2015 – 2016 Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Celebrating Faculty and Staff Scholarship recognizes the scholarly activities of NECC faculty and staff that have been published or presented over the past year. NECC faculty and staff may contact Kim Burns, Dean of Academic Innovations & Alternative Studies at kburns@necc.mass.edu to provide information on scholarly activities.

  • Adjunct Faculty Bonnie Ashmore-Davis has had several accomplishments, including acceptance as an artist member of Gallery 263 in Cambridge, MA, and at Art in Giving in Boston, MA. Her works Perceptions and Art and Healing were exhibited at Art in Giving. Neighbors was exhibited at Aeronaut in Somerville, MA and Emanations was exhibited at Mt. Auburn Healthcare in Waltham, MA.
  • Adjunct Instructor Kathleen Bartolini was invited in Fall 2015 by the National Safety Council and the Massachusetts State Troopers Association to serve as Technical Review and Written Editorial for the development of the second edition of the State Courts Against Road Rage (SCARR) Program. She was also invited by the National Safety Council to serve as part of the development team, technical review and written editorial for a new pilot Chronic Offenders Program.
  • Nursing Professor and Curriculum Coordinator Jill Becker published A Primer for Nurses on Perinatal/Neonatal Stroke in the August/September 2015 volume of Nursing for Women’s Health.
  • Adjunct Foundational Studies Instructor Jim Brennan published two short stories in Fall 2015. Glasnost was published in Issue 10 of the Sound & Literary Art Book (SLAB) and Bonne Annee was published in Volume 9 of Edge Literary Journal.
  • Dean of Academic Innovations and Alternative Studies Kim Burns published Community College Faculty as Pedagogical Innovators: How the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) Stimulates Innovation in the Classroom in the Community College Journal of Research and Practice.
  • Professor of English and Coordinator for the Journalism/Communication Program Amy Callahan is a new member of the New England Society of News Editors Board of Governors. Professor Callahan moderated the panel Meet the Milennials – Training the Next Generation of Journalists at the New England Newspaper and Press Association Convention in Boston, MA.
  • Jody Carson, Assistant Professor Early Childhood Education, Region 3 Partnership Coordinator for NECC, CIT Instructional Coach and co-chair of the NECC Textbook Task Force and Susan Tashjian, Coordinator of Instructional Technology and co-chair of the NECC Textbook Task Force presented Motivating Faculty to Adopt Open at the Open Ed Conference in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
  • Assistant Professor of Biology Dr. Mark Clements published Small-Mammal Population Dynamics and Habitat Use on Bumpkin Island in the Boston Harbor with Lauren Nolfo-Clements in the September 2015 volume of Northeastern Naturalist.
  • Associate Professor of History Dr. Ligia T. Domenech published a chapter entitled The German Blockade of the Caribbean in 1942 and its Effects in Puerto Rico in the book Island at War: Puerto Rico in the Crucible of the Second World War edited by Jorge Rodríguez Beruff and José L. Bolívar Fresneda. The chapter is from her book Imprisoned in the Caribbean: The 1942 German U-boat Blockade published in 2014.
  • Coordinator of Library Services Jenny Fielding published a book chapter Context through Citation in Bravender, P., McClure, H.A., & Schaub, G. (Eds.) Teaching Information Literacy Threshold Concepts: Lesson Plans for Librarians published by the Association of College and Research Libraries. Ms. Fielding also presented Incorporating and Crediting Sources: Playlists vs. Mashups at the New England Library Instruction Group Winter Meeting Instruction Swap at Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Worcester, MA. She presented Implementing the Framework: Faculty Education & Collaboration in Curriculum and Assignment Design at the Massachusetts Commonwealth Consortium of Libraries in Public Higher Education Staff Development Workshop Day at Worcester State University in Worcester, MA. Ms. Fielding also presented A New Approach to Incorporating & Crediting Sources: Playlists vs. Mashups at the Association of College & Research Libraries New England Chapter Annual Conference in Manchester, NH.
  • Developmental Writing Professor and Curriculum Coordinator Joanna Fortna presented Backwards, Forwards and Sometimes Upside Down- Planning for Writing Fusion (NECC’s ALP) at the National Association for Developmental Education (NADE) conference in Anaheim, CA.
  • Vice President of Academic & Student Affairs William Heineman co-authored Understanding the Organizational Context of Academic Program Development published in New Directions for Institutional Research.
  • Vice President of Academic & Student Affairs William Heineman, Dean of Enrollment and Interim Dean of Student Life Tina Favara and Dean of Student Success Dawna Perez presented a poster on the NECC iPass Project at a Pre-Educause meeting in Indianapolis, IN.
  • Two NECC faculty, Associate Professor of Criminal Justice Scott Joubert and Associate Professor of Psychology Isabelle Gagne, were awarded the 2016 Massachusetts Colleges Online (MCO) Course of Distinction (COD) Award which is given to faculty who develop and teach innovative online courses that enhance student success.
  • Guided Pathways to Success in STEM Program Manager Brianne McDonough is the 2016-2018 NASPA Region I Student Affairs Partnering with Academic Affairs Knowledge Community Representative. She also presented Working Hard vs. Working Smart: Defining Career Pathways with LMI at the League of Innovation Conference in Chicago, IL.
  • Professor of Music Ken Langer‘s composition Sound Over All Waters for brass quintet will be published by Cimarron Music.
  • Global Studies Professor Richard Padova was appointed by the Lawrence Redevelopment Authority as a member of its Citizens Advisory Committee. Professor Padova also presented Six Key Ingredients to Successful Urban Renewal in America’s Cities at the Symposium on Reclaiming Urban Renewal: Community Efforts and Impacts held in Lawrence, Massachusetts and Other Industrial Cities.
  • Professor Emeritus of Computer Technology & Engineering Michael Pelletier, Professor Emerita of English Linda Desjardins, Professor and Chair of Engineering Science & Physics Paul Chanley and Assistant Professor of Engineering Il (Johnny) Yoon presented Active-Learning-Based Engineering at a Community College: A Key to Student Success at the 2016 Annual Conference of the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) in New Orleans, Louisiana.
  • Dean of Student Success Dawna M. Perez and Title V Director Gisela Nash presented A Community College Perspective on Implementing a Student Success System: What Worked, What Didn’t and Measuring Results at Hobsons University in San Antonio, TX. They also presented Building the Network: Multiple Points of Contact Support Student Success at the National Resource Center for First Year Experience and Students in Transition’s 35th Annual Conference on The First Year Experience in Orlando, FL. In addition, the NECC Student Success Center received the Starfish 360 Award Rising Star award. The Center was also recognized as a 2015 Associate Level Finalist in the Celebración de Excelencia, included in the Celebración de Excelencia and What Works for Latino Students in Higher Education Compendium and recognized at a ceremony in Washington, DC. The Student Success Center was included among the 12 Hispanic Serving Institutions (HIS) initiatives in The Alliance of HIS Educators’ national report, From Funding to Practice: A Status Report on Federal Funding and High Impact Programs Among Hispanic Serving Institutions, as part of the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics 25 year Anniversary Commitment to Action program.
  • Dean of Student Success Dawna Perez was a panelist on Inclusive Excellence: Embracing and Assessing A Diverse Student Body the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) Annual Meeting and Conference in Boston, MA. Dr. Perez also presented Effective Models for Managing Early Alerts at the DREAM 2016 Conference held in Atlanta, GA.
  • Professor of English Suzanne Van Wert presented Assessing Core Academic Skills in the Community College, or Catching Confetti at the Annual Institute on Best Practices in Institutional Effectiveness in July 2015.
  • Director of PK-12 Partnerships Lori Weir co-presented Early College and Dual Enrollment Programming at the Massachusetts Association of Secondary School Administrators’ Association Summer Institute. Ms. Weir was recently elected President of the Board of Directors of the New England Alliance of Concurrent Enrollment Partnerships and facilitated a session on Advancing Quality Dual Enrollment Programs Across New England at the New England Alliance of Concurrent Enrollment Partnerships 2nd Annual Professional Development Conference.
  • Adjunct Faculty and Dean Emeritus Mary E. Wilson published Family Law for the Paralegal: Concepts and Applications 3rd edition with Pearson Publishing.
  • Several NECC faculty and staff presented at the 27th Annual Teaching Academic Survival & Success (TASS) Conference in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida:
    • Linda Meccouri, Dean of Professional Development, presented Educational Applications for Appreciative Inquiry at the TASS Pre-Conference Institute.
    • Tia Roy, Graduate Intern for Enrollment Services, and Heather Mores, Director of Compliance for Enrollment Services, presented Once Upon a Time there was a Story to be Told: Engaging Students & Promoting Success.
    • The team of Eldiane Elmeus, Assistant Professor and Coordinator of the First-Year Seminar, Mayra Bonet, Associate Professor of Global Studies, and Rebecca Rose, Assistant Professor of Academic Preparation presented Creating a Sustainable Academic Learning Experience for First-Year Students.
    • Linda Giampa, Reading Center Academic Coordinator, and Lynne Nadeau, Director of Tutoring Services, presented Academic Coaching: Piloting a Partnership to Support Student Success.
  • Five NECC faculty and staff members were recently named recipients of the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD) Awards for Excellence, a national honor which recognizes outstanding faculty and staff in the country’s community colleges. This year’s recipients include Liliana Brand, a member of the math faculty; Tricia Butler, administrative assistant for the Division of Technology, Arts and Professional Studies; Jack Davidson, human services faculty; Patricia Schade, professor of developmental reading and college success seminar, and curriculum coordinator of developmental reading; and Pat Willett, radiologic technology faculty.
  • Several NECC faculty and staff presented at the Massachusetts Community College Pathways to Student Success Conference at Cape Cod Community College:
    • Melba Acevedo, Director of Instructional Technology and Online Learning, Kim Burns, Dean of Academic Innovations and Alternative Studies and Monica Reum, Academic Innovations Coordinator, presented Developing a Competency-Based Education Model at NECC: Introducing a Disruptive Innovation with Minimal Disruption.
    • Jody Carson, Assistant Professor Early Childhood Education, Region 3 Partnership Coordinator for NECC, CIT Instructional Coach and co-chair of the NECC Textbook Task Force and Susan Tashjian, Coordinator of Instructional Technology and co-chair of the NECC Textbook Task Force presented Inspiring Change through Open Education Resource (OER) Adoption.
    • Brianne McDonough, Program Manager of the Guided Pathways to Success in STEM, presented Working Hard vs Working Smart: Defining Career Pathways with LMI.
    • Heather Mores, Director of Compliance for Enrollment Services and Student Affairs, and William Heineman, Vice President of Academic and Student Affairs, presented Supporting Student Success through USDOE Financial Aid Experiments.