SHARE:  

October 2023

Research @ Pace

A newsletter highlighting faculty research & scholarship

*updated

Faculty Spotlight

Emily Gold Waldman, JD is a Professor of Law and Associate Dean for Faculty Development and Operations (Elisabeth Haub School of Law). Her work focuses on constitutional law, education law, and employment law—and, especially, the issues that cut across them. She has a forthcoming article in the Minnesota Law Review, "Just Extracurriculars?", that analyzes the shaky status of students' constitutional rights in extracurricular activities, and a related forthcoming article in the Belmont Law Review, "From Garcetti to Bremerton: Teachers, Coaches, and Free Speech in Public Schools," that turns to the constitutional rights of public school employees. This fall, Professor Waldman is presenting this work at conferences at Minnesota Law School and Belmont Law School. In recent years, Professor Waldman has also focused on legal issues connected with menstruation and menopause, which likewise raise related questions of constitutional, education, and employment law. She co-authored a book, Menstruation Matters: Challenging the Law's Silence About Periods, with Haub Law colleague Bridget Crawford, JD, (NYU Press in 2022) and, together Professor Crawford and Naomi Cahn, JD (UVA Law School) published several articles including" Working Through Menopause," Wash U. L. Rev. 99: 1531 (2022); "Contextualizing Menopause in the Law," Harv. J.L. & Gender 41.1 (2022), and "Managing and Monitoring the Menopausal Body," U. Chi. L. Forum (2022). Professor Waldman has a forthcoming book, Hot Flash: How Understanding Menopause Can Improve Life and Law For Everyone, that is co-authored with Professor Bridget Crawford and Professor Naomi Chan. The book will be published by Stanford University Press in 2024. 

Jason Slyer, DNP, RN, FNP-BC is the Director of the Doctor of Nursing Practice and the Family Nurse Practitioner Programs (College of Health Professions). His main scholarly work is in evidence-based practice and translational science with JBI, a global organization promoting and supporting evidence-based decisions that improve health and health service delivery. He is also a Senior Associate Editor for the journal JBI Evidence Synthesis.

Professor Slyer is a member of JBI’s Cardiovascular Expert Reference Group. As part of this group, he has authored a number of evidence summaries that have been published in the JBI EBP Database, including Acute coronary syndrome: Supplemental oxygen therapy; Heart failure with reduced ejection fraction: Efficacy of angiotensin receptor-neprilysin inhibitors; and Heart failure with reduced ejection fraction: Efficacy of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors.

Professor Slyer is currently the PI on a pilot study to evaluate the effectiveness of the PRIME Clinical Evaluation Tool. This is a new tool that was developed to evaluate the clinical competencies in their adult-gerontology acute care nurse practitioner students.

His most recent publication is “Shared decision-making to improve medication adherence,” Nurse Pracitioner 47.8 (2022). Using a case study of medication adherence, this paper demonstrates how providers can utilize a model for shared decision-making he developed with another CHP colleague to improve treatment decisions and increase patient self-efficacy in carrying out the plan of care. More information about his research is available here

 

Center Spotlight

The Society of Fellows of Dyson College is an honors organization open to Pace students and Dyson faculty.

It all began in the fall of 1980 with a weekend seminar devoted to questions in applied ethics. Since then, the weekend seminar has been held off-campus each fall. It is co-led by faculty on interdisciplinary topics of contemporary relevance. In 2023, for example, a biologist and a philosopher collaborated in leading the Society in discussions on “Indigeneity and Invasiveness in a Multi-species World.” In 2022, a mathematician and an artist engaged us on human and artificial intelligence “Drawing Machines: Can Computers Make Art?”

Another signature event is the annual meeting that is held on campus each spring. Pace students who have done their own research or a creative project with a faculty mentor in Dyson over the year have a chance to present their original work at this student conference that is attended by faculty, students, families, and friends. With 60+ students presenting papers and posters in the fields across the arts and sciences each year, it is a day on which the students give the lectures and the rest of ask the questions.

Finally, there is the initiation ceremony. Each year a new class of fellows is inducted and named after a fellow who has made a significant contribution to the ideals of the society. To date, more than 700 students, faculty, and alumni hold the distinction of being a fellow, and several alumni return to our events each year.

Did you know that the Charles H. Dyson award - the most prestigious award given to graduating student in Dyson - is awarded to a fellow in the society? The board makes the decision; faculty may sponsor students, become fellows themselves, and later join the board.

To learn more about the society, please visit http://www.pace.edu/dyson/sof.

For questions or additional information, reach out to Judi Pajo, PhD, at jpajo@pace.edu or (212) 346-1289.

Pace students, faculty, and alumni at the recent Weekend Seminar

Litchfield, Connecticut

Faculty News

*Please note that in the previous version Paul Levitz was erroneously referred to as PhD.


Paul Levitz (English, NYC, Dyson College of Arts and Sciences) published the 3rd edition of The Power of Comics & Graphic Novels (Bloomsbury 2023). This is the first college level book on the subject. After the successful and innovative first two editions, the new, restructured 3rd edition, remains the most authoritative introduction for studying comic books and graphic novels, covering their place in contemporary culture, the manifestations and techniques of the art form, the evolution of the medium and how to analyze and write about them. The new edition includes a completely reworked introduction that explores the comics community in the US and globally, its history, and the role of different communities in advancing the medium and its study; Chapters reframed to get students thinking about themselves as consumers and makers of comics; Reorganized chapters on form help to unpack encapsulation, composition and layout; Completely new chapters on comics and how they can be used to report, document, and persuade. In addition to discussion questions and activities for every chapter, and an extensive glossary of key terms, The Power of Comics and Graphic Novels also includes further updated resources available online including additional essays, weblinks and sample syllabi.

Johanna deLeyer-Tiarks, PhD (Psychology, NYC, Dyson College of Arts and Sciences) co-authored an article, “Preparing LGBTQ Youth for the High school to College Transition: a Multidimensional Approach” in the Journal of LGBT Youth (October 2023).  The paper proposes a multidimensional framework for assessing college readiness, developed to address the unique needs of college-aspirational and early-college LGBTQ students. It identifies four key areas relevant to supporting LGBTQ students’ success during the high school to college transition. The role of peer, family, school, and individual differences will be discussed relative to supporting positive academic, mental health, and social-behavioral outcomes among college-aspirational and early-college LGBTQ youth.







Amanda Flynn, MM (School of Performing Arts, Dyson of Arts and Sciences) published a paper titled "Performers With History of Voice Injury: A Survey Study of Treatment Outcomes and Vocal Function" in the Journal of Voice (August 2023). The research was conducted with the Sean Parker Institute for the Voice at Weill Cornell Medical College. This survey study sought out performer's perspectives about their experience with voice injury. Past studies show that performers are more susceptible to voice injury, have higher incidence of injury, and experience greater vocal impairment than non-performers. Despite literature demonstrating otherwise, there remains fear and stigma that voice injury is a career-ending circumstance. The majority of participants in this study continued to perform, reported resolved or improved voice symptoms after treatment, and reported positive attitudes about their voices, regardless of their injury or current presence or absence of pathology on exam. Findings of this study highlight a need for continued outreach to voice teachers, education programs, and production teams about vocal function after voice injury.

Beau Anderson, PhD (Health Science, NYC, College of Health Professions), along with her colleagues, published a study in the Global Advances in Integrative Medicine and Health 12 (January-December 2023). The study assesses the feasibility of bundling group acupuncture and yoga therapy for treating chronic neck, back and osteoarthritis pain in primary care community health centers in the Bronx and Harlem, NY. “Group Acupuncture Therapy With Yoga Therapy for Chronic Neck, Low Back, and Osteoarthritis Pain in Safety Net Settings for an Underserved Population: A Feasibility Pilot Study” is a continuation of the authors’ prior research investigating nonpharmacologic therapies for treating chronic pain in the underserved. This research is in response to the opioid crisis that has disproportionately affected underserved and ethnically diverse populations. The researchers’ previous studies have shown that acupuncture therapy is clinically effective for neck, back and osteoarthritic chronic pain. They were especially interested in assessing the effectiveness of a group acupuncture model that is lower cost and easily implemented in community clinics. In this model 4-5 patients are treated in chairs together in one room. The research demonstrated that this model has similar clinical effectiveness to individualized acupuncture therapy in which a patient is treated in a private treatment room. The pilot study described in this publication bundled group acupuncture with yoga therapy and was undertaken at two community health clinics in the Bronx and Harlem. The therapeutic rationale being that acupuncture reduces pain and enables greater movement, which then further reduces pain. Outcomes of this udy suggest that this may be a powerful nonpharmacologic approach to pain reduction.

 

Professor Anderson also presented a paper titled “Evidence-based medicine analysis of Chinese herbal medicine prescribing for COVID-19 patients during the pandemic in the United States: A cross-sectional survey” at the 2nd World Congress for Integrative Medicine and Health (Rome, Italy, September 2023). 

Erica Gollub, PhD (Health Sciences, PLV, College of Health Professions) co-authored a paper with a CHP Health Science alumna, Shirly Chen (now a student in Nursing dept). “Firearm Legislation and Firearm Use in Female Intimate Partner Homicide Using National Violent Death Reporting System Data, 2015–2019” was published in the journal of Violence and Gender (October, 2023). This paper examined the association between state intimate partner-specific firearm regulations and female intimate partner homicides by firearm, using data from the CDC's National Violent Death Reporting System. Results confirmed a trend of decreased homicide rates with stronger such state firearm legislation, but with some variability that pointed to numerous additional factors bearing on the relationship, including implementation and enforcement of existing legal provisions, geographic location, and state household gun ownership.

Julia Eisenberg, PhD (Management and Management Science, PLV, Lubin School of Business), co-authored ”Examining how organizational continuities and discontinuities affect the job satisfaction of global contractors” in the Journal of International Management 29.5 (October 2023). Some of the highlights of this study include:

•Global offshoring arrangements both provide and disrupt global connectivity.

•This study tests Organizational Discontinuity Theory in a global outsourcing context.

•Data: survey of 193 IT professionals from an IS offshoring MNE in Eastern Europe

•Organizational discontinuities arising from virtual work boundaries have no association with job satisfaction.

•Job satisfaction is enhanced by team-level continuities of identification and shared vision.






Martha W. Driver, PhD, FSA (Distinguished Professor of English, Dyson College of Arts and Sciences) has published “Visualizing Susanna: Another Look at ‘The Pistel of Swete Susan’ and Later Imagery in the Fifteenth and Early Sixteenth Centuries,” in Poets and Scribes in Late Medieval England: Essays on Manuscripts and Meaning in Honor of Susanna Fein, ed. by Kathryn Kerby-Fulton and Michael Johnston (DeGruyter, 2023). This paper discusses visual imagery and poetry in medieval tellings of the story of Susanna and the Elders. Susanna is a beautiful married woman who is seen by two judges as she bathes in her private garden and is propositioned by them; when she refuses their advances, the Elders invent a story and accuse her of adultery. Susanna then calls upon God and is vindicated by the power of prayer; moved by God, the prophet Daniel intervenes in her court trial and proclaims her innocence, and all is restored to her. This was a popular story in the Middle Ages; Susanna could be read as a Jewish heroine, as a type of Eve, as prefiguring the Virgin Mary, as a figure for wisdom, as a type for Christ, and as representing the Church. The essay investigates this imagery to give fuller insight into the reception and wide-spread circulation of Susanna’s story. Many of these observations are based on my first-hand study of manuscripts and printed books in the Morgan Library & Museum, and elsewhere.

 

This is Professor Driver’s sixth publication in 2023. Her other 2023 articles include: “The Schoolroom in Early English Illustration,” Vernacular Books and Their Readers in the Early Age of Print (c. 1450–1600), Intersections, vol. 85, ed. by Anna Dlabačová, Andrea van Leerdam, and John Thompson (Brill, 2023); “Women’s Learning and Lore: Magic, Recipes, and Folk Belief,” Women and Medieval Literary Culture From the Early Middle Ages to the Fifteenth Century, ed. by Corinne Saunders and Diane Watt (Cambridge University Press, 2023). This year, she has further published "Chaucer the Mage: A Brief Exploration of Magic in The Squire’s Tale, The Canon’s Yeoman’s Tale, and The Franklin’s Tale,” Interpreting Middle English Literature and Manuscripts: Essays in Memory of Derek Pearsall, in The Chaucer Review 58. 3-4 (2023); “Pilgrim Portraits,” The Chaucer Encyclopedia, 4 vols., ed. by Richard Newhauser, Vincent Gillespie, Jessica Rosenfeld, Katie Walter (Wiley-Blackwell, 2023), vol. 3; and “Mandeville in the Twenty-First Century,” Medieval Travel, Proceedings of the 2021 Harlaxton Conference, ed. by Martha Carlin and Caroline Barron (Donington, UK: Shaun Tyas, 2023).

Bennett Gershman, JD (Distinguished Professor, Elisabeth Haub School of Law) published an op-ed, "The Most Dangerous Court," in the New York Law Journal. As the Supreme Court begins a new term, one focus will be on several decisions from the Fifth Circuit—a court that was once was the refuge for minorities, the poor, and the condemned that today is considered the most reactionary court in the country. Pace Gershman examines the evolution of the Fifth Circuit calling it “The Most Dangerous Court” in this Op Ed in the New York Law Journal.



James Toomey, JD (Elisabeth Haub School of Law) was awarded the 2023 Goettel Prize for Faculty Scholarship for his article, “Property’s Boundaries” published by he Virginia Law Review 109 (2023). The Goettel Prize was created in 2004 to encourage and recognize outstanding scholarship by members of the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University faculty. Each year, members of the tenured and tenure-track faculty are invited to submit their work for consideration (on an anonymous basis) by a selection committee of outside reviewers. This year's committee consisted of three distinguished law school professors: Andrea Schneider,JD  of Cardozo Law, Ned Snow, JD University of South Carolina School of Law, and

D. Theodore Rave, JD of The University of Texas at Austin School of Law.

Brenna Hassinger-Das, PhD (Psychology, NYC, Dyson College of Arts and Sciences) wrote a report for The Brookings Institution regarding a meta-analysis she conducted of Playful Learning Landscapes projects. Playful Learning Landscapes (PLL) uses discoveries from scientific research regarding how people learn best to inform the design of public spaces, including sidewalks, libraries, school yards, parks, and beyond. PLL installations range from games painted on sidewalks, to signage placed in grocery stores, to large physical designs integrated into bus stops. They are designed to foster actively engaged, meaningful, socially interactive, iterative, and joyful experiences for children and families. As a placemaking activity, PLL projects typically involve the community in their design, implementation, and evaluation processes—utilizing a participatory design approach that honors community values, ideas, and input. This ensures that the installations are accessible to all and that historically marginalized populations are centered in ownership of the designs.

 

In this brief, the authors present findings from a rigorous analysis, providing evidence of the effectiveness of PLLs to date by synthesizing evaluations across a variety of PLL projects. The analysis examines data from 12 PLL projects in five locations to determine impacts on caregiver-child interaction and caregiver behavior and child behavior individually. The analysis also identifies moderating factors influencing effectiveness, such as the type of PLL and the extent of community involvement. Determining the factors that lead to increased effectiveness can help maximize impact and inform the implementation of PLLs. Thus, the authors close with a discussion of what this analysis tells us about how local leaders can promote PLL uptake and integration in their communities and how they can create beautiful playful learning environments that build more child-friendly cities.

Charles North, MFA (Poet-in-Residence, English, NYC, Dyson College of Arts and Sciences) was interviewed by Hanging L0ose Press. The interview addresses Professor North’s recent accomplishments, including his publication of Everything and Other Poems—which was named a N.Y. Times New and Noteworthy Book—as well as his collaborative project with the painter Trevor Winkfield, En Face. Professor North also discusses his forthcoming book from Black Square Editions, News, Poetry and Poplars: Poems + Selected prose, which features poetry, essays, interviews, and intros, and photographs.



Melanie La Rosa, MFA (Media, Communications, & the Visual Arts, PLV, Dyson College of Arts and Sciences) was interviewed by the UK-based publication Atmos.earth. The interview discusses Professor LaRosa’s documentary, How to Power a City, which details the development of the clean energy revolution in seven cities across the United States. LaRosa's film brings together stories ranging from new ways of creating energy to popular resistance to centralized fossil power and shares them around the world. The film gives people concrete ideas of what they could achieve in their own communities. It attracted international attention for this article on how artists are reinterpreting power systems work, helping transform power systems, and showing how community energy is intimately linked to energy justice



Book and Performance Completion Award


The Pace University Office of Research is sponsoring once again the Book and Performance Completion Award.


The competition is open to all full-time faculty, across disciplines, who are clinical, tenure-track or tenured. The award is for $5,000 to help you finish a book project or put on a performance. You can use the funds for course release, summer salary, a research assistant or research supplies. Funds are placed in a scholarly research account.


The deadline for applications is Friday, November 3. All applications are peer reviewed and the winners will be announced in January 2024. See the instructions for more details and how to apply.


A list of previous winners from the competition can be found here

For questions, contact:

Avrom Caplan, PhD., Associate Provost for Sponsored Research at acaplan@pace.edu


Elina Bloch, PhD., Assistant Director, Sponsored Research at ebloch@pace.edu



Center for Undergraduate Research Experiences (CURE) Announcements


Undergraduate Research Assistantship Program

funded by Federal Work Study (FWS)


Proposals will be accepted on a rolling basis until funds are depleted.   

 

The Center for Undergraduate Research Experiences launched a pilot undergraduate research assistantship program funded by federal work-study during the 2020-2021 academic year. The goal for 2023-2024 is to continue to increase both the number of faculty research assistantship positions and the pool of students eligible for these positions.

Successful expansion requires the following two essential elements:



1)   faculty proposals for assistantship positions, and

2)   student awareness that federal work-study awards can be used for faculty-mentored research assistantships. Students sometimes decline FWS awards in their financial aid packages and take more loans because they do not understand how they can earn FWS dollars.  


To advance this program expansion, propose a research assistantship position to support your scholarship or creative inquiry. To recruit qualified student applicants, please inform students about this research opportunity so they can better understand the value of their federal work-study funds and how those funds can be earned while serving as research assistants!

 

Click here to propose an undergraduate research assistantship position

Undergraduate Research Webinar Series

 

Fall 2023 Student Undergraduate Research Webinar Series

Tuesday common hour – 3:25 p.m. - 4:25 p.m.

Wednesday common hour – 12:10 p.m. - 1:10 p.m.

Maria Iacullo-Bird, PhD., Assistant Provost for Research

 

*Social Justice and the Responsible Conduct of Research

Tuesday, 11/14/23 and Wednesday, 11/15/23

*Applying for a Summer 2024 National Science Foundation (NSF) Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU)

Tuesday, 12/12/23 and Wednesday, 12/13/23


Register in advance for Tuesday’s meeting

Register in advance for Wednesday’s meeting

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Fall 2023 Faculty Undergraduate Research Webinar Series

Monday common hour – 12:10 p.m. - 1:10 p.m.

Maria Iacullo-Bird, PhD., Assistant Provost for Research

 

*Applying for a National Science Foundation (NSF) Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) Program Site or Supplement -

Monday, 12/11/23

 

Register in advance for Monday’s meeting

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Fall 2023 Undergraduate Research Virtual Presentations Series


The university community is invited to attend the fall series of virtual research presentations by Summer 2023 Provost’s Student-Faculty Undergraduate Research and Creative Inquiry Award Program; Summer 2023 Dyson College Student-Faculty Undergraduate Research Initiatives; and Amelia A. Gould Undergraduate Research Assistantship in the Creative Arts awardees.

 


Monday Common hour – 12:10 p.m. - 1:10 p.m

*Creative Writing - 11/6/23

 

Register in advance for this Virtual Presentation

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

SAVE THE DATE: Spring 2024

Undergraduate Research and Creative Inquiry Days



Undergraduate Research Day in the New York City Campus – Wednesday, April 24, 2024

Undergraduate Research Day in the Pleasantville Campus – Friday, April 26, 2024

For questions contact:

Norma Quiridumbay, CURE Director of Operations at nquiridumbay@pace.edu



Maria Iacullo-Bird, PhD., Assistant Provost for Research at miacullobird@pace.edu

Prestigious Awards and Fellowships

The Harry S. Truman scholarship funds graduate school for students committed to public service. The foundation defines this broadly, and students are asked to reflect on previous public service, future study and career plans and to write a policy proposal. The Office of Prestigious Awards is hosting an information session on Monday, November 6, during Common Hour. 

Register in advance for this information session


As you know, many talented students hesitate to apply for opportunities for which they are eminently qualified. As part of pace’s Wellness Wednesdays, The Office of Prestigious Awards is hosting a session on Wednesday, November 8, during Common Hour. The session will focus on combating imposter syndrome and providing some tools to help encourage students to apply for awards that can help them achieve their academic and professional goals. 

Register in advance for this discussion

For questions, contact:

Moira Egan, PhD., Director of Prestigious Awards and Graduate Fellowships,

at megan@pace.edu

Share your research news here.

Questions? email Elina Bloch at ebloch@pace.edu


Stay connected: visit us at www.pace.edu/office-of-research