Josey Roth, a 2015 USI graduate in Writing, was named the Young Professional of the Year by the Southwest Indiana Chamber at its 2019 Young Professionals Conference held on August 2 at UE. Roth, who serves as the director of strategy and organizational development at the Evansville Christian Life Center, was an intern for Southern Indiana Review during her time at USI.

She was presented the award by Christine Keck, USI trustee and chair of the SWIN Chamber Board of Directors.

In a Facebook post, Roth says “I want to say thank you to my undergrad professors and advisors, especially Professor Matthew Graham, Professor Marcus Wicker, and Ron Mitchell who trusted in me to take on my first internship my senior year at the Southern Indiana Review.”

A Facebook post from SWIN Chamber is viewable at https://www.facebook.com/swinchamber/posts/2595579613827426.

Justin Groenert, Master of Public Administration graduate, joined the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce as vice president, Public Policy in August 2019. 

“Justin brings a wide breadth and depth of public policy experience that will advance the Chattanooga Chamber’s advocacy initiatives. He has led transformative chamber and community policy work and we are excited to welcome him to our innovative team,” said Christy Gillenwater, Chattanooga Chamber president and CEO.

Since July 2018, Mr. Groenert has served as chief of staff for Kelly Mitchell, Indiana State Treasurer. He oversaw office staff and six quasi-governmental organizations and served as legislative director for the Treasurer’s office. Previously he served as Government Relations and Public Policy Director, Southwest Indiana Chamber, where he managed advocacy and lobbying at federal, state and local levels.

Mr. Groenert has worked for two Congress members and managed several congressional campaigns. Read the full story.

Instructor in English, Yu-Li Alice Shen's original full-length play, Image May Contain, was produced by STAGEtwo Productions on July 12-14, 2019. The script was developed last summer with STAGEtwo's Summer Playwriting Workshop and at the 40th Annual Mid-America Theatre Conference in Cleveland, OH.

The production was directed by Katy Haun and featured performances by USI theatre student Sarai Dinkens Agalaba and local thespians, Daryl Fink, Jared Brosmer, Aaron Stofleth, Mikayla Robledo, Diane Marie-Louise. Partially inspired by Shen's going to Taiwan to perform Buddhist funeral rituals for her late father, the play is a darkly comic exploration of racial identity, "life-share" culture, and the families we choose. (Photo Credit: Digital Dynamo Productions)

Dr. Urska Dobersek, assistant professor of Psychology, and her students presented their research, "Are levels of testosterone, willingness to cheat and exercise motives related?" and "The relationship between facial asymmetry and exercise" at the North American Society for the Psychology of Sport and Physical Activity national conference in Baltimore, Maryland.

Dobersek also received a $10,555 grant from the National Cattlemen's Beef Association to conduct a systematic review on "Beef for a Happier and Healthier Life."

Dr. Crystal Steltenpohl, assistant professor of Psychology, received the Innovative Research on Aging Bronze Award from Mather LifeWays Institute on Aging for the article she co-authored titled "Me time, or we time? Age differences in motivation for exercise." Mather LifeWays Institute on Aging was created to conduct research for senior living and community-residing older adults. Read the summary of their work in the report.

Dr. Julia Galbus Kiesel, associate professor of English and chair of the department, had her article "Working (with) History: Marlene Kadar and Louise DeSalvo" published in the journal Auto/Biography Studies.

Professor Emerita of English, Sherry Bevins Darell, recently published a collection of work entitled Eclectic Cowboy and Other Poems. Her book can be published at Lulu.com.

Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb has appointed Dr. Trent Engbers, assistant professor of Political Science and Public Administration and director of the Master of Public Administration program, as the faculty member of the Indiana Commission for Higher Education for a two-year term.​

Assistant Professor of English Dr. Casey Pycior had three pieces accepted for publication in the summer of 2019. One essay, "Fear Fact(or), Fear Fiction" appeared in Eckleburg Review (read it now at https://buff.ly/2Jq5noL), and a second essay was accepted by The Laurel Review. A short story called "Remittance" was accepted for publication by a Kentucky literary journal called Exit 7. 

In June, he was also awarded an Indiana Arts Commission Individual Advancement Program Grant to work on his baseball novel project.

Dr. Daniel Bauer, associate professor of anthropology, presented the paper "Crafting Justice and Inclusion: Chambira Weaving in Amazonian Peru" at the 2019 International Congress of the Latin American Studies Association in Boston, Massachusetts.

Eight College of Liberal Arts faculty members representing six departments spent a week in May focusing on their own personal projects during a new, on-campus working retreat organized by Dr. Amy Montz, associate professor of English. Read more about the retreat.

Dr. Laura Lutgen, assistant professor of criminal justice, presented her work "Recidivism and Drug of Choice for Individuals in a Jail-Based Treatment Program" at the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences conference in Baltimore, Maryland. The Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences (ACJS) is an international association established to foster professional and scholarly activities in the field of criminal justice. ACJS promotes criminal justice education, research and policy analysis within the discipline of criminal justice for both educators and practitioners.

David O'Neil, assistant professor of English, presented the paper, "Continuity and Bifurcation: A Metrical Study of Piers Plowman and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight," at the 54th International Congress on Medieval Studies at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo. The panel, The Places and Spaces of Alliterative Verse, was jointly sponsored by the International Piers Plowman Society and the Pearl-Poet Society.

Forty-six members of the USI Chamber Choir travelled to New York City’s famed Carnegie Hall as a part of the Masterwork Festival Chorus 20th Anniversary Concert in May 2019.

USI is one of five higher education institutions that will perform that evening, with USI performing Gabriel Fauré’s Requiem, a 45-minute, seven-movement piece based on the Catholic Mass of the Dead. “It is absolutely beautiful,” says Daniel Craig, associate professor of music and director of the USI Chamber Choir. The Chamber Choir will be accompanied by the New York City Chamber Orchestra, under the direction of conductor Simon Carrington. Read more...

Dr. Trent Engbers, director of the Master of Public Administration program and associate professor of Political Science, was selected as one of two Youth Resources outstanding alumni for 2019. This award recognizes the individual's involvement in Youth Resources and their broader contribution to the community. Youth Resources is a local youth-serving nonprofit that encourages responsible decision making and positive life choices.

In April, Dr. Jessica Jensen, director of Master of Arts in Second Language Acquisition, Policy & Culture and associate professor of French, presented her paper Writing the unwillingly reproductive body in Contemporary French Fiction at the Kentucky Foreign Language Conference at the University of Kentucky in Lexington.

Dr. Jason Hardgrave, chair of the History department and associate professor of History, has recently been named Committee Chair for USI’s Boy Scouts of America Venture Crew 313.

Hardgrave was a 2018 recipient of the District Award of Merit from the Boy Scouts of America, Buffalo Trace Council, Native Trails District of Indiana. The District Award of Merit is a council award presented by districts to Scouters who render service of an outstanding nature at the district level. Hardgrave, an eagle scout, has served as Cub Master, Den Leader, Day Camp Program Director, Shooting Sports Officer, Merit Badge Counselor, and Scout Master. He says he happily gives over 600 hours to scouting each year. The best part is being able to do it all with his family; his son is also an eagle scout. 

Dr. Todd Schroer, chair of Criminal Justice and associate professor of Sociology & Criminal Justice, has been chosen as a Fellow for the Holocaust Educational Foundation's Summer Institute on the Holocaust and Jewish Civilization at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. This two week Institute, is comprised of intensive seminars on Holocaust studies and related topics, conducted by some of the field’s top experts.

In March, Dr. Jessica Jensen, director of Master of Arts in Second Language Acquisition, Policy & Culture and associate professor of French, presented her paper Surviving the unwillingly reproductive body in Rien de grave at the 20th and 21st Century French and Francophone Studies International Colloquium at University of Oklahoma, Oklahoma City.

In honor of its 50th anniversary, the University of Southern Indiana Foundation has awarded Alexandria Bailey ’14 a commission for a new sculpture to be located outside the McCutchan Art Center/Pace Galleries in the Liberal Arts Center on the USI campus.

Bailey’s sculpture, Standing Together, will consist of five ceramic columns standing between nine and 12 feet tall, one for each decade of the USI Foundation’s existence. In her description of the work, Bailey says that viewers will be able to walk among the columns and hopes the piece will “serve as a starting point for fostering empathy and as a site to develop and nurture fellowship.” Read more...

Dr. Silvia Rode, chair of World Languages and Cultures and professor of German, was nominated as Southwest Regional Leader for the Indiana Language Roadmap Project, School of Global and International Studies/Center for the Study of Global Change Indiana University, Bloomington and the State of Indiana, 2018-2019.

History student Jordan Kroeger received the Outstanding Future Educators Award from the Indiana Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (IACTE) on April 12, 2019. Jordan was one of three recipients selected from USI's Teacher Education Program this year.

Lisa [Schenk] Schaefer '97 has been appointed Executive Director of the Robinson Chamber of Commerce in Robinson, Illinois.

Her degree from USI in Art & Communications and several years of experience helped in creating her small graphic design business, Ellieoh Designs. "I am a proud alumna of USI and I have been able to successfully utilize both of my degrees throughout my career over the last 20+ years." Lisa is pictured here with her sons Leo & Jack.

Dr. Silvia Rode, chair of World Languages and Cultures and professor of German, published a book in February of 2019: George Rapp. Gedanken über die Bestimmung des Menschen besonders in Hinsicht der gegenwärtigen Zeit von der Harmonie Gesellschaft in Indiana 1824 [Thoughts on the Destiny of Man, Particularly with Reference to the Present Times; by the Harmony Society in Indiana A. D. 1824]. This book can be purchased on Amazon.

Indianapolis: NCSA Literatur, German-American Publishing-IUPUI Max Kade German-American Research and Resource Center, 2018

Dr. Melinda Roberts, associate professor of criminal justice and assistant dean of the College of Liberal Arts, and Dr. Marthinus Koen, assistant professor of criminal justice, along with Gabrielle Wy '19 and Dr. Bryce Newell of the University of Kentucky, presented "A Case Study of Administrator Perceptions and Experiences with the Implementation of Body-Worn Cameras" at the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences conference in Baltimore, Maryland. Koen and Wy also presented "Making Sense of Body-Worn Cameras: An In-Depth Examination of Special Units Across Two Agencies."

Communications students Rachel Lowhorn and Noah Alatza received awards from the Indiana Chapter of Society of Professional Journalists who held their annual "Best in Indiana Journalism" contest to recognize the most outstanding work of the year in Indiana print, broadcast and online journalism. The Special Honors division recognizes outstanding dedication to journalistic principles, service to journalism and the professional and student journalists of the year. Lowhorn and Alatza were recognized in the statewide competition for their work on student radio 95.7 The Spin, taking home 2nd and 3rd places in different categories.

Dr. Melissa Stacer, associate professor of criminal justice, presented "Students Touring Prisons: An Examination of Inmate Attitudes" at the North Central Sociological Association conference in Cincinnati, Ohio. States/provinces represented by the NCSA include: eastern Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, western Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ontario, Canada.

USI French Teaching Major Recipient of Prestigious National Scholarship for Study Abroad

USI French Teaching Major Mercy Fulton has been awarded the American Association of Teachers of French (AATF) Walter Jensen Scholarship for Study Abroad. 

Each year, the AATF selects one recipient nationwide for this award which provides $2,000 to support a future French teacher's study abroad. Mercy plans to study in France in Spring 2020. Félicitations, Mercy!

For more information about the Walter Jensen Scholarship: https://www.frenchteachers.org/hq/scholarshipjensen.htm

 Communication Studies student Riley K. Cornett named the 2019 President's Medal recipient

Dr. Leigh Anne Howard, professor of communication studies, published the article,"Performance, Pedagogy, Potential: Utopian Performance as Community-Based Education," in the Winter 2019 volume of Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning. The article discusses a research project based on a student service learning project in Howard's performance studies courses.

John Morris, instructor of radio/tv and general manager of WSWI (95.7 The Spin), will retain his position as president of College Broadcasters, Inc. (CBI) following CBI board elections. CBI is a member-driven organization serving students and advisers of college and high school electronic media outlets.

Amy Montz, associate professor of English, had her article, "Unbinding the Victorian Girl: Corsetry and Neo-Victorian Young Adult Literature," published in Children's Literature Association Quarterly.

The USI student-run newspaper, The Shield, won second place in Division II Newspaper of the Year at the Indiana Collegiate Press Association awards on March 28, 2019 in Indianapolis, along with over 30 individual and staff awards. Congratulations to everyone on staff who put in hard work on this publication!

Kyleigh Shearin’s “Fuzzy Armor” from the 2018 issue of FishHook won the award for "Best Hand-Drawn Illustration" in the Indiana Collegiate Press Association's Spring Contest.

Oana Popescu Sandu, associate professor of English, wrote the article "Staging the Postsocialist Woman: Saviana Stanescu's Alternative Transnations" which appeared in the journal Twentieth Century Literature (Vol. 65, Numbers 1-2, March 2019), published by Duke University Press. The article is part of a special issue entitled "Postsocialist Literatures in the United States."

Dr. Crystal Steltenpohl, assistant professor of psychology, presented a webinar on open science to Philippine Researchers for Open Science at University of the Philippines Diliman Department of Psychology in Manila, Philippines.

On Friday, April 19th, Arts Place will display a collection of works from Rob Millard-Mendez. The exhibit, entitled “Hibridity,” will remain on display from April 19th through May 19th. The public is welcome to view the exhibit in the gallery of the Portland Center of Arts Place during business hours.

Dr. Darrin Sorrells, learning assistance specialist and adjunct instructor of psychology, was recognized as a Distinguished Educator by Phil Delta Kappa. Sorrells is among more than 70 initial educators from across the nation this year to receive the honor based on his years of service to the education profession and his commitment to the Phi Delta Kappa Association’s core values of research, service, and leadership.

On Saturday, March 16, six English Teaching majors from the College of Liberal Arts—Maddi Ausenbaugh, Sam Barsan, Emily Catterton, Erica Denison, John Martin, and Kennya Santiago Olmos—traveled to Indianapolis to represent the university at the Indiana Council of Teachers of English (ICTE) 2019 Conference. The students were there to present their original teaching ideas during a special roundtable session, “The Future is Now: Exploring 21^st-Century Teaching Ideas with Indiana’s Next Generation of English Teachers,” which showcased the ideas and experiences of undergraduate and master’s level students enrolled in teacher education programs across the state. The trip was facilitated by Dr. David O’Neil, assistant professor of English, who accompanied the students to the event.

The student presentations covered the following topics:

• Maddi Ausenbaugh and Emily Catterton: “ISTEP Preparation for 10^th Grade Inclusion Classrooms”
• Sam Barsan: “Meme’ducation: Enriching High School Literature and Expression with a Modern Edge”
• Erica Denison: “Linking the Present to the Past: YA Literature and the Classics”
• John Martin: “Technology Tips and Tricks: Surviving the 1:1 Classroom”
• Kennya Santiago: “English vs. Englishes: Historicizing the ELA Debate over Standard and Non-Standard Usage.”

ICTE is a state-level off-shoot of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), a century-old professional organization that provides accrediting standards for 245 teacher preparation programs nationwide, including USI’s own program. The 2019 ICTE conference was titled “Revitalize Your Teaching, Revitalize Yourself” and featured interactive workshops, craft talks, networking opportunities, and presentations on practical strategies delivered by English teachers from around the state. Featured speakers included authors Thomas C. Foster and Barb Shoup, Professor Kathy Higgs-Coulthard from Saint Mary’s College, and Professor Adrian Matejka from IU Bloomington, Indiana’s current Poet Laureate.

Dr. Marthinus Koen, assistant professor of criminal justice, co-authored the peer-reviewed article, "Making sense of body-worn cameras in a police organization: a technological frames analysis" which was published in Police Practice and Research: An International Journal. 

The Efroymson Bridge Year Fellowship is a competitive fellowship awarded to one graduating senior or recent alum from the Art and Design Department annually. Justin Cecil was the 2018 recipient of the fellowship award. His exhibition, titled Reflection/Variation, was on display in the McCutchan Art Center/Pace Galleries in February and March of 2019. His show included fine art prints and other works on paper he recreated during the fellowship. Some of the printmaking materials used to create the artworks (including hand-carved woodblocks, copper intaglio plates, and lithographic stones) were also on display as an educational component.

The goal of the Efroymson Bridge Year Fellowship is to fund a post-undergraduate year, allowing the recipient to focus on their studio practice to expand their artistic vision and enhance their portfolio, to gain maturity as an art maker, and to successfully gain entrance to graduate school in his/her area of expertise. 

Dr. Melanie Lee, assistant professor of English, co-authored the chapter, "Towards a Researcherly Ethos: Building Authority with Inquiry in Information Literacy and Writing," published in Purdue University Press's Teaching Information Literacy and Writing Studies: Vol. 2, Upper-Level and Graduate Courses, an edited collection that is part of Purdue’s Information Literacy Handbook Series.

Performing arts students earn array of awards at The Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival
USI performing arts students who traveled to Madison, Wisconsin, for The Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival Region III at the start of the semester brought home an array of awards. They also had the honor of performing the closing show, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, at the event.

KCACTF awards and recognitions:

USI Performing Arts - The Gold Hand Truck (awarded to the University with the most efficient load-in of their festival production, demonstrating teamwork and safety)

Cast of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time - Certificate of Merit, Ensemble Acting

Ashley Boruff - Finalist, Regional Design Project (Costume Design)

Rachel Clark - Certificate of Merit, Costume Design of The Dog in the Manger; Finalist, National Design Project (Costume Design)

Ashleigh Dulik - Certificate of Merit, Co-Direction of Italian American Reconciliation  

Mikaela Fish – Winner, Allied Design and Technologies Award; Finalist, National Design Project (Costume Design)

Megan Gilbert – Winner, Regional Designer Project (Lighting Design)

Rafael Gonzalez - Certificate of Merit, Lighting Design of Standing on My Knees

Jada Hampton - Alternate for ASPIRE KCACTF/LORT Arts Leadership Fellowship Award

Cole Henrich - Vocal Finalist, Musical Theatre Initiative; Dance Finalist, Musical Theatre Initiative

Kaitlyn Kearschner - Honorable Mention, Regional Designer Project (Costume Design)

Nathaniel Robles - Irene Ryan Acting Competition Finalist (final 16 of 247 students)

Isabelle Rogers - Certificate of Merit, Student Direction of Standing on My Knees 

Dr. Melissa Stacer, associate professor of criminal justice studies, and Lydia Moll '18, criminal justice and sociology, presented "'I expected something different...': Students' perceptions and realizations after correctional tours" at the Western Society of Criminology conference in Honolulu, Hawaii, in February 2019.Dr. Stacer and Moll, who is pursuing her master's degree in social work at USI, have been conducting research on the impact a prison or jail tour has on students and student learning for several years.

Rob Millard-Mendez, professor of art, won a Juror's Award on January 10, 2019, at the Regional Juried Exhibition at ArtLink Gallery in Fort Wayne, IN. The competitive exhibition includes work from Indiana and its neighboring states. Millard-Mendez has shown work in more than 510 professional exhibitions. He has won more than 80 awards for his art, teaching and university/community service.

Dr. Casey Pycior, assistant professor of English, published "On Being Red Assed," a creative nonfiction essay about baseball, potential, failure and taking a ground ball to the face (!) in BULL: Men's Fiction in December 2018

Lenny Dowhie, professor emeritus and founder/director of the New Harmony Clay Project (NHCP), has been selected as a recipient of the 2019 National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA) Excellence in Teaching Award. This award is presented to individuals who have demonstrated excellence in teaching as well as in their own creative work, have previous recognition for and a history of awards in teaching and have highly visible former students in the field.

Dr. Linda L. M. Bennett, professor emerita of political science and president emerita, will be named a laureate of the Evansville Regional Business Hall of Fame at a breakfast held at 7 a.m. Thursday, March 14, 2019 at the Old National Events Plaza in downtown Evansville.

At the beginning of the Spring 2019 semester, brand new awards were bestowed upon faculty and staff that have gone above and beyond in their service to the College of Liberal Arts. The recipients and their awards are listed below.

• Dr. Rocco Gennaro, Professor of Philosophy, received the Excellence in Research and Creativity Award
  
  
• Dr. Jessica Jensen, Associate Professor in French and Director of Master of Arts in Second Language Acquisition, Policy, and Culture, received the Excellence in Teaching Award
  
  
• Mr. Elliot Wasserman, Professor of Theatre and Chair of Performing Arts, received the Distinguished Faculty Award
  
  
• Mrs. Kathy Oeth, College of Liberal Arts Senior Administrative Associate, received the Excellence in Service Award

Dr. Melissa Stacer, associate professor of criminal justice, and Lydia Moll (current MSW student) presented their research titled "Dirty and smelly: Student expectations of jails and prisons" at the annual meeting of the Indiana Academy of Social Sciences held at Indiana University Southeast in New Albany, IN.

Dr. Melinda Roberts, associate professor of criminal justice and assistant dean of the College of Liberal Arts, along with Melanie Belarmino ’17, recently had "Japanese gender role expectations and attitudes: A qualitative analysis of gender inequality'" accepted for publication by the Journal of International Women's Studies.

Dr. Todd Schroer, associate professor of sociology & criminal justice and chair of Criminal Justice, presented his research titled "The Effects of the Charlottesville Killing on the Alt-Right" at the Indiana Academy of Social Sciences annual meeting held at Indiana University Southeast in New Albany, IN. 

Dr. David O'Neil, assistant professor of English, presented the following research during the month of October: "The Space in the Middle: An Argument for Continuity in the English Alliterative Tradition" at the Medieval Association of the Midwest Conference, "Medieval Problem, Digital Solution" at Writing Research Without Walls: A Symposium for Interdisciplinary Writing and Collaboration, and "The Poets are Revolting: Scholarly Identity in the Field of Old English Metrics" at the Indiana College English Association Conference.

Dr. Linda L. M. Bennett, professor emerita of political science and president emerita, will present "Higher Education: America’s Troubled Dream Machine" as the 2018 Stephens-Otterson Lecture at 2 p.m. Sunday, October 14 at Trinity United Methodist Church in Evansville. Bennett's presentation will use Frank Bruni’s book Where You Go Is Not Who You’ll Be as a foundation for analysis of the relationship between higher education and the American public.

Dr. David O’Neil joined USI as an assistant professor of English in August. His paper, “English as the Lingua Franca of International Publishing," was published in the June issue ofWorld Englishes.

Dr. Casey Pycior, assistant professor of English, was a Visiting Writer for Murray State University's MFA Summer Residency, where he gave a reading and delivered a craft talk called, "Dear Fiction Editor: A Primer on Submitting."

Dr. Crystal Steltenpohl, assistant professor of psychology, co-authored the article “Do Others Understand Us? Fighting Game Community member perceptions of others’ views of the FGC,” which was published in Global Journal of Community Psychology Practice.

Dr. Dan Bauer, associate professor of anthropology, had his book, Identity, Development, and the Politics of the Past: An Ethnography of Continuity and Change in a Coastal Ecuadorian Community, published by University Press of Colorado. It is available for purchaseonline.

Dr. Casey Pycior, assistant professor of English, is a finalist in the Short Story category of the 2018 American Book Awards for his book, The Spoils.

Matthew Graham, professor of English, has had three new poems, “Dick and Jane,” “Oh, Baltimore” and “The Sadness of Dogs,” published in the summer issue of the Free State Literary Review.

Dr. Crystal Steltenpohl, assistant professor of psychology, co-authored the article “The Psychological Science Accelerator: Advancing Psychology through a Distributed Collaborative Network,” to be published inAdvances in Methods and Practices in Psychological Science.

Dr. Tamara Hunt, professor of history and director of the Master of Arts in Liberal Studies program, wrote a winning grant proposal to the Institute for Museum and Library Services that garnered nearly $100,000 for projects that linked USI and the Evansville African-American Museum in 2011. Her co-authored article, "Rediscovering 'Baptistown': A Historical Geography Project on Local African-American History," which describes one of the projects funded by the grant was published by the peer-reviewed journal, The History Teacher.

Dr. Urska Dobersek, assistant professor of psychology, had her manuscript, “Self-Objectification in the Fitness Center Environment: A Qualitative Perspective,” published in the Pamukkale Journal of Sport Sciences.

Ms. Christy Baker,associate professor of social work, has been appointed chair of the Social Work Department.

AL Holen, associate professor of ceramics, was invited to participate in American Pottery Festival. Her artwork also appeared on the cover of their catalog.

Dr. Urska Dobersek, assistant professor of psychology, had her manuscript, “Self-Objectification in the Fitness Center Environment: A Qualitative Perspective,” published in the Pamukkale Journal of Sport Sciences.

Dr. Melinda Roberts, associate professor of criminal justice, co-authored the paper, "Japanese women and critical feminism: A qualitative study" with Melanie Belarmino, a USI alumna. The paper was published in the Social Science Review, an international journal.

Dr. Crystal Steltenpohl, assistant professor of psychology, had her paper titled “Justify Your Alpha” published in Nature (International journal of science.) Her article received coverage in NOVA Next,Science Alert,Science Magazine,and Nature News. Her article is available online.

Dr. Amie McKibban, associate professor of psychology, and Dr. Crystal Steltenpohl, assistant professor of psychology, presented “Three years later: Reflections on Map Evansville and LGBTQA inclusivity” at Midwest Eco in East Lansing, Michigan.

Dr. Crystal Steltenpohl, assistant professor of psychology, presented her research at the following conferences in 2018:

“Gamers as individuals and communities: Perspectives of fighting game players,” presented at the Midwestern Psychological Association Annual Meeting in Chicago, Illinois.

“Obstacles and solutions to emerging challenges in qualitative research,” a roundtable presentation at the Midwestern Psychological Association Annual Meeting in Chicago, Illinois.

“Community psychology online: Virtual sense of community among gamers.”symposium presented at Midwest Eco in East Lansing, Michigan.

Matthew Graham,professor of English, has had his fourth book of poetry, The Geography of Home, accepted for publication by the Galileo Press. Publication date is January 1, 2019.

Dr. Lionel Phelps II,adjunct professor in psychology, presented "Adverse Childhood Experiences: Relationship to Substance Abuse and the Family" at Kentucky Rehabilitation Association Annual Conference in Owensboro, Kentucky.

Dr. Julie Evey,adjunct professor of psychology, received the Peer Reviewer Extraordinaire Award for Merlot Psychology Editorial Review Board Member. 

Dr. Urska Dobersek, assistant professor of psychology, had the following articles published over the past academic year:

“A meta-analysis of mental imagery effects on post-injury functional mobility, perceived pain, and self-efficacy,” co-authored by Dobersak for the Psychology of Sport and Exercise. Available online.

“Examining shyness and self-esteem in athletes and non-athletes,” co-authored by Dobersak for the American Journal of Psychological Research. Available online.

Dr. Amie McKibban, associate professor of psychology, and Alex Kessler, USI alumnus presented “Transgender awareness: obstacles and opportunities in the Evansville area” for the community Cultural Conversations lecture series at the Evansville Museum of Arts, History, and Science.

Dr. Srikanth Dandotkar, assistant professor of psychology, to present his paper, "Role of Students’ Epistemologies in Evaluation of Arguments" at the 28th Annual Meeting of the Society for Text and Discourse in Brighton, UK.

Dr. Crystal Steltenpohl, assistant professor of psychology, had her paper “Me Time, or We Time? Age Differences in Motivation for Exercise,” accepted to The Gerontologist.It is available online.

Dr. Martin Koen, assistant professor of criminal justice, recently had an article accepted at Policing and Society, a journal published by Taylor and Francis. The article is titled "The Effects of Body-Worn Cameras on Police Organization and Practice: A Theory-Based Analysis." The co-authors are James J. Willis and Stephen D. Mastrofski, professors at George Mason University.

Dr. Todd Schroer,associate professor and chair of criminal justice, has been accepted to attend the 2018 Curt C. and Else Silberman Faculty Seminar in Washington, D.C. June 4-15, 2018. The seminar this year is titled "Racial Practice: Theory, Policy, and Execution in Nazi Germany and the Jim Crow South." Seminar participants will be introduced to Holocaust-related sources in the Museum’s unique film, oral history, testimony, recorded sound, archival, and photography collections, and the International Tracing Service Digital Archive. They will also meet staff scholars with expertise in various Holocaust-related topics with whom they can discuss their work.

Dr. Stella Ress, assistant professor of history, presented her co-authored work, "'Beam Us Up, Scotty!': Using Pop Culture to Discover User-Friendly Hand Gestures and Body Movements for Embodied Interaction" at the 2018 National Conference for the Pop Culture Association in Indianapolis, Indiana. The individuals who comprise the PCA are a group of scholars and enthusiasts who study popular culture. The Popular Culture Association (formally the Popular Culture Association / American Culture Association) is a 501c3 which offers a venue to come together and share ideas and interests about the field or about a particular subject within the field. It also provides publication opportunities and sponsors the PCA Endowment.

Ress has presented and published in the area of popular culture since 2008. Her latest research on the topic is a collaborative effort with faculty at the School of Informatics and Computing at IUPUI in which researchers identify familiar gestures from popular culture in order to facilitate full body interactive displays at museums.

Joan DeJong, former assistant dean of College of Liberal Arts and professor emeritus of art, and John McNaughton, professor emeritus of art, collaborated on a sculpture remembering the 1937 Ohio River flood. This work was recently unveiled and can be seen at 220 S. Fulton Avenue next to the Levee Authority Office in Evansville.

Dr. Melissa Stacer, associate professor of criminal justice, and Lydia Moll, criminal justice and sociology major at USI, had an article published in The Journal of Criminal Justice Education. The pair collaborated on the article “New opportunities or closing doors? How correctional facility tours impact students’ thoughts about careers.”

Dr. Rocco J. Gennaro, professor and department chair of philosophy, served as editor for the newly published book. The Routledge Handbook of Consciousness (Routledge Press, 2018) including an introductory essay and two of the 34 chapters. 

Book summary: There has been an explosion of work on consciousness in the last 30–40 years from philosophers, psychologists, and neurologists. Thus, there is a need for an interdisciplinary, comprehensive volume in the field that brings together contributions from a wide range of experts on fundamental and cutting-edge topics. The Routledge Handbook of Consciousness fills this need and makes each chapter’s importance understandable to students and researchers from a variety of backgrounds.

This anthology also contains a chapter by Dr. Chad Gonnerman, assistant professor of philosophy, titled "Consciousness and Experimental Philosophy."

Dr. Veronica Huggins, along with collaborator Dr. Nubian Sun from Tennessee State University, presented their paper "E'tru Most: Exploring Linguistic Cultural Self-Efficacy Among Gullah Speaking People of Charleston, South Carolina," at the International Journal of Arts and Sciences Multidisciplinary Conference, Las Vegas, Nevada.

Dr. Linda L. M. Bennett, USI president emerita, received the Lifetime Achievement in Education award from Leadership Evansville at the 2018 Celebration of Leadership on Thursday, March 15.

Dr. Oana Popescu-Sandu, associate professor of English, had an article, "Translingualism as Dialogism in Romanian-American Poetry" published in the Journal of World Literature, Volume 3, issues 1, 2018.

The article examines how translingual poetry by immigrant Romanian writers who live in or travel to the United States requires a transnational community framing rather than a national one and raises new questions about cultural and linguistic identity formation that reflect on both national and world literature issues. This analysis of the Romanian-American contemporary poets Mihaela Moscaliuc, Andrei Guruianu, Claudia Serea, and Aura Maru uses literary and rhetorical translingual theory to show that the “national literature” framing is no longer sufficient to address works created between two languages in a globalized world—Romanian and English, in this case. Born between two cultures and languages, their poetry does not belong entirely to either. In its turn, the national framing—both the Romanian and the American one—can become more porous and inclusive if read through a sociolinguistic mobility lens that gives a more powerful voice to migrant writers. (The article can be accessed online.)

Dr. Melissa Stacer, associate professor of criminal justice, has been published inCritical Military Studies,(a peer-reviewed journal through Taylor and Francis.) She co-authored the article, “Justice-Involved Veterans: A Critical Review and Future Research" with Dr. Monica Solinas-Saunders from Indiana University Northwest. (The article can be accessed online.)

Dr. Daniel Bauer, associate professor of anthropology, had an article, "Home Garden Diversity of the Tahuayo Region, Peru," published in the Journal of Ecological Anthropology. The article was co-authored by Duncan Taylor and Nelly Pinedo Alvarado. The article is based on field research conducted with former student Duncan Taylor in the summer of 2014.

Dr. Andrew Buck, associate professor of sociology, and a co-author had their article, "Coalitional Configurations: A Structural Analysis of Democratization in the Former Soviet Union," published in Demokratizatsiya: The Journal of Post-Soviet Democratization, 26, 1 (Winter): 25-54, 2018.

Dr. Matt Hanka has been named an administrator for the Commission on Homelessness for Evansville and Vanderburgh County. In this volunteer role, Hanka will provide leadership for the Commission, a group of area government and community leaders working together to prevent and end homelessness in the region. More information is available online.