Here is a roundup of faculty and staff at Alvernia who have made a difference inside and outside of the classroom in 2022.
Faculty spotlight
Jess Hamlet, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of English
Dr. Jess Hamlet, assistant professor of English, was awarded the University of Alabama’s 2021 Outstanding Dissertation Award at both the English Department level and College of Arts and Sciences level for her doctoral dissertation, “Shakespeare, Race, and Adaptation in Times of Unrest, 1601-1888,” examining equity and inclusion facing 100 other candidates from 30 different programs. The dissertation, which examines nearly half of Shakespeare’s plays and some of his sonnets, also serves as the foundation of her upcoming book, “Shakespeare as Paratext to Power.” It examines how Shakespeare has been and continues to be used as a weapon to create racial and class boundaries that keep poor, uneducated, undereducated and non-White individuals out of spaces controlled by and intended for White people.
The continued use of Shakespeare’s works by White supremacists is why Hamlet’s research is so crucial to the conversations today about race and equality. Consequently, Hamlet is committed to teaching her students about race and equity in her classroom through Shakespeare. She explained that the best way for her to teach students about race and equity is by modeling productive discomfort. Her goal is to show her students that when they get something wrong, it’s okay to acknowledge it, correct it and move forward.
In Hamlet’s eyes, one of the most important things we can teach students is that we can always try to be better and work for a more just, inclusive and equitable society. Hamlet teaches a class on Shakespeare and race, which highlights one of Shakespeare’s most iconic tragedies, “Othello,” among others. According to Hamlet, her students are engaging with the play and doing excellent work. She is excited to continue instructing her Shakespeare courses.
Jamie Becker, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Biology
Dr. Jamie Becker was recently awarded one of Alvernia’s prestigious Neag Junior Faculty Professorships for excellence in teaching and scholarship along with a Faculty Excellence Grant for his research. Becker was invited to speak in London at The Royal Society’s Theo Murphy meeting on “Marine Microbes in a Changing Climate” in October where he will chair a breakout session on using genomics to understand links between organisms and large-scale biogeochemical cycles in the marine environment. During the summer, he traveled with an Alvernia environmental science undergraduate, Alex Kabrich, to the Peruvian Amazon in search of environmental DNA and guested on two episodes of the “Science Behind Science” podcast.
Lee Bukowski
Adjunct Professor of Communications
Lee Bukowski published her debut novel “,” which explores the effect addiction can have on a family from the perspective of character Tessa Cordelia. It is available for purchase on Amazon, Bookshop.org, barnesandnoble.com and anywhere books are sold.
Jamie Caporizo
Senior Director of Mission and Ministry
Glynis Fitzgerald, Ph.D.
Senior Vice President and Provost
Kristopher Nolt
Director of Marketing and Communications
Jamie Caporizo, Dr. Glynis Fitzgerald and Kristopher Nolt presented “What is Ours to Do: Vocational Leadership and Learning Through Pilgrimage” at the 2022 NetVUE Conference in Dallas, TX. The presentation showcased a unique pilgrimage program to Assisi and Rome and its lasting effects on drawing students, faculty and staff into the Franciscan tradition. It facilitated participants’ exploration of the relationship between pilgrimage and experiential learning and its role in holistic student development. Small group discussions were introduced to highlight artifacts brought back from a recent pilgrimage, and video interviews with students, faculty and staff pilgrims were shown to engage participants in the ways vocation can touch everyone’s role within the university community.
Michelle Conway
Adjunct Professor of Business and Director of Student and Client Services, The O’Pake Institute for Economic Development & Entrepreneurship
Michelle Conway published her debut novel “,” a modern take on young professionalism and self-discovery from her perspective. It includes journal prompts and tools to assist others on their personal and professional journey as a young professional. It is available for purchase on Amazon.
Erin Way, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Psychology
Dr. Erin Way was awarded the Sister Mary Donatilla Faculty Award, which recognizes a full-time faculty member who has given long service to the university in teaching, advising, service and support.
Soo Yeon Sun, PT, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Physical Therapy
Dr. Soo Yeon Sun was recently awarded one of Alvernia’s prestigious Neag Junior Faculty Professorships for excellence in teaching and scholarship. Dr. Sun’s field of expertise is physical therapy. Both of her research projects will investigate the effects of backward gait training using exoskeleton on the synergy patterns and gait function in people with stroke as well as the role of arm swing in gait in young and older adults.
Ana Ruiz, Ph.D.
Professor of Psychology
Dr. Ana Ruiz, recently awarded an Alvernia prestigious Neag Co-Professorship in Teaching Excellence and Innovation, was a co-author of a chapter titled “Service learning: An innovative pedagogy for the psychology curriculum” in the “International Handbook of Psychology Learning and Teaching” published by Springer International Handbooks of Education. She also mentored student fellows in the SURF program.
Scott Davidson
Instructor of Theology
Kevin Godfrey, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Theology
Mary Ellen Wells, JD, LLM
Associate Professor of Business, Executive Director of Academic Services, Research and Scholarship
In June, Professor Scott Davidson, Dr. Kevin Godfrey and Dr. Mary Ellen Wells traveled to Budapest, Hungary, to attend the Freedom, Subsidiarity, and the Spirit of Gift conference sponsored by the University of St. Thomas, John A. Ryan Institute, Center for Catholic Studies. The group received a Faculty Excellence Grant for their research and their presentation focused on the principle of subsidiarity, a model for successful relationships reflected in the many documents comprising Catholic social thought. Subsidiarity posits that institutions and societies flourish when people from every level are engaged in meaningful ways that help them determine a shared future rooted in the common good. The title of their conference paper, “The Evolution of a University Through Community-Building Subsidiarity,” detailed Alvernia’s successful application of the principle of subsidiarity and related community-building activities to four specific initiatives at Alvernia: development of a new strategic plan, revision of the first-year program, reorganization of The O’Pake Institute and restructuring of the academic programs.
Anthony Driggers, Ed.D.
Adjunct Professor of Psychology and Counseling
Dr. Anthony Driggers was awarded the Adjunct Professor Real World Leaning Faculty Award at the 2022 Honors Convocation in recognition of an
adjunct professor who demonstrates excellence incorporating real-world learning practices into their teaching and mentorship of students.
Mary-Alice Ozechoski
Senior Vice President for Enrollment Management and Student Affairs
Mary-Alice Ozechoski, senior vice president for Enrollment Management and Student Affairs participated in a national presentation hosted by Sallie Mae in August. She discussed the strategy behind communicating with prospective students and families about college affordability, student loan myths, financial wellness, communicating the return on investment of Alvernia University and more.
Mary Ann Durant, DNP, MSN, RN, M.Ed.
Associate Professor of Nursing & Director, RN-BSN Completion Program
Dr. Mary Ann Durant was named President of Â鶹ĘÓƵ’s Upsilon Zeta Chapter of Sigma International Honor Society for Nursing in March 2022. Durant also had a scholarly article published in Nurse Education Today’s January 2022 edition titled “Innovative activities with edible creations to enhance interdisciplinary health profession students’ levels of perceived self-efficacy and cultural competence: An experimental study.”
Jayme Ober, OTD, OTR/L, MSCS, CNMI
Assistant Professor of Occupational Therapy
Dr. Jayme Ober coauthored and published her article “The Dynamic Use of the Kawa Model: A Scoping Review” to The Open Journal of Occupational Therapy.
Tracy F. Scheirer, Ph.D., MSN, RN, CMSRN, CNE
Associate Professor of Nursing Pre-license BSN Nursing Program Director
Victoria Williams, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Political Science, Honors Program Director
Dr. Tracy Scheirer and Dr. Victoria Williams received a Faculty Excellence Grant for their research titled “Sick! The Politics of Healthcare in America.”
Michelle Serapiglia, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Biology
Dr. Michelle Serapiglia received a Faculty Excellence Grant for her research.
Josh Hayes, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Philosophy
Dr. Josh Hayes received a Faculty Excellence Grant for his research. His seminal article, “Deconstructing Dasein: Heidegger’s Earliest Interpretations of Aristotle’s De Anima,” was selected for inclusion in the international volume Aristoteles y la Fenomenologica del Siglo XX and is now translated into Spanish. In Spring 2022, he was invited by the Boston Area Colloquium in Ancient Philosophy to present the lecture “Inclination and the Place of the Elements in Aristotle’s De Caelo” with a commentary by Dr. Christian Pfeiffer from the University of Toronto to Saint Anselm College. The lecture will be published with Brill Press in the Netherlands. In Fall 2021, he delivered the Albert J. Fitzgibbons Memorial Lecture at Boston College, “Cosmopolitanism and Civil Friendship: A Dialogue between Islam and the West,” which will be forthcoming in a manuscript dedicated to the history of cosmopolitanism in Islam.
James M. O’Donohue, PT, DPT, OCS, ATC, FAFS
Assistant Professor of Physical Therapy
Christopher H. Wise, PT, DPT, Ph.D., OCS, FAAOMPT, MTC, ATC
Department of Physical Therapy Chair, Doctor of Physical Therapy Program Director, Professor of Physical Therapy
Dr. James O’Donohue and Dr. Christopher Wise both received Faculty Excellence Grants and published their research “Measurement of Accessory Motion of the Glenohumeral and Radiocarpal Joints: Intra-Rater Reliability of the Mobil-Aider® Device for Measurement of Linear Translation in the Annals of Physiotherapy Clinics” and “Measurement of Accessory Motion of the Glenohumeral and Radiocarpal Joints: IntraRater and Inter-Rater Reliability of the Mobil-Aider® Device for Measurement of Linear Translation and the Implications for Clinical Practice and Teaching” in the World Journal of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine. This is research regarding a new device that measures linear joint excursion and has the potential to be used in patient examination and in educating students in manual therapy. O’Donohue and Wise also submitted the following projects for publication and presentation: “The Effect of Lumbopelvic Manipulation on Multifidi Thickness, Range-of-Motion, and Pain: A Randomized Controlled Trial,” submitted for publication at the Journal of Manual and Manipulative Theory and for presentation at two American Physical Therapy Association conferences. “Relationship Between Hip and Sacroiliac Joint Motion in the Transverse Plane using Rehabilitation Ultrasound Imaging,” was submitted for presentation at two American Physical Therapy Association conferences.
Jodi Radosh, Ph.D.
Professor of Communication, Associate Director, Holleran Center for Community & Global Engagement
Dr. Jodi Radosh, recently awarded an Alvernia prestigious Neag CoProfessorship in Teaching Excellence and Innovation, received the Lindback Foundation award and the University-Wide Exemplary Real-World Learning Award at the 2022 Honors Convocation. The Lindback Foundation Award for excellence in teaching is awarded to a full-time tenured faculty member with at least 10 years of full-time teaching at Alvernia that demonstrated excellent performance in teaching, service and scholarship/research. The UniversityWide Real World Learning Faculty Award is given in recognition of a faculty member who demonstrates excellence in providing real-world experiences for Alvernia students.
Christine Saadi
Senior Director of Student Financial Services
Christine Saadi was a panelist at the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators Conference in Austin, TX, in June for the “Pivot! Developing Nimble Processes to Support Students” session. She discussed how adapting in the face of change is critical to student and institutional success, how to effectively respond and manage change amidst a shrinking workforce, and nimble processes that foster success for students and staff.
Michele Kulp, MFA
Adjunct Professor of Art
Michele Kulp, MFA received an award from Graphic Design USA Magazine for her design of an art opening invitation for The Warehouse Studios. She also recently completed a pro bono job for United Churches of Elizabethtown, where she designed two logos to match their existing logo and brand.
Janae Sholtz, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Philosophy
In Spring 2022, Dr. Janae Sholtz was bestowed Â鶹ĘÓƵ’s inaugural Justice, Equity and Diversity Award and has been awarded Alvernia’s prestigious Neag Senior Professorship, beginning in Fall 2022, for excellence in teaching and scholarship along with a Faculty Excellence Grant. In the last year, Dr. Sholtz published the chapter “Inside the Matrix: Technofeminism, New Materialism, and Machinic Being” in “Technology, Urban Space, and the Network Community” with Palgrave Macmillan. She also published the article “Desire, Delirium, and Revolutionary Love: Deleuzian Feminist Possibilities” in the Special Issue: Current French Philosophy in Difficult Times of the journal Philosophies. She was a key presenter at the Colloquium for Social Ontologies After Deleuze at the Institute of Philosophy, Czech Academy of Sciences, in Prague, Czech Republic, and a Plenary Speaker for the 5th DGSIC International Conference, Infinite Life: Immanence, Inflection, Indeterminacy, hosted through the Deleuze and Guattari Studies India Collective. She also gave the keynote address for international webinar Freedom and Global Responsibility: The Limits of Pure Liberty organized by the Research and Innovation Committee at Lady Keane College in Shillong, India. This fall, Dr. Sholtz has been invited to give keynote presentations at Reykjavik University in Iceland, and NorthWest University in South Africa.
Bongrae Seok, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Philosophy
Dr. Bongrae Seok received a Faculty Excellence Grant for his research. He also published multiple articles and books, and gave numerous lectures and conference presentations.
Publications:
- “” Emotions in Korean Philosophy and Religion, Confucian, Comparative, and Contemporary Perspectives. Palgrave (edited by Edward Chung and Jea Oh)
- . Dao, a Journal of Comparative Philosophy. Volume 21, p. 37–59.
- “” Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, edited by Edward N. Zalta (Senior Research Scholar, Philosophy Department, Stanford University)
- “.” Blog of the APA (Published June 2, 2022)
Lecture:
- “”; The University of Scranton, Scranton, Pa.; Department of Philosophy and Asian Studies Program (Oct. 20, 2021)
Conference Presentations:
- “Cross-Linguistic Communication among Different Cultures of Shame” Cross-Linguistic Disagreement Conference, (hosted by the Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology) Kanazawa/Ishikawa, Japan (July 14-15/2022).
- “Zhuangzian Wandering and Epistemological Boredom” The 22nd International Conference of the ISCP (International Society of Chinese Philosophy), East China Normal University (ECNU), China, June 27-July 1, 2022,
- “AI, Robotics, and Buddhism” in Foundations and Applications of AI: Interdisciplinary Perspectives, Department of Philosophy, Peking [Beijing] University, Beijing China (April 8 – 10)
- “Affecting Presence and the Openness of Embodied Sensitivity” Fifteenth Annual Geo-Aesthetics Conference, Towson University (March 18-19, 2022).
- "Moral Psychology of the Mencian Creature: How is it different from the Kantian, the Humean, and the Rawlsian creatures?” ISCP session, APA Central Division Meeting, Chicago (Feb 2022).
- “Philosophy and Moral Psychology of Shame: Korean Words of Shame in Comparison to Japanese Words of Shame” NAKPA session, APA Central Division Meeting, Chicago (Feb 2022).
- “Religious Experience of Mindfulness and Metaphysics of Corporeal Consciousness” SoPheRe (Society for the Phenomenology of Religious Experience) session, APA Central Division Meeting, Chicago (Feb 2022).
- “Two Approaches to Emotions in Early Chinese Philosophy and Western Psychology” ISCP session, APA Eastern Division Meeting, Baltimore (Jan 2022).
- “The Simseol Debate: The Debate of the Moral Mind and the End of Moral Metaphysics” NAKPA session, APA Eastern Division Meeting, Baltimore (Jan 2022).
- “Philosophy of Mind and Moral Psychology in Korean Neo-Confucianism” Main Program (sponsored by APA) APA Eastern Division Meeting, Baltimore (Jan 2022).
Danielle Saad, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Communication
Dr. Danielle Saad received a Faculty Excellence Grant for her research.
Cynthia Corbin, LCSW
Instructor of Master of Social Work
Cynthia Corbin received a Faculty Excellence Grant for her research.
Pamela G. Unger, PT, CWS
Assistant Professor of Physical Therapy
James M. O’Donohue, PT, DPT, OCS, ATC, FAFS
Assistant Professor of Physical Therapy
Christopher H. Wise, PT, DPT, Ph.D., OCS, FAAOMPT, MTC, ATC
Department of Physical Therapy Chair, Doctor of Physical Therapy Program Director, Professor of Physical Therapy
Dr. Pamela Unger, Dr. James O’Donohue and Dr. Christopher Wise will present “Development of Clinical Reasoning in the Management of Complex Spinal Conditions through Patient Case Integration” at the APTA Educational Leadership Conference on Oct. 29, 2022.
Donna Yarri, Ph.D.
Professor Emerita
Spencer S. Stober, Ph.D.
Professor of Biology
Professor Emerita Dr. Donna Yarri and Dr. Spencer S. Stober co-presented “Frankenstein as a cautionary tale for modern genetic technologies” at the national Association for Practical and Professional Ethics, February 2022.
Alicia Sprow, Ph.D.
Coordinator of Master of Arts in Leadership program, Assistant Professor of Leadership
Dr. Alicia Sprow was awarded a Faculty Excellence Grant for her research that focuses on student leadership development through nature-based experiential learning opportunities to help expand the vision of who identifies as a leader. Sprow and psychology major Cheyenne Krow attended The Forest Therapy School Certification program in the summer to enhance a student leadership development model that is part of Sprow’s research focus. The 16-week virtual certification program takes a restorative approach to human interactions and our interactions with nature by incorporating elements of mindfulness, effective communication, team building and experiential learning. Components of this program will be incorporated into the leadership development framework that Sprow is creating.
Christopher H. Wise, PT, DPT, Ph.D., OCS, FAAOMPT, MTC, ATC
Department of Physical Therapy Chair, Doctor of Physical Therapy Program Director, Professor of Physical Therapy
Dr. Christopher H. Wise published “The Use of Spinal High Velocity Thrust Manipulation and Changes in Serratus Anterior Strength in an Individual with Long Thoracic Nerve Palsy: A Case Report” in the Journal of Orthopaedic & Sports Physical Therapy: Case Studies. Wise also successfully defended his dissertation entitled, “The Effect of Lumbopelvic Manipulation on Multifidi Thickness, Range-of-Motion, and Pain: A Randomized Controlled Trial,” and graduated with his Ph.D. from Nova Southeastern University in February 2022.
Saint Bernardine Award Winners
The following adjunct professors earned the Saint Bernardine Faculty Award presented to adjunct professors for excellence in teaching: Amanda Stilianos, Adjunct Professor of Occupational Therapy; Trevor Jackson, Adjunct Professor of Education; Sandra George, Adjunct Professor of Communication; Erich Miller, Adjunct Professor of Science; Courtney Mindzak, Adjunct Professor of Healthcare Science; Rosalynda Michetti, Adjunct Professor of Criminal Justice; Don Schalk, Director of MBA Program.
