In the Spotlight: Nov. 15-19

Kudos to these faculty, staff, students and programs 

Do you have a spotlight item to share with the NAU community? 

E-mail your announcements to Inside@nau.edu, or use our online submission form. 

  • Forensics student Riley Smelkinson competed in the Paul Winters Invitational at University of the Pacific for speech and debate. He was awarded first place in dramatic interpretation, second place in persuasion and third place in impromptu speaking.
  • Northern Arizona University has been awarded as offering one of the best online bachelor’s programs in environmental science by Bachelor’s Degree Center. This ranking is based on cost, graduate salary and student reviews.
  • Catrin Edgeley, assistant professor in the School of Forestry, has been named an Early Career Faculty Innovator by the National Center for Atmospheric Research. She is one of 12 faculty members chosen for this program and will receive two years of funding for her research on improving social adaptation to wildfire through informed evacuation planning and decision making.
  • Forestry professor Rich Hofstetter, alongside Kamal Gandhi of the University of Georgia, has recently co-edited and published a new book on bark beetles. The book is titled “Bark Beetle Management, Ecology, and Climate Change” and explores the effects of global warming upon bark beetles and their host trees.
  • Janna Jones, a professor in the School of Communication, was recently awarded 12 major screenplay awards and an additional 13 awards for four of her screenplays. “About Gabriel” won four international awards and is a finalist in seven, “MALLed” won one international award and is a finalist in four, “Shelter” won two international awards and “Past Due” won five international awards and is a finalist for five other awards.
  • Jaime Awe, an associate professor of anthropology, recently authored a book chapter titled “Archeological Evidence for the Preclassic Origins of the Maya Creation Story and the Resurrection of the Maize God at Cahal Pech, Belize” in “The Myths of the Popol Vuh in Cosmology, Art, and Ritual.” Awe also recently co-authored the book chapter titled “Sacrifice of the Maize God: Re-creating Creation in the Main Chamber of Actun Tunichil Muknal, Belize” for the edited volume published by the University Press of Colorado.
  • Daniel Keller, instructor in the Department of English, and Jesse Egbert, associate professor of applied linguistics, have co-authored an article in the Brooklyn Law Review titled “Hypothesis Testing Ordinary Meaning”. This article introduces new methods for analyzing linguistic data from a large sample of natural language to aid judges, lawyers and legal scholars in their efforts to interpret the ordinary meaning of words in legal statutes.
  • T. Mark Montoya, director and associate professor of ethnic studies, authored a chapter titled “Custodians of Student Success: Campus Citizenship in the Borderlands.” The chapter is published in “Campus Service Workers Supporting First-Generation Students: Informal Mentorship and Culturally Relevant Support as Key to Student Retention and Success,” which aims to dismantle notions of social hierarchies that separate service workers and college students, particularly those who are first-generation and/or minoritized, and encourages institutions to invest in these workers and their important contributions to student success.
  • Northern Arizona University has been awarded for offering one of the best online management degrees by ZD Net. This ranking is based on admissions rates, degrees awarded, graduation rates and financial aid.
NAU Communications