Faculty and graduate students at Indiana University of Pennsylvania, including a local student, were honored for contributions to academic excellence during the 15th annual Outstanding Achievement in Sponsored Programs and Excellence in Graduate Student Research awards program.
The program is sponsored by IUP's School of Graduate Studies and Research and the IUP Research Institute.
Faculty honored included Dr. John Benhart, geography and regional planning, and Dr. Phillip Zorich, IUP Libraries, Award for Outstanding Achievement in Research; Dr. George Long, chemistry, Award for Outstanding Achievement in Curriculum and Instruction; Roger White, Criminal Justice Training Center, Award for Outstanding Achievement in Public Service; Dr. Katherine L. Farnsworth, geoscience, New Investigator Award; and Dr. Jeffery Larkin, biology, Graduate Dean's Award for Outstanding Commitment to Sponsored Programs.
Pamela Rodgers, of Indiana, an English graduate student, was honored with an Outstanding Graduate Student Research Award.
Benhart and Zorich were selected based on their collaborative effort with the university's Institute for Mine Mapping, Archival Procedures and Safety.
Long was recognized for his success in securing more than $1 million in sponsored research during his academic career at IUP, which began in 1988.
White was honored for his work directing the Criminal Justice Training Center, which he took over in 2005, and for securing funding for Pennsylvania State Constable Education and Training.
Farnsworth was recognized for her commitment to research and her ongoing sedimentary research, including work with the United States Geological Survey.
Larkin was selected on the basis of his success in securing 20 awards with a value of $500,000 since joining the IUP faculty in 2005. He currently works with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and National Resources and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.
Rodgers was honored for her work titled “Bodily and Narrative Fragmentation: Wounds, Scars and Feminist Healing in Selected Novels by Postmodern Multiethnic American Women.” She also received a doctoral fellowship at IUP. She was president, secretary and treasurer of the IUP English Graduate Organization and presented at a number of conferences in her field while a student.
Other students honored with Outstanding Graduate Student Research Awards were as follows:
- Dr. Adcharawan Buripakdi, of Thailand, an English graduate student, was honored for his work, “Thai English as Discourse of Exclusion and Resistance: Perspectives of Thai Professional Writers on the Notion of Thai English.” His adviser is Dr. David Hanauer.
- Sheri Ann Denison, of Palmer, Ala., an English graduate student, was honored for her research, “Walking Through the Shadows: Ruins, Reflections and Resistance in the Postcolonial Gothic Novel.” Her adviser is Dr. Lingyan Yang.
- Brandon Stroup, of Troy, a criminology graduate student, was honored for his research, “Perceptions of Social Control Within University Residence Halls: An Ethnographical Comparison of Differing Styles of Community.” His adviser is Dr. Timothy Austin.
- Dr. Cathleen Wierzbowski, of Erie, a graduate student in the department of professional studies in education, was honored for her research, “Portraits in Long-Term Family Caregiving.” Her adviser is Dr. Cathy Kaufman.
PHOTO INFORMATION: Front row, from left: Dr. Phillip Zorich, Dr. George Long and Dr. Jeff Larkin. Back row, from left: IUP President Dr. Tony Atwater, IUP Provost Dr. Gerald Intemann, Dr. John Benhart, Dr. Katherine Farnsworth, Roger White and Dr. David Myers, interim dean, IUP School of Graduate Studies and Research.