Tags: faculty

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Cellist David Starkweather reflects on 40 years at UGA

David Starkweather is the professor of cello in the University of Georgia’s Hugh Hodgson School of Music, housed within the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, where he has been a faculty member since 1983. In this interview, Starkweather discusses the role that cello has played in his life and how he uses technology to unlock centuries-old musical mysteries. How did you become interested in the cello? I started playing in the…

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2023 Georgia Climate Conference to focus on communities, business innovation

The Georgia Climate Project announced its plenary speakers for the upcoming Georgia Climate Conference taking place May 15-17, 2023 in Athens, Georgia. The conference will address what a changing climate means for Georgia, and most importantly, what we can do about it. The event will bring together hundreds of attendees representing multiple sectors and areas of expertise to collaborate, raise awareness of work in Georgia, highlight…

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Two UGA faculty awarded Guggenheim Fellowships

Two University of Georgia faculty members are among 171 scientists, writers, scholars and artists honored across 48 fields by the Board of Trustees of the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation with 2023 Guggenheim Fellowships. Guggenheim Fellowships are awarded annually to those “who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the arts.” Andrew Herod, Distinguished Research…

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Frossard receives NSF CAREER Award

Amanda Frossard, assistant professor in the University of Georgia Franklin College of Arts and Sciences department of chemistry, has received a grant from the National Science Foundation Faculty Early Career Development Program (CAREER) to study the physical and chemical properties of surfactants in atmospheric aerosol particles. The five-year, CAREER grants, among the most prestigious awarded by the NSF, support early-career faculty who exhibit…

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Andrews among four UGA faculty members named Meigs Professors

The University of Georgia has honored four faculty members with its highest accolade for teaching, the Josiah Meigs Distinguished Professorship. The Meigs Professorship underscores the university’s commitment to excellence in teaching, the value placed on student learning experiences and the central role instruction plays in the university’s mission. The 2022-23 Meigs Professors are: Tessa Andrews, associate professor of genetics in the…

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Noted and Quoted, March 2023

Franklin College faculty expertise, opinion, and research were published across a variety of global media during March. A few examples of the news fit for print and pixels:   So what are UAPs? And can we trust the government to tell us if it knows? Stephen Mihm, professor and head of the department of history writing in his column at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette  Protective parenting may help your kids avoid health problems as…

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Kudos, March 2023

Career excellence from our colleagues, students, and alumni decorate our March kudos with accomplishments, a world premiere, and awards for distinction. Among the recent awards news:   Yadira Castillo, academic advisor for the Microbiology Dept. and in Biology, is the recipient of the 2023 UGA Outstanding Academic Advisor Award and will now go forward as UGA’s nominee for the national NACADA Outstanding Academic Advisor Award Kestrina…

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Listening as reading

Jamie Kreiner, professor of history and associate dean in the Franklin College, describes in her new book, “The Wandering Mind,” how monks of Late Antiquity and the early Middle Ages (around A.D. 300 to 900) struggled with focusing their attention. The highly-acclaimed book has just been introduced in an audio format, which brings the author and her subject full circle. Kreiner relates the experience in this Q & A.   Alan…

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English faculty member receives UGA Award for Excellence in Teaching

Nancee Reeves, senior lecturer in the department of English in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, has received the 2023 University of Georgia Award for Excellence in Teaching. The award was established in 2021 based on a recommendation from the UGA Teaching Academy. It recognizes teaching faculty who exemplify the university’s teaching mission by offering outstanding instruction, promoting innovation and providing an engaging environment…

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Bacterial genetic fitness help regulate ocean carbon

The world’s oceans are dominated by microscopic organisms that power the Earth’s biogeochemical processes. These microbial ecosystems sustain life in the oceans by forming the basis of the ocean food web and balance the composition of our atmosphere – though scientists are just beginning to understand and study these ecosystems. A new research study led by the University of Georgia examines reproductive fitness of bacteria critical to the world-…

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Bensasson uses yeast to unlock life’s greatest mysteries

What comes to mind when you think of yeast? To a baker, it might mean the ability to make their dough rise. A brewmaster might associate it with the fermentation of beer and wine. Many others may associate these types of fungus with one dreaded infection or another. Yeast serves many functions. For the University of Georgia’s Douda Bensasson, it’s all of these—and more. An associate professor in the Franklin College of Arts & Science’s…

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Model mycology: UGA scientists fight fungi for the rest of us

It starts out with a cough and slightly slurred speech. Then come the muscle spasms and dramatic mood shifts. In HBO’s hit show “The Last of Us,” these are the beginning signs that a human has contracted a fungal infection that turns people into zombies and rips through the fabric of modern society. The premise may sound improbable, but it is based on a very real fungus that really does infect brains and bodies, turning its victims into mindless…

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What a preprint is – and why that matters

New research from the University of Georgia suggests most people don’t understand the difference between a preprint and a published academic journal article. Preprints are research papers that haven’t undergone peer review, the process by which studies’ findings are validated by experts who weren’t involved with the research themselves. The study found the majority of readers have little to no understanding of what a preprint…

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Expedition to East Antarctica

In Spring 2023, UGA biologist Holly Bik is leading one of five teams of scientists on a research cruise to one of the most remote and understudied places on Earth. From March 6, the group departed from New Zealand and cruise west along the Antarctic continental shelf to South Africa. In all, more than thirty scientists and graduate students will be part of the two-month expedition aboard the Research Vessel – Ice Breaker, The Nathaniel…

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Chung studies how microbes shape ecosystems

University of Georgia plant biologist and ecologist, Anny Chung studies the smaller things in life to understand how microscopic organisms can influence entire ecosystems. As an assistant professor jointly appointed in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences Department of Plant Pathology and the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences Department of Plant Biology, Chung studies how plant-microbe interactions…

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The benefits of protective parenting

Being a protective parent could set your kids up for a healthier life as an adult, according to new research from the University of Georgia. The study found that growing up in places where gunshots are common and heat and electricity are unreliable can lead to pain and other physical health limitations in adulthood. But being involved in your child’s life, such as knowing their friends or where they’re hanging out after school,…

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On science fiction & Afrofuturism: Q&A with Isiah Lavender III

For Isiah Lavender III, science fiction isn’t just a passing interest or favorite genre. The Sterling Goodman Professor of English in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences says science fiction is a storytelling device that can capture the human experience on an otherworldly level. In this Q&A, he goes over his earliest memory of “Star Wars,” the history of science fiction and Afrofuturism, and his latest book on intersectional…

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Landau, Terns named Regents’ Professors

Three University of Georgia faculty members have been named Regents’ Professors in recognition of the national and international reach of their innovative and pace-setting scholarship. Regents’ professorships are bestowed by the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia and are the highest professorial recognition in the state’s system of public colleges and universities. The university’s 2022–2023 Regents’ Professors are Jenna…

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Kudos, February 2023

Even the shortest month has been replete with accolades and awards across UGA and the Franklin College. A few of the colleagues, alumni, and campus organizations we congratulated during February: UGA senior vice provost Michelle Garfield Cook named vice president for student affairs – UGA Today, WGAU, Athens CEO   Christine Szymanski, professor and associate head of the department of microbiology, is one of three…

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Noted and Quoted, February 2023

A climate change summit with Vice President Kamala Harris, the impossible quest of fake meat, and using machine learning to find new exoplanets are just a few of the many stories where our faculty colleagues lead, explain, and advise in media around the world. A sample of distinguished research and time comment from February:   In Atlanta, VP Harris focuses on climate, finding solutions – event co-moderated by Georgia Athletic Association…

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Cody Marrs and beauty as an omnipresent force

Over the past few years, the entire world has faced some harsh realities. A pandemic seemingly without end. A war between Ukraine and Russia. An international social movement in Black Lives Matter. For many, these moments in time are only seen through the lens of the fear, unrest and change they ignite.  Cody Marrs takes a different approach. Head of the English department in the Franklin College of Arts & Sciences who…

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New book provides scholarship on mountainscapes

Fausto Sarmiento, professor of geography in the Franklin College and director of the Neotropical Montology Collaboratory, continues his excellent work on the broad subject of Montology with the publication of a new book. With the ecological acceleration and the indigenous revival trend of the present, the need for critical views of the reality of mountain systems has become evident in academic circles, such as the Commission of Mountain Studies…

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Three professors elected into National Academy of Inventors

The National Academy of Inventors has selected three University of Georgia faculty as 2023 NAI Senior Members. NAI Senior Members are faculty, scientists and administrators selected for their proven ability to invent and innovate. The UGA representatives of the 2023 class are Christine Szymanski, Hitesh Handa and Leidong Mao. With their selections, UGA now has 11 Senior Members overall: Szymanski is a professor, associate head of…

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How active learning affects STEM students with learning disabilities

Active learning is an instructional approach that involves engaging students with the learning process through group work, case studies, class discussions and other methods. This type of approach places a greater degree of responsibility on the learner. Students with disabilities may have unique experiences in active-learning STEM courses because most active-learning practices were designed with limited input from students with disabilities.…

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Shepherd joins VP Harris for climate discussion

Marshall Shepherd, Georgia Athletic Association Distinguished Professor of Atmospheric Sciences and Geography, moderated a discussion with Vice President Kamala Harris about climate change at Georgia Tech on Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2023, in Atlanta: Fresh off the president’s State of the Union speech and with a likely re-election bid on the horizon, Vice President Kamala Harris flew to Atlanta on Wednesday to deliver a message on climate change…
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