AR12: Our people

A glance at the university community and its achievements

Monday, November 26, 2012

Written by: University Communication and Marketing

U.S. News ranks UI among best 30 public national universities
The University of Iowa ranks 28th among the nation's best public universities, according to the latest rankings published by the magazine U.S. News & World Report. The ranking places the UI in a tie with Michigan State University and Virginia Tech.

UI President Sally Mason says: “The new U.S. News rankings indicate the University of Iowa’s strength and stability. I am delighted and proud that we remain among the top 30 national public universities. I thank our entire university community—faculty, staff, and students—for the talent and commitment that lead to our nationally recognized excellence.”

U.S. News ranks 10 UI graduate programs among top 10 in nation
U.S. News & World Report ranks 10 University of Iowa graduate programs and colleges among the 10 best in the country among all public and private schools.

The speech-language pathology master’s program in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS) ranks as the No. 1 program in the country, according to America's Best Graduate Schools 2013. Audiology (CLAS), the physician assistant program (Carver College of Medicine), rehabilitation counseling (College of Education), and the nursing specialties of Nursing Service Administration and Gerontological/Geriatric (College of Nursing) were each ranked No. 2 nationally. The physician assistant, rehabilitation counseling, and nursing rankings carried over from 2011; the speech-language pathology and audiology programs were re-ranked in 2012.

Other UI graduate programs that were ranked highly as well—a mix of new and carry-over rankings that won’t all appear in the print guidebook—are: Sociology Specialties-Social Psychology (CLAS), 3 (carry-over); Printmaking (CLAS), 4 (new); Physical Therapy (Carver College of Medicine), 5 (new); College of Medicine Specialty-Rural Medicine (Carver College of Medicine), 9 (new).

Reed named VP for Research and Development
Daniel Reed, a former executive at Microsoft and a longtime academic, wants to accelerate the research agenda at the UI and speed the economic impact in Iowa and beyond of promising advances and findings from labs and activities campus-wide. He argues that public research universities, like the UI, must be repositories of ideas and intellectual talent, spurring the innovations that advance society and keep Iowa, and the United States, at the forefront in a rapidly changing world.

New CLAS dean Chaden Djalali relishes the diversity of the liberal arts
Chaden Djalali, professor and chair of the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of South Carolina, was named dean of the University of Iowa College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS), effective Aug. 15.

He maintains an active research program in intermediate energy nuclear physics and hadronic physics and has taught at all university levels and contributed significantly to undergraduate and graduate curriculum development. He has acquired substantial administrative experience, not only as chair of the department but also through extensive involvement with university-wide governance. He has received USC’s top university-wide awards for research, service, and teaching.

Read an interview with Djalali: now.uiowa.edu/2012/08/garden-education

Schwinn named new dean of Carver College of Medicine
University of Iowa leaders in July named Debra A. Schwinn, M.D., as the next dean of the University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine.

Schwinn, whose appointment began Nov. 1, is a nationally known investigator in molecular pharmacology with active funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). She is an elected member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies of Science, and numerous other national and international organizations. She holds four U.S. patents and one Australian patent.

Scranton named dean of College of Engineering
University of Iowa Executive Vice President and Provost P. Barry Butler named Alec B. Scranton as dean of the University of Iowa College of Engineering, effective April 2.

Scranton has served as interim dean of the college from Oct. 1, 2010, to the present, while continuing his duties as University of Iowa Foundation Distinguished Professor of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering.

Scranton, 48, joined the UI faculty in 2000, after earning his bachelor of science degree from the UI in 1984 and his doctorate in chemical engineering from Purdue University in 1990, both in chemical engineering.

Read an interview with Scranton: now.uiowa.edu/2012/04/frequent-hiker-miles

Tennessee vice provost Gardial named to lead Tippie College of Business
Sarah Gardial, vice provost of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, was named the first woman dean of the University of Iowa's Henry B. Tippie College of Business, effective July 1.

Gardial, 54, joined the marketing faculty of the University of Tennessee's College of Business Administration in 1986 and later served as assistant dean for the full-time MBA program and associate dean for academic programs. She has served as the university's vice provost for faculty affairs since 2008, overseen faculty recruitment and development, and participated on the planning and implementation teams for the university's strategic plan.

Read an interview with Gardial: now.uiowa.edu/2012/03/business-bikes-and-rock-n-roll

Two Iowa students win Goldwater Scholarship; Spinks named Truman Scholar
Two University of Iowa undergraduate researchers in the UI Honors Program and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS)—Allyson Mayer and Nicholas Rolston—were named 2012 Goldwater Scholars.

The Goldwater Scholarship program, established by Congress in 1986 in honor of Senator Barry M. Goldwater, fosters and encourages outstanding students to pursue careers in the fields of mathematics, the natural sciences, and engineering. The Goldwater is the premier undergraduate award of its type in these fields.

In addition, Conner Spinks, a University of Iowa undergraduate student, was named a 2012 Truman Scholar. Spinks, a UI Honors Program student and junior from Des Moines, is one of only 54 students from across the nation to receive the nationally competitive award.

The Truman Scholarship recognizes college juniors with exceptional leadership potential who demonstrate a strong commitment to careers in government, the nonprofit or advocacy sectors, education, or elsewhere in public service.

REACH + Hawks = Success
The University of Iowa men's basketball team enjoyed a nice run down the stretch, including an opening round victory against Dayton in the National Invitational Tournament, and Danny Tyson was able to enjoy the experience right along with the Hawkeyes.

Tyson worked as an intern with the team thanks to the UI College of Education's REACH: Realizing Educational and Career Hopes Program, a two-year transition certificate program for students with multiple intellectual, cognitive, and learning disabilities.

Two UI faculty members awarded Guggenheim fellowships
Judith Pascoe, a professor in the University of Iowa Department of English, and Steven Ungar, a professor in the Department of Cinema and Comparative Literature, both in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, have been awarded 2012 Guggenheim Fellowships.

The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation announced the awarding of 181 fellowships, selected from among nearly 3,000 applications in research and artistic creation, on April 13.

Three receive Fulbright research grants for 2012-13
Three University of Iowa students and alumni have been awarded Fulbright U.S. Student Program grants to conduct research internationally in 2012-13. This year's UI recipients are Lynne Ann Larsen, Andrea Rosenberg, and Sean Tolentino.

The Fulbright Program is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government. It is designed to increase understanding between people of the United States and other countries by providing participants opportunities to study, teach, conduct research, and contribute to finding solutions to shared international concerns.

Four UI faculty members win top teaching award
Four University of Iowa faculty members have won the 2012 President and Provost Award for Teaching Excellence in recognition of their years of outstanding teaching. The recipients are: A. Allen Bradley Jr., professor of civil and environmental engineering in the College of Engineering; Jay Christensen-Szalanski, professor and departmental executive officer of the Department of Management and Organizations in the Tippie College of Business; Caroline K. Sheerin, professor of legal analysis, writing, and research in the College of Law; and Jodi Tate, clinical associate professor in the Department of Psychiatry in the Carver College of Medicine.

hualing engle sitting near art and table

Engle receives UI award for international impact
Hualing Nieh Engle, co-founder of the University of Iowa International Writing Program, is the 2012 recipient of the university's International Impact Award. The UI graduate and professor emerita is being honored for her vision in creating the program, her commitment to freedom of expression around the globe, and her efforts to internationalize the UI campus.

IWP participant wins Nobel Prize for Literature
The 2012 Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded to Chinese author Mo Yan, a 2004 participant of the University of Iowa International Writing Program (IWP).

One of China's foremost novelists, Mo is best known for his 1987 novel Hong Gaoliang Jiazu (in English, Red Sorghum). The internationally acclaimed film adaptation, directed by Zhang Yimou, won the Golden Bear award at the Berlin Film Festival, becoming one of China's most popular films and bringing Chinese cinema into the international mainstream.

Influenced by great mentors, Apicella passes it on
Mike Apicella can name several people who helped him become what he is today, an international leader in understanding microbial pathogenesis whose research has advanced the development of vaccines and chemotherapies for meningitis, sexually transmitted diseases, and acute and chronic respiratory infections.

Apicella understood the value of mentoring. No surprise he is the 2012 recipient of the Distinguished Mentor Award in the University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine, where he is senior associate dean for scientific affairs and professor of microbiology.

Feeding the research at the University of Iowa
Where might you find 320 grams of raw apple peels on the menu? In the metabolic kitchen of the University of Iowa's Clinical Research Unit, which prepares meals for human subjects in UI research.

Verzemnieks wins Jaffe Writers' Award
Inara Verzemnieks, a graduate student in the University of Iowa Nonfiction Writing Program (NWP), is one of six 2012 winners of the prestigious Rona Jaffe Writers’ Awards. She will receive the $30,000 award at a Sept. 20 event in New York.

The award, created by celebrated novelist Rona Jaffe to identify and support women writers of unusual talent and promise in the early stages of their writing careers, is presented by the Rona Jaffe Foundation.

Nursing's Herr earns national honor
Keela A. Herr, professor and associate dean for faculty at the University of Iowa College of Nursing, will receive the 2012 Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Gerontological Nursing Association (NGNA).

For 25 years, Herr has pursued research, scholarly, and professional activities focused on the problem of pain in older adults, emphasizing assessment strategies, putting research into practice, and enhancing end-of-life care.

Dental students' tribute to a favorite teacher prompts viral buzz
Second-year students at the UI College of Dentistry launched a deliberately goofy plan for honoring a favorite teacher. The result is earning viral-video buzz.

New space, more smiles
In 2011, the University of Iowa College of Dentistry dedicated a 35,000-square-foot addition to the Dental Science Building, which originally opened in 1973. Over the next three years, renovations will fully modernize all the clinics in the building's south wing.

Collectively, the projects promise to enhance dental education—which requires real-life, hands-on interaction between students and patients—and to continue giving Iowans and others some of the best dental care in the world.

See the photo gallery: now.uiowa.edu/2012/03/new-space-more-smiles

Student ambassador places priority on promoting public health
When the College of Public Health announced it was starting a new student ambassador program to put a “face” on the college, Carmen Smith knew she wanted to be a part of it. Her enthusiasm for the ambassador program is eclipsed only by her excitement about her studies and career path.