Arts and Sciences Faculty Achievements

Awards

Chemistry

  • Ipsita Banerjee, Ph.D., Professor and Chair, Department of Chemistry, has been selected by the 2023 MARM Awards Committee as the winner of the 2023 E. Emmet Reid Award in Chemistry Teaching at Small Colleges in the ACS Middle Atlantic Region, in addition to being named the Distinguished Scientist Award from the Westchester Chemical Society.
  • Joshua Schrier, Ph.D., Professor and Bepler Chair, Department of Chemistry, Elizabeth Thrall, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Chemistry, and Yijun Zhao, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Computer & Information Sciences, received the inaugural James C. McGroddy Award for Innovation in Education.

English

  • Robb Hernández, Ph.D., Associate Professor of English, has won a nationally competitive fellowship for next year at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.

History

  • Robb Haberman, Ph.D., Lecturer in the History Department, has been awarded two research fellowships for the summer: The New York State Society of the Cincinnati Fellowship at the American Revolution Institute of the Society of the Cincinnati in Washington, D.C, and the American Revolution Fellowship at the American Philosophical Society Library & Museum in Philadelphia. 

Philosophy

  • Samir Haddad, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Philosophy, received Honorable Mention in relation to the James C. McGroddy Award for Innovation in Education.

Physics

  • Stephen Holler, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Physics, received Honorable Mention in relation to the James C. McGroddy Award for Innovation in Education.

Political Science

  • Jose A. Aleman, Ph.D., Professor of Political Science, received a Beacon Exemplar Award from Fordham's United Student Government.
  • Melissa Labonte, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Political Science, received a Beacon Exemplar Award from Fordham's United Student Government.
  • Monika McDermott, Professor of Political Science, Ph.D., received a Beacon Exemplar Award from Fordham's United Student Government.

Psychology

  • David Budescu, Ph.D., Anne Anastasi Professor of Psychometrics and Quantitative Psychology, received the 2023 Frank P. Ramsey Medal from the Ramsey Award Committee of the Decision Analysis Society for his distinguished contributions to Decision Analysis; the highest honor bestowed by the society.

Theology

  • Michael Lee, Ph.D., Professor of Systematic Theology and Director of the Francis & Ann Curran Center for American Catholic Studies, was awarded the Maria Paz Aspe Faculty Award by Fordham’s Global Outreach program during their 60th anniversary gala ceremony. The award is named for the first faculty member to lead a GO! project and is given to a faculty member who “exemplifies the values of Global Outreach … with exceptional leadership, community engagement, and Ignatian spirit.”
  • Aristotle Papanikolaou, Ph.D., Professor of Theology and the Archbishop Demetrios Chair in Orthodox Theology and Culture, was appointed to the Editorial Board of Modern Theology. 
  • Kathryn Reklis, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Theology, received a Course Development Grant from the Yale Center for Faith and Culture as part of the Growing the Life Worth Living Network in Higher Education project funded by the John Templeton Foundation.

Books & Chapters

Anthropology & Sociology

  • Orit Avishai, Ph.D., Professor of Sociology, published the book Queer Judaism: LGBT Activism and the Remaking of Jewish Orthodoxy in Israel.

History

  • Magda Teter, Ph.D., Professor of History and Shvidler Chair in Judaic Studies, published the book Christian Supremacy: Reckoning with the Roots of Antisemitism and Racism.

Political Science

  • Zein Murib, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Political Science and Co-Director of Women, Gender, & Sexuality Studies, published the book Terms of Exclusion: Rightful Citizenship Claims and the Construction of LGBT Political Identity (available for pre-order).

Podcasts

Computer and Information Science

  • Thaier Hayajneh, Ph.D., Professor of Computer and Information Science, was a guest on the podcast Cybersecurity Guide.

English

  • Susan Greenfield, Ph.D., Professor of English, was a guest on the Nobody Chooses Homelessness: A City Relief podcast to discuss her latest book, Sacred Shelter.

Political Science

  • Zein Murib, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Political Science and Co-Director of Women, Gender, & Sexuality Studies, was a guest on the No Jargon podcast and the Scholars Strategy Network podcast to discuss why trans people have become the focus of so much legislative activity.

Exhibits, Panels, & Presentations

History

  • Robb Haberman, Ph.D., Lecturer in the History Department, will be presenting “The Revolutionary War Memorialist as Editor: the Memoir of James Selkirk” at the annual meeting of the Association for Documentary Editing which will be held in June in Washington, D.C.

Physics

  • Stephen Holler, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Physics, presented at the 20th Electromagnetic and Light Scattering Conference.

Political Science

  • Olena Nikolayenko, Ph.D., Professor and Chair, Department of Political Science, served as a discussant at the Fordham event "Russia's War of Aggression Against Ukraine: Historical and Contemporary Contexts” on May 2. She is also a visiting researcher at the Institute for Russian and Eurasian Studies at Uppsala University and on May 9, she gave a talk on the role of trade unions in Belarus.

Theology

  • Robert Choiniere, Ph.D., Professor of Theology, is a facilitator for the Passionist of Holy Cross Province and recently did a virtual presentation titled “Creating the Space – Bob Choiniere Helps the Passionists Navigate Synodality.” You can watch the full interview here.
  • Thomas Massaro, S.J., Professor of Theology, presented “What Precisely Did Pope Francis Contribute? Parsing Key Terms and Claims in Laudato Si’,” at the International Conference on Social and Environmental Justice, held at the Lincoln Center campus of Fordham University, May 1, 2023.
  • St. Louis University hosted a free public lecture on the Catholic Church and racial justice. It was led by Father Bryan Massingale, Professor of Theological and Social Ethics, as well as the James and Nancy Buckman Chair in Applied Christian Ethics and Senior Fellow in Center for Ethics Education. 
  • Cristina Traina, Ph.D., Professor of Theology and Avery Cardinal Dulles, S.J. Chair in Catholic Theology, delivered the annual Madaleva lecture, "Feminism, Finitude, and Flourishing: On 'Being Mortal, Like Everyone Else' (Wis 7:1)" on April 13.
  • Christiana Zenner, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Theology, led a workshop for Wayne State University Law Students, entitled “International Law, Ethical Claims regarding Waters, and the role of Catholic Social Teaching” on Friday, April 14, 2023 (via Zoom).

Published Articles, Essays, & Citations

Economics

English

  • Elizabeth Stone, Ph.D., Professor of English, published the Smithsonian Magazine article, “The Woman Who Saved the Statue of Liberty.”

Theology

  • Rufus Burnett, Jr., Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Theology, published “Cartographies in the Wilderness: A Decolonial Theological Reflection on Intersectionality” in the Journal of Moral Theology.
  • Emanuel Fiano, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, published “‘My Program Is Still Broader Than the Sea’: Gershom Scholem’s Letters to Abraham Joshua Heschel, 1940–1953,” an article about an epistolary exchange between German-born Israeli philosopher and historian Gershom Scholem (1897-1982) and Polish-American rabbi, theologian, and philosopher Abraham Joshua Heschel (1907-1972).
  • Thomas Massaro, S.J., Professor of Theology, published the article “Pope Francis, the Ethicist: Ignatian Roots, Jesuit Priorities, Contemporary Challenges,” which appears on pages 173-91 of volume 2, no. 2 of the journal Review for Religious. 
  • Kathryn Reklis, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Theology, published the op-ed piece in CNN called, “Opinion: This show is ‘Game of Thrones’ meets ‘Left Behind’ and The Christian Century article, “In Broker, petty thieves teach us to forgive.
  • Larry Welborn, Ph.D., Professor of Theology, published a review essay of new books on “Early High Christologies” in the journal Early Christianity 14 (2023) 111-117.

Radio

Communication & Media Studies

  • Paul Levinson, Ph.D., Professor of Communications and Media Studies, was a guest on WDET to discuss what Fox News’ dominion settlement says about the media landscape.

Economics

  • Giacomo Santangelo, Ph.D., Senior Lecturer in Economics, was a guest on KCBS Radio to discuss Gap announcing hundreds of corporate layoffs. 

Theology

  • Aristotle Papanikolaou, Ph.D., Professor of Theology and the Archbishop Demetrios Chair in Orthodox Theology and Culture, was a guest on The Brian Lehrer Show to talk about the role of the Orthodox Church in Russia's geopolitics as the war in Ukraine continues.

Television

Communication & Media Studies

  • Paul Levinson, Ph.D., Professor of Communications and Media Studies, appeared on NBC to discuss Tucker Carlson leaving Fox News.

Political Science

  • Christina Greer, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Political Science, was featured in the MSNBC segment to discuss the Republican Party’s democracy problem and the NY1 segment to discuss Trump being arraigned in NYC.

Psychology

  • Harold Takooshian, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology and Urban Studies and the Director of the Organizational Leadership Program, appeared on BronxNet to discuss the relatively new term “swatting calls” and the psyche.

Quotes

Art History & Music

  • Caitlin Beach, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Art History, was quoted in The New York Times article, “Artwork Inspired by an Abraham Lincoln Moment Is Reimagined.”

Communication and Media Studies

  • Beth Knobel, Ph.D., Associate Professor and Associate Chair for Graduate Studies, Department of Communication and Media Studies, and Director, Public Media MA Program, was quoted in The Hill article, “Putin Assassination Attempt? What to Know About the Kremlin Drone Attack.”

History

  • Christopher Maginn, Ph.D., Professor of History and Chair of the History Department, was quoted in the USA Today article, “President Biden Visits Northern Ireland Amid Thwarted IRA Bomb Plot and Fragile Peace.”

Political Science

  • Christina Greer, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Political Science, was quoted in the Associated Press article, “New York, City of Trump’s Dreams, Delivers his Comeuppance.”
  • Zein Murib, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Political Science and Co-Director of Women, Gender, & Sexuality Studies, was mentioned in the Associated Press article, “The front door, threshold of welcome — and perilous border.”

Sociology and Anthropology

  • Chris Rhomberg, Ph.D., Professor of Sociology, was quoted in The Star Ledger article, “Rutgers Strike: Gov. Murphy Gets Involved in Talks, Wants to ‘lock the door’ until there’s a Settlement.”

Theology

  • Christine Firer Hinze, Ph.D., Professor and Chair, Department of Theology, was quoted in the Orlando Sentinel article, “DeSantis Ramps up Executions as Bid for President Nears.”