Faculty Achievements

	Matt Davies, assistant professor in the MLitt/MFA Shakespeare and Performance programCo-chaired a panel with Dr. Janna Segal and Doreen Bechtol called “Let me play the lion too!”: A rare vision for training collaborative theater makers,” the Association of Theater in Higher Education’s annual convention, Scottsdale, Arizona.Participated in an extended play development workshop for a new play Jacob’s Ladder on the questionable role of the State Department in their response to the Nazi’s final solution in World War Two, Austin, Texas.Performed in the American premiere of a Russian dramatization of Anton Chekhov’s short story,The Black Monk, as part of the double-bill, We Play Chekhov, for Breaking String Theater Company,August.
	Doug Davis, director of the criminal justice programAttended the annual conference of the Virginia Association of Chiefs of Police, September.Re-elected as Chairman of the Virginia Police Chiefs Foundation.
	Bruce Dorries, associate professor of communicationNamed a faculty fellow of the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Foundation. For the past 85 years, the Foundation has supported efforts across the American South to promote service learning and social entrepreneurship.
	Emily Ely, assistant professor of reading education Upcoming presentation, “Applications of Content Acquisition Podcasts to Improve Teacher Candidate Knowledge and Practice,” September. Roundtable discussion presented at Virginia Educational Research Association (VERA), Charlottesville.
	Louise Freeman, associate professor of psychology Taught a short course and led a breakout session in the Inaugural Young Adult Literature Conference and Symposium at Louisiana State University, June 2-6.Attended the Eastern Conference on the Teaching of Psychology, June 20-21.Gave an academic presentation on personality theory in the Divergent series at the Leakycon fandom convention in Orlando, FL, August 1.
	Ben Herz, program and director, professor, occupational therapy Presented via Skype to Florida International University OT Students “Occupational Therapy and its Future in Heath Care.”Presented to the Roanoke Parkinson’s Support Group “New Innovations in Rehabilitation Related to Parkinson’s Disease.”Attended the Blue Ridge District VOTA Meeting at Rockingham Memorial Hospital, Harrisonburg. Attended and directed the Budget Meeting for the AOTA Board of Directors, Bethesda, MD, June, and completed his term as AOTA Treasurer, July. Presented on the use of gaming technology in rehabilitation (Wii and Xbox Kinect) to the rehabilitation staff at Augusta Health, Fishersville, and participated as a facilitator in the Caregivers Open Forum, Fishersville PD Support Group, Fishersville. Presented to the Fishersville PD Support Group on “Virtual Reality and Gaming in PD Rehabilitation,” August.
	Sara Nair James, professor of art history One of three regional art historians featured in the upcoming PBS special Stained Glass Windows of the Shenandoah Valley to be aired October 9 at 8 pm on WVPT. She discusses the Tiffany windows at Trinity Church in Staunton.
	Cara Jones, assistant professor of political science Appointed lead researcher for the World Bank’s Innovation Challenge “Mindset-Changing” project in Nigeria, May to June 2014.Appointed lead researcher of the World Bank’s Third National Urban Water Sector proposal, a $161 million grant, August.Published a World Bank working paper “Public-Private Partnerships in Urban Water Sector Reform: The Cross-River State Water Board Limited.”
	Lise Keiter, professor of music Performed two solo concerts, May, and also performed as part of the Shenandoah Valley Bach Festival, Harrisonburg, June.Performed at the Heifetz Institute “Celebrity Series” faculty concert series, July, appearing alongside the award-winning violinist Joan Kwuon of the Cleveland Institute of Music.Performed a world-premiere of Barbara York’s The Sunken Garden, with bassoonist and Baldwin Online and Adult Programs faculty member Elizabeth Roberts, August. They will also play this work at their Mary Baldwin Sunday Recital on November 23.
	Chandra Mason, assistant professor of psychology A talk “On the Horizon: The Role of Educational Experiences in Work-Family Expectations of College Students,” Biennial Conference of the Work-Family Researchers Network, June, New York.
	Cat McPherson, associate professor of businessAwarded the 120-hour certificate in nonprofit management through the Nonprofit Learning Point program, an affiliate program of VCU and the Partnership for Nonprofit Excellence, and the certificate’s requirements follow the curricular guidelines of the Nonprofit Academic Centers Council.
	Paul Menzer, director of the MLitt/MFA program in Shakespeare and Performance An invited lecture at the Folger Shakespeare Library as part of the NEH-sponsored Teaching Shakespeare Institute.An invited lecturer at the Shakespeare Academy in Stratford, Connecticut, July.Delivered an invited plenary address at the International Shakespeare Conference at Stratford-upon-Avon, August.
	Daniel Metraux, professor of Asian studies Edited the 2014 issue of the Virginia Review of Asian Studies, which includes articles by Ivy Arbulu and Roderic Owen and student Shekira Ramdass.A chapter, “Jack London: The Adventurer-Writer who Chronicled Asian Wars, Confronted Racism — and Saw the Future” in 2014 ebook White Peril/Yellow Peril and Japan’s Pan-Asian Visions 1850-1930.An article, “The Escalating Japan-China Island Dispute and the Potential for War in East Asia” in 2014 issue of the Japan Studies Review.
	Roderic Owen, professor of philosophy Invited to serve on this region’s planning board for the Shenandoah Governor’s School and agreed to serve on the Ethics Review Committee of AHC ( Augusta Health Community Hospital).Presented a paper, “Gwynfor Evans, Pacifist and Nationalist, Viewed from Outside Wales,” the N. American Association for Welsh Culture and History, Kingston, Ontario.
	Paul Ryan, professor of art A review of the exhibition “Sae A Lee: Wavering Zips” in the July/August 2014 issue of Art Papers Magazine.Aew work included in the group exhibition, Vacation Days, July 10 – August 29, Reynolds Gallery, Richmond, Virginia.
	Jim Sconyers, Jr., associate professor of artServed as juror for the Shenandoah Valley Art Center’s Annual Juried Members Art Show.
	Janna Segal, assistant professor of theatre Dramaturged Adam Seidel’s play Bodega for the Association of Theatre in Higher Education’s (ATHE) New Play Development Workshop.At the ATHE conference, she also co-coordinated the panel, “‘Let me play the lion, too!’: A Rare Vision for Training Collaborative Theatre Makers,” with Doreen Bechtol and Matt Davies. For the panel, she presented the paper, “Dramaturgy in and as an MFA Company.”Served as a peer reviewer for the journal Text and Presentation.
	Lisa Shoaf, program director and professor, physical therapy Completed the American Physical Therapy Association’s Educational Leadership Institute Fellowship, July, Beaver Creek, Colorado. This is a 12 month fellowship for new Program Directors for PT and PTA education in the United States.
	Terry Southerington, assistant professor of theatre Played the title role in Honour at the Oak Grove Theatre this summer. Other actors were student Katie Mahoney and alum Liz Lodato and producers were alums Morgan Alberts Smith and Jennifer Hall Jones.
	Julie Spencer, assistant professor of mathematics Completed her PhD in Mathematics from the University of Virginia this summer.
	Tamra Willis, associate professor of education Received a 3-year grant from NOAA entitled “Seeds of Learning” that involves a partnership between Mary Baldwin, Staunton City Public Schools, Allegheny Mountain School, and Project GROWs. Students in Staunton City Schools will investigate the school division food system and study its relationship to the health of students, local water, and the Chesapeake Bay. Students will problem-solve food supply and waste issues and grow food for their school’s cafeteria in schoolyard gardens. The approximately $200,000 of funds will pay for science equipment and technology for the schools and professional development for teachers through graduate courses in the College of Education.