Faculty Kudos, Summer 2022

As another class of Gen-Z graduates take steps into adulthood, WNYC Studio's The Takeaway radio show featured Sociology Professor Pamela Aronson’s research in their spot, "Deep Dive into Gen-Z: Who are they and what do they want?". Talking about research related to Gen Z communication and memes, Aronson said she wants to bring attention to statistics indicating that Gen Z has more chronic stress and depression than other age groups. Aronson comes in around minute 16.

The pandemic crisis helped revise the meaning of essential work, highlighting the importance of care work. In the Gender, Work, and Organization article, “Care in times of the pandemic: Rethinking meanings of work in the university,” Social Sciences Professor Suzanne Bergeron uses that lens to focus on the caretaking work (teaching, mentoring, service) — and the unequal gendered distribution — in the university setting. She argues that care work demands have intensified since the beginning of the pandemic and revaluing caring labor is essential for achieving goals of equity, faculty well-being and the sustainability of universities. Bergeron co-authored the paper with Koç University (Turkey) Associate Professor Özlem Altan-Olcay.

Twenty-eight middle school students and 12 high school students walked into a boxing gym to play sports and math-focused games. And, after four weeks of UM-Dearborn's Math Corps Summer Camp at Kronk Boxing Community Center, they walked out with endorphins from physical activity, new friendships and more math knowledge. Data shows that this fun approach to math works. Using pre-camp and post-camp testing, the math score averages more than doubled in each age group: Seventh grader score averages went from 18% to 73%; eighth grader scores jumped from 21% to 47%; and ninth graders started the program at 35% and ended at 80%. “Camp made a huge impact on these kids,” said Mathematics Associate Professor Mike Dabkowski. "We constantly told our kids that they are part of an incredible family that will support them even when camp is over." Dabkowski and Mathematics Professor Yunus Zeytuncu coordinated this summer learning program for underserved youth, and six UM-Dearborn students helped mentor students at the camp, too.

Sociology Professor Paul Draus and his collaborators are receiving more attention for their work focused on small-scale, grassroots urban revitalizationSeen MagDeazine’s recent article “Urban Acupuncture Revitalizes Detroit Alleyways” is an excellent profile of the work being done with troit residents that’s turning alleys into community spaces. Great photos, too!

English Associate Professor J. Caitlin Finlayson represented the University of Michigan at the Big Ten Academic Alliance Senate Leaders Conference at Rutgers University in April. Finlayson is U-M’s vice chair of the Senate Advisory Committee on University Affairs (SACUA). The conference represented an opportunity to share best practices in faculty governance and consider current issues facing university campuses. Attendees discussed teaching and learning innovations generated as a response to COVID-19, consensual relationships in higher education, free speech and academic freedom, and more.

UM-Dearborn student artwork that highlights mathematicians and their contributions throughout history is currently on display at the Math Learning Center (2076 CASL Building) through December 13. Jamie Hallas, the Math Learning Center Coordinator, came up with the idea of partnering with applied arts to help revamp the center with student artwork created for the space, by updating the posters of well-known mathematicians to include more diversity and aesthetics in the space. Art faculty Sarah Nesbitt and Madeleine Barkey turned this opportunity into assignments for their ART 210: Beginning Digital Design and ART322: Intermediate Drawing courses.  CASL students participating: "Dorothy Vaughan" by Sadé Lemons (Biological Sciences); "Katherine Johnson" by Emanuella Parungao (Biology); "Paul Erdős" by Caitlyn Hynek (Criminology and Criminal Justice).

Communication Associate Professor Nick Iannarino participated in a National Coalition of Cancer Survivors panel, which also featured U.S. Representatives Jamie Raskin and Mark DeSaulnier. Along with colleagues from U-M's School of Nursing and Mott Children's Hospital, Iannarino presented research on the types of advice that adolescent and young adults living with cancer would share with similar-aged patients. You can watch his presentation here.

Professor of Earth and Environment Ulrich Kamp, who has studied glaciers for two decades, was featured recently on NPR’s "Weekend Edition," Vox and South Korea’s Morning Wave, talking about how climate change contributed to Pakistan's recent catastrophic flooding. "Over the last 35 years, there's [been] an accelerated loss of global glacier ice. So when we compare the period from 2000 to 2004 with the period of 2015 to 2019, we have 70 billion tons of ice that melted in this period every year more than it did in the earlier period," Kamp told NPR.

What sets Michigan's gubernatorial candidates apart? On July 20, Communication Professor Tim Kiska spoke to WXYZ Channel 7 prior to the final televised Republican candidate debate before the Aug. 2 primaries. The primary election will choose the candidate to run against incumbent Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. Kiska said he was listening for stances regarding headline issues like inflation, Roe v. Wade, school safety and more. But Kiska cautions that much could happen between now and the November election: "I think that you could conceivably see something happening between here and November which changes the whole calculus."

Assistant Professor of Economics Antonios Koumpias co-authored a new article on Long COVID in the journal BMC Health Services Research. This study found that COVID-19 diagnosis was associated with increased healthcare utilization and costs over a six-month post-diagnosis period, especially among older Americans, suggesting a “prolonged burden to the U.S. healthcare system.” One of Koumpias’ co-authors was UM-Dearborn student Owen Fleming, who worked as a research assistant on the study. Read the article.

Associate Provost and Professor of Philosophy Maureen Linker served as one of three judges for the first ever Detroit Ethics Slam hosted by A2Ethics at HopCat in Detroit on July 14. A2Ethics is an all-volunteer, nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting ethics and philosophy initiatives through events, education and civic partnerships in local communities. Linker has been a long-serving judge for the Michigan High School Ethics Bowl, a competition hosted each year by A2Ethics in partnership with the U-M Philosophy Outreach Program.

Under the guidance of Sarah Nesbitt, Lecturer III in Applied Art, eight students were selected to have artwork displayed in the Michigan Legislature. "Art in the Legislature" is a partnership between the Michigan Association of State Universities and the Michigan Legislature to promote art in everyday life. Read about the students and see photos of their artwork. According to Sarah, "Every year, my fellow applied art lecturers, Madeleine Barkey, and Kevin Castile, and I get really excited when this opportunity comes up. It's great to see so many students from the University of Michigan-Dearborn who are pursuing majors outside of art perform at the level of art majors from other institutions. It shows that their hard work and their talents are appreciated and seen at a high level. For us faculty, this is what we want for our students."

A radio show called "Peace Talks Radio" recently interviewed Associate Professor of Criminal Justice and Sociology Nehal Patel about his research on law, society and the thought of Gandhi. The show is available to stream online.

Also, best-selling author Malcolm Gladwell made three episodes about one of Prof. Patel's articles on his podcast called "Revisionist History".  Here are the links to the episodes of the podcast, in which Gladwell spends extensive time talking to his co-author, Laura Beth Nielsen, about their article on Disney films. In Episode 3, he creates an alternative ending to "The Little Mermaid" with the help of Jodie Foster, Glenn Close, Dax Shepard, Brit Marling, and some other actors:

Humanities Professor Deborah Smith Pollard was featured on NPR’s 1A for "The Women who Pioneered Gospel Music" news piece with Grammy-winning singer Tamela Mann and Emmy-winning news anchor Cheryl Wills. They spoke about the women who shaped gospel music and the singers making waves today. “[Strong female singers] were there, but they had to fight sometimes just to be seen and to be recognized for what they were contributing,” Smith Pollard said. Listen to the show and check out a curated Spotify playlist here.  

Journalism and Media Production Associate Professor Jen Proctor received the 2022 Innovative Pedagogy Award from the Society for Cinema and Media Studies for her work on EDIT — Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in Teaching — Media, an inclusive teaching initiative focused on the film and media fields in higher education. Her co-researcher, Loyola Marymount University Associate Professor Miranda Banks, also was honored with the award. The Innovative Pedagogy Award recognizes new methods, perspectives and techniques in the teaching of cinema, radio, television and emerging media studies.

Prof. Proctor also edited the Summer 2022 Journal of Cinema and Media Studies publication "Antiracist Strategies for Inclusive Film and Media Education." She also wrote the introduction, along with co-editor Miranda Banks. "Systemic erasures and acts of violence take tangible form in the mythologies replicated in popular film and media," the introduction reads. "We must intentionally and urgently integrate antiracist approaches into all levels and all aspects of film and media education."

Political Science Professor Dale Thomson’s article "Foundations of Influence: Intervention Pathways of Foundation Influence on City Governance and Policy" was recently published by Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly. This exploratory study examines philanthropic foundation interventions in eight cities where foundations account for a substantial share of community and economic development financing. The study shows that foundations have significantly altered interventions for community and economic development. Thomson’s study noted that these alterations led to increased potential for enduring influence on governance and policy making, which fosters the growth of nonprofit governance in these cities.