Praetorius tabbed to lead Finance and Administration division
Elizabeth Praetorius began in August as Vice President for Finance and Administration. She brings over 25 years of SUNY experience, most recently as Chief Operating Officer and Vice President for Finance and Administration at SUNY Maritime College. She has also served as Assistant Vice Chancellor and Director in the Office of Strategic Planning and Accountability with SUNY System Administration, and was a member of the Chancellor’s Shared Services Steering Committee. Much of her early career was with the University of Albany’s Nelson A. Rockefeller Institute of Government, including 19 years as its Director for Finance and Administration. At Fredonia, she will oversee an annual consolidated operating budget of more than $100 million and a variety of administrative offices which collectively have over 360 staff.
Horowitz, Hunter named associate provosts
Dr. Judith Horowitz (right) joined Fredonia in June as Associate Provost for Graduate Studies, Sponsored Research and Faculty Development. She oversees the Office of Graduate Studies, Office of Sponsored Research, the Professional Development Center, the Coordinator of International Learning and the Office of Student Creative Activity and Research. She was most recently Associate Vice President and Dean of the School of Adult and Graduate Education at Medaille College. An accomplished psychology and neuroscience researcher, she has been a visiting scientist at Roswell Park Cancer Institute and has been awarded approximately half a million dollars in grants to study brain diseases such as schizophrenia, depression and Parkinson’s disease.
Dr. Lisa Hunter joined Fredonia in August as Associate Provost for Curriculum, Assessment and Academic Support. She oversees undergraduate curriculum and assessment, including general education and the Honors program, academic student support, the Registrar’s Office, the Office of Online Learning and the Learning Center. She most recently served as Associate Dean of the School of Arts and Humanities at SUNY Buffalo State and was responsible for overseeing departmental, program and general education curriculum and assessment. She has published and presented extensively within the field of music education, as well as on topics related to assessment of “academic rigor,” curriculum design and revision, general education, and teaching and learning.
Jabot named ‘Environmental Educator of the Year’
The Nature Sanctuary Society of Western New York named Dr. Michael Jabot of the Department of Curriculum and Instruction as its Environmental Educator of the Year. Science education, including teaching how students can make sense of the physical world around them, has been the focus of his teaching since arriving at Fredonia in 2001. His current research focuses on the development of learning progressions and the conceptual diagnostic assessments that allow for measuring the impact of instruction on student learning around spatial thinking and climate change.
Tillery lauded with Distinguished Achievement Award from N.Y. association
Kim Tillery, chair of the Department of Communication Disorders and Sciences, received the 2014 Distinguished Achievement Award for outstanding clinical research and teaching excellence in the speech-language pathology and audiology professions from the New York State Speech-Language Hearing Association. Dr. Tillery was honored at the association’s annual convention in Saratoga Springs in April.
Igoe featured on Buffalo’s WBEN-AM
Michael Igoe, an attorney and former journalist who now teaches media law in the Department of Communication, was interviewed on WBEN’s “Hardline” program about a student’s rights/free speech issue in the Grand Island (N.Y.) School District. Igoe provided commentary and analysis of a case that involved a student who was suspended after refusing to remove a t-shirt that displayed the National Rifle Association’s logo. Igoe was a TV consumer reporter for 30 years at several network-affiliated stations, including WGRZ-TV in Buffalo, and formerly taught journalism in China.
Gondek completes term leading NCAA Division III soccer committee
Men’s Head Soccer Coach P.J. Gondek completed a one-year term as chairman of the NCAA Division III Soccer Committee. Under his leadership, the committee ranked and selected the championship field for the 2013 men’s NCAA D-III soccer tournament from among 56 teams. While many Blue Devil coaches have served on state and regional boards and committees, this is the highest level of service that a D-III coach can reach. Gondek has compiled a 141-93-21 record in 13 seasons at Fredonia.
Milgram-Luterman, Mancino lead music therapy conference
Dr. Joni Milgram-Luterman (left) and Kimberly Mancino of the School of Music’s Music Therapy program served as co-hosts of the annual conference of the Mid-Atlantic Region of the American Music Therapy Association held at the Buffalo Niagara Convention Center in April. The conference included sessions for high school students interested in pursuing careers in music therapy and for hospital administrators to educate them on the benefits of music therapy programs.
Gerber gives presentations at composition/communication conference
The Department of English’s Natalie Gerber gave two collaborative presentations with composition theorist Peter Elbow and linguistic graduate student Hulya Belketin at the 2014 Conference on College, Composition and Communication held in March in Indianapolis, Ind. Dr. Gerber helped participants focus on grammatical features often associated with spoken language that give vitality to written texts. The trio also gave a presentation, “What Can Students and Teachers of Writing Learn from a Careful Linguistic Exploration of Spoken Grammar?”
Myers pens chapter in new edition of The Dance Experience
The Department of Theatre and Dance’s Helen Myers wrote the chapter, “Piercing the Mask of Japanese Dance Theater,” for the new edition of The Dance Experience, released by Princeton Book Co. Myers offers a historical, cultural and aesthetic overview of the Japanese dance theater forms of Bugaku, Noh, Kabuki and Butoh, comparing and contrasting each form. The book provides an understanding of the history, evolution and universality of dance by exploring the significance of dance in culture, its relationship to other art forms, the contributions of great choreographers, dancers and teachers, and the creative process itself.
Vassoler receives Latin American Studies prize
Ivani Vassoler, coordinator of International Studies, received the 2014 James Street Prize in recognition of her article, “Baron of Rio Branco and the Construction of the Brazilian International Identity,” published in Latin American Essays (Vol. XXVI, 2012). Her article was recognized for its contributions to the study of foreign policy formation, to the understanding of U.S.-Latin American relations, and for its important insights on nationalism. The award is given annually by the Mid-Atlantic Council of Latin American Studies, a U.S.-based organization of scholars whose teaching and research focuses on Latin American studies and affairs.
Tramuta addresses financial aid association’s national conference
In July, Associate Vice President for Enrollment Services Dan Tramuta presented at the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators’ national conference in Nashville, Tenn. He co-presented a session with Patty Thompson, assistant vice chancellor for Financial Aid Programs at the SUNY System on the new SUNY SmartTrack initiative, designed to help students and their families better manage their finances and stay on track to graduate in four years with limited debt.
