Miguel Cortinas, associate professor of art, spoke in October to the adult faith formation class of St. John’s Episcopal Church in New Braunfels, Texas, about what it is to have mercy and how this act can often be found in the work of artists who address the theme of social justice. Additionally, one of his intaglio prints was selected for inclusion in the 2014 Delta National Small Prints Exhibition, which opened in January 2014 at the Bradbury Gallery of Arkansas State University.
Dr. Maria Felix-Ortiz, associate professor of psychology, had an article published by “The Community Psychologist”: “Critical Competencies in Community Psychology: Listening Closely and Paraphrasing with Concision, Clarity, and Cultural Competence.”
The UIW Autonomous Vehicle Systems (AVS) Research and Education Laboratory has been funded for $486,000 by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research through the Department of Defense (DoD) HBCU/MI Research and Education Program. Dr. Michael Frye, assistant professor of engineering, serves as the principal investigator. The AVS lab will study the control of both autonomous ground robots and autonomous rotorcraft vehicles; research the application of complexity theory to the problem of formation control of multi-agent autonomous ground and air vehicles in uncertain dynamic environments; and allow the opportunity for students in the School of Mathematics, Science, and Engineering to engage in autonomous vehicle research using the latest robotic vehicle technologies.
Dreeben School of Education faculty members Dr. Stephanie Grote-Garcia, assistant professor of teacher education; Dr. Norman St. Clair, assistant professor of teacher education; and Dr. Elda Martinez, associate professor of teacher education; contributed significant work to “Academic Knowledge Construction and Multimodal Curriculum Development,” a recent IGI Global publication, released in November. The work features essays depicting various complexities for how one might experience education in the digital age. For more info, including a complete table of contents, chapter abstracts, and brochure, visit: http://www.igi-global.com/book/academic-knowledge-construction-multimodal-curriculum/78266.
Dr. Georgen Guerrero, associate professor of criminal justice, had “Surviving in Prison: Developing Intervening Strategies to Minimize Institutional Victimization” accepted for presentation at the 2014 Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences annual meeting in February in Philadelphia, Pa. Additionally, he was also asked to chair the institutional corrections panel at the meeting.
Dr. Timothy Henrich, professor of human performance, and Dr. Gregory Soukup, associate professor of human performance, are life members and officers in the International Council of Health, Physical Education, Recreation, Sport and Dance (ICHPERSD). Henrich and Soukup presented at the ICHPERSD international conference in December in Istanbul, Turkey. They presented research they have been conducting regarding how the dimensions of wellness classes at UIW impact the cardiovascular health of students. Henrich, Soukup, and Dr. Shishu Zhang, assistant professor of economics, presented research regarding international rates of obesity. They met and interacted with colleagues from North America, Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Asia. Henrich, serving his last conference as vice president for North America for the ICHPERSD, received the Biennial Distinguished Scholar Award. The requirements for this award include producing citable publications, conference proceedings publications, being an organizer of conference symposiums, membership on the organization’s scientific committee, and senior editorial responsibilities in at least one journal.
Associate Professor of International Business Dr. Sara Jackson is currently teaching at the UIW European Study Center in Heidelberg, Germany. The U.S. Secretary of Commerce recently reappointed her to the Camino Real District Export Council for a four-year term. She also serves on the board of directors of the International Trade Organization and the board of governors of NASBITE International, the trade educator’s organization that also administers the credentials for international business, the Certified Global Business Professional (CGBP). In September, Jackson delivered a presentation at the International Association of Trade Training Organization (IATTO) conference on “How to do Business in the United States.”
Dr. Suk Bin Kong, professor of chemistry, recently co-authored an article, “Enantioenriched Bifunctional Crotylsilanes for the Asymmetric Synthesis of Orthogonally Protected 2-Methyl-1,3-diols,” published in “Organic Letters,” 2013, 15(19), The American Chemistry Society. The research involved a synthetic method that can be applied to medicinal and pesticide chemicals.
Three faculty members of the Rosenberg School of Optometry (RSO) were accepted as fellows at the American Academy of Optometry annual meeting in Seattle, Wash.: Dr. Chandra Mickles, assistant clinical instructor of optometry; Dr. Kyle Sandburg, clinical instructor of optometry; and Dr. Matt Valdes, clinical instructor of optometry. These individuals successfully completed the rigorous process of obtaining academy fellowship. The fellowship process requires the optometrist to prepare multiple Patient Case Reports of patients they have personally examined and treated. These reports are peer reviewed by the admissions committee for quality and standard of care. If the optometrist passes this portion of the examination process, they are invited to the annual meeting where they undergo a comprehensive oral examination.
Dr. William Linn, professor of pharmacy, received a $2,000 grant from the American College of Clinical Pharmacy for the development of an internet journal club, “Forum RX,” for primary care clinical specialists, 2013-2014.
Dr. Kathleen Lusk, assistant professor of pharmacy practice, published “A 62 Year Old Man with Red Man Syndrome,” in the UIW Pharmacy Review journal, Oct. 1. Co-author: Sanchez, R. She also presented “Overview of the New Drug 2012-2013” at the Central Texas Society of Health-System Pharmacists Fall Seminar on Oct. 19 in San Antonio, Texas. Co-presenter: Lopez, TC.
Dr. Richard Peigler, professor of biology, has co-authored a book, “Eri Silk: Cocoon to Cloth,” published in 2013 by Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh, a publishing house in India. Peigler co-authored the work with Kiran Badola, a textile designer in North Canton, Ohio. For the past 20 years he has studied and collected wild silk textiles of the world and has deposited more than 300 pieces of wild silks into institutional collections. Several students and faculty, including Dr. Lopita Nath, associate professor and chair of the history department, modeled some of the textiles on campus and are featured in the book. Peigler is avid in his commitment that these entomological and anthropological treasures be preserved for future generations.
Dr. Timothy Wingert, professor of optometry, was inducted into the National Academy of Practice (NAP) in Optometry. The academy is dedicated to affordable, accessible, coordinated quality health care for all. It was founded in the belief that health care practice has an interprofessional foundation and that addressing the whole person provides better preventive care and better health care overall. NAP recognizes and honors the contributions of the nation’s leading health care practitioners and supports its members in developing and disseminating practices, models, and curricula that enhance interprofessional collaborations in patient care.
Dr. Mark Teachout, associate professor of business administration and Master of Arts in Administration director, is continuing his teaching and research abroad this semester in Krems, Austria. Teachout has been rewarded a Fulbright U.S. Scholar Grant at the IMC University of Applied Sciences, a UIW sister school. Previously, he spent the summer of 2013 teaching at John Cabot University in Rome and moved to the UIW European Study Center in Heidelberg, Germany in Fall 2013. Teachout is also the lead author on an upcoming publication in U.S. Air Force Technical Report on the consistency of pilot cognitive ability, personality and training performance.
Administered by Theresa Tiggeman, professor of accounting; Dr. Tracey Edmond, professor of accounting; Dr. Michael Forrest, professor of business law; and Dr. Robin Guerrero, instructor of business administration; the UIW Volunteers in Income Tax Assistance (VITA) Program is the longest continuously operating VITA site in San Antonio, Texas, and second only to New York City, N.Y., in serving the tax needs of the low income in the community. Currently in its 28th year, the VITA program allows H-E-B School of Business and Administration accounting students to prepare tax returns and learn skills such as client interviews and tax preparation software. Here at UIW, the VITA program serves students and employees. Generally, UIW serves over 350 tax clients annually. The program utilizes approximately 50 volunteers including students, faculty and community volunteers encompassing approximately 1,900 hours of community service. Tax services began in February and extend through the second week of April.
In late 2013, Dr. Shishu Zhang, assistant professor of economics, had her article, “The Impact of Inflation of Expenditures and Happiness in China,” accepted for publication by the “Southern Business and Economics Journal.” Zhang, co-authored with UIW Senior Research Statistician Dr. David Fike, the article, “Qualities University Students Seek in a Teacher,” which was accepted for publication by the “Journal of Economics and Economic Education Research.”
