Erika Engstrom (Communication Studies) wrote an article, "'Knope We Can!': Primetime Feminist Strategies in NBC's Parks and Recreation," which appeared in the November issue of Media Report to Women.

Julian Kilker (Journalism & Media Studies) and Augie Grant, a professor in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of South Carolina, cohosted "Beyond Convergence," a conference sponsored by the two journalism schools. More than 50 scholars from across the nation shared their research in the field of technology and…

Karunaratne Hangawatte (Criminal Justice), Sri Lanka's ambassador to France and permanent delegate to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), unanimously was elected vice president of the 37th session of the General Conference of UNESCO in Paris in November. Leading the delegation of Sri Lanka to the biennial…

Kathy Lauckner (Environmental and Public Affairs) spoke at the Lead and Healthy Housing Midwest Conference in Peoria, Ill., in October. She addressed the nuances of a healthy homes investigation and a lead hazard assessment. She also has been invited to join a workforce coalition group associated with the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and…

Sara VanderHaagen (Communication Studies) wrote an essay, "The 'Agential Spiral': Reading Public Memory Through Paul Ricoeur," that recently appeared in the interdisciplinary journal Philosophy and Rhetoric. The essay adapts philosopher Paul Ricoeur's idea of "threefold mimesis" into a tool for analyzing public memory from a rhetorical perspective.

Erika Engstrom (Communication Studies) presented "Making Feminism Mainstream: Amy Poehler and NBC's Parks and Recreation" at the 25th annual Far West and American Culture Association conference in Las Vegas in February.

Erika Engstrom (Communication Studies) presented "The Disneyfication of Brideland" at the annual convention of the National Communication Association in Orlando, Fla., in November. Her presentation was part of a day-long seminar on teaching and researching Disney as popular culture and communication.

James Deacon (Environmental and Public Affairs) received the first E.O. Wilson Award for Outstanding Science in Biodiversity Conservation. The award is given by the Center for Biological Diversity. Over the course of a 52-year career, he has focused on conservation of desert fish and other freshwater species and on sustainable water-use advocacy…

Satish Sharma (Social Work) has written a new book, Gandhi's Teachers: Henry David Thoreau (2012). His earlier books written for the series are Gandhi's Teachers: Rajchandra Ravjibhai Mehta (2005), Gandhi's Teachers: Leo Tolstoy (2009), and Gandhi's Teachers: John Ruskin (2011). All were published by Gujarat Viidyapith, Ahmedabad, India.

Elizabeth MacDowell (Law) and Emily Troshynski (Criminal Justice) have been named Bellow Scholars for 2013 by the Association of American Law Schools (AALS) in honor of empirical research projects that promise to improve access to justice for underserved communities. The awards were announced at the AALS annual conference in New Orleans in…

Christopher Stream (Environmental and Public Affairs) and Robert Tekniepe (Environmental and Public Affairs) recently had an article published in the American Review of Public Administration. The article, "You're Fired," focuses on factors that affect county manager turnover in large U.S. counties during an 18-year period. The analysis reveals…

Gregory Borchard (Journalism and Media Studies) received the 2012 Annual Award for Distinguished Scholarship in Journalism History at the 20th annual meeting of the Symposium on 19th Century Press, The Civil War, and Free Expression at the University of Tennessee, Chattanooga (UTC) in November. Renowned historian David Sachsman, head of the…