In the Spotlight: Jan. 15, 2015

Kudos to these faculty, staff and students

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  • Heidi A. Wayment, professor of psychology, has been elected a Fellow of the Association of Psychological Science. Wayment joins what APS President C. Randy Gallistel describes as a “distinguished group of peers whose work has influenced the field of psychological science in important and lasting ways.” In 2014, Wayment was also elected as a fellow for the Society of Experimental Social Psychology in recognition of her substantial empirical contributions to the field of social psychology.
  • Larry Stevens, professor of psychological sciences, received The Academic Minute’s Most Likely To Take Over The World Senior Superlative Award. The episode produced by communications officer Theresa Bierer discusses Stevens’ research on the brain-boosting powers of dark chocolate. The original episode aired on July 8.
  • Adjunct professor Casey Reason and co-author Richard DuFour recently published Professional Learning Communities at Work and Virtual Collaboration: On the Tipping Point of Transformation. The book focuses on how strategies for virtual collaboration and learning at a distance can shape the school improvement agenda and improve student achievement. The National Education Association sent a sample chapter for the first time in history to its members including 3.2 million educators across the country. The chapter can be found here.
  • Educational leadership doctoral student Richard Crandall was recently appointed as Colorado’s Commissioner of Education. Crandall was named the single finalist in December following the retirement of Robert Hammond last June. A former state legislator in Arizona, Crandall served as chairman of the education committees in both the Arizona Senate and House.
  • FellowFive students have been awarded the Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship, which offers $15,000 to undergraduate STEM majors and post-baccalaureate students holding STEM degrees to earn a teaching credential and commit to teaching in high-need school districts. Noyce Fellows, pictured from left, are graduate student Lindsey Barron, undergraduates Julie Leovic, Amy Frauen, Brad Berger and graduate student Lauren Newland. Fellows will participate in an induction program after they graduate for support during their first years of teaching to promote retention.
  • Educational Technology master’s degree students recently published an eBook titled Open Network Learning Environments, Personal Learning Environments: An Interactive Guide for Educators. The eBook, published as part of NAU’s Creating Technology Learning Environments course, discusses integrating online technology to support online instruction. Student editors include Jonathan Stannic and Justin Harding. Chapter authors are Kevin Castillo, Nola Czarnik, Amy Faull, Eileen Geronimo, Justin Harding, Dominique Henry, Janice Hoyt, Scott Icenogle, Elizabeth Ismail, Gretchen Roberts, Jonathan Stanciu, Jennifer Summers, Jeanine Walashek, Sheryl Wells and Jessica Ybarra.

    Quilts
    From left: Bobbie Ursin, Dave Wagner and Dawn Birdsall.
  • To commemorate NAU’s Center for Microbial Genetics and Genomics research on the plague, Bobbie Ursin, associate director of the Office of Sponsored Projects, created three quilts that capture the plague’s historical journey through art. Ursin presented the quilts to Dave Wagner, associate professor of biological sciences, and Dawn Birdsell, associate director for MGGen, last month.
  • NAU student, Samantha McGonigle, was selected as the national winner in the 2nd Annual Peace Corps Campus Ambassadors Photo Competition. Peace Corps Ambassadors across the country captured the competition’s theme, ‘Where do you want to go?’ in their photo entries. View the winning submission here.
  • The 2016 Teaching Day, pictured below, was held Jan. 14 in the du Bois Center, providing faculty the opportunity to discuss effective teaching and learning practices. “The power of this event is people from across campus mix and mingle and talk about teaching challenges and triumphs,” said Larry Gallagher, director of the Faculty Professional Development Program. Three hundred people attended this year’s event in preparation for the spring semester.Faculty Teaching Day