For the Record provides information about recent professional activities and honors of University of Delaware faculty, staff, students and alumni.

Recent publications, presentations, honors and service include the following:

Publications

Margaret Stetz, Mae and Robert Carter Professor of Women's Studies and professor of humanities, continues to publish poetry and creative nonfiction, in addition to scholarly works. Her poem "In August" appeared in Summer Vibes: Written Tales, Chapbook XIV, edited by Kevin Saitta (August 2024), pp. 16-17, which is sold on Amazon.com, while another poem, "Other," is in the current issue of Naugatuck River Review: A Journal of Narrative Poetry, Issue 32 (Summer/Fall 2024), p. 85. Her prose poem about the tension between pedagogy and literature, "A Dream of Heaven (Is Not a Heavenly Dream)," was published in Vocivia Magazine: Nightmares and Daydreams, Issue 5 (July 2024), pp. 19-20.

First-of-its-kind research by Tarang Parekh, assistant professor of epidemiology, was recently published in the American Journal of Epidemiology. Parekh’s study reviewed the State Innovation Models (SIM), a payment system introduced by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in 2013, which provides financial incentives to states to develop innovative payment models to improve healthcare systems. In the study, “From Policy to Practice: Assessing the State Innovation Models Initiative’s Early Success in Incorporating Social Determinants of Health in ASCVD Hospitalizations in the United States,” Parekh compared data from 2010 to 2015 from three SIM participating states, Arkansas, Massachusetts and Vermont, to Florida, Nebraska and New Mexico, which do not participate in SIM. He studied the effects of capturing social risk factors in adults hospitalized with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD). His research identified small but statistically significant improvements in capturing social determinants of health using Internal Classification of Diseases (ICD) codes, particularly among Medicare enrollees with ASCVD.

Presentations

Quey Percussion Duo, UD Faculty Artists in Residence, completed a two-week tour of Beijing and Tianjin, China, from July 30-Aug. 12, presenting three showcase performances at the Percussive Arts Society China Chapter International Percussion Festival. This premier festival hosted dozens of artists from around the world who presented performances as well as clinics/masterclasses for students and judged international student competitions. Quey Percussion Duo is comprised of Gene Koshinski, professor, and Tim Broscious, assistant professor, both in UD’s School of Music. 

Greg Shelnutt, professor of art and design, along with a group of six UD students and alumni, took part in @goodwillde’s 2024 Goodwill ReThink Fashion & Art Show on Aug. 22. The runway show and exhibition was held at the New Castle Recycling Center and Outlet in New Castle, Delaware. Shelnutt’s work for the exhibition, “Someone, Somewhere,” featured up/recycled T-shirts from Goodwill's New Castle Outlet and Recycling Center. A quote by Lucy Siegel, a British journalist and writer who specializes in environmental issues, was sewn into the work and read, “Someone, somewhere is paying the price,” in reference to the scourge of fast fashion. UD students and alumni who also took part included Jacob Hadik (BFA in fine art, 2024); seniors Sidney Kaufman, Sidney vanNeerden and Riley Whipple;  junior C.J. Wynn; and sophomore Vicken Karakashian.

Honors

Christine Hoch, assistant professor in the School of Nursing, received the oral research abstract presentation award from the American Association of Heart Failure Nurses (AAHFN) at its annual meeting in June. Hoch’s research was a secondary analysis to determine the relationship between heart failure related fatigue and serum osmolality. At the annual meeting, three abstracts were selected for oral presentation. The research committee determined the best presentation based on delivery and clinical implications. On the last day of the meeting, Hoch received a certificate for her presentation and its impact on clinical practice. “This study shows that low serum osmolality, which fluctuates with fluid volume changes, has an association with HF-related fatigue, suggesting excess fluid or physiologic processes that contribute to fluid retention may influence the symptom. Another finding in my research was that women with heart failure are five times more likely to experience fatigue compared to men,” explained Hoch. “Despite this, current treatment modalities are the same for both men and women. This is a call to action to develop sex-based interventions, aiding us to better support the challenges women face with fatigue.” 

Greg Shelnutt, professor of art and design, will be an artist-in-residence at the Vermont Studio Center (VSC) in November 2024. Founded by artists in 1984, VSC welcomes writers and artists for residencies in Johnson, Vermont. Their mission is to provide studio residencies in an inclusive, international community, honoring creative work as the communication of spirit through form. Their buildings, many of them historic Vermont landmarks, overlook the Gihon River in the northern Green Mountains.

Myae Han, professor in the College of Education and Human Development (CEHD), has received the International Play Association’s (IPA) Doctor of Play Award from the American Association for the Child’s Right to Play, the U.S. affiliate of the IPA. This distinguished award recognizes individuals who have dedicated their lives to advocating for play and have demonstrated lifelong passion, service and commitment to advancing play in children’s lives. Han studies the relationship between play and early literacy development in CEHD’s Department of Human Development and Family Sciences and was recognized for her leadership, research, teaching and service within the field. 

Teomara Rutherford, associate professor in CEHD’s School of Education, has received the Richard E. Snow Award for Early Contributions from the American Psychological Association. This prestigious award recognizes significant career contributions to the field of educational psychology from someone who completed their doctoral dissertation within the last 10 years. Rutherford’s research focuses on learning and motivation, especially in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and in digital contexts.

Service

Pinki Mondal, associate professor in the Department of Geography and Spatial Sciences, has been selected to serve as a lead author for the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) "Multi-Year Assessment on Monitoring Biodiversity & Nature’s Contributions to People." The objective of the monitoring assessment is to support national and global efforts to monitor biodiversity, nature’s contributions to people and the direct and underlying causes of the observed changes; and to specifically monitor progress towards the goals and targets of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework in support of a balanced and enhanced implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity. The assessment will also contribute to the monitoring of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals, and other relevant multilateral environmental agreements, processes and efforts.

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