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November 2018
Our Faculty Have an Impact in Our Classrooms and Beyond

Adelphi’s faculty are endless champions of our students’ success—in class, across campus, while studying abroad or doing field work—they teach, demonstrate, mentor, lead, advise and support their students personally.

All true, but, this month, I want to share some extraordinary stories of other things our faculty do that also have great impact—in their communities, our region and the world.

Beyond the borders of Adelphi's beautifully landscaped campus in Garden City, Professor of Biology James K. Dooley, Ph.D., has long been dedicated to environmental conservation. You can read about how he’s now taking a leadership role with the Sierra Club and stepping up his fight for the environment of Long Island, New York.

The work of Adjunct Communications Professor Mehdi Salehi is especially poignant, as he once paddled through the sea on a small, inflatable boat to reach the shores of Greece, and he now works with drone technology to monitor the treacherous journeys of present-day refugees—to help ensure they also land safely.

Stavroula Kyriakakis, Ph.D., associate professor in our School of Social Work, continues her powerful research on gender-based violence and how it might apply everywhere.

The work of Korede K. Adegoke, Ph.D., assistant professor in our College of Nursing and Public Health, is helping at-risk women in Nigeria .
Psychology Professor Jean Lau Chin, Ed.D., recently spent six months in Australia as a 2018 Fulbright Scholar researching how leaders of Aboriginal and indigenous tribes rely on the collective wisdom of their community to make decisions and how this might be applied by leaders on a global scale. I imagine her discoveries could inspire some future leaders who are studying at Adelphi right now.

Closer to home, our Viret Family Faculty Leadership Fellow Zachary Johnson, Ph.D., is taking the first steps to create an Innovation Center within our own outstanding Swirbul Library —so our students and faculty can work with nonprofits and businesses to drive new thinking and develop new products.

Finally, the lifesaving work of caregivers is captured in this month’s video about student Jessica Jacobs , who—inspired by Assistant Professor Marissa D. Abram '08, Ph.D. '17—found her true calling and switched her major to nursing.

I’m so proud to share some of the many ways our faculty make a difference—for our students, our Adelphi community and all across the world stage.
Christine M. Riordan, Ph.D.
President
Swirbul Library, future home of Adelphi's new Innovation Center
Success story: Adelphi's Mentoring Program

The Mentoring Program, developed and run by Chotsani West, M.A. ’07, was initially designed to improve retention rates of students of color. It now serves a wide range of students, to help them succeed academically and socially and to plan their careers.
A powerful experience leads to a life of service
Adelphi nursing student Jessica Jacobs wasn't planning to be a nurse—until she became a full-time caregiver to her mother. With the help of Assistant Professor Marissa D. Abram '08, Ph.D. '17, she was able to switch her major and get started on the path to a healthcare career. It's a story of a student's drive—and a faculty member's encouragement and impact—that dramatizes Adelphi's personalized approach. Meet Jessica .
From the front lines to academia. Korede K. Adegoke, Ph.D., was once a physician in her home of Nigeria. As an assistant professor of nursing and public health at Adelphi, she's doing research that may lead to better care for millions.
Leading the fight to protect local waters. Biology Professor James K. Dooley, Ph.D., has always been passionate about protecting the planet. Now, as the new conservation chair of the Long Island Sierra Club, he's helping defend offshore marine life.
Fighting gender-based violence. Associate Professor of Social Work Stavroula Kyriakakis, Ph.D., studies violence toward women in communities where counseling is stigmatized. Her findings may help more people everywhere.
Flying drones to save lives. As a teenager, Adjunct Professor of Communications Mehdi Salehi took a perilous journey from his home in Afghanistan to escape the Taliban. Now he's using drone technology to protect other refugees.
Planning a center for big ideas. Adelphi's Innovation Center is sure to have a big impact on student engagement when it opens next fall. Robert B. Willumstad School of Business Assistant Professor Zachary Johnson, Ph.D., is spending this fall helping bring the project to life.
What might Western leaders learn from indigenous people? As a Fulbright Scholar in Australia, Jean Lau Chin, Ed.D., professor of psychology, discovered intriguing practices among Aboriginal concepts of leadership.
Research at Adelphi: A discovery of "epoch" proportions
The discovery of a massive 92-million-year-old petrified log in the Utah desert by Assistant Professor of Biology Michael D'Emic, Ph.D., has changed the evolutionary timeline by demonstrating that flowering trees appeared in North America 15 million years earlier than previously thought. It's a discovery that's attracted worldwide attention, including this fascinating article on the National Geographic website .
Panthers play, volunteer and take on alumni
The month of October is always busy for our athletes—with all our fall teams competing for a bid to the conference playoffs and students finding time to give back to the community. Our field hockey team traveled to New York City for the Tunnel to Towers 5K Run & Walk on  September 30 and raised more than $1,000 for the Stephen Siller Foundation. Panthers were also in action throughout Spirit Weekend—a four-day event that brought together alumni, students, staff and community. Off-season teams invited more than 100 alumni to have some fun by competing either against one another or against current teams. Also during Spirit Weekend, the 47th Athletic Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony welcomed six outstanding athletes, one legendary team and two special award winners. Go, Panthers!
Alumni making a difference: Three join Adelphi University Board of Trustees
Adelphi is proud to announce the election of three outstanding alumni to the University's board of trustees. Please join us in welcoming Michael A.L. Balboni ’81, J.D. , president and managing director of Redland Strategies, former state legislator and current member of the New York Power Authority Board of Trustees; Carmen M. Ortiz ’78, J.D., '12 (Hon.) , counsel at Anderson & Kreiger LLP and former U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts who directed the prosecution of the Boston Marathon bomber; and Michael J. Tiedemann ’89 , managing director at Wells Fargo Securities in New York City, where he focuses on equity origination for companies in the energy, financial and healthcare sectors globally.
Momentum Tour 2018–2019
Get together with Dr. Riordan and many of your old friends just as the holiday season gets fully underway. The Momentum Tour, Changing Lives, the Next Chapter: Sharing Our Stories , goes to New York City for lunch and evening events on Tuesday, November 27. Then, on Thursday, November 29, it returns to Long Island for a date in the Village of Muttontown section of Oyster Bay, New York . (Call 516.877.3751 for more information.) All are great opportunities to share stories about the way your experience at Adelphi transformed your life. And be sure to keep checking the Momentum Tour web page for future dates.