College of Health Professions
Dr. Jeannette Anderson, clinical associate professor of physical therapy, and Dr. David Taylor, clinical assistant professor of physical therapy, presented “Ethics and Jurisprudence for Physical Therapy Practice in Georgia” to more than 250 physical therapists and physical therapist assistants July 19, July 21, Aug. 18 and Aug. 26 in Atlanta and Macon.
Dr. Beth Collier, clinical assistant professor of physical therapy, and Dr. Jeannette Anderson, clinical associate professor of physical therapy, co-presented “Using 3-D Clinical Reasoning to Shape Clinicians of the Future” at the American Physical Therapy Association NEXT Annual Conference and Exhibition June 23 in Boston, Massachusetts. Dr. Collier and Dr. Rhett Roberson, adjunct clinical assistant professor of physical therapy, in association with The Jackson Clinics Foundation, traveled to Kenya in August to teach physical therapists participating in the Jackson Clinics' Orthopaedic Manual Physical Therapy Residency.
Dr. Alyssa Fiss, associate professor and director of physical therapy research, co-authored a clinical summary, “Cerebral palsy,” in PTNow, American Physical Therapy Association, June 26.
Dr. Ellen Perlow, clinical assistant professor of physical therapy, co-authored a manuscript in collaboration with Dr. Bobby Jacob, Dr. Samuel Peasah, and Dr. Angela Shogbon from the College of Pharmacy, titled “Post-operative pain management with liposomal bupivacaine in patients undergoing orthopedic knee and hip arthroplasty at a community hospital” in Hospital Pharmacy, 2017;52:367-373.
Dr. Leslie Taylor, professor of physical therapy, co-presented “Aging is Complicated: A Panel Discussion on Bringing Together Expertise, Partners, and Resources to Address Mobility for Georgia's Aging Population” at the 2017 Georgia Gerontology Society Conference July 24 in Braselton.
Dr. Niamh Tunney, clinical associate professor of physical therapy, presented “The Cultivation and Development of Meaningful Interprofessional Education” at the American Physical Therapy Association NEXT Annual Conference and Exhibition June 22 in Boston, Massachusetts.
Dr. Deborah Wendland, assistant professor of physical therapy, and Dr. David Taylor, clinical assistant professor of physical therapy, co-authored “Wound measurement tools and techniques: a review” in Journal of Acute Care Physical Therapy, 2017;8:42-57. Dr. Wendland also authored a clinical summary, “Neuropathic ulcers,” in PTNow, American Physical Therapy Association, Aug. 2.
College of Liberal Arts
Dr. Elaina Behounek, assistant professor of sociology and criminal justice, presented “P.E.A.C.E. Be With You: Family Law Mediation and Controlling Narratives” at the American Sociological Society in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Dr. Craig Byron, associate professor of biology, published a paper, titled “An anatomical and mechanical analysis of the douc monkey (genus Pygathrix), and its role in understanding the evolution of brachiation. Am J Phys Anthropol,” in the American Journal of Physical Anthropology 2017;00:1–19.
Dr. David A. Davis, associate professor of English, gave a talk, titled “A Good Mayonnaise is Hard to Find: Flannery O'Connor and Culinary Codependency,” at the American Literature Association Conference Sept. 7-9 in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Dr. Sarah E. Gardner, professor of history, presented “William Gilmore Simms and the Art of Literary Criticism” Sept. 22 at the Southern Studies Forum, Universite Catholique de Lille in Lille, France.
Dr. Frank Macke, professor of communication studies, published a book, titled The Experience of Human Communication: Body, Flesh and Relationship, and was described as “offering an intelligent and much-needed inaugural study to inspire continual change in communicology today” by Diana Ritter of New York University. The review was published in The International Journal of Communication 11 (2017), pp. 2223–2226.
Dr. Randall D. Peters, professor emeritus of physics, published a paper titled “Model of the Heart's Variable Rate based on the Van der Pol Oscillator.”
Dr. Margaret Symington, professor of mathematics, gave a seminar talk, titled “The K3 surface from an almost-toric perspective,” June 23 at the Fluminense Federal University in Rio de Janiero, Brazil.
Dr. Douglas E. Thompson, associate professor of history and southern studies, was interviewed for an Associated Press story on Confederate monuments in Episcopal churches. The piece, titled “Episcopalians Struggle with History of Confederate Symbols,” by Meg Kinnard appeared in The New York Times and Los Angeles Times, among several other publications.
Dr. Richard Francis Wilson, Columbus Roberts Professor of Christianity and chair of the Department of Religion, conducted a pair of workshops Sept. 18 at Vanderbilt University at the invitation of the Vanderbilt Divinity School and the Vanderbilt Graduate Department of Religion. The workshops are part of a yearlong initiative under the auspices of the Wabash Center, which funds various programs at colleges, universities, divinity schools and seminaries with the goal of providing support for excellence in teaching and mentoring for faculty and graduate students with aspirations to become faculty following the completion of graduate studies.
Dr. Fletcher Winston, associate professor of sociology, presented a paper, titled “The Benefits and Challenges of Incorporating Advocacy Service-Learning in Undergraduate Courses,” at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association. He was also the presider at the “Environmental Movements” paper session.
Marian Zielinski, professor emerita of communication studies and theatre arts, designed the cover art for two recently released books: Embodiment in the Semiotic Matrix: Communicology in Peirce, Dewey, Bateson, and Bourdieu, by Isaac Catt, published by The Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 2017, and Communicology for the Human Sciences: Lanigan and the Philosophy of Communication, edited by Andrew R. Smith, Igor Kylukanov and Isaac E. Catt, published by Peter Lang, 2017. She also designed the logo for the Semiotic Society of America conference in Puebla, Mexico, in mid-October. She had nine abstract/geometric art quilts included in “Interconnected,” a 3-D group exhibit Sept. 8-29 at the 567 Center for Renewal in downtown Macon. Two other art quilts, “Garden of Angels and Clowns” and “Intervals of Time,” will be on display in the Professional Fiber, Fine Art category at the Georgia National Fair. Another of her art quilt/paintings, titled “Griffith and Broadway” (43×58) was accepted into “Quilts=Art=Quilts,” an international juried exhibit at the Schweinfurth Art Center in Auburn, New York, which will be on display Oct. 28, 2017–Jan. 7, 2018.
College of Pharmacy
Dr. Nader Moniri, associate dean for research, published “Free-fatty acid receptor-4 (FFA4) modulates ROS generation and COX-2 expression via the C-terminal beta-arrestin phosphosensor in Raw 264.7 macrophages” in Biochemical Pharmacology.
Eugene W. Stetson School of Business and Economics
Jody Blanke, Ernest L. Baskin, Jr. Distinguished Professor of Computer Science and Law, will have his article, Privacy and Outrage, published in Case Western Reserve Law School's Journal of Law, Technology and the Internet. He presented two papers, “Privacy and Outrage,” and “Predictability as an Objective for Privacy Engineering and Risk Management,” the latter with co-author Janine Hiller of Virginia Tech, at the annual conference of the Academy of Legal Studies in Business in August in Savannah. He also chaired a panel discussion on “Cutting Edge Issues in Privacy Law.”
Dr. Antonio Saravia, assistant professor of economics and director of the BB&T Center for Undergraduate Research in Public Policy and Capitalism, will present his paper “Trade Effects of U.S. Antidumping Actions Against China” at the eighth Bolivian Conference on Development Economics Oct. 26-27. He was also invited to debate the question “Does Income Distribution Matter?” with a panel of high-profile economists and social scientists.
Dr. Lane Wakefield, professor of sports marketing and analytics, co-authored paper, titled “An Examination of Construal Effects on Price Perceptions in the Advance Selling of Experience Services”, that was published in the Journal of Service Research. Additionally, Wakefield had an article, titled “Anxiety and Ephemeral Social Media Use in Negative eWOM Creation,” accepted by the Journal of Interactive Marketing. Impact Factor: 5.026, 5-year Impact Factor: 7.767
Penfield College
Dr. Lynn W. Clemons, associate professor of leadership, and students enrolled in “Theories in Organizational Leadership” hosted Retired Lt. Gen. Claude M. “Mick” Kicklighter, also a member of the Mercer University Board of Trustees, and Dr. Penny Elkins, senior vice president for enrollment management, for “Conversation with a Leader” on Sept. 19. This was an interactive session attended by both graduate and undergraduate organizational leadership students, Dean Priscilla R. Danheiser, Dr. Gail Johnson, Dr. Stephen Ruegger and Dr. Kevin Williams. The conversation was a discussion on best practices in leadership development.
Dr. Richard H. Martin, professor of criminal justice, published an article, titled “Police Suicide and PTSD: Connection, Prevention, and Trends,” in the peer-reviewed journal Law Enforcement Executive Forum. Martin also reviewed “Sexually Transmitted Bacterial Infections in Sexually Abused Children,” “A New Beginning: An Overview of New Psychoactive Substances” and “Unconditional Respect: Change of Mindset for Effective and Safe Policing” for the peer-reviewed journal Forensic Research and Criminology International Journal. He also reviewed the article “Effectiveness of Learning with 3D-Lab on Omani Basic Education Students' Achievement, Attitudes and Scientific Thinking” for the peer-reviewed Journal of Education and Training Studies.
Dr. Hollis Phelps, assistant professor of interdisciplinary studies, published an article, titled “Badiou and the Necessity of Fables: or, Theology as Fabulation,” in the Journal for Cultural and Religious Theory, 16.3: 330-346. Dr. Phelps also gave a series of four lectures sponsored by the Westar Institute at DuPage Unitarian Universalist Church in Naperville, Illinois, under the title of “God, Process, and Politics.” He also lectured on the topic “Jesus and the Politics of Mammon” to the Graduate Theological Colloquium at Loyola University in Chicago.
School of Engineering
Dr. Michael MacCarthy, assistant professor of environmental engineering, presented on “Exploring the Potential for Social Marketing in Accelerating Self-Supply Water Systems” and moderated a session on the “Food, Energy and Water Interface in Developing Regions” at the University of Oklahoma International Water Conference. He also co-authored presentations at the same conference on “The Sustainability of Biological Sand Filters in Rural Kenya,” co-authored and presented by environmental engineering student Kyla Semmendinger and co-authored by Dr. Laura Lackey, interim dean, and “Low-Cost Methods of Accessing Groundwater in Mountainous Developing Communities: Dominican Republic,” co-authored and presented by environmental engineering graduate student Monica Resto.
School of Law
Jessica Feinberg, associate professor, had an article, titled “Whither the Functional Parent? Revisiting the Need for Equitable Parenthood Doctrines in Light of the Increasing Availability to Same-Sex Parents of Avenues to Obtaining Formal Legal Parent Status,” accepted for publication in the Brooklyn Law Review. She also had an article, titled “A Logical Step Forward: Extending Voluntary Acknowledgments of Parentage to Female Same-Sex Couples who Conceive Using Sperm Provided in Compliance with Donor Non-Paternity Laws,” accepted for publication in the Yale Journal of Law and Feminism.
Jim Fleissner, professor, spoke to 650 students and teachers at the observance of Constitution Day Sept. 18 at Mossy Creek Middle School in Kathleen.
Billie Frys, director of communications and marketing, had an article, titled “Legends of Technical Communication,” published in the June issue of the Society of Technical Communication magazine, Intercom.
David Hricik, professor, attended the Vanderbilt Law School Symposium in Nashville, Tennessee, where he presented “Disruptive Technologies: The Transformation of Intellectual Property & Enterprise on the Horizon.” Hricik also presented “Risk Management Issues for the Office Practitioner” at the 30th annual State Bar Texas Advanced Intellectual Property Law Courts in Austin. He also presented “Ethical Considerations in Intellectual Property Litigation” at the New York State Bar Association Intellectual Property Meeting.
Stephen Johnson, professor, had an article, titled “Indeconstructible: The Triumph of the Environmental Administrative State,” accepted for publication in the University of Cincinnati Law Review. Additionally, he had two articles published: “Advancing Auer in an Era of Retreat” in William and Mary Environmental Law Review and “#Better Rules: The Appropriate Use of Social Media in Rulemaking” in Florida State University Law Review.
Jeremy Kidd, associate professor, presented “Fintech: Antidote to Rent-Seeking” as part of #FutureLaw 2.0, hosted by the Duquesne Law School Federalist Society in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He was also a panelist at the SEALS annual meeting in Boca Raton, Florida, where they discussed “Is the SEC's Insider Trading Regime Really Fair?” Kidd had an article, titled “Investment or loan? Litigation funding's ongoing debate,” accepted for publication in the Litigation Financial Journal. Another article, “Fintech: Antidote to Rent-Seeking?,” was recently accepted into the Chicago-Kent Law Review.
David Oedel, professor, presented “Constitution Day 2017 Supreme Court Review” at Georgia College Constitution Week at Georgia College and State University in Milledgeville.
Karen Sneddon, professor, presented “Tales from a Form Book: Stock Stories and Transactional Documents” with Susan Chelser at the Legal Writing Institute's Sixth Biennial Applied Legal Storytelling Conference in Washington. She also presented “Fun and Fast Formative Assessment in Big Classes” at AALS Teaching Methods Conference Call in September. Sneddon, with Susan Chelser, had an article, titled “Tales from a Form Book: Stock Stories and Transactional Documents,” published in the Montana Law Review. Sneddon and Suzianne Painter-Thorne, associate professor, together published Moot Court Handbook: Finding Educational Success and Competition Glory, WoltersKluwer.
School of Medicine
Dr. Michael Bossak, clinical assistant professor of pediatrics, presented “Fever in Neonates: A New Algorithm for Diagnosis” June 10 at Pediatrics by the Sea 2017, hosted by the Georgia Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics. Dr. Bossak is an active member of the Pediatric Healthcare Improvement Coalition of Georgia.
Carolann Curry, library assistant professor and reference and outreach librarian, published an article, titled “SHERPA Services and SHERPA/RoMEO,” online on Sept. 26 in the Journal of Electronic Resources in Medical Libraries.
Dr. Donna Evans, clinical assistant professor of pediatrics, presented “Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children” on June 9 at Pediatrics by the Sea 2017, hosted by the Georgia Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, and at the Memorial Health Housewide Grand Rounds July 14.
Dr. Kelly Solms Garrison, clinical assistant professor of pediatrics, presented “Neonatal Abstinence Overview” June 9 at Pediatrics by the Sea 2017, hosted by the Georgia Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Dr. Hemant Goyal, assistant professor of medicine and assistant program director of IM Residency, authored “Prognostic significance of red blood cell distribution width in gastrointestinal disorders,” published in the July edition of World Journal of Gastroenterology.
Dr. Jinping Li, assistant professor of histology, medical student Jacob Jay and several additional co-authors presented their work on the “Structure Analysis of Human WFDC2 by Electron Microscopy” Aug. 17-18 at the Molecular Foundry Annual User Meeting in Berkeley, California. This work is in collaboration with Dr. Gary Ren at Lawrence Berkeley National Lab/Department of Energy (LBNL/DOE) and sponsored by the User Proposal Program at Molecular Foundry.
Dr. Susan Mazo, clinical assistant professor of pediatrics and interim chair, served as program chair for Pediatrics by the Sea 2017, hosted by the Georgia Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics June 7-10.
Dr. Thomas McKee, clinical associate professor of pediatrics, presented “Summertime Bites and Stings” June 9 at Pediatrics by the Sea, hosted by the Georgia Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Dr. Heather Macnew, assistant professor, was appointed to the Legislative Committee of the American College of Surgeons.
Dr. Anil Piya, clinical assistant professor of pediatrics, presented a poster, titled “Severe Adrenal Insufficiency and Reversible Dilated Cardiomyopathy in a Newborn Due to Star Promotion Deletion,” at the 10th annual International Meeting of Pediatric Endocrinology Sept. 14 in Washington, D.C.
Dr. G. Allen Tindol Jr., internal medicine clerkship director, received the J. Willis Hurst Bedside Teaching Award from the American College of Physicians, Georgia Chapter, Sept. 30 in Savannah. The yearly award recognizes an outstanding teacher of medical students and internal medicine residents in Georgia. The award was established in 1991 and is named after J. Willis Hurst, MD, MACP, former chair of medicine at Emory University School of Medicine, whose “dedication to instilling principles of lifelong learning brought him worldwide recognition as a gifted and influential teacher.” Previous Mercer faculty recipients include Dr. Ed Grimsley (1996), Dr. Harold Katner (1997), Dr. John Hudson (2006), Dr. Jeff Stephens (2009), and Dr. Steve Carpenter (2013).
Dr. Stephen Thacker, clinical assistant professor of pediatrics, presented “TB or Not TB” on June 10 at Pediatrics by the Sea 2017, hosted by the Georgia Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Wanda Thomas, library instructor and clinical reference librarian, staffed a health resources information booth at Middle Georgia State University's Health and Safety fair on Sept. 14.
Staff and Administration
Renee Slaton, formerly associate director of admissions, was promoted to director of adult undergraduate admissions and student success for the Regional Academic Centers.
Lael Whiteside, formerly assistant director of admissions, was promoted to director of admissions for the Eugene W. Stetson School of Business and Economics in Atlanta.
Tift College of Education
Dr. Robbie Marsh, assistant professor of special education, published a book, titled School Connectedness for Students with Disabilities: From Theory to Evidence-based Practice, as well as a scholarly article, titled “Provision of Mental Health Services for Students with Emotional Behavioral Disorders,” in the Journal of Disability Policy Studies.
Townsend School of Music
Dr. Jack Mitchener, professor of organ, university organist and director of the Townsend-McAfee Institute of Church Music, was appointed artist-in-residence at Peachtree Road United Methodist Church in Atlanta. Dr. Mitchener will assist the other musicians of the 8,000-member church as needed by playing the organ, as well as harpsichord and piano, in regular worship services and concerts. He will give his debut recital on Jan. 30, 2018, as part of the church's concert series.
Amy Schwartz Moretti, director of the Robert McDuffie Center for Strings, associate professor and Caroline Paul King Chair in Strings, was featured in the opening concerts of the Omaha Symphony Masterworks Series at the Holland Performing Arts Center Sept. 22-23 in Omaha, Nebraska. She performed “Three Shades of Blue” concerto for violin, jazz trio and orchestra, written for her by Grammy Award winner Matt Catingub. Omaha Symphony Music Director Thomas Wilkins conducted the work that also featured artists Matt Catingub, piano; Kevin Axt, bass; and Steve Moretti, drums. Moretti gave a two-hour violin master class for young musician, ages 10-17, on Sept. 23 for the Omaha Conservatory of Music's “Inside the Mind of the Artist” series. Moretti performed at the Bridgehampton Chamber Music Festival Aug. 18 and 20 in Long Island, New York, with artists Marya Martin, Romie de Guise-Langlois, Frank Huang, Scott Lee, Cynthia Phelps, Paul Watkins, Bridget Kibbey, and gypsy-jazz guitarist Stephane Wrembel and his band. The Ehnes Quartet's recording of Schubert's “String Quartet No.14” and the “Sibelius String Quartet, Op.56” on the ONYX label was nominated for a 2017 Gramophone Award in the Chamber Music category. Moretti has been a member of the quartet since it was founded in 2010. American Public Media's “Performance Today” broadcast part of the Brahms Clarinet Quartet from the Fabian Concert Series originally performed on March 21 by guest artists Osmo Vänskä, clarinet; and Erin Keefe, violin, as well as Moretti, violin; Rebecca Albers, McDuffie Center Distinguished Artist and Minnesota Orchestra Principal Violist, viola; and Atticus Mellor-Goldman, McDuffie Center for Strings student, cello, on Sept. 19, for nearly 300 public radio stations across the country.
University Libraries
Louise L. Lowe, associate professor and research services librarian, and Stephen Michaels, instructor and research services librarian, presented, “Finding Our Place in Canvas” June 16 at the 2017 Atlanta Area Bibliographic Instruction Group's annual conference.
