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2006-2007 Regents' Faculty Award Winners

The 2006-2007 Regents’ Faculty Award winners gather during the April 13th Board of Regents meeting held at the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science Chesapeake Biological Laboratory.

Click on picture to enlarge.

Pictured on the back row (left to right) are: Mark Marten, UMBC; Don Spickler, SU; James Howard, UMUC; David Schaefer, TU; David Inouye, UMCP; David O’Brochta, UMBI; Yonathan Zohar, UMBI; and Ernest Bond, SU. In the front row (left to right) are: Robert Schwarcz, UMB; Arie Kruglanski, UMCP; Renee Shea, BSU; Bonnie Thornton Dill, UMCP; Philip DeShong, UMCP; and Christine Nielsen, UB. Not pictured: Sandra Herbert, UMBC; Edward Redish, UMCP; and Sudhir Singh, FSU.

On April 13, the University System of Maryland (USM) Board of Regents presented the annual Regents' Faculty Awards to 17 USM faculty members. Instituted in 1995, the awards honor faculty for professional achievement in the areas of research, scholarship, and creative activity; teaching; public service; mentoring; and collaboration. The honorees are selected by the Council of University System Faculty and approved by the board. Award recipients receive $1000 and a plaque of recognition.

The 2006-2007 Regents' Faculty Award recipients are:

RESEARCH/SCHOLARSHIP/CREATIVE ACTIVITY

Dr. Sandra Herbert, Professor of History, University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC). Herbert is an internationally respected historian of science and an expert on the work of Charles Darwin. Her most recent book, 2005's Charles Darwin: Geologist received several awards, including the History of Geology Division of the Geological Society of America's Mary C. Rabbitt Award; the first History of Science Society's Levinson Prize; the North American Conference of British Studies' Albion Prize; and the American Historical Association's George L. Mosse Prize. She is also helping to plan the 2009 celebration of Darwin's 200th birthday and the 150th birthday of his seminal work On the Origin of Species.

Herbert's earlier scholarly work has also made significant contributions to our understanding of Charles Darwin and his work. Most notably, her work editing Darwin's research notebooks for publication has made these invaluable archival materials available and approachable for a wide range of scholars.

Herbert holds a B.A. in Interdisciplinary Studies from Wittenberg University and a M.A. and Ph.D. in History of Ideas from Brandeis University.

Dr. Arie Kruglanski, Distinguished University Professor of Social Psychology, University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP). Kruglanski's research in the field of social psychology has brought him recognition from his colleagues and is having a significant impact on contemporary policy issues. His research in the area of motivation science has contributed both theoretically and empirically to how social psychologists evaluate human behavior. 

Kruglanski is currently studying the motivations behind terrorism. He and his collaborators were awarded a $12 million grant from the Department of Homeland Security to establish the National Center for the Study of Terrorism and the Response to Terrorism at UMCP to pursue this work. Kruglanski found that terrorism emerges from the same fundamental motivational laws as other behaviors. These findings represent a major shift in thought from previous analyses of the psychology of terrorism. For this work, Kruglanski received the 2007 Distinguished Scientific Contribution Award from the Society of Experimental Social Psychology-the most distinguished award offered in the field of social psychology.

 Dr. Robert Schwarcz, Professor of Psychiatry and Director of Neuroscience Research, University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB). Schwarcz is the Director of Neuroscience Research for the University of Maryland School of Medicine's Maryland Psychiatric Research Center (MPRC). He is internationally recognized for his contributions to the theory of and data related to neurodegeneration and neuroprotection, as well as his study of the molecular and cellular mechanisms that cause neurodegenerative and seizure disorders. He was the first researcher to show that a specific type of drugs, glutamate receptor antagonists, could protect nerve cells from injury. This research is being applied in the development of further treatments for diseases of the brain such as schizophrenia, epilepsy, and Huntington's Disease.

Schwarcz's work and reputation play a critical role in winning federal grants for the MPRC with more than 20 years of continuous support from the National Institutes of Mental Health. Individually, he holds 37 issued patents from the U.S. and abroad and has eight patent applications pending for discoveries in the field of neuroprotection and cognitive enhancement. Schwarcz was also instrumental in the formation of UMB's collaboration with healthcare products giant Novartis. This partnership is largest academic-industry contract in UMB's history. 

TEACHING

Dr. Ernest Bond, Associate Professor of Education, Salisbury University (SU). An expert on literature for children and young adults, Bond goes to great effort to ensure that his students have opportunities to learn from a global perspective. In 2005, Bond began offering a summer study abroad course in International Children's Literature. Students enrolled in this course travel to destinations such as Iceland, England, or Australia. The instructional part of the trip may include opportunities for the students to present their own research at an international conference, meeting local children's authors, or attending a children's literature festival.

Bond also draws his students into the current state of research in his field by using his own work to enrich his classroom. He actively publishes his own research, participates in several editorial boards, and consults for children's book publishers-activities which allow him to introduce new literature and authors into his teaching. Technology plays a significant role in Bond's classroom and research. Bond develops companion CDs for textbooks on children's literature, introduces new authors to his students through online visits, and has created a website about tactile books for children with special needs.

Dr. Christine Nielsen, Professor of International Business and Strategy, University of Baltimore (UB). Nielsen, UB's Yale Gordon Professor of Distinguished Teaching, is best known for her role in establishing UB's Wright Global Business Scholars Program, which offer students a variety of skills and experiences to help them gain a global perspective on business. Students in the program can pursue opportunities such as global business practicums, international internships, and foreign language training. Nielsen also instituted International Business Week at UB, an event meant to promote global educational experiences for students here and abroad.

The knowledge that Nielsen brings to the classroom is developed through her research in areas such as international competitiveness in high tech industries and cross-cultural management. She also continues to work in the business world, consulting and lecturing for organizations such as Northrop Grumman, the Office of the U.S. Special Trade Representative, and the U.S. Department of State.

Nielsen holds an undergraduate degree in education from the University of Rochester and an M.B.A. and doctorate in business administration from the George Washington University.

Dr. Edward Redish, Professor of Physics, University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP). Redish's concern with how well his physics students were learning new concepts dates back to his earliest years at UMCP.  Redish began as a theoretical nuclear physicist and found that the graduate students taking his quantum mechanics courses in the 1970s lacked the computing skills he believed they would need to become successful scientists. To address this need, Redish assembled a team of faculty in 1982 to form the Maryland University Project in Physics and Educational Technology (MUPPET). This group eventually produced books and software packages that assist students in completing problems and understanding basic concepts in physics.

Redish shifted his research focus to physics education in 1991. He led the Maryland Physics Expectations Survey; the data gathered in this survey pinpointed areas in which methods of physics education needed improvement. He is currently involved in one study that examines student learning in algebra-based physics courses among biosciences and pre-healthcare majors and another that is looking for methods of active-learning for introductory physics courses. Redish is also taking an active role in training a new generation of faculty members-his first four graduate students in physics education are now leading their own research into physics education at other universities.

Dr. Don Spickler, Associate Professor of Mathematics, Salisbury University (SU). In only five years at SU, Don Spickler has already made a name for himself as a dedicated teacher and mentor. In that time, Spickler has developed and taught more than twenty-one different courses and, just this year, guided six undergraduates through independent research projects. His classroom teaching also incorporates technology, assisting students in learning mathematical concepts and developing their mathematical intuition.

Spickler continues his role outside of the classroom, organizing and hosting study groups for students preparing for the mathematics subject GRE. In large part to these efforts, 35% of math majors who graduated from SU last year were admitted to graduate programs in mathematics. Spickler also mentors new faculty members and collaborates with faculty from other departments in the Henson School of Science and Technology on course offerings.

PUBLIC SERVICE

Dr. Philip DeShong, Professor of Chemistry, University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP). DeShong has been a significant force behind, Chemathon and REACTS, the two major community outreach programs hosted by the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at UMCP. He has worked with Chemathon, an annual chemistry competition for high school students, since he arrived at the College Park campus more than 20 years ago. DeShong now co-directs the program and has played a key role in raising funds for the continued support of this program.

With REACTS, a professional development program for secondary school teachers, DeShong resurrected a longstanding departmental program that had become inactive.  Since the program's reactivation in 2000, it has continued to grow in size and quality, thanks to DeShong's efforts as administrator and chief fundraiser. REACTS has also been recognized by the Maryland Higher Education Commission for its benefits to teachers and students alike. Beyond the UMCP campus, DeShong supports budding young scientists by serving as a national judge for the Intel Science Talent Search, the nation's most prestigious science competition for young people.

Dr. Renee Shea, Associate Professor of English, Bowie State University (BSU). Shea expands her classroom beyond the grounds of BSU, partnering with secondary school teachers to ensure that future generations of students will benefit from her love of English composition and literature. Shea works with public school systems in Anne Arundel, Prince George's, and Montgomery Counties to offer professional development workshops for secondary school teachers to help them develop their skills teaching writing, reading, and critical thinking. She has helped develop curriculum for all three counties that allow them to offer the College Board's Advanced Placement English Literature and English Language and Composition courses.

Shea is also an untiring advocate for women and minority writers, drawing attention to new writers through her own work and working with publications and events that promote these authors. She is a founding member of the National Museum of Women in the Arts (NMWA) and helped develop the museum's literary series. She continues to work with the NMWA to promote the work of young or lesser known authors.

Dr. Sudhir Singh, Professor of Finance, Frostburg State University (FSU). Singh uses his expertise in the area of finance to make significant contributions to the economic development of Western Maryland.  Most notably, he worked with colleague Keramat Poorsoltan from FSU's Department of Management to create The Trident Initiative: Pathways to Entrepreneurship Education. In this program, which was given a three-year grant by the Coleman Foundation, FSU coordinates interactions between regional agencies and small businesses in order to create a more hospitable business climate in Western Maryland and to publicize the economic opportunities available in the region.

 This project is only the most notable example in a consistent record of service that Singh provides to FSU and the larger community. He assisted with the establishment of FSU's financial planning certificate program in 2003 and continues to serve this program as its director. In addition, Singh also has been awarded grant money from the Appalachian Regional Commission to support feasibility studies for the creation of centers for the arts in the area.

Dr. Yonathan Zohar, Professor of Biology, University of Maryland Biotechnology Institute (UMBI). Zohar, director of UMBI's Center of Marine Biotechnology (COMB), has used his expertise and position to develop a research program that is providing measurable benefits to the ecosystem of the Chesapeake Bay. Currently, he is the lead investigator for the Blue Crab Advanced Research Consortium (BCARC), a collection of scientists and labs from Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, and Mississippi who are studying the reproduction and development of the blue crab in an attempt to provide the research foundation necessary to develop large-scale crab hatcheries. This research has provided previously unknown information that is crucial to the efforts to restore the Chesapeake Bay's blue crab population.

Zohar has also been successful at drawing the attention of government leaders, business interests, and Maryland watermen, which has proven to be crucial to securing funding for his research and ensuring that the results of his research are applied. Prior to beginning work with BCARC, Zohar worked with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources in projects designed to bolster the populations of rockfish and American shad. As a result of his efforts on behalf of the Chesapeake Bay, Zohar was awarded the 2004 Rachel Carson Award by the Maryland Watermen's Association.

MENTORING

Dr. Bonnie Thornton Dill, Professor of Women's Studies, University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP). Dill has built a national reputation on the strength of her scholarship and her efforts expanding the pipeline of minority students training to become university faculty. In 1998, Dill formed the Consortium on Race, Gender, and Ethnicity (CRGE), the first research center of its kind in the nation. Mentoring of graduate students and junior faculty is a strong component of the CRGE's work. Its efforts have included a colloquium series for graduate students, a dissertation writing group for students of color, and the development of mentoring seminars for junior faculty of color.

In addition, the CRGE established the CRGE Interdisciplinary Scholarship Program (CrISP) in 2002. The program selects outstanding incoming graduate students interested in pursuing interdisciplinary research exploring the intersections of race, gender, and ethnicity while providing them with four years of funding and specialized mentoring.  Uniquely, CrISP approaches mentoring from a multi-layered perspective. Senior faculty mentor junior faculty members on how they can best mentor graduate students-a system which provides junior faculty with support and makes mentoring at all levels a higher priority.

Dr. James Howard, Professor of Finance, University of Maryland University College (UMUC). Howard is the associate chair of the Department of Management, Accounting, and Finance, as well as the director of the financial management program in UMUC's Graduate School of Management and Technology. In addition to teaching graduate-level courses in management, accounting and finance, Howard uses technology in creative ways to provide services for both his students and other faculty members. He developed four graduate degree programs at UMUC, including the first online graduate accounting degree offered in the state of Maryland. For each of these programs, Howard developed websites that provide current and prospective students with information on how to successfully complete the program and seek employment or further training in their chosen field.

In 2004, Howard launched an online tutoring program for students in core financial management courses. Since then, the program has grown to include students from approximately 20 finance and accounting classes per semester and there have been measurable improvements in student performance and retention rates for those courses.  Howard also has used technology to improve teaching by establishing online Communities of Practice where faculty members can explore discipline-specific and pedagogical issues in an online classroom.

Dr. David Inouye, Professor of Biology, University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP). Inouye's mentoring of students is a key component to his department's continuing success. As director of the sustainable development and conservation biology master's degree program in the Department of Biology at the UMCP, Inouye personally oversees the enrollment of 17-18 new students each year and, with his associate director, continues to advise every student in the program. Thanks to their untiring efforts, the program has an extraordinary 95% retention rate and has attracted students from 32 countries.

In addition, Inouye continues to mentor elsewhere on campus and beyond. He advises undergraduates conducting research in his laboratory, and offers assistance to junior faculty members. He also continues to supervise dissertations of graduate students in a variety of Ph.D. programs. Off campus, Inouye has secured two grants from the National Science Foundation to provide research opportunities for elementary and secondary school teachers at the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory.

Dr. David O'Brochta, Professor of Biology, University of Maryland Biotechnology Institute (UMBI). David O'Brochta is a professor in UMBI's Center for Biosystems Research and teaches courses at UMCP. Since 2002, he has mentored groups of undergraduate honors students enrolled in UMCP's Gemstone program, a four-year interdisciplinary research program that has students conduct significant research exploring the intersection of science and technology on society. O'Brochta began this fall with a new cohort of Gemstone students, even though he now must travel weekly from his lab's current location in UMBI's Shady Grove facility to the UMCP campus to meet with the students.

O'Brochta's current work with the Gemstone program is only one example of the broad way he approaches the scientist's role in society. He has worked with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service to develop regulations governing the release of genetically-engineered organisms. In the past, he has also welcomed high school and undergraduate students to his labs to work with him in his research.

COLLABORATION (RESEARCH)

Dr. Mark Marten, Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering, University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMB), and Dr. David Schaefer, Elkins Professor of Physics, Towson University (TU). Marten and Schaefer collaborate on internationally recognized interdisciplinary research in the biotechnology and bioprocess industries.  Their partnership helped develop a technique for assessing material properties of filamentous cells, using an atomic force telescope. This technique will eventually lead to superior methods for producing chemicals, enzymes, and medicines and may lead to better antifungal treatments. The National Science Foundation funded this research with a $1.6 million grant.

This collaboration has directly benefited their institutions as well. Marten and Schaefer's ongoing research offers numerous research opportunities to students at both institutions.  The research techniques that they developed have also allowed them to expand their collaboration with their colleagues. Most notably, UMBC faculty member Theresa Good is working with them to study the structure and molecular interaction of disease associated proteins, work that may lead to the development of a cure for Alzheimer's Disease.

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