College welcomes nine new faculty
The College of Arts and Sciences is proud to
introduce the latest additions to its faculty.
Black
Studies
Cher Love McAllister, Sekhmet Ra Em Kht Maat, joined the Black
Studies faculty after receiving her Ph.D. in African American Studies from
Temple University. Her dissertation is titled "Remembering ASAR: Haile Selassie
I within Rastafarl Thought."
Her areas of special
interest are Indigenous African cosmology, religious thought, and philosophies
of existence, broadly conceived to include African Diasporan contemporary
cultural epistemologies, philosophical perspectives and religious thought.
"Next spring she
will be teaching African Philosophy, which explores ancient, traditional and
contemporary philosophical/theological concepts and doctrines of Africans
through an investigation of their cosmological, metaphysical, ontological and
ethical world view," says interim department chair, Peggy Jones. "We are
enjoying her intellectual energy and vibrant personality!"
Philosophy
The Philosophy Program welcomed two new faculty members this year.
Paul Audi comes to
UNO after earning his Ph.D. in philosophy from Princeton University. His
teaching experience includes an instructorship at Colgate University. His areas
of specialization are Metaphysics and Philosophy of Mind. According to Audi,
his dissertation "Beyond Causal Theories of Mind and Nature" is an argument
that "appeals to the special role the mind plays in determining certain
normative phenomena, and the inability of physical properties to play that
role."
William Melanson received his Ph.D. in philosophy from Ohio State
University in 2006. He specializes in Epistemology and Philosophy of
Mathematics. His dissertation is titled, "Justified Existential Belief: An
Investigation of the Justifiability of Believing in the Existence of Abstract
Mathematical Objects." Before coming to UNO, Melanson was a visiting assistant
professor at the University of Puget Sound.
Religious Studies
The Religious
Studies program also has two new faculty members starting this fall.
Bridget Blomfield joined the Religious Studies faculty having
earned her Ph.D. in Women's Studies in Religion from Claremont University,
Claremont, Calif. Her dissertation is titled "The Language of Tears: An
Ethnographic Study of Shi'a Muslim Women's Ashura Rituals."
According to
Blomfield, her dissertation examines Shi'a Muslim women's religious rituals,
especially the azadari (sorrow) ritual, that commemorates the martyrdom of the
member and relatives of the ahl al-bayt, the holy family of the Prophet
Muhammad.
Practiced annually during the month of Muharram for the past 1,450
years, this ritual is still practiced in Shi'a communities around the world. An
ethnographic study, it describes how these Shi'a Muslim women interpret the
concept of feminism, and how their religious role models and ritual
participation instill a personal identity and religious authority.
Blomfield also has
been named to the university's Women's Studies faculty.
Brady DeSanti
received his BA in Religious Studies from UNO in 2002 and is working toward his
Ph.D. at the University of Kansas with a major in U.S. History and minor fields
of Indigenous Peoples and Religious Studies.
His dissertation
explores early American anthropology and American Indian agency in dialogues
between themselves and scholars, focusing on anthropologist John Swanton and
his work with Native peoples.
Mathematics
"Robert Todd joined the Mathematics Department in Fall 2007 to
replace Dr. Scott Downing who retired in Spring 2007," says Mathematics
Department Chair Dr. Jack Heidel. He adds, "Like Scott, Robert's specialty is
topology, an abstract form of geometry."
Todd earned his
Ph.D. in Mathematics from the University of Iowa. The title of his thesis is
"Khovanov Homology: Calculation and Applications."
"So far UNO has been
a great place," says Todd. "This campus offers a lot of opportunities. I hope
that I can offer just as many opportunities to people here at UNO."
Chemistry
Haizhen (Andy) Zhong joins the Chemistry faculty with an
impressive publication and research record. He has two patents (with J.P.
Bowen) for Angiogenesis Inhibitors, drugs that block the development of new
blood vessels that would feed cancerous tumors. An Angiogenesis Inhibitor could
stop tumors from growing and spreading to other parts of the body. Zhong is
published in such professional journals as the Journal of Chemical Theory and
Computation and Journal of Molecular Graphics and Modeling. He earned his Ph.D.
in Medicinal Chemistry in 2001 from the College of Pharmacy at the University
of Georgia, Athens. Before coming to UNO, he was a research scientist in the Department
of Chem-istry and Biochemistry, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and
Instructor in Computational Chemis-try. He also was a Postdoctoral Research
Fellow, University of Michigan (2001-03) and a Postdoctoral Research Associate,
University of Georgia (2004).
Foreign
Languages
According to Foreign
Languages Department Chair, Dr. Carolyn Gascoigne, "Professors Claudia Garcia
and Anita Saalfeld are wonderful additions to the department."
Garcia's expertise
in Latin American literature and culture already is impacting students and
community members, and Saalfeld's expertise in Spanish phonetics and phonology
will fill an important curricular need.
Garcia earned her Ph.D. in Spanish from the University of Florida.
Her dissertation "Narrativa guatemalteca contemporanea y campo intelectual
transnacional" reflects her research interests in Latin American Literature.
Saalfeld is working
on completing her Ph.D. in Hispanic Linguistics at the University of Illinois
at Urbana-Champaign. Her dissertation is entitled "The L2 acquisition of
elements of Spanish prosody by English L1 adults: stress and syllabification
studies."
Wheeler service marks full and long life
Former philosophy
professor spent 30 years at UNO
Wayne Wheeler, professor emeritus of Sociology, was honored at a
memorial service Sept. 27 at the Milo Bail Student Center at UNO. Colleagues and students gathered to remember
Wheeler, who passed away Aug. 25 at the age of 85.
"I used to
periodically stop by his apartment in the evening on the way home and we
enjoyed the most wide-ranging, interesting thoughtful conversations, of the
kind I seldom had with anyone else, says Dr. Mark Rousseau, former department
chair for Sociology. "I will miss him and our great conversations."
Wheeler was hired by
UNO in 1967 to serve as department chair of Sociology and coordinator for the
Urban Studies Center. Between the time he earned his Ph.D. from Missouri
University, Columbia, in 1959 and his appointment at UNO, he held a variety of
positions at a number of colleges. From 1965 to 1967 he was professor of
Sociology and director, Urban and Community Studies at Rice University. From
1963 to 1965, he was professor of Sociology and chair, Division of Social
Sciences at Tarkio College. From 1960 to 1963, he was a research associate for
the Committee on Human Development, University of Chicago, and director, Kansas
City Study of Adult Life. He held
teaching appointments over the years at Park College, Parkville, Mo.; University
Kansas, Lawrence; Kansas State Teacher's College, Emporia; Bethany College,
Lindsborg, Kansas; South Dakota State College, Brookings; Christian College,
Columbia; University of Missouri, Columbia; and Eastern New Mexico University,
Portales.
His eight published
books include "Social Stratification in a Plains Community: Lebanon, Missouri,
1949," and "An Analysis of Social Change in a Swedish Immigrant Community: The
Case of Lindsborg, Kansas, 1985."
Wheeler went on
partial retirement in 1989 and was awarded emeritus status in 1993.
Rousseau remarks
that Wheeler, "much enjoyed working with students, and still as emeritus
professor mentored undergraduate students." Rousseau added that Wheeler's
retirement also included much time traveling in Europe, "particularly Sweden,
where he had done doctoral work and spoke the language."
Aphrodite sculpture finds home at college
Serene and majestic, Aphrodite stands among the trees and gardens
surrounding her new home, Arts and Sciences Hall.
The sculpture was
donated through the University of Nebraska Foundation by Martha Page, 2003
graduate of the College of Arts and Sciences.
Aphrodite, circa
1880, is a zinc sculpture by renowned American iron works company J.W. Fiske of
New York. She originally traveled to Omaha to reside in the gardens at Martha Page's
home. When Page recently decided to downsize to a smaller home, she offered the
antique sculpture to UNO.
"I'll miss her, but
she's in a place where my heart is," Page said in an interview with the UNO
Gateway student newspaper. "I value my professors and I love the university;
she's in a great spot."
In addition to the
beautiful landscape, Aphrodite is well accommodated by the grand neo-classical
architecture of Arts and Sciences Hall. The four-story white columns and
portico, in design and scale, provide a fitting backdrop for the goddess of
love and beauty.
Arts and Sciences
Hall also is home to the foreign languages faculty from whom Page earned her
degree in French.
Page's donation of
the sculpture is not her first gift to the university. With an endowment from
Page the Foreign Languages Department in 2005 established the Martha C. Page
Study Abroad Travel Fund. The Fund, established through the University of
Nebraska Foundation, endows an annual scholarship for a student traveling to
France and participating in an accredited study program.
Duane Willard: A life examined
Former philosophy
professor spent 30 years at UNO
"The unexamined
life," said Socrates, "is not worth living." When L. Duane Willard, professor
emeritus of Philosophy, passed away this October, he knew well the value of an
examined life.
During his 30 years at UNO, Willard's teaching, research, and
community service all demonstrated a willingness to ask the right questions and
face the honest answers.
Willard taught
Introduction to Philosophy, Logic, Introduction to Ethics, History of Ancient
Philosophy, Philosophy of Religion, Business Ethics, Contemporary Ethical
Theories, and Environmental Ethics.
Former colleague and
department chair Dr. William Blizek recalls, "Duane was for many years one of
UNO's favorite teachers. Duane genuinely liked his students and he worked hard
to make each student successful. Duane's love of philosophy was infectious and
he passed the excitement of philosophy on to his students."
His writings explored
questions of value and ethics in areas as diverse as the environment, animal
rights and medicine. He was published in the Journal of Value Inquiry;
Philosophy Research Archives; Bicentennial Symposium of Philosophy: Contributed
Papers, Dialogue, Business and Professional Ethics; Journal of Medicine and
Philosophy; Environmental Ethics; Westminster Institute Review; Profits and
Professions; Philosophy and Public Affairs; and, Dialogue: Canadian
Philosophical Review.
Willard's service to
the UNO community included time on the UNO Animal Welfare Committee, the
Educational Policy and Honors Program Committees, the Dean's Advisory
Committee, UNO Faculty Senate, UNO Adjudicatory Committee and the Academic
Vice-Chancellor's Task Force on University Requirements. He also served as
chair of the Department of Philosophy and Religion and President of the UNO
Chapter of the American Association of University Professors.
Willard also was an
active contributor to the larger Omaha and Nebraska communities. He was a panelist for "Functions of a Free
Press" and "Do Newsmedia Tell the Truth" for the Nebraska Committee for the
Humanities.
He was a featured
speaker for the Nebraska Committee for the Humanities, Omaha Optimist Club and
Kiwanis Club. He was a panelist for The Riverfront Forum in 1975. He was
producer of the TV Classroom, "Philosophy at Work" for KMTV and KYNE-TV in 1974
and a speaker on "Rights in the '80s -- Religious Rights" for the TV Classroom
in 1982. He served on an advisory committee on drug dependency for Omaha
Awareness in Action in 1974.
Willard earned AB
degrees from Tennessee Temple College in Voice and Baylor University in
Philosophy. He received his master's in divinity in 1961 from Midwestern
Baptist Theological Seminary and an MS (ABD) in philosophy in 1964 from the
University of Wisconsin-Madison.
After his retirement
in 1993, Willard moved to Branson, Mo. He passed away after a long illness on
Oct. 11, 2007.
