School Year Begins with Faculty Successes in Research, Awards, and Speaking Engagements

September 19, 2018

Faculty featured below are: Dr. Casey Baker, assistant professor of counselor education and mental health master’s program director; Dr. Wind Goodfriend, professor of psychology and assistant dean of graduate programs; Dr. Swasti Bhattacharyya, professor of philosophy and religion; and Dr. Bob Brodman, associate professor of biology.

BVU Graduate Program Director Earns Spot on Iowa Board 

Dr. Casey Baker is now a member of the Iowa Mental Health Counselor Association Board.

In August, Dr. Casey Baker, BVU assistant professor of counselor education and mental health master’s program director, was invited to serve as a member of the Iowa Mental Health Counselor Association Board. Casey has experience working in the Mental Health field in various clinical settings including private practice, college campus, and community mental health. Casey is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) in the state of Minnesota and a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) in the state of Iowa. Additionally, she is a Registered Play Therapist (RPT) and Nationally Certified Counselor (NCC).  

BVU Psychology Professor Invited as National Teacher of Distinction, Named SPSP Fellow, and Publishes Paper

Goodfriend teaches BVU courses in general psychology, personality, learning and memory, psych of Gender, stereotypes and prejudice, and advanced research thesis.

Dr. Wind Goodfriend, professor of psychology and assistant dean of graduate programs, has been invited to be one of six national teachers of distinction who will present at the 26th Annual Psychology Teaching Institute. APTI is part of the 31st Association for Psychological Science Annual Convention in Washington, D.C. in May 2019. Dr. Goodfriend will deliver an hour-long address regarding teaching techniques within the field of psychology. The APS-STP Teaching Institute is a pre-conference Teaching Institute sponsored by the Association for Psychological Science and the Society for the Teaching of Psychology.

Goodfriend has also recently been named a Society for Personality and Social Psychology (SPSP) Fellow. SPSP Fellows are chosen based on lifetime contributions to social psychology research, teaching, or both. The Society for Personality and Social Psychology, founded in 1974, is the world’s largest organization of social and personality psychologists. With more than 7,500 members, SPSP strives to advance the science, teaching, and application of social and personality psychology.

Additionally, Goodfriend recently co-authored a research paper that has just been accepted for publication in the psychology journal "Sex Roles." The paper is titled "Powerless Men and Agentic Women: Gender Bias in Hiring Decisions" and investigates how men who feel their power is being threatened are more likely to display sexism against women—especially when those women are perceived as assertive, intelligent, and strong. Goodfriend is the fourth author on the paper; the co-authors are former graduate school colleagues from her doctoral institution, Purdue University.

BVU Philosophy and Religion Professor on Wabash Center Leadership Team

Dr. Swasti Bhattacharyya has been invited to be a member of the leadership team at Wabash Center. 

In September, Bhattacharyya, professor of philosophy and religion, was invited to be a member of the leadership team for the Wabash Center Workshop 2019-2020 for Early Career Religion Faculty at Colleges and Universities. In a team of four other colleagues, Bhattacharyya will design a year-long workshop for a cohort of early career religious studies faculty from around the country. Together they will have the opportunity to carefully examine the world of teaching, deepen their understanding of their work as educators, and analyze how their institutional contexts shape their work in the classroom.

The Wabash Center supports theology and religion faculty and doctoral students reflecting on their teaching practice — in both theological education and undergraduate education, in North America. They facilitate faculty conversations about the goals and processes of teaching and student learning, and their programming develops faculty skills for critical reflection on teaching practice.

BVU Biology Professor has Busy Summer of Research, Teaching, and Speaking

Dr. Bob Brodman, associate professor of biology, spent his summer at speaking engagements, teaching about conservation of amphibian and reptiles, and conducting further research in his area of expertise. Below is a chronological list of his engagements:

• May 29-June 1: Participated in the "Nerodio" surveys of the Lake Erie Watersnake on Kelley's Island and Bass Islands in Ohio.
• June 2-3: Led the Amphibian & Reptile Team during the Indiana Academy of Science BioBlitz at Eagle Creek Park in Indianapolis, where he also collected data on bats.
• June 6-9: Led Interpreters and Scientists Working on our Parks (iSWOOP) training of National Park Rangers & Interpreters at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. He also collected field data while in Indiana.
• July 12-15: Presented a paper “Do Amphibians Believe in Climate Change: The Tale of Research and Nature Interpretation in the National Park” at the Joint Meeting of Ichthyology and Herpetology in Rochester, New York.
• Aug 5-8: Invited as a symposium speaker and panelist for a session on Research and Outreach in National Parks for the Ecological Society of America in New Orleans, where he presented the paper "Incorporating Amphibian Research into Interpretative Programs at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore." At this time, he also participated on a field trip and workshop on Research and Public Outreach in National Parks—the Unique Wetlands of Jean Lafitte National Historical Park's Barataria Preserve.
• Aug 28: Elected to the Joint National Steering Committee of the Partners for Amphibian & Reptile Conservation, co-chair of the Midwest Region. This is a 2-year appointment.