Education
Academic Editor: Communication disorders prof Martin Fujiki is now associate editor of the journal Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools. Associate Dean:Charles R. Graham (BS ’94) is now associate dean of the McKay School.
Engineering and Technology
Gold Record: BYU students brought home their fifth gold medal from the Residential Construction Management Competition in Las Vegas. Fit Design: BYU industrial design students created a new line of exercise equipment for EB Brands, the sponsor of popular exercise names Bally and Everlast.
Family, Home, and Social Sciences
Lawsuit Externality: Doctors cut back on work hours when the risk of malpractice suits rises, according to a study by econ prof Mark H. Showalter (BA ’86) published in theJournal of Law and Economics. Pension Discrimination: Associate poli-sci prof Sven E. Wilson (BA ’89) found evidence of racial discrimination against black Union Army veterans who claimed certain disabilities. His findings are reported in the American Journal of Public Health.
Fine Arts and Communications
Top Pitchers: PR Week ranked BYU’s public-relations program among the top five in the nation. Illustrating Excellence: The Society of Illustrators honored seven BYU students in the 2010 Student Scholarship Competition; the competition received more than 4,000 submissions.
Humanities
International Lit: Humanities prof Steven P. Sondrup is now president of the International Comparative Literature Association. Paradisiacal Poetics: Humanities prof George B. Handley and associate art prof Garold C. Barton (BFA ’89) took students to the Caribbean to learn and paint alongside Nobel Prize–winning poet Derek Walcott.
Law School
Fulbright Chair: Law prof J. Clifton Fleming Jr. (BS’ 64) was appointed a Fulbright Distinguished Chair in the Department of Public Law and Tax Law at the Vienna University of Economics and Business. International Court: Law prof W. Cole Durham Jr. testified in a hearing of Indonesia’s Constitutional Court that reviewed the country’s blasphemy law. Regional Chair: Second-year law student Andre P. Bennin (BS ’05) is regional chair of the National Black Law Students Association.
Life Sciences
Fungi Funding: Associate bio prof Richard A. Gill (BS ’93) received a National Science Foundation grant to further research on plant and fungi ecosystems. AIDS Analysis:Bio Department chair Keith A. Crandall coauthored a study published in Molecular Biology and Evolution that analyzes failed AIDS vaccines.
Marriott School
Jackpot Loss: Some high-risk stocks carry even riskier lottery components, according to finance profs Brian H. Boyer (BA ’96), Keith P. Vorkink (BA ’94), and Todd Mitton (BA ’90). Their study can be found in the Review of Financial Studies. NGO Honors: Org. leadership prof Warner P. Woodworth (BS ’67) is Claremont Graduate University’s first Peter F. Centennial Global Entrepreneur in Residence, recognized for his work in establishing NGOs.
Nursing
Child Care: Associate nursing prof Renea Lindstrom Beckstrand (BS ’83), along with grad student Nicole Merrill Rawle (’10), published a study in the American Journal of Critical Care about improving care for terminally ill children.
Physical and Mathematical Sciences
Antimicrobial Agents: Chem prof Paul B. Savage (BS ’88) received a $2.9 million grant from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to continue research on a family of antimicrobial agents he developed that may strengthen antibiotic treatments. Acoustic Award: Kent L. Gee (BS ’01), assistant prof of physics and astronomy, received the R. Bruce Lindsay Award from the Acoustical Society of America. Model Professor: Computer science prof David W. Embley was named an Entity Relationship Fellow and received the 2009 Peter Chen Award. Problem Solver: Math prof Kening Lu received a National Science Foundation grant to develop models that improve the predictability of complex systems.
Religious Education
Book Release: Church history prof Richard N. Holzapfel (BA ’78) and associate dean Kent P. Jackson (BA ’74) authored Joseph Smith, the Prophet and Seer. Teen Delinquency: Church history prof Brent L. Top (BA ’76) and emeritus sociology prof Bruce A. Chadwick teamed up in a 17-year study of religiosity and delinquency in LDS youth. Their findings are reported in the new book Shield of Faith: The Power of Religion in the Lives of LDS Youth and Young Adults.