A Message from the Dean - March 2021
Spring has arrived in Edwardsville! The freezing temperatures and snow of February are now a distant memory. The deciduous trees on the campus are leafing out. The COVID-19 pandemic continues to influence instruction, research and other activities on the campus, but the end of the pandemic appears on the horizon. On March 27 Madison County announced that all people who are 16 or older and live or work in Illinois are eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Many faculty, staff and students have already been vaccinated.
March is Women’s History Month, and the College of Arts and Sciences has joined other units in recognizing and honoring the contributions of women to U.S. and world history. The Women’s Studies program sponsored a talk on women who joined the SIUE faculty in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, breaking ground for today’s women faculty members. Alice Ma, PhD, of the SIUE Department of Applied Health spoke about her research on the discrimination and depression among Latino sexual minority men and Latina transgender women in North Carolina. Lina-María Murillo, PhD, of the University of Iowa spoke about abortion in the Mexico-U.S. borderlands before Roe v. Wade, and Aria Hallyday, PhD, of the University of Kentucky discussed the field of Black Girlhood Studies.
This month SIUE announced it is adopting the Common Application, which is used by more than 900 colleges and universities worldwide. The University’s use of the Common Application could lead many students to take a closer look at the many outstanding programs in the College of Arts and Sciences.
Graduate student Karagan Romoser is the second SIUE social work intern for the Edwardsville Public Library. Rosomer, who will graduate with her MSW in August, began working at the library in January and will continue to serve library patrons until the summer. At the library, she assists in the planning and development of a program of book discussions and community conversations. She will also work to develop a campaign to increase awareness of LGBTQ+ issues.
Students involved in the SIUE Successful Communities Collaborative assisted the Madison County Health Department in a COVID-19 vaccination clinic in Alton on March 8. The students accepted calls and added local seniors to the list of people to be vaccinated.
Even as their activities are restricted by the ongoing pandemic, CAS students, staff and faculty continue to receive recognition for their research and service activities. Senior anthropology major Megan Walsh was named Rotary Student Leader of the Month for February by the Edwardsville Rotary Club.
Deborah Sellnow-Richmond, PhD, assistant professor in the Department of Applied Communication Studies, and Ashton Speno, PhD, assistant professor in the Department of Mass Communications, were both awarded the SIUE Graduate School’s Vaughnie Lindsay New Investigator Award. Dr. Sellnow-Richmond studies the efficacy and unforeseen effects of public relations messages in crises. Dr. Speno’s research examines the intersections of gender and race in current tween television programming.
Alumni of CAS departments and programs are making their mark in the business world. Grace Noice, who graduated in May 2020, began working for Kraft Heinz as a Planters Brand Ambassador in July. Noice’s duties include driving the Planters’ NUTmobile.
Several CAS faculty members have received an SIUE Graduate School Innovation and Excellence in Graduate Education grant to improve the quality and effectiveness of graduate student mentorship. They include Carol Colaninno, PhD, research assistant professor in the SIUE STEM Center and adjunct professor in the Department of Anthropology; Adriana Martinez, PhD, associate professor in the Departments of Environmental Sciences and Geography and Geographic Information Sciences; Alan Black, PhD, assistant professor in the Department of Geography and Geographic Information Sciences; and Sharon Locke, PhD, director of the SIUE STEM Center and professor in the Department of Environmental Sciences.
First-year history major Noah Tungett, of Bethalto, was one of two recipients of Faculty for Collective Bargaining scholarships, awarded by the SIUE Staff Senate. Each recipient of the scholarship must be a labor union member employee of SIUE or the child, grandchild, spouse or civil union partner of a labor union member currently employed by or retired from SIUE.
Please read more about these people and their accomplishments in This Month in CAS.
Kevin Leonard, PhD
Dean, College of Arts and Sciences
