Around the College

This article was originally published in the August 1999 issue of CLASnotes.

Department News

African Studies

Michael Chege delivered a paper entitled "Reform of National Governance Institutions" at the major conference "Can Africa Claim the 21st Century" held in Abidjan, capital of Ivory Coast (West Africa), between July 5-10. The conference was organized by the World Bank (Washington DC), the African Development Bank (Abidjan), and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa.

Anthropology

Irma McClaurin presented a paper entitled "Changing Patterns in Caribbean Migrations: Some Policy Implications" for a panel on "Human Consequences of Interregional Migration Within the Caribbean" at the XXIV Annual Conference of the Caribbean Studies Association held in Panama City, May 24-29. At the same conference, she was in invited discussant for a panel on "Inter-American Discussions of Rape, Slavery, and Patriarchy."

Astronomy

Bob Wilson is currently spending a sabbatical year working with Cambridge astronomers at the Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge, on problems of binary star structure and evolution. He will remain at Cambridge until July 2000.

Geography

Peter Waylen presented a paper entitled "The Effects of Caribbean Hurricanes on Rainfall in Pacific Costa Rica," at a Conference of the International Geographic Union Study Group on Climate Change and Hydrologic Extremes, at the University of Aberystwyth, Wales, in July. Waylen coauthored the paper with Germán Poveda (Universidad Nacional of Colombia).

Statistics

In April Alan Agresti presented seminars at Northern Illinois University, Abbott Labs, University of Florence, and the University of Perugia, and he gave an invited talk at a conference in Prague. Agresti was granted an Honorary Doctor of Science, De Montfort University in Leicester, England on July 14. The award marked his "outstanding international contribution to research and scholarship in applied statistics, particularly categorical data analysis."

Sociology

Jaber Gubrium was invited to present the Distinguished Scholar Lecture at the annual meetings of the Society for the Study of Symbolic Interaction on August 8 in Chicago.

Richard Hollinger made an invited presentation on Retail Crime at the University of Sao Paulo, Brazil in April. He also delivered a keynote speech at the National Retail Federation Loss Prevention meetings in Philadelphia.

Mathematics

James Keesling has been selected as a managing editor of Topology And Its Applications, one of the premier journals publishing in topology. Keesling will be giving an invited address at the International Conference On Topology And Its Applications to be held at Kanagawa University, Yokohama, Japan, on August 23-27, 1999.

Zoology

Harvey Lillywhite presented an invited paper at a symposium on the ecophysiology of amphibians at the International Congress of Comparative Physiology and Biochemistry in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, Aug 21-28.

Karen Bjorndal gave one of five invited lectures at a special meeting on the biology of freshwater turtles in Laughlin, Nevada, August 13-16. The meeting focused on evaluating trends and goals for the recovery of freshwater turtle populations.

CLAS Welcomes Two New Associate Deans

Carol Murphy (Romance Languages & Literatures) is the new CLAS Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. She takes over Pat Miller's duties, including curriculum, interdisciplinary studies, the O. Ruth McQuown scholarships and the overseas studies office. The Associate Dean for Academic Affairs is also responsible for Board of Regents reviews and sexual harassment issues.

Neil Sullivan (Physics) succeeds Jim Dufty as CLAS Associate Dean for Research. He will oversee the promotion of new research opportunities and the facilitation and coordination of multidisciplinary research proposals. Sullivan will also act as research liason to RGP (Research and Graduate Programs, previously ORTGE) and other colleges.

CLAS Faculty Honored

Buzz Holling (Zoology) will be awarded the Eminent Ecologist Award at the Ecological Society of America meeting August 7-14 in Spokane, Washington. This is the premiere award of the ecological society.

English professor Jim Haskins' book Separate But Not Equal (Scholastic, 1998) has been named to Voice of Youth Advocates; fourth annual Nonfiction Honor List.

Sociology professor and Center for Criminology and Law Director Ron Akers' alma mater, the University of Kentucky, has announced that it has received a gift from one of the CLAS professor's former students, allowing UK (with matching state funds) to establish a permanent endowed professorship in Akers' name. Sociology chair Mike Radelet calls the new endowment "unquestionably one of the very highest honors ever received by any member of this faculty."

CLAS Professors Organize International Conference

English professors Norman Holland and Andrew Gordon organized the 16th International Conference on Literature and Psychology, held July 8-12 in Urbino, Italy. Sixty-five papers were presented by 105 conferees from Italy, France, Portugal, the Netherlands, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Russia, Sweden, Israel, Cyprus, South Africa, USA, and Canada. Participants from UF were Holland, speaking on "My Shakespeare in Love"; Gordon, "Racism as a Project: Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" (written with Hernan Vera of the Sociology Dept.); Maureen Turim (English), "The Fantasy Image: Fixed or Moving?"; Sylvie Blum (Romance Languages), "Memento Mori: Boltanski's Monuments to Mourning and Loss"; Anne Wyatt-Brown (Linguistics), "The Rise and Fall of Jerzy Kosinski"; and Bertram Wyatt-Brown (History), "Poe's Raven: Influence, Alienation, and Art."

back to the 1999 News index >>

top >>

College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

University of Florida