Archive for 2017
New Study Warns of Health Risks for Pregnant Women Who Live Near Fracking Operations
A new study led by Janet Currie, the Henry Putnam Professor of Economics and Public Affairs at Princeton University in New Jersey, provides evidence of health risks for pregnant women and their babies who live within two miles of hydraulic fracturing operations.
Inga Musselman Is the New Provost at the University of Texas at Dallas
Inga Musselman, a professor of chemistry at the University of Texas at Dallas, has been serving as interim provost since 2015. Professor Musselman joined the faculty at the university in 1992. She was appointed associate provost for faculty affairs in 2008 and senior vice provost in 2014.
In Memoriam: Marilou Allen, 1933-2017
Allen joined the staff at Haverford College in 1981 as director of the community outreach office. The initial appointment was for 18 months. But she remained head of the office until her retirement in 2015. She also founded and was director of the college’s Women’s Center for 33 years.
Recent Books of Interest to Women Scholars
Women in Academia Report regularly publishes a list of new books that may be of interest to our readers. Here are the latest selections.
Online Articles of Interest to WIAReport Readers
Each week, Women in Academia Report will provide links to online articles that may be of interest to our readers. Here are this week’s selections.
Fourteen American Women Awarded Rhodes Scholarships
Women were first included in Rhodes Scholarships in 1976. Since that time 545 American women have won Rhodes Scholarships. This year 14 of the 32 Rhodes Scholarship winners are women.
Four Women Hired to the Engineering Faculty at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The School of Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology has announced the hiring of 16 new faculty members. Four of the new faculty hires are women: Sili Deng, Tami Lieberman, Farnaz Niroui, and Desiree Plata.
University of St. Joseph Is Retaining Its Commitment to Further the Education of Women
The University of Saint Joseph in West Hartford, Connecticut, was founded in 1932 by the Sisters of Mercy of Connecticut. The university will become fully co-educational for the first time in the fall of 2018. Yet, the university is not abandoning its commitment to the education of women.
In Memoriam: Julie Belle White-Newman, 1943-2017
After earning a doctorate at the University of Minnesota, Dr. White-Newman joined the faculty at St. Catherine University in 1975. She served on the faculty for 30 years, retiring in 2005 as an associate professor of speech communication.
Hollins University to Offer a New Bachelor’s Degree Program in Creative Writing
Up to now, the women’s university has offered a co-educational master of fine arts degree in creative writing and a minor degree program for undergraduates.
Susquehanna University Is Raising Funds for a New Women’s Leadership Initiative
The chair and vice chair of the board of trustees have pledged $1 million over the next four years to fund the initiative, but only if the university can raise another $2 million in funds for the effort over the same period.
St. Catherine University Signs Partnership Agreements With Two Community Colleges
St. Catherine University in St. Paul, Minnesota, includes a women’s residential college and a coeducational College for Adults and coeducational graduate programs. The new partnerships will allow students who complete associate’s degrees in several fields to transfer into bachelor’s degree programs at the university.
Four Women Faculty Members Who Are Taking on New Assignments
The four women taking on new faculty roles are Tatiana Sanses at Howard University in Washington, D.C., Christina Greer at New York University, Nancy Small at the University of Wyoming, and Erika Lorraine Milam at Princeton University in New Jersey.
A Quartet of Women Faculty Members Who Have Been Appointed to Endowed Chairs
The four women who were named to endowed professorships are Hui Wilcox at St. Catherine University in St. Paul, Minnesota, Susanne Brenner at Louisiana State University, and Karen Collins and Ellen Thomas at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut.
Columbia University Literary Scholar Wins Book Award From the Modern Language Association
Branka Arsic is the Charles and Lynn Zhang Professor of English and Comparative Literature and director of graduate studies in English and comparative literature at Columbia University in New York City. She was honored for her 2016 book on Thoreau.
A Pair of Women Who Have Been Appointed Department Chairs at Major Universities
Asu Ozdaglar was named chair of the department of electrical engineering and computer science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Kelly Ann Kinney was appointed chair of the department of English at the University of Wyoming.
Mount Holyoke Scholar Honored by the Association for the Study of Literature and the Environment
Lauret Savoy, the David B. Truman Professor of Environmental Studies at Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, Massachusetts, won an award for excellence in environmental creative writing for her book Trace: Memory, History, Race, and the American Landscape.
New Administrative Appointments for Four Women at Universities
Taking on new assignments are Aliza Lakhani at the new Toronto campus of Northeastern University, Betsey Smith at Mississippi State University, Pamela Jackson at Fayetteville State University, and Sara J. Nichols at the University of California, Davis.
Six Women Scholars Honored With Notable Awards
The honorees are Diane Sevening of the University of South Dakota, Stacy Hawkins of Rutgers University-Camden, Emiliana Borrelli of the University of California, Irvine, Rachel Ivy Clarke of Syracuse University, A. Susana Ramirez of the University of California, Merced, and Lisa Sowie Cahill of Boston College.
Four Women Named Distinguished Professors at Utah State University
Utah State University has named four women faculty members as Distinguished Professors: Joyce Kinkead, Patricia Lambert, Tammy Proctor, and Frances Titchener. The designation honors scholars who have performed “at a very high level in all areas of faculty responsibilities – teaching, research, and service.”
New Study Examines the Extent of Discrimination Faced by Women in the United States
Among the findings in the new report from NPR, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Harvard School of Public Health are that more than a third of women with a college education said they had heard offensive remarks about their gender compared to only 8 percent of women who did not attend college.
Penn State’s Jenni Evans to Lead the American Meteorological Society
Jenni Evans is a professor of meteorology and atmospheric science in the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences at Pennsylvania State University. She will serve for one year as president-elect of the American Meteorological Society and then will become president in January 2019.
Women Making Progress in Enrollments in MBA Programs
The report finds that women now make up 37.4 percent of the total enrollments at the 51-member business schools affiliated with the Forte Foundation. This is up from 33.4 percent in 2013. Now there are 14 business schools where women make up at least 40 percent of all enrollments. In 2013, there were only two.
Deborah Bordelon Chosen as the Next Provost at Columbus State University in Georgia
Since 2013, Dr. Bordelon has been serving as provost and vice president for academic affairs at Governors State University in University Park, Illinois. Earlier, she was dean of the College of Education at the university.
New Online Database Documents Widespread Sexual Harassment in Academia
The online spreadsheet was established earlier this month and already has more than 1,000 entries. The most entries have been filed by graduate students, although there also are a large number of complaints from undergraduates and faculty members.
Valerie Jarrett Named a Distinguished Senior Fellow at the University of Chicago Law School
For eight years, Valerie Jarrett was a senior adviser to the President during the Obama administration. In her new role, she will participate in academic seminars, conferences, and student-led initiatives. Jarrett will continue to focus on issues of gender equality, criminal justice reform, health care, and civic engagement.
Online Articles of Interest to WIAReport Readers
Each week, Women in Academia Report will provide links to online articles that may be of interest to our readers. Here are this week’s selections.
Recent Books of Interest to Women Scholars
Women in Academia Report regularly publishes a list of new books that may be of interest to our readers. Here are the latest selections.
Middlebury College Acquires Its First Painting of a Woman ‘Old Master’ Artist
The artist is Anna Stanchi who came from a well-known Roman family of still-life painters. The painting was signed and dated in 1643. The painting shows tulips, irises, daffodils, carnations, and hyacinths.
Grants or Gifts Relating to Women in Higher Education
Here is this week’s news of grants and gifts that may be of particular interest to women in higher education.
Two Women Scholars Announce Their Retirements at the End of the Academic Year
Amanda Cockrell, the co-founder of the graduate program in children’s literature at Hollins University in Roanoke, Virginia, and Rebecca N. Nagy, the director of the Harn Museum of Art at the University of Florida, announced that they will retire at the end of the current academic year.
In Memoriam: Jane Hawkins Raimi, 1950-2017
Professor Hawkins Raimi served as chair of the department of music at Duke University from 2010 to 2014. She also served two terms as director of performance for the music department. She had served on the Duke faculty for nearly 40 years.
Georgetown University Alumna Wins a Rhodes Scholarship From Bermuda
Deirdre Collins, a 2017 graduate of Georgetown University, has been selected as a Rhodes Scholar from the nation of Bermuda. She will begin study this coming fall at the University of Oxford, pursuing a master’s degree in environmental change and management.
Sarah Pfatteicher to Lead the Five College Consortium in Massachusetts
The Five College Consortium represents Amherst College, Smith College, Mount Holyoke College, Hampshire College, and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. Dr. Pfatteicher is associate dean for academic affairs at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She will begin her new job in April.
Ten Women Faculty Members Taking on New Assignments
Here is this week’s listing of women faculty members from colleges and universities throughout the United States who have been appointed to new positions or have been assigned new duties.
