Academics

Penn State Lehigh Valley faculty engage in scholarly activities off-campus

From Baltimore to Norway, faculty share their research and talents around the world

Penn State’s mission includes helping to improve the well-being and health of individuals and communities through teaching, research and service. Penn State Lehigh Valley (PSU-LV) faculty regularly present, serve on panels and share their research with people and institutions outside of Penn State.

Over the last few months, PSU-LV faculty’s off-campus engagement included:

Tracey Carbonetto, instructor in mechanical engineering:

  • Carbonetto took students from her engineering design course to Cedar Beach park in Allentown to perform a safety and accessibility audit of the ADA city playground equipment for the Department of Recreation. Students identified safety enhancements and accessible equipment. Improvements were suggested that could make the playground better for children.

PSU-LV Engineering students, Austin Azar and Mark Marzouk, observed the senior mechanical engineering capstone project presentations at Lehigh University. Credit: Tracey CarbonettoAll Rights Reserved.

  • Two of Carbonetto's engineering students, Austin Azar and Mark Marzouk, were invited to sit in on senior mechanical engineering capstone project presentations at Lehigh University. These projects were funded by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) and allowed the Lehigh students to build a Baha and Formula Race Car and to compete at the international level.  Penn State students observed the engineering design process in full swing in the redesign of a fuel pump, carbon fiber wheels and an impact attenuator.
  • Nichola Gutgold, professor of communication arts and sciences:

    • Gutgold hosted the Allentown American Association of University Women in her home on Nov. 14 to share her research, and her political button and memorabilia collection on women running for president in the 2020 primary.
    • Gutgold attended the annual meeting of the National Communication Association Conference on Nov. 17 in Baltimore, Maryland where she presented her research: “Women Candidates in 2020 and their Rhetorical Strategies for Survival.”

    Nichola Gutgold, professor of communication arts and sciences, (back row far left) participated in a First Lady Tea with other first lady scholars on November 16 in Baltimore, Maryland  Credit: Nichola Gutgold / Penn StateCreative Commons

     

  • Gutgold participated in a First Lady Tea with other first lady scholars from throughout the United States, hosted by the President and first lady of NCA on Nov. 16 in Baltimore, Maryland.
  • She met with potential authors for the book series she co-edits with Diana Carlin and Ted Sheckels “Communicating Gender” for Lexington Press at the NCA conference in Baltimore, Maryland.
  • Gutgold also serves as the vice president of The Literacy Center in Allentown, participated in a  strategic planning session on the future of the organization on Dec. 12 at Muhlenberg College in Allentown.
  • Thomas Hess, lecturer of healthy policy and administration:

    • Hess facilitated the event Pharma-In-Transition on Dec. 17 in Wayne, Pennsylvania. The event brought people together who work in the Life Science Industry and provided a forum to network with others in the industry.
    • Hess joined the Advisory Board of Life Sciences Cares, which is a group of Life Science Executives who have organized to assist specific charities in Philadelphia.

    Tai-Yin Huang, professor of physics, and Maryam Kiani, lecturer of mathematics, participated in the NSF S-STEM Workshop at the Rochester Institute of Technology in November.  Credit: Tai-Yin Huang / Penn StateCreative Commons

    Tai-Yin Huang, professor of physics, was invited to visit the Physics Department of Norwegian University of Science and Technology and gave a talk titled “Entropy and the Second Law of Thermodynamics” in Trondheim, Norway, Dec. 15-17, 2019.

    Tai-Yin Huang, professor of physics, and Maryam Kiani, lecturer of mathematics, were invited to participate in the 2019 NSF S-STEM Proposal Writing Workshop at the Rochester Institute of Technology, Nov. 8 -10, 2019. 

    Jacqueline S. McLaughlin, associate professor of biology and National Academies Jefferson Science Fellow (JSF), who is currently serving as a senior science adviser to the Office of Science and Technology Cooperation in the Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs at the U.S. Department of State:

    • McLaughlin participated in a panel titled, “Fellow to Fellow: Conversation with JSFs at USAID & State,” sponsored by National Academies of Science as part of the Jefferson Science Fellowship 2020 Interview Week Virtual Orientation.
    • McLaughlin was selected as an Embassy Science Fellow to the U.S. Embassy Bucharest, Romania. The prestigious Embassy Science Fellows program, founded in 2001, provides U.S. embassies around the world with access to the expertise of U.S. government officers in science and technology fields. She has been requested, in the name of science diplomacy, to work with the Romanian Ministry of Education & Research, European Union Danubius Research Infrastructure, The National Institute for Research and Development of Marine Geology and Geoecology, and The Institute of Education Sciences on mechanisms to increase STEM educational capacity in order to fuel the Romanian science and technology workforce.

    Jacqueline S. McLaughlin, associate professor of biology, was presented a Meritorious Honor Award from Marsha Bernicat, U.S. Department of State Principle Deputy Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs (OES) on December 4, 2020 at the OES Annual Award Ceremony. Credit: Jacqueline S. McLaughlin / Penn StateCreative Commons

  • McLaughlin was presented a Meritorious Honor Award from Marsha Bernicat, U.S. Department of State Principle Deputy Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs (OES) on Dec. 4, 2019, at the OES Annual Award Ceremony for outstanding dedication and performance in raising and strengthening the profile of the Embassy Science Fellows program worldwide.
  • McLaughlin presented educational research with co-authors, Josh B. Slee and Mit Patel, at the 2019 Meeting for the American Society for Cell Biology and European Molecular Biology Organization held on Dec. 8, 2019 in Washington D.C. Their poster was titled, "Making It Stick: The Story of a CURE that Imparts Career Ready Skills.”
  • McLaughlin peer-reviewed select educational resources for undergraduates submitted to the Society for Developmental Biology for the Life Science Teaching Resource Community .
  • McLaughlin participated in peer-review of the 2019 International Research Experience for Students grants for the National Science Foundation. 
  • Denise Ogden, professor of marketing, and Doc Ogden, presented at the regional Penn State American Marketing Association conference on October 26 at the Smeal College of Business, University Park.    Credit: Denise OgdenAll Rights Reserved.

    Denise Ogden, professor of marketing, and Doc Ogden represented the Council for Retail and Sales when they presented “Leveraging Experiential Marketing to Build Brands” at the regional Penn State American Marketing Association conference on October 26 at the Smeal College of Business, University Park.  

    Lisa Schreffler, lecturer of biology, serves on the board of directors of the Pocono Avian Research Center in Cresco, Pennsylvania and performs research with the center. Through the center, Schreffler took part in Project OwlNet from Oct. 10 to Nov. 20. Project OwlNet is a continent-wide program using mark/recapture methods to assess the health and status of migratory northern saw-whet owl (Aegolius acadicus) populations.

    Jeffrey A. Stone, assistant professor of information sciences and technology, presented a paper titled, "Integrative Learning: A General Education Course on the Art and Science of Virtual Worlds" at the AACE E-Learn 2019 World Conference on E-Learning from Nov. 5-7 in New Orleans, Louisiana. The paper, co-authored with Dan Jackson and Michelle Kaschak, describes the design and initial implementation of an integrative learning course which combines Computing, Physics, and Narrative Art in a single course for first-year students. The paper is also slated to be published in a future AACE journal. 

    Last Updated January 24, 2020

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