Faculty Recognized at Annual Awards Banquet

04/29/2021


Distinguished award winners for 2021.

The university honored the hard work of JSU’s faculty over this challenging but successful year at the annual Faculty Awards Ceremony on April 27, 2021. President Don Killingsworth and Provost Christie Shelton presented distinguished awards, honored retiring faculty, bestowed service pins, and recognized tenure and promotion recipients. The event may be viewed online. Honorees included:

DISTINGUISHED AWARDS

  • Campus Technology Leadership Grant: Dr. Kelly Paynter, Counseling & Instructional Support
  • Faculty Scholar Lecturer Award: Dr. Eric Gamess, Computer Science 
  • Cleo and Carla Thomas Outstanding Community Education and Service Award: Dr. Carmine Di Biase, English
  • Raymond and Ruth Ringer Faculty Development Award: Dr. Sayyed Shah, Communication 
  • Dr. George Mehaffy Excellence in Learning Technology Award: Aimee Weathers, Curriculum & Instruction 
  • Betty and Earlon McWhorter Outstanding Teacher Award: Audria White, Mathematics
  • William A. Meehan Legacy Award: Mary Bevis, Library 

FACULTY RESEARCH ACTIVITY AWARDS

School of Arts and Humanities

  • Rashad Ahmed
  • Jeremy Benson
  • Carmine Di Biase
  • Emrys Donaldson
  • Christopher Douglas
  • Joanne Gates
  • Raina Kostova
  • Sarah Cusimano Miles
  • Teresa Reed
  • Tanya Sasser
  • Mary Springer
  • Staci Stone
  • Jennie Vaughn

School of Business and Industry

  • Albi Alikaj
  • Doris Bennett
  • Benjamin Boozer
  • Michael Carter
  • Mark Hearn
  • Jianping Huang
  • Kihyun Kim
  • Rob Landry
  • Jihye Lee
  • Keith Lowe
  • Cynthia McCarty
  • Sayyed Fawad Ali Shah
  • Amy Simon
  • Julie Staples
  • Falynn Turley
  • Xiaoqing Wang
  • Cassie Ward
  • Xiang Yi

School of Education

  • Joseph Akpan
  • Kelly Paynter
  • Wendy Stephens
  • Hungwei Tseng

School of Health Professions and Wellness

  • Laura Barrow
  • Allison Crabtree
  • Melissa Duckett
  • Serena Gramling
  • Kimberly Helms
  • Majid Koozehchian
  • Gina Mabrey
  • Douglas Stephens
  • Laura Walker
  • Arlinda Wormely

School of Human Services and Social Sciences

  • Tina Deshotels
  • Richard Kania
  • Sarah Donley

School of Science

  • Eric Gamess
  • Arup Kumar Ghosh
  • Srinivasarao Krishnaprasad
  • Mark Sciuchetti
  • David Thornton
  • Jimmy Triplett

Library Services

  • John-Bauer Graham
  • Karlie Johnson
  • Bethany Latham
  • Kimberly Stevens
  • Yingqi Tang
  • John Upchurch
  • Kim Westbrooks

PROMOTION AND TENURE

Associate Professor with Tenure

  • Michael Alvidrez, Curriculum Instruction
  • Tom Anderson, Kinesiology
  • Michael Burns, Biology
  • Christian Dunn, Art and Design
  • Russell Hammack, Secondary Education
  • Kay Lang, Criminal Justice and Forensic Investigation
  • John Oles, Art and Design
  • Wendy Stephens, Counseling and Instructional Support
  • Christi Trucks, Curriculum & Instruction
  • Kimberly Warfield, Counseling and Instructional Support
  • Kimberly Wickersham, Social Work

Professor

  • Donnie Andrews (with tenure), Kinesiology
  • Elizabeth Gulledge, Associate Dean/Chief Nursing Administration
  • Kim Helms, Nursing
  • Tanveer Islam, Emergency Management
  • Kyoko Johns, Curriculum Instruction
  • Patrick McGrail, Communication
  • Dan Mertens, Management
  • Ellen Peck, Theatre and Film
  • Charlcie Pettway Vann, Diversity and Inclusion
  • Laura Walker, Nursing

Distinguished Professor

  • Dr. Joseph Akpan, Secondary Education
  • John-Bauer Graham, Houston Cole Library

DOCTORAL DEGREE RECIPIENTS

  • Rachel Park, Music
  • Yolanda Chandler, Nursing
  • Heather Wallace, Nursing

SERVICE PINS

10 Years

  • Joseph Akpan, Secondary Education
  • Jeremy Benson, Music
  • Serena Gramling, Nursing
  • Tanveer Islam, Emergency Management
  • Kihyun Kim, Management & Marketing
  • Bryce Lafferty, Art & Design
  • James McGahey, Counseling & Instructional Support
  • Andrew Nevala, Music
  • Jeffrey Nichols, Theatre and Film
  • Andrea Rains, Kinesiology
  • Jennifer Troncale, Curriculum Instruction
  • Priscilla Wilson, Counseling & Instructional Support

15 Years

  • Mohammed Alam, Computer Information Systems
  • Taleah Collum, Accounting
  • Heidi Dempsey, Psychology
  • Elizabeth Gulledge, Nursing
  • Raina Kostova, English
  • Jane Kushma, Emergency Management
  • Tamara Levi, History and Foreign Languages
  • Gina Mabrey, Kinesiology
  • Eduardo Pacheco, History and Foreign Languages
  • Teje Sult, Applied Engineering

20 Years

  • Amy Franklin, Mathematics
  • Mijitaba Hamissou, Biology
  • Kory Hill, Kinesiology
  • Cynthia Jensen, Computer Information Systems
  • Cynthia Sneed, Accounting
  • John Sneed, Accounting
  • Gena Thornburg, Family and Consumer Science

25 Years

  • Jeffrey Dodd, Mathematics
  • John Jones, English
  • Teresa Reed, English

55 Years

  • Pete Robinson, History and Foreign Languages

RETIRING FACULTY

  • Safaa Al-Hamdani, Biology
  • Mary Bevis, Library
  • Robbie Boggs, Family and Consumer Science
  • Carmine Di Biase, English
  • Joanne Gates, English
  • Jan Gryko, Chemistry & Geosciences
  • Richard Kania, Criminal Justice and Forensic Investigation
  • Leigh Ann Keith, Nursing
  • Srinivasarao Krishnaprasad, Computer Science
  • Thomas McCutchen, Music
  • Ronald Mellen, Criminal Justice and Forensic Investigation
  • William Palya, Psychology
  • Deborah Prickett, English
  • Peter Robinson, History and Foreign Languages
  • Karen Scroggin, Nursing
  • Nancy Stewart, Social Work
  • Gena Thornburg, Curriculum Instruction
  • Tommy Turner, Education
  • Nouredine Zettili, Chemistry & Geosciences