Update

Stephen Armeli, psychology (Metro), co-wrote “Drinking to Cope with Negative Moods and the Immediacy of Drinking Within the Weekly Cycle Among College Students,” published in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs.

Donald Hoover, hotel/restaurant/tourism management (Metro), facilitated a breakout session on Innovative Media for the 21st Century during the 2008 New Jersey Governor’s Conference on Tourism held from April 9 to 11 at the Trump Marina in Atlantic City, N.J. Hoover was a member of the conference’s planning committee. Joseph Tormey, hotel/restaurant/tourism management (Metro); Michele Barto, hotel/restaurant/tourism management (Metro); and 11 students from the International School of Hospitality and Tourism Management’s Atlantic City location also attended the conference.

Margaret Gibbs, psychology (Metro), co-wrote two chapters — “Personal Problem-solving Sytem – Revised” and “Scoring Manual for Personal Problem-solving System — for A Handbook of Clinical Scoring Systems for Thematic Apperceptive Techniques.

Walter Cummins, emeritus, English (Flor), and editor-in-chief, The Literary Review, introduced fiction writer Geronimo Madrid during Periodically Speaking, a reading series held at the New York Public Library.

Corner of the Dead, a novel by Lynn Lurie, MFA’06 (Flor), creative writing (Flor), and winner of the 2007 Juniper Prize for Fiction, has been published by the University of Massachusetts Press, Amherst, Mass.

From May to July, Alan Ostrowitz and Martha Ostrowitz, both Petrocelli College (Flor), will be conducting lectures on “Collection Practice” in venues throughout New Jersey on behalf of the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education. FDU’s paralegal studies program plans to incorporate a course in collection practice in its upcoming fall offerings.

Samuel Feinberg, psychology (Metro), co-presented “Using Humor to Apologize: Are There Gender Differences?” and “Humor as a Psychological Intervention: It’s No Laughing Matter” at the annual meeting of the Eastern Psychological Association in Boston, Mass. He also discussed “Improving the National Scorecard in Student Self-protection” at the Annual International Bullying Prevention Association Conference in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

Laureano Corces, Spanish and chair, modern languagues/literature; Nandita Ghosh, English; and Gloria Pastorino, French/Italian (all Flor), presented at the tri-annual European Association for Literature and Language Studies Conference in Venice, Italy. Corces discussed “Freedom Discourse: Representations of Life After March 11 in Once Voces Contra la Barbarie”; Ghosh talked about “Literary Drama and the Global Stage: The Discourse on Rights in Komal Swaminathan’s Water! Water!”; while Pastorino presented “Is the Fight Over? Contemporary South African Theater and the Politics of Neglect.”

Left photo: From left, Gloria Pastorino, French/Italian; Nandita Ghosh, English; and Laureano Corces, Spanish and chair, modern languages/literature (all Flor), presented at the tri-annual European Association for Literature and Language Studies Conference in Venice, Italy. Right photo: Kenneth Vehrkens, left, dean, Petrocelli College (Metro/Flor), and George Martin, alumnus, BA’87 (Ruth), wear their FDU colors while walking westward.

On March 21, which was declared “FDU Day for A Journey for 9/11,” Kenneth Vehrkens, dean, Petrocelli College (Metro/Flor), joined alumnus George Martin, BA’87 (Ruth), for 20 miles in New Mexico in Martin’s walk across the country to raise money for 9/11 rescue workers with related health care issues. One hundred and ten faculty, administrators, staff, Board of Trustees members, students, alumni and friends contributed more than $15,000 in donations and sponsorships. As of April 17, Martin is 20 miles east of Deming, New Mexico (approximately 185 miles east of Tucson, Ariz.), has walked more than 2,000 miles on his journey and has only two more states to go. “The wonderful outpouring of support by the University community was deeply appreciated by George and myself. We wish to thank all those who provided support for this inspirational humanitarian effort,” said Vehrkens.

Robert McGrath, psychology and director, PhD in clinical psychology and MS in clinical psychopharmacology (Metro), wrote “Decision Theory and Prescriptive Practice,” published in the ASAP Tablet, and wrote “Inferential Errors in Taxometric Analyses of Ordered Three-class Constructs” and co-wrote “Introduction to the Special Issue on Personality Assessment in Medical Settings,” both published in the Journal of Personality Assessment. He also was appointed to several positions: acting president of the American Psychological Association Division 55 (American Society for the Advancement of Pharmacotherapy), consulting editor to the Journal of Personality Assessment and a member of the advisory boards for the Research Infrastructure in Minority Institutions Program of Mercy College in Dobbs Ferry, N.Y., and of the Committee on Science and Practice of the American Psychological Association Division 12 (Society of Clinical Psychology). McGrath has written and co-written several articles in press: “The Rorschach in the Context of Performance-based Personality Assessment,” with the Journal of Personality Assessment; “Not All Effect Sizes are the Same: Comments on Holden,” with Personality and Individual Differences; “The Case for Prescribing Psychologists,” with Open Minds Newsletter; and “Prescriptive Authority Moving Forward,” with the APA Division 18 Newsletter. McGrath and Cynthia Radnitz Bergstein, psychology (Metro), co-wrote “Post-traumatic Stress Disorder and Major Depression in Veterans with Spinal Cord Injury,” which is in press with Rehabilitation Psychology. At the annual meeting of the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapy in Philadelphia, Pa., Bergstein co-presented “The Role of Perfectionism in Disorder Eating in Athletes and Non-athletes,” “Assessment of Food Cues on Children’s Television Programs” and “Effect of a Plant-based Diet on Improving Symptoms of Asthma: A Pilot Study.”

Mihaela Leonida, chemistry (Metro), co-authored the paper “Black Organic Pigments Known, Prepared and Used by Romanian Medieval Painters,” published in Etudes et Documents Balkaniques et Mediterraneens.

Jane Braden-Maguire, psychology (Metro), and Janet Sigal, psychology (Metro), co-presented “American and European Reactions to Domestic Violence Scenarios: A Comparison of U.S., Israeli and Greek Students” at the annual meeting of the Eastern Psychological Association in Boston, Mass.

Ronald Dumont, psychology and director, PsyD/MA in school psychology (Metro), co-presented “Advanced Interpretation of the Differential Ability Scales — Second Edition” and “The Pediatric ADHD Screener (PADDS)” at the annual meeting of the National Association of School Psychologists in New Orleans, La. He also co-wrote the article “Differential Ability Scales — Second Edition (Neuro)Psychological Predictors of Math Performance for Typical Children and Children with Math Disabilities,” in press with Psychology in the Schools.

Elizabeth Bisbing, art, Petrocelli College (Metro), exhibited her artwork in the group show “Child’s Play” and in the one-woman show titled “People/Places/Paper,” both at the Projects Gallery in Philadelphia, Pa. She also will participate in a traveling group show, which will showcase its works from May 16 through June 20 at the Dairy Center for the Arts in Boulder, Colo.

At the annual meeting of the National Association of School Psychologists in New Orleans, La., Judith Kaufman, psychology and director, MA in general-theoretical psychology (Metro), co-presented “Negotiation Negative Norms to Promote Resiliency” and “Fostering University Field Trainer Collaboration for Professional Resiliency” and led a symposium on “Making the Jump to Academia: Perspectives from Early Career Academics.”

As part of the Islamic Awareness Week (March 24–28), Islamic campus ministry at the Metropolitan Campus, under the direction of Fatih Oncul, engineering technology and coordinator, engineering technology (Metro), organized an exhibit of Islamic Art and Books in the periodicals section of the Weiner Library on March 26 and 27. “Visitors indicated that the materials displayed promoted mutual understanding and conveyed invaluable information from the Islamic culture and artwork,” said Oncul. The exhibit was put together with the support of Interfaith Dialogue Center, Newark, N.J., and The Light Publishing, Somerset, N.J. Among the displayed artwork were paper marbling, also known as Ebru Art, in which the patterns are the result of color floated on a special viscous solution, and then carefully transferred to a sheet of paper or silk; Arabic calligraphy; handmade ceramic plates; miniatures; Rumi figures made out of gold foil; and acrylic painting on silk. Among the unique books displayed were The Sacred Trusts; Ottoman Women, Myth and Reality; The Yildiz Album of Sultan Abdulhamid, Mecca-Medina; The Blessed Cities of Islam, Mecca-Medina; Key Concepts in the Practice of Surfism; and Fundamentals of Rumi’s Thought.

Left photo: Islamic Art and Books on display on the Weiner Library, Metropolitan Campus. Right photo: Fatih Oncul, left, engineering technology and coordinator, engineering technology (Metro), discusses part of the exhibit to James Marcum, University librarian.

Neil Massoth, psychology (Metro), co-presented “The Functional Assessment of Individuals with Brain Injury (FAIBI) as a Predictor of Staff Ratings of Competence” and “The Relationship Between Gender Role Identity and Political Ideology” at the annual meeting of the Eastern Psychological Association.

David Pogge, psychology (Metro), and Robert McGrath, psychology and director, PhD in clinical psychology and MS in clinical psychopharmacology (Metro), co-wrote “Correlates of the MMPI-A Psychopathology Five (PSY-5) Facet Scales in an Adolescent Inpatient Sample,” which is in press with the Journal of Personality Assessment.

Janet Sigal, psychology (Metro), co-presented “The Disconnect Among U.N. Personnel in New York, Geneva, the Field and Academics” and “The Effect of Country and Type of Wife Misconduct on Perceptions of Domestic Violence” at the annual meeting of the Eastern Psychological Association in Boston, Mass. She co-authored a chapter on “Violence Against Women: International Workplace Sexual Harassment and Domestic Violence,” published in Psychology of Women: A Handbook of Issues and Theories.

Barbara Rosenbaum, Becton College (Flor), competed in swimming at the 2008 XII FINA World Masters Championship in Perth, Australia, in April. She hopes her participation will heighten awareness of Standing Women’s support of clean air, water and enough food to eat.

In the News …

In an interview for an article in The Star-Ledger, Kenneth Vehrkens, dean, Petrocelli College (Metro/Flor), talked about FDU’s latest degree and program offerings — a master’s degree in homeland security and the Korean/English degree program. He also was interviewed for the Daily Record article, “New Curricula Respond to Real-world Needs,” where he discussed not only the homeland-security degree program but also the master’s degree in sports administration and Puerta al Futuro.

Gerard Farias, management and executive director, Institute for Sustainable Enterprise (Flor), was quoted in the article “JCP&L Presents $20,000 Grant to FDU’s Institute for Sustainable Enterprise,” published in the Daily Record.

Joseph Kiernan, interim University provost and senior vice president for academic affairs (Metro/Flor), was quoted in The Star-Ledger article on accelerated degree programs, “When Speed Counts, Universities Deliver.”

Aixa Ritz, hospitality/tourism management (Metro), was interviewed for the Sentinel article “Education Is Rich for Student in South America.” Ritz talked about a study-abroad trip to Costa Rica she and Alice Shumate, biology (Flor), had organized for their students.

David Landau, film (Flor), was featured in the Florham Park Eagle article “Novelist Dives Into Mystery in Players’ ‘Deep Six Holiday.’” Landau is the author of “Deep Six Holiday,” an award-winning mystery play staged by the Florham Park Players.

Robert Prentky, psychology and director, MA in forensic psychology (Metro), was quoted in the Associate Press article “Family of Killer Describes Awkward Youth,” published in Newsday.com. Prentky and William “Pat” Schuber, administrative science (Metro), were part of The Star-Ledger article “Grad Students Enjoy Wide Field of Studies.”

Daniel Cassino, political science and associate, PublicMind™ (Flor), was quoted in the article “Agritourism Grows Steadily in Jersey,” published in The Record. Cassino and Krista Jenkins, political science (Flor), were featured in The Record article, “Young Voters are Returning to the Campaign Trail.”

Christopher Groff, director, corporate/foundation relations, University advancement (Metro/Flor), was quoted in the article “Designers Grow Greener: Morris Museum Exhibit Highlights Newest Recycled Building Materials,” published in the Daily Record.

James Barrood, executive director, Rothman Institute (Flor), was quoted in the following NJBIZ magazine articles: “Housing-related Bankruptcies Are Soaring” and “Verasoni Worldwide Co-sponsors 2008 Innovation Summit.” He also was interviewed for the Madison Eagle article on the Rothman Institute’s 2008 Female Entrepreneurial Lecture.

Jonathan Schiff, accounting (Metro), was interviewed for the article “Why Is CFO Turnover So High?” published at CFO.com.

Peter Woolley, political science and director, PublicMind™ (Flor), was quoted in several articles — “Poll: Voters Don’t Know Senate Candidates” (philly.com, thedailyjournal.com, Newsday.com, Home News Tribune, nj.com, APP.com and WCBS Newsradio 880 [Associated Press]); “Some Experts Say Rudy’s Bid Was Bound to Fail” (Newsday.com, timesunion.com and Journal Gazette); “Turnout for N.J. Primary Highest in Half a Century” (philly.com); “Evangelical Voters Bolster Huckabee in Southern States” (boston.com, The San Diego Union-Tribune, twincities.com and The Boston Globe); “Corzine Plan Raises $3 Billion a Year, Kolluri Says (Update 2)” (Bloomberg.com); “McCain, Obama Ready Visits to NJ as Presidential Primary Nears” (Newsday.com, wnbc.com and Courant.com [Associated Press]); “Record Turnout Expected for Primary” (NorthJersey.com); “NJ Primary, Moved from June, Could See Record Turnout” (Trentonian.com, Courier News Online and Newsday.com); “NJ Absentee Voters Get 2nd Chance as McCain, Obama Build Support (philly.com); “Poll: Most Back Budget Cuts Over Toll or Tax Hikes, But Dems Wary” (thedailyjournal.com, Newsday.com, CourierPostOnline.com, philly.com, nj.com, Home News Tribune, News 12 New Jersey and WCBS Newsradio 880 [Associated Press]); and “NJ Dems Worry Over Fallout from Protracted Presidential Primary” (philly.com and Newsday.com [Associated Press]). FDU’s PublicMind polls were mentioned in The Campaign Spot (National Review Online); “Mainland Towns in Cape May County at Odds Over Toll-hike Plan” (The Press of Atlantic City); “Corzine Lines Up Allies for Toll Plan, Republicans Push Back” (The New York Times); and “Expanding Clean Elections Can End Politics as Usual” (Asbury Park Press).

Jonathan Wexler, associate vice president for admissions/financial aid (Metro/Flor), was interviewed for The Record article “What to Do — and Not Do — on College Visits.”

Kathleen Castles-Fonseca, Becton College (Flor), was featured in the Independent Press article “Castles Will Head to Olympic Trials.” She was among 100 runners who qualified for the U.S. Olympic Trials in Boston, Mass.

Vincent Tunstall, University director of financial aid (Metro), was quoted in The Record article, “Don’t Worry — You Can Find Tuition Aid.”

Michael Avaltroni, chemistry and chair, chemistry (Flor), was mentioned in the article “Magical Microscope,” published in the Staten Island Advance. Avaltroni had assisted in the effort to secure a grant for a custom-made Leica DM5500 microscope for the science departments at the College at Florham. Scott Giglio, assistant director, public relations (Flor), was interviewed for the same article.

Krista Jenkins, political science (Flor), was quoted in the Sun Journal article “There’s More Than Indifference at Work When Youth Sit Out an Election.”

Carol Beaugard, radio host of the WFDU (FM) bluegrass show “Lonesome Pine RFD,” was featured in a Montclair Times article, “Radio Host Carol Beaugard is Beguiled by Bluegrass.”

Jack Appleman, Becton College (Flor), author of 10 Steps to Successful Business Writing, was featured in the Daily Record article “Business-writing Expert Puts His Advice in Book.”

Brian Swanzey, director, Wroxton study abroad (Flor), was interviewed for The Record article “College Students Flock to ‘Wanderlust 101’; Study Abroad Moving Off Beaten Track.

In Memoriam

Robert Laurer, retired, art and chair, fine arts (Ruth), died on October 29 at the age of 86. He joined FDU in 1963 as assistant professor of art and retired in 1989. He is survived by his sister and brother-in-law, Rosemary and Richard Strab; nieces Rosanna McMillan and Joan Wigg; nephews, Calvin Hanais and Richard, Joseph, Karl and Robert Laurer; and friend, Michael Lynch.

Mary Ellen McGill, retired employment officer, human resources (Metro), died on March 28 at the age of 71. She joined FDU’s human resources department in 1982 and retired in 2000. She is survived by her husband, Charles; daughter, Kathryn; son, Charles and his wife, Erin; son Terrence and his wife, Sharon; daughter and son-in-law, Maureen and Thomas Desmond; grandchildren, Kaitlyn and Ryan McGill and Taylor and Connor DiCorcia; and brother Thomas Forkan; and brother James Forkan and his wife, Louise.

Welcome

The University welcomes new full-time and part-time employees who joined FDU as of April 21, 2008.

Welcome to Brian Birch, assistant director, financial aid (Flor); Kathleen Carpenter, administrative assistant, College at Florham Library (Flor); Judith Clemen, learning disability specialist, Regional Center for College Students with Learning Disabilities (Flor); Meagan Majewski, nurse practitioner, student health services (Metro); Stanley McPherson, officer, public safety (Flor); Matthew Selems, officer, public safety (Flor); Charrley Vinson, student loan accountant, student loans/credit/collection (Metro); Sherri Weiland, officer, public safety (Flor); Keun Whang, advancement associate, University advancement (Metro); and Erika Zuckerman, nurse practitioner, student health services (Metro).

April/May 2008

View text only for this complete issue.

Flor =
College at Florham, Madison, N.J.

Metro =
Metropolitan Campus, Teaneck, N.J.

Information Deadlines