Recent accomplishments by the university community include honors earned by Gary Brewer, Michelle Hassler, Heather Richards-Rissetto, Philip Sapirstein, Joseph Weber and NET.
Faculty/Staff
Gary Brewer, professor and department head of entomology, was re-elected as the North Central Branch representative to the governing board of the Entomological Society of America. The three-year term begins at the end of the society’s annual meeting in November. The society is the largest organization in the world serving the professional and scientific needs of entomologists and colleagues in related disciplines. Learn more about the honor.
Michelle Hassler, associate professor of practice of journalism and mass communications, recently received the top award in the 2017 Association for Education in Journalism Great Ideas for Teachers competition. Hassler participated as one of 25 finalists in the competition, Aug. 9 in Chicago. Hassler’s entry involved requiring students to experience the journalism practice of embedding. For the assignment, Hassler required students to embed at two local refugee agencies in Lincoln to help them develop a better understanding of refugees and immigrants and the challenges they face. Hassler’s students in the Nebraska Mosaic journalism capstone course are tasked with interviewing and writing about the refugee community in Lincoln.
Heather Richards-Rissetto, assistant professor of anthropology, recently had an article published the Journal of Archaeological Science. The article explored how the geographic information system and 3-D technology may impact landscape archaeology. The article was published in a special edition that focused on “Archaeological GIS Today: Persistent Challenges, Pushing Old Boundaries and Exploring New Horizons.” Access Richards-Rissetto’s article.
Philip Sapirstein, assistant professor of art history, has been awarded nearly $11,000 by Harvard University’s Loeb Classical Library Foundation. The award will support Sapirstein’s ongoing digital architecture research project at Olympia, Greece. The work has focused on the Temple of Hera, an ancient Greek temple built in approximately 590 B.C. During the 2017-18 academic year, Sapirstein is developing a website that will allow visitors to explore 3D models and learn more about the temple. Learn more about the award and research.
- Joseph Weber, associate professor of journalism and mass communications, taught a course of 44 undergraduates at Shanghai University of Finance and Economics in July. At the request of the economic journalism department there, Weber devised and taught an eight-day program in business and economic journalism. He tailored parts of the course to China. Weber, who taught for a semester in the Global Business Journalism program at Tsinghua University in Beijing, in 2011, based his curriculum on a financial communications course he teaches at Nebraska. That financial communications course is a joint effort between the College of Journalism and Mass Communications and the College of Business. Learn more about Weber’s course in Shanghai.
Departments/Colleges/Units
- NET received 11 awards from the Nebraska Broadcasters Association during the 2017 Pinnacle Awards banquet. In the radio category, NET received three gold awards for: “Watching Our Water: Farmers Feel the Pressure to Fight Agricultural Water Pollution,” in service to agriculture; “Sold for Sex: Trafficking in Nebraska,” in best in-depth or investigative; and “A Nebraskan Climbed Mt. Everest…And it Almost Killed Him,” in best in-depth sports story. Three silver awards were also received for radio: “Grooming Hometown Students to Fill a Behavioral Health Shortage,” in service to children; “Classroom Conversations: Nebraska’s Death Penalty Vote,” in best election coverage; and “Watching Our Water: The Challenge to Keep it Clean,” in best multimedia journalism — news focus.” In the bronze category, NET radio was recognized for “Nebraska’s Growing Wind Energy and Workforce Demand,” for service to business, industry, government or education; and “Nebraska Basketball Referee Has Earned His Stripes,” for best in-depth sports story. In the television category, NET received three silver awards for: “Nebraska Stories: The Point is Poetry,” for service to children; “Nebraska Stories: The Science of Soil,” for service to business, industry, government or education; and “Bringing Indigenous Foods Back to the Table,” for best multimedia journalism.
This column is a regular Friday feature of Nebraska Today. Faculty, staff and students can submit their achievements to be considered for this column via email to achievements@unl.edu. For more information, call 402-472-8515.
