Winter 2020 Kudos

Generickudosnewsstoryimage700x467

From poetry to political analysis, academic approaches to astronomical anomalies, Dickinson faculty, staff and students were featured in prominent media outlets in recent months, including The Chronicle of Higher Education, The Philadelphia Inquirer and The New Yorker.

Featured Faculty

Assistant Professor of Political Science and Latin American Studies Santiago Anria published two op-eds, “The Latin American Left Isn’t Dead Yet” in The Conversation and “Is Bolivia’s Democracy in Danger? Here’s What’s Behind the Disputed Presidential Election” in The Washington Post. Under the Creative Commons license, the piece also was published by a number of other prominent outlets, including Chicago Tribune, Canada Standard, Nigeria Sun, Argentina Star and Trinidad Times. Anria also was quoted in The Nation story “Bolivia’s Remarkable Socialist Success Story” and The New York Times report “Bolivia Crisis Shows the Blurry Line Between Coup and Uprising” and co-authored “Bolivia After Morales” for Foreign Affairs

Associate Professor of Biology Scott Boback was quoted in a Huffington Post report on President Trump’s alleged idea to construct a snake-filled border moat. 

In addition to dozens of faculty, staff, students and members of the local community, the Astronomy Club’s Transit of Mercury event attracted local media attention. It was featured on CBS21 and ABC27 news. Professor of Physics & Astronomy Robert Boyle and Aidan Pidgeon ’20 gave on-camera interviews. 

Visiting Assistant Professor of Mathematics Sarah Bryant is an editor and author in A Celebration of the EDGE Program’s Impact on the Mathematics Community and Beyond, published by Springer. Her chapter, “The EDGE Program: 20 Years and Counting,” provides an overview of this program, which has supported more than 260 women as they prepare for graduate studies in math. Since being a participant in the EDGE 2002 cohort, Bryant has returned as mentor, guest speaker and instructor. Last year EDGE was recognized with a Presidential Award for Excellence in STEM Mentoring, the highest honor for mentors who work with underrepresented groups to develop the nation’s human resources in STEM. Bryant also co-wrote a chapter, “Striking the Right Chord: How Math Circles Promote (Joyous) Professional Development,” on the impact of her outreach work.

Analysis by Professor of Religion and Sophia Ava Asbell Chair in Judaic Studies Andrea Lieber was referenced in a Haaretz (Israeli newspaper) story on Orthodox and Ultra-orthodox women finding voice and power on Instagram.

Visiting Professor of International Security Studies Jeff McCausland published an opinion piece with NBC News THINK. In it, he endorsed military senior officers’ position that President Trump should not intervene in legal cases involving service members.

The Chronicle of Higher Education highlighted Lecturer in International Business & Management Joy Middaugh’s First-Year Seminar, Paying the Game of Life, as an innovative financialwellness course in its story “Why More Colleges Are Teaching Financial Wellness.” Middaugh and students Jessie Zinderman ’23 and Sam Campbell ’23 were photographed for and quoted prominently in the story. Chroniclecapture2

Assistant Professor of Political Science Sarah Niebler was quoted in two election-related stories in The Philadelphia Inquirer: “Why the Obama Legacy is Complicated for Joe Biden in 2020” and “The Republican ‘Bloodletting’ Continued in the Philadelphia Suburbs. What Does It Mean for Trump In 2020?”

Assistant Professor of Political Science David O’Connell was quoted in The Philadelphia Inquirer story “For Joe Biden, Trump’s Impeachment Inquiry Emphasizes His Strong Standing While Also Testing It.”

Associate Professor of History Emily Pawley was interviewed in The Sentinel’s two-part series “Reclaiming the Square” and quoted in the Los Angeles Times story “How ‘Molly of Denali’ Helps Native American Children Feel Seen.”

Associate Professor of Philosophy Crispin Sartwell’s latest op-ed, “Rural Voters’ Pride and the Left’s Prejudice,” was published in The Wall Street Journal.

Assistant Professor of English and Film Studies Greg Steirer was a guest on the program Knowledge@Wharton, discussing Spider-Man rejoining the Marvel cinematic universe after Sony made a deal with Disney.

Analysis and commentary by Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies Kristin Strock was published in the report “Cancer-Linked Contaminants in Point Pleasant Area’s Water.” The report was published in 95 editions of Patch.com’s network of news sites throughout New Jersey and New York.

“An Hour Later, You’re Hungry Again,” a poem by Professor of Creative Writing and poet-inresidence Adrienne Su that presents a multigenerational feast, was published in The New Yorker. Her poem “Personal History” was featured on Dec. 4 in the Academy of American Poets Poem-a-Day series.

Administrator Accolades & Noteworthy Coverage

U.S. News & World Report featured the College Farm in its story “Why College Campuses Are Going Green.” College Farm Director Jenn Halpin was quoted. 

Assistant Director of Media Relations Craig Layne, host and co-producer of “The Good,” Dickinson’s award-winning monthly podcast, was quoted in the University Business column, “Podcasting: A Voice of the Future of Higher Ed?”

Vincent L. Stephens, director of the Popel Shaw Center for Race & Ethnicity and contributing faculty in music, published Rocking the Closet: How Little Richard, Johnnie Ray, Liberace, and Johnny Mathis Queered Pop Music (University of Illinois Press, 2019). He also has an article, “Impact by Intention: An Argument for Forensics as a High Impact Practice,” in National Forensic Journal (Fall 2019, Volume 36, Issue 1). 

A press release announcing the reimagined certificate program with Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet was published by DanceLand News and on the websites of more than 60 news and television outlets. 

The Sentinel, ABC27’s Good Day PA, WITF and WITF’s Smart Talk promoted Genocide, Justice and Hope in advance of the event, which was hosted by Dickinson. The Sarajevo Times published a story by ABC27 news, which covered the event.  
(Kudos as of Dec. 4.)

President Ensign in the News

President Margee Ensign’s latest op-ed, “It’s Time to Pass the Global Fragility Act,” which she co-authored with a former ambassador to Qatar, Patrick N. Theros, was published in The Hill.
 
Ensign, Bridge student Patience Bulus and former CNN journalist Isha Sesay led a Q&A session about the Boko Haram kidnappings in Chibok at Midtown Scholar bookstore in Harrisburg. The event was covered by PennLive.
 
Ensign was quoted in a Pittsburgh Post-Gazette story “Major Businesses and Higher Education Institutions in Pennsylvania Urge State Leaders to Accelerate a Low-Carbon Future.”
 

Nafsa paul simon awards 2019 46

During a Nov. 21 ceremony in Washington, D.C., Ensign accepted the Senator Paul Simon Award for Comprehensive Internationalization (pictured above), a prestigious national award that formally affirmed Dickinson’s role as a leader in global education. The award was presented by NAFSA: Association for International Educators, the world’s largest nonprofit association dedicated to international education. Dickinson is one of eight institutions to be bestowed NAFSA’s highest honor in 2019 and the first college in NAFSA’s history to earn the award twice. 
 
In advance of their panel discussion, Rwanda 25, which took place on campus on Dec. 2, Ensign and Nelly Teta ’22, a native of Rwanda, were in-studio guests on WITF’s live radio program, Smart Talk.

Read more from the winter 2020 issue of Dickinson Magazine.

TAKE THE NEXT STEPS

Published February 20, 2020