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Faculty and Staff Activities

Theresa Curtis

Theresa Curtis, Biological Sciences Department, had her article, co-authored with three undergraduate students, published in Biosensors. The students include two current biomedical sciences majors, Annabella Nilon ’24 and Jacob Scibek ’24, and Matthew Besner ’22, who will attend medical school in the fall at University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine. The research article, “Odorant Binding Causes Cytoskeletal Rearrangement, Leading to Detectable Changes in Endothelial and Epithelial Barrier Function and Micromotion” details a new label-free method to detect odorant molecules which was funded by the Department of Defense. 

Robert Spitzer

Robert Spitzer, Political Science Department, has been informed that his article, “Growing Executive Power: The Strange Case of the ‘Protective Return’ Pocket Veto,” has been accepted for publication in the Fall 2012 issue of Presidential Studies Quarterly.

Anne Adams

Anne Adams, Africana Studies Department, chaired a panel and presented a paper at the annual conference of the Caribbean Studies Association in June in Havana, Cuba. Her paper, comparing folkloric and performance characteristics in African American and Caribbean literature, was titled “Pan-African Literature as Performance: Signifiyin’ Tricksters from Zora Neale Hurston and Marlon James.”

Tiantian Zheng

Tiantian Zheng, Sociology/Anthropology Department, was invited by University of Rochester to deliver a book talk on Nov. 10 on her book Tongzhi Living: Men Attracted to Men in Postsocialist China.

Timothy J. Baroni

Timothy J. Baroni, Biological Sciences Department, has co-written a paper with P. Brandon Matheny, from the University of Tennessee. The peer-reviewed paper titled “A Re-evaluation of Gasteroid and Cyphelloid Species of Entolomataceae from Eastern North America” has been published in volume 16 of the Harvard Papers in Botany 2011.

Seth N. Asumah

Seth N. Asumah, Africana Studies and Political Science departments, was a recipient of the Alumni of Distinction honor at a ceremony at the State University of New York College at Oneonta in September. The Alumni of Distinction honorees are selected in recognition of their “demonstrated leadership, superior career achievement and distinguished service.” Asumah is a SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor, chair of the Africana Studies Department and a political science professor. He is the author, co-author and co-editor of 11 books and over 100 articles, book chapters, reviews and essays and a recipient of more than 20 international, national and local awards and honors. At SUNY Cortland, Asumah’s recognitions include the Excellence in Teaching Award, Rozanne Brooks Dedicated Teacher Award and Outstanding Achievement in Service Award. As a member of many soccer referees’ associations, Asumah has officiated soccer matches for 35 years at the international, national, state and local levels.

Robert Spitzer

Robert Spitzer, Political Science Department, has been appointed to the editorial board for the new “Contemporary Social Issues” project to be published on the Web by ABC-CLIO Publishers. The series consists of Yes, No and Other essays addressing contemporary controversial issues including capital punishment, legalization of marijuana, prostitution, health care, immigration, climate change and privacy, among others.

Danica Savonick

Danica Savonick, English Department, presented her research at a panel on “The Campus as Crucible of Struggle,” sponsored by the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. The conversation was streamed live on YouTube on Sept. 5.

Sharon L. Todd

Sharon L. Todd, Recreation, Parks and Leisure Studies Department, was inducted into the South Central Chapter of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame on Nov. 16. Part of Todd’s athletic career involved serving as assistant coach of SUNY Cortland’s field hockey team for 12 years, while also serving as a faculty member.

Ryan Vooris

Ryan Vooris, Sport Management Department, presented his research on ESPN at the 11th Summit on Communication and Sport, held April 26 to 29 at Indiana University. Also, he served on a panel focused on the intersection of marketing and communication theory.