Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition, Nov. 12 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
David Sellmyer, physics and astronomy, and director of the Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience, was honored at the Materials Research Society’s spring meeting, April 2-6 in Phoenix, Arizona. The five-day symposium, “Nanoscale Magnetic Structure and Materials,” was organized by Sellmyer’s friends and colleagues to celebrate his many achievements and contributions to the field. The meeting included more than 30 research talks and a banquet.
Kristy Weissling, special education and communication disorders, is helping form a partnership between the Barkley Speech Language and Hearing Clinic and Horses for Healing: Equine Therapy and Research Center. While the client rides the horse, the speech therapist walks alongside, integrating speech therapy and the riding lesson.
Anna Williams Shavers, law, was one of 44 new members elected to the prestigious American Law Institute, the leading independent organization in the U.S. producing scholarly work to clarify, modernize and improve the law. The elected membership is limited to 3,000 attorneys in the U.S. and abroad.
Andrew Zimbroff, textiles, merchandising and fashion design, was selected for a Fulbright Scholar Award to Escola Superior de Agricultura Luiz de Queiroz, a unit of the University of São Paulo, in Piracicaba, São Paulo, Brazil. While there from Sept. 1-Dec. 31, he will teach, research and promote innovative agribusiness entrepreneurship.
Professional Involvement
Rick Alloway, journalism and mass communications, was named to the advisory board for P1 Learning, a Kansas City-based media training organization that creates and develops short video training courses for busy professionals. The training sessions focus on a wide range of topics including media sales, employee onboarding, leadership and business.
Anna Williams Shavers, law, was appointed as a public member to the Administrative Conference of the United States, an independent federal agency that recommends improvements to administrative process and procedure. She will serve primarily as a member of the rulemaking committee.
Yan Ruth Xia, child, youth and family studies, presented her research at the United Nations in New York City on May 15-16. She discussed family policies for inclusive societies at an expert group meeting organized by the Division for Social Policy and Development of the U.N. Department of Economic and Social Affairs. Xia’s research focus is on Asian populations in the U.S and Chinese family relationships in China.
Publishing Honors
Chris Bilder, statistics, is co-author of a study, “Hierarchical Group Testing for Multiple Infections,” that was named the best 2017 paper to be published in Biometrics, a journal from the International Biometric Society. The study describes a statistical approach that allows clinicians to simultaneously screen multiple patients for multiple infections.
José Ángel Maldonado, communication studies, received the Dissertation Award from the Rhetoric Society of America, an interdisciplinary society for individuals who pursue scholarship in rhetoric. He received the award at the association’s annual meeting, May 30-June 3 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Other News
Richard Bischoff was named associate vice chancellor for faculty and academic leader success in the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources. Bischoff, Gwendolyn A. Newkirk Professor of Leadership in Child, Youth and Family Studies, began the post May 15. In this role, he will focus on faculty and academic leader development and success. Previously, Bischoff was department chair of child, youth and family studies, and has been a Nebraska faculty member since 1998.
Tim Carr became associate vice chancellor and dean of graduate education on June 1. Carr, the Jean Sundell Tinstman Professor of Nutrition and Health Sciences, had served as interim leader of graduate education since April 27. He also recently served as department chair of nutrition and health sciences. Carr’s research focuses on cholesterol transport in the body and how dietary factors influence cardiovascular and metabolic disease.
Lance C. Pérez was named dean of the College of Engineering, effective May 15. He was selected after serving as interim dean since July 2016. He is an experienced academic and campus leader, having previously served as associate vice chancellor for academic affairs and dean of graduate studies. Pérez, a professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, focuses his research on wireless communications, informational processing and engineering education.
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