KU Kudos: Faculty and staff achievements, summer 2024
LAWRENCE — It's time to celebrate Jayhawk colleagues' achievements: KU News Service staff accepted submissions and combed websites, social media and newsletters for recent external honors and awards for current faculty and staff at the Lawrence, Edwards and Medical Center campuses and affiliates.
KU Kudos is published 6-7 times a year. Have something to share? Submit by Sept. 12 for the next edition. Self-nominations are encouraged, with more information available here.
Summer 2024
Glenn Adams, director of the Kansas African Studies Center, spoke at the opening ceremony of the eighth annual conference of the Lagos Studies Association, which took place June 25-29 at the University of Lagos in Nigeria. Associate Director Stacey Vanderhurst was a presenter at the award ceremony.
The American Occupational Therapy Association appointed Gina Baker, clinical assistant professor in the Department of Occupational Therapy Education, to be the next chair of its Mental Health Special Interest Section Standing Committee. Her one-year term started July 1.
Barbara Bichelmeyer, provost and executive vice chancellor; Mark Reiske, director of Facilities Planning & Development; and Callie Long, interim vice provost for operations; and partners presented the campus master plan at the Society for University & College Planning conference. The university and partners received the Excellence in Planning award for an existing campus.
“The Way of Humanity: Confucian Wisdom for an Opening World” by Edward Canda, professor emeritus of social welfare, was a Silver Winner in the religion/spirituality of eastern thought category of the Nautilus Book Awards.
A translation by Patrizio Ceccagnoli and co-author of Antonella Anedda’s “Historiae” won the 2024 Harold Morton Landon Translation Award from the American Academy of Poets. Ceccagnoli is an associate professor of Italian. The book was also shortlisted for the Oxford-Weidenfeld Prize from the Oxford Comparative Criticism and Translation research center and has been shortlisted for the Derek Walcott Prize for Poetry.
A translation by Vitaly Chernetsky of Ostap Slyvynsky’s “Winter King” was also shortlisted for the Derek Walcott Prize for Poetry.
Kyle Christian, associate vice chancellor for federal relations, and Jay Kalbas, director of the Kansas Geological Survey, were invited to the White House on July 9 to to meet with the Office of Science and Technology Policy to discuss clearing hurdles to bring utility-scale, enhanced geothermal energy systems to new regions of the U.S. like Kansas.
The Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) recently recognized the KU Marketing team with a bronze Circle of Excellence award for its video “Welcome to KU 2023” in the category video — student audience (long). Contributors included Brendan Costello, Liz Nelson, Matt Porubsky, Steve Rausch, Tim Seley and Lois Sierra.
Lisa Dieker, Williamson Family Distinguished Professor of Special Education and director of the FLITE Center, will attend the White House and U.S. Department of Education Summit on Digital Equity, Inclusion and Emerging Technology in August.
Dallas Doane, associate professor of practice in educational leadership & policy studies, wrote a resource brief for the Center for First-generation Student Success resource guide, designed to engage in statewide advocacy for the needs of students who are the first in their families to go to college. Doane’s piece showcases the impact of the work done in Kansas.
The Law and Society Association awarded Charles Epp, University Distinguished Professor of Public Administration, the 2024 Stan Wheeler Mentorship Award.
The Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) recently recognized the KU Endowment team with a bronze Circle of Excellence award for Jayhawk Faithful — loyal donor program in the category fundraising — donor relations & stewardship initiatives. Contributors included Kerry Glasgow, Jordan Lisher and Jen Walker.
Xu Han, assistant professor of architectural engineering, and co-authors received a Best Paper Award from the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers for their paper “Ensembled Deep Learning-Based Model Predictive Control for Automatic Window Operations in Winter.”
Chun-Kai Huang, assistant professor in the Department of Physical Therapy, Rehabilitation Science & Athletic Training, received the 2024 Early Career Achievement Award from University of Nebraska Medical Center. He will be recognized Aug. 16 at his alma mater.
“The Poverty of the World” by Sheyda Jahanbani, associate professor of history, won the 2024 Bernath Prize for best first book from the Society for Historians of American Foreign Relations.
Alexey Ladokhin, professor of biochemistry and molecular biology, was co-author on a journal article that earned a best paper award from the Protein Society, an international society devoted to furthering research and development in protein science.
USD 497 selected Angie Loving, vice provost for human resources, as the recipient of its 2024 Outstanding Citizen Award. Loving was recognized for leadership of KU's longtime partnership with Project SEARCH and the commitment to teaching employability skills through on-the-job training and workplace internships for individuals with disabilities transitioning from high school to adult life.
Karin Porter-Williamson, associate professor of palliative medicine, was named a visionary by the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine.
Tarun Sabarwal, professor of economics, has been invited to give a research seminar at the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur. Sabarwal will present “Computable comparative statics of equilibrium in partially ordered models.” He also recently presented research at the 35th Stony Brook International Conference on Game Theory.
“Defectors” by Erik Scott, associate professor of history, won the Society for Historians of American Foreign Relations’ Ferrell Book Prize for best subsequent book in the field. The book also received the Tonous and Warda Johns Family Book Award from the Pacific Coast Branch of the American Historical Association.
Dave Tell, professor of communication studies and co-director of The Emmett Till Memory Project, helped lead the ETMP in launching a newly reimagined website and forthcoming mobile application. Tell was also instrumental in the creation of the initial mobile app, which made its debut in 2019.
Chris Theisen, assistant athletic director for communications, and Max Aebersold, graduate assistant for Kansas Athletics communications, received third place from the College Sports Communicators in the university division for the KU men’s basketball media guide.
Kristina Walker, Spencer Museum of Art director of education and interpretation, has been named the 2024 Outstanding Museum Art Educator of the Year by the Kansas Art Education Association.
Oleksandra Wallo, associate professor, and Vitaly Chernetsky, professor, were invited to attend a National Academy of Sciences conference on strengthening ties between Ukrainian and U.S. science and education institutions. Wallo and Chernetsky are faculty in the Department of Slavic, German & Eurasian Studies.
Kevin Willmott, professor emeritus of film & media studies, is a featured voice in “Hollywood Black,” a four-part documentary series airing now on the MGM+ streaming service.
Tobia Zanotto, assistant professor in the Department of Occupational Therapy Education, presented his work at the 2024 International Conference on Frailty and Sarcopenia Research in Albuquerque, New Mexico. His talk was titled "Blood Pressure Variability and Frailty in People with End-Stage Kidney Disease."
Recently in the news
Dimitrije Cabarkapa, associate director of the Jayhawk Athletic Performance Laboratory, has been honored with the National Strength and Conditioning Association’s 2024 Terry J. Housh Outstanding Young Investigator Award.
The public affairs team at the School of Medicine-Wichita earned awards in communication contests hosted by Kansas Professional Communicators as well as the Kansas Association of Health Care Communicators. Team members are Jennifer Eaton, Darcy Gray and Belinda Venters.
The National Association of Rehabilitation Research and Training Centers recognized Life Span Institute researchers Jean Hall, Noelle Kurth and Darcy Sullivan for their efforts advancing inclusion and independence for individuals with disabilities.
Stella Markou, soprano, opera director and KU Voice area coordinator for the School of Music, has been selected as a finalist for The American Prize in Directing-The Charles Nelson Reilly Prize (college/university opera division).
Suzanne Shontz, School of Engineering associate dean for research and graduate programs, was named the 2024 winner of the James Corones Award in Leadership, Community Building and Communication from the Krell Institute. The award will be presented later this year at the KU Lawrence campus.