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The Richard W. Riley College of Education and Leadership

2007
Dr. Cassandra Robison, who earned a Ph.D. in Education with a specialization in Higher Education, was recently promoted to associate professor of communications at Central Florida Community College, where she also is the faculty advisor to the award-winning student literary and fine arts magazine, Imprints. For two years, she has offered poetry workshops to the local chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, and she has published a book of poetry written by workshop attendees. One of her poems, "No Small Deaths," which was published in the literary magazine Clapboard House, is being nominated for the Pushcart Prize in poetry this year. Her collection of poems, Leaving the Pony, will be published this summer.

2005
Judy Averill, who earned an M.S. in Education with a specialization in Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment, was honored as the Transition Practitioner of the Year by the Virginia Division on Career Development and Transition.

2004
Rena Frasco, who earned an M.S. in Education with a specialization in Elementary Reading and Literacy, was named principal of Pioneer Elementary School by the Fort Morgan (Colorado) Board of Education.

Gloria Brown Brooks, who earned an M.S. in Education with a specialization in Integrating Technology in the Classroom and is now a student in the Ed.D. (Doctor of Education) program, was named a Teacher of the Year for 2008 by the San Benito County (Calif.) Office of Education. She is also the Thinkfinity presenter for the county’s Office of Education.

Dr. Deborah W. Proctor, who earned a Ph.D. in Education with a specialization in Educational Technology, has been awarded the 2009 MERLOT Stewardship Award by the Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching (MERLOT) organization. The award is given to someone whose commitment and dedication are exemplary in helping to spread MERLOT's use and services throughout the higher education community. Dr. Proctor is eCurriculum director for Minnesota Online, part of the Academic Innovations Department of Minnesota State Colleges and Universities.

2003
Vicky Panasuk, who earned an M.S. in Education with a specialization in Elementary Reading and Literacy (PreK–6), has been named principal at Jefferson Elementary School in Glendive, Mont.

2001
Dr. Ellen Stoltz, who earned a Ph.D. in Education, recently completed two consecutive three-year terms as a commissioner for the New England Association of Schools and Colleges. Dr. Stoltz is the director of Special Education Instructional Support Services for Hartford Public Schools in Connecticut.

1984
Dr. EManuel Alvarez-Sandoval, who earned a Ph.D. in Education, participated in the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books book signing, held April 25 on the University of California, Los Angeles, campus. He signed copies of his book The Importance of Learning a Foreign Language in a Changing Society (iUniverse, 2005). The seventh edition of his textbook, El español básico hecho fácil/Basic Spanish Grammar Made Easy, was published at the end of April.

School of Health Sciences

2009
Dr. Tammy L. Chavis, who earned a Ph.D. in Public Health with a specialization in Community Health Promotion and Education, was chosen by Harvard Medical School's Office for Diversity and Community Partnership and the Biomedical Science Careers Program to present her study, "A Mixed Method Study Pertaining to the Level of Knowledge About Alzheimer's Disease Among African American Caregivers," at the New England Science Symposium April 3 in Boston.

School of Management

2007
Dr. Anita Cassard, who earned a Ph.D. in Applied Management and Decision Sciences, co-authored the paper “Women and Their Relationship to Leader, Follower Commitment, and Job Performance: Netherlands, Belgium, and North Carolina,” which has been incorporated as study material in business research classes at the University of Phoenix's Charlotte, N.C., campus.

2007
Dr. Mario O. Barrett III, who earned a Ph.D. in Applied Management and Decision Sciences, wrote Leading from the Inside Out: Using the Barrett Leadership Model to Achieve Sustainable Happiness by Creating and Pursuing the Fulfillment of Your Life. (Dog Ear Publishing, 2008). The book has appeared regularly in the Top 10 of Buy.com's bestsellers for personal happiness books.

2000
Dr. Louis David Edwards, who earned a Ph.D. in Applied Management and Decision Sciences, served on the security detail at the presidential inauguration of Barack Obama. Dr. Edwards works in Washington, D.C., for the U.S. Department of Education.

Dr. Ntiedo J. Umoren, who earned a Ph.D. in Applied Management and Decision Sciences, has been appointed the director of the Centre for Entrepreneurial Development at the University of Uyo in Nigeria, where he is a faculty member.

1992
Dr. Dennis E. Morrow, who earned a Ph.D. in Applied Management and Decision Sciences with a specialization in Information Systems Management, was recently named chairman of the Business Department at Herzing University's Atlanta campus. He has held prior positions (systems analyst, systems engineer, senior business analyst, information technology manager, manager of computer labs and training, and adjunct professor) at various corporations and universities such as NCR, AT&T, EDS, Nationwide Insurance Enterprises, BellSouth Wireless/Cingular Wireless, Kennesaw State University, Strayer University, Argosy University, Herzing College, and the University of Phoenix.

School of Nursing

2007
Susan Sonnier, who earned an M.S. degree in Nursing, published a chapter in the textbook Disaster Nursing: A Handbook for Practice (Jones and Bartlett Publishers, 2009), titled “Communicating in a Disaster." She also wrote two appendices for the textbook. Sonnier also was recently voted Nurse of the Year at Clear Lake Regional Medical Center in Webster, Texas. She and fellow School of Nursing graduates Lydia Lopez, Desiree Carter, Chad Troxell and Beverly Ward attended the January 2009 Walden commencement ceremonies and serve as the Walden University Nursing Alumni Association Advisory Council. They hosted and launched the new Nursing Alumni Association with a breakfast and pinning of the graduates.

School of Psychology

2007
Sherri Reaume, who earned an M.S. in Psychology, published her article, “Improved Hiring Practices Needed for Child Protective Investigators” in the March 2009 edition of the magazine Law and Order.

School of Public Policy and Administration

2009
Gregory Parker, who earned a Master of Public Administration degree and is a Ph.D. in Public Policy and Administration student specializing in Homeland Security Policy and Coordination, was elected to the Comal County Commissioners Court (Texas) on Nov. 2, 2004, and re-elected in November 2008. He was the first African American elected to a Comal County office, the youngest person to win election as a county commissioner, and the only African-American Republican county commissioner in the state of Texas. In September 2008, he was appointed by Gov. Rick Perry to the Texas Commission on State Emergency Communications, where he leads the state's initiative for Next Generation 9-1-1.

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