Faculty members at Westfield State go on sabbatical each semester to delve deeply into projects they are passionate about.
In the fall of 2016, 13 faculty members in departments including History, Music, and Biology took sabbatical to conduct research in their area of study, work on book manuscripts, and write articles.
Last spring, 21 faculty members in departments from Movement Science, to Economics and Management, to Language and Culture Studies used their sabbaticals for exploration, research, data collection, writing and editing projects, and earning additional credentials.
The following faculty members were on sabbatical in the fall and spring semesters. The following is a look at their work.
Fall 2016
Mark Abate, Ph.D., History, researched Roger Bacon, a 13th-century University of Paris professor, Franciscan monk, scientist, and advocate for educational reform. Dr. Abate analyzed the manuscript tradition for his “Epistula fratris rogerii baconis de secretis operibus naturae et de nullitate magiae.”
Laura Baker, Ed.D., Education, studied the current state of professional development schools across the country. This process began with her investigation of exemplary models of professional development schools and her creation of a theoretical framework that will inform the revised model, a cohesive and coherent description of the Westfield Professional Development Schools Networks.
Andrew Bonacci, D.M.A., Music, wrote a Music Theory Fundamentals textbook for college-level, non-music majors. He intends for this project to offer students and faculty a meaningful, semester-long study that will result in musically literate students.
Byung Jun Cho, Ph.D., Criminal Justice, wrote a research article that tests the relationship between adolescent employment and juvenile delinquency in South Korea with the use of the Korea Youth Panel Survey from 2003-2008.
Nitza Hidalgo, Ed.D., Education, wrote an article on the complexities of Latina feminist pedagogy, which will help her to further develop her curriculum for her courses in multicultural education and in the Department of Ethnic and Gender Studies.
Donald “Buzz” Hoagland, Ph.D., Biology, continued his population genetic research on introduced insular mongoose populations by sequencing the mitochondrial DNA of the mongoose and creating probes that can be used to identify genetic variants within a population.
Sinuk Kang, Ph.D., Communication, advanced his research on judgments of deception and nonverbal communication in media.
Christopher Kudlac, Ph.D., Criminal Justice, completed his book, Religion and the Criminal Justice System.
Holly Noun, Ed.D., Movement Science, published a multidisciplinary advising plan for health science, developed a proposal for a complementary healthcare related graduate program, and submitted a campus application for the “Exercise is Medicine” designation.
Catherine Savini, Ph.D., English, completed two projects: articles on teaching reading in writing centers and on the “seed text method” she has developed for composition.
Kevin Tatsugawa, Ph.D., Movement Science, conducted a study of the mechanized ski industry in North America, examining the current industry standards, processes to obtain permits to guide, fly over, and land on public lands, education and certification structures, risk management guidelines and operations, and business structures and plans.
Michael Young, M.S., Chemical and Physical Science, developed new kinds of materials for his courses in astronomy, geology, and physics by reviewing and collecting online resources such as websites and videos in order to create partially “flipped” classrooms, with students viewing information outside of class.
Katherine Walsh, Ph.D., Social Work, conducted a literature search and worked on the third edition of her textbook, Grief and Loss: Theories and Skills for the Helping Professions.
Spring 2017
Heidi Bohler, Ed.D., Movement Science, explored the practice of Japanese lesson study, called jugyokenkyu, a form of in-depth professional development for primary and secondary education teachers in Japan, at Tokyo Gakugei University.
Susanne Chuku, Ph.D., Economics and Management, updated data from her dissertation research, ran new regressions, and submitted a paper for publication in a peer-reviewed journal.
Goopeel Chung, Ph.D., Computer and Information Science, researched the development of software modules for a learning management software that can be used to support the grading of student work using tablet computers, and collecting assessment data in a convenient manner.
Sunday Fakunmoju, Ph.D., Social Work, collected and analyzed data on cross-cultural research on violence against children, between peers, and in intimate relationships, and submitted an abstract from his research for presentation at a conference.
Julian Fleron, Ph.D., Mathemetics, made revisions and edits to developed materials for his “Discovering the Art of Mathematics” project.
Thomas Gardner, Ph.D., Communication, worked on several projects including an extension of research, writing, and video distribution on media silence and Agent Orange effects and completion of a novel based on prison and death penalty work in the South.
Robert Hayes, Ph.D., Psychology, devoted his sabbatical to completing specialized training requirements for the Approved Clinical Supervisor (ACS) credential.
Mark Horwitz, Ph.D., Social Work, worked with the Child Health and Development Center of Connecticut on data analysis of a data format he developed to test fidelity to the Connecticut child behavioral health wraparound system.
Imo Imeh, Ph.D., Art, developed two new series of artwork and conducted research for his second book.
Hugh Jo, Ph.D., Political Science, worked on two manuscripts for submission to academic journals and made site visits in Japan and South Korea for a short-term course he is developing.
Megan Kennedy, Ph.D., Education, studied the scholarship of educational administrative practices and completed several courses in a certificate program in Higher Education Leadership and Administration (HELP) at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.
Kelly Anne McKeown, Ph.D., Biology, worked on reorganizing the structure and content of the Anatomy and Physiology laboratories in order to meet the growing need for this course on campus.
Mark Naidorf, M.B.A., Economics and Management, designed, developed, and implemented a supplement and addition to the current Department of Economics and Management Business Internship Manual.
Gregg Neikirk, Ph.D., English, researched the writer Elizabeth Madox Roberts and assessed the context in which she wrote her 1930 novel, The Great Meadow. This research serves as background information for his planned second play based on the author.
Ruth Ohayon, Ph.D., Language and Culture Studies, worked on developing a new course on Postcolonial Maghreb, which involves French translation and writers from North Africa.
Sophia Tatiana Sarigianides, Ph.D., English, finalized the NCTE-invited book manuscript for their Principles in Practice series titled “Re-thinking the ‘Adolescent’ in Adolescent Literacy,” which she co-authored with two research partners.
Elizabeth Starr, Ph.D., English, examined how fictional and actual narrators tell stories about illness by conducting a literature review on the current state of literary study within the interdisciplinary field of narrative medicine, and on critical theory that conceives of bodies as spaces characters and readers inhabit.
Jack Szpiler, Ed.D., Psychology, took a course in adult development and aging and plans to apply the content to the various courses he currently teaches.
Karsten Theis, Ph.D., Chemical and Physical Sciences, worked on building an open-access, multi-lingual, learning tool. The tool incorporates insights from chemistry, education, computer science, and psychology, which allows students to solve chemistry problems and receive helpful prompts that model those of a tutor or a study group.
Karin Vorwerk, Ph.D., Mathematics, investigated the mathematical problem of Virahanka matrices, and wrote a workbook/textbook for Math 334, Operations Research., using an innovative teaching approach based on small groups functioning as both clients and consultants.
Katherine Walsh, Ph.D., Social Work, continued her work on the third edition of her book, Grief and Loss: Theories and Skills for the Helping Professions, and wrote a chapter for an interdisciplinary textbook.
