Accolades News for Researchers
Posted November 1, 2024 by Tiffany Lee
Honors and Recognitions
Shannon Bartelt-Hunt, civil and environmental engineering, was named a 2024 fellow of the Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors. Fellows are selected based on accomplishments in environmental engineering and science research, teaching and professional service. Bartelt-Hunt is a longtime national leader in environmental engineering research and teaching, with a research focus on water quality in agricultural production systems. The 2024 class of fellows will receive medals during the 2025 AEESP awards ceremony at Duke University.
Minshuai Ding, Bureau of Sociological Research, is the 2024 recipient of the John Tarnai Memorial Scholarship Award from the Association of Academic Survey Research Organizations. The scholarship recognizes an outstanding early-career survey center employee with great promise for long-term involvement in and contributions to the field of survey research. Funds are used for expenses associated with attending the annual meetings of the association and/or the International Field Directors and the Field Technologies Conference.
Paul C. Hay (posthumous) and Randy Pryor (emeritus), Nebraska Extension, received the Outstanding Water Conservation of the Year Award from Nebraska’s Natural Resources Districts. They were honored for their nearly 40 years of service to agricultural sustainability in Southeast Nebraska, including major contributions to the region’s farming community. Their collaboration with the NRDs, farmers and the broader community set new standards in conservation and education.
Colleen Jones, management (emeritus), posthumously received the Woman of the Year award during the 10th annual Inspire – Celebrating Women Leadership Awards presented by the Lincoln Journal Star. Jones was recognized for her contributions to Husker students and faculty, the community of Lincoln and beyond, particularly the Strive to Thrive Project, an initiative she started in one of her classes where students awarded $10,000 to local nonprofits while learning about the grant writing process.
Sungeun Kang, educational psychology, was selected for the Korean-American Educational Researchers Association’s Early Scholar Program. The selective two-year cohort program offers emerging Korean and Korean American scholars with mentorship from peers and other professionals, professional development seminars, and peer networking and leadership-building activities.
Stevan Knezevic, agronomy and horticulture, received a certificate of appreciation from the Serbian Weed Science Society. The award, which is similar to a fellow award in the United States, honors Knezevic’s efforts to advance weed science in Serbia and train Serbian graduate students at Nebraska. Knezevic, a faculty member at UNL since 1998, received the certificate at the 12th Serbian Weed Science Society Conference, held in northeastern Serbia.
Yvonne Lai, mathematics, received the Award for Impact on the Teaching and Learning of Mathematics from the American Mathematical Society. The award is given annually to a mathematician for significant contributions of lasting value to mathematics education. Lai was recognized as a leader in bridging the gap between the mathematics and mathematics education communities. Her current research program focuses on improving the education of secondary mathematics teachers and early mathematics majors.
Todd Thornock, accountancy, is the first academic research fellow of the Institute of Management Accountants. In this new role, Thornock will represent the IMA’s mission and vision to the global academic research community and guide IMA’s academic research platform. The institute is the worldwide association of accountants and financial professionals in business.
Jordan Soliz, communication studies, received the Bernard J. Brommel Award for Outstanding Scholarship or Distinguished Service in Family Communication from the National Communication Association. The award recognizes an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the area of family communication. Soliz was recognized for his teaching, mentorship, professional service and research on family dynamics, identity and difference.
Tyler Goodrich White, Glenn Korff School of Music, won two silver medals at this year’s Global Music Awards, for composer and original score for “The Four Elements.” The Global Music Awards are a well-known international music competition that celebrates independent musicians. The awards are recognized as music’s “golden seal of approval” and receive hundreds of entries each year from around the world. “The Four Elements (Chamber Symphony No. 2)” by White includes four movements: Earth (Intrada Fantasy), Water Waltz, Air—An Elegy, and Fire Finale.
Publications
Katie Anania, art, art history and design, has published her first book, “Out of Paper: Drawing, Environment, and the Body in 1960s America.” The book was released Oct. 15 by Yale University Press. The book explores how U.S. artists used paper to radically redefine the relationship between the body and its surroundings, and to propose new conceptions of ecology in the decades following World War II.
Edward Deehan, food science and technology, co-authored a review article published in Nature Reviews Gastroenterology & Hepatology. It discusses the physiochemical properties of different dietary fibers, current findings on how fiber and the gut microbiota interact to regulate body weight homeostasis, and knowledge gaps related to the use of fibers as a complementary strategy for the treatment and prevention of obesity.
The University of Nebraska College of Law is launching a new peer-reviewed journal, the Nebraska Journal on Advancing Justice. It will provide a forum for robust, disruptive and creative scholarly engagement from academics, researchers, judges, lawyers, people who are justice-impacted and community members on issues of advancing justice for all in American Society. Danielle Jefferis, Schmid Professor for Excellence in Research and assistant professor of law, will serve as the faculty editor-in-chief. Brooklyn Terrill, ’25, is the inaugural student editor-in-chief. The first volume will be published in spring 2025.
Professional Service
Danielle Jefferis, law, was appointed to the Criminal Justice Committee of the American Bar Association’s Section on Civil Rights and Social Justice. The committee focuses on protecting the constitutional rights of people accused or convicted of crimes and monitors trends in the criminal system for the purpose of providing feedback and guidance on policy questions.
Christal Sheppard, law, presented on intellectual property law, fielded questions and engaged with an Iraqi delegation invited to the United States by the U.S. State Department. In July 2024, after a 16-year delay, Iraq restarted the negotiations on their application for accession to the World Trade Organization, which has important intellectual property implications and obligations.
Shari Veil, journalism and mass communications, collaborated with the Big Red Sub Club to conduct a media training exercise for officers and shipmen of the USS Nebraska. The sailors who participated in the training were selected by the USS Nebraska’s commander in recognition of their ability to go above and beyond. They gained experience being interviewed on a green screen and participated in an interview with Veil about their experience in the Navy and on USS Nebraska.
Other News
Meghan Jackson is the new director for food, agriculture and environmental security for the National Strategic Research Institute and the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources, which together started the FAES focus area in 2022. The purpose is to help U.S. government agencies protect the nation from intentional, accidental and natural threats to food and agriculture production systems, such as crop production and livestock, and the environment. Jackson will guide the initiative’s research priorities and deliverables.
Adam Leise was selected as the new director of the On-Farm Research Network, which collaborates directly with state producers to address critical questions surrounding production, profitability, and natural resource management. Leise is a recent graduate of Nebraska and brings both academic expertise and personal experience to the role, having grown up on a farm and ranch in Hartington.
Jennifer Nelson, associate vice chancellor for research, centers and core facilities, will step into the role of interim vice chancellor for Research and Innovation on Nov. 15. Nelson has been a Husker faculty member since 2011 and has served as director of administration of the Center for Brain, Biology and Behavior. Currently, she is responsible for research strategy and infrastructure and serves as Nebraska’s research integrity officer, overseeing the university’s efforts to comply with national requirements and norms for responsible conduct of research and conflict of interest. Sherri Jones, current interim vice chancellor, is stepping down to begin transitioning to her planned retirement.
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