Monthly Archives: September 2019

Sustainability forum, Oct 3, 1-2 p.m. in Laws Hall

Dr. Adam Sizemore, Director of Sustainability for Miami University, will host a public forum on Thursday, October 3, from 1-2 p.m. in Laws Hall.  This public forum will present an overview of the report “A Commitment to Lead,” which was presented by the Sustainability Committee to President Crawford in June 2019.  Included in the forum will be a discussion of the Sustainability Committee’s recommendation for carbon neutrality, an overview of the President’s Climate Leadership Commitment (PCLC), and a brief discussion of the work the Sustainability Committee will conduct this semester to provide President Crawford with additional information on a pathway to carbon neutrality.

CAS Ambassador nominations

The College of Arts and Science is once again looking for CAS students who might serve as College Ambassadors and represent CAS at various events on campus. CAS Ambassadors are important representatives, especially during our Admission recruitment and yield events. Without them, much of what we do during the Make It Miami events would be lackluster.

Faculty may nominate undergraduates for consideration as CAS Ambassadors. Please submit nominations before Friday, October 11th using this Ambassador Nomination Form.

Characteristics of ideal CAS Ambassador candidates include:

  • Articulate/comfortable with public speaking
  • Intellectually engaged
  • Average to strong academic record (we do not want only honors students)
  • Interact well with peers

To save on duplicating nominations for students who helped out with the program last year, we have included a link to the list of College Ambassadors found on the CAS website.

New Undergraduate FAQs on department website

Thanks to everyone, especially Anna Radke and everyone who contributed their questions and answers, for putting together a list of frequently asked questions that our undergraduates often have, which is a broader effort to upgrade our department’s on-line resources for students. As you advise your students, please be sure to let your students know about these FAQs and how they can help educate themselves on issues such as “what careers are available with a psychology major?” or “how do I transfer credits?” or “how do I join the psychology honors program?” Also, I encourage all members of the department to review these questions for their own education as well. Thanks again to Anna, everyone who contributed to the FAQs, Elise Clerkin (for spearheading our work on advising improvement), and everyone who provided feedback on the effort along the way!

Faculty leave requests: let Allen know by October 15

If you are a faculty member thinking about requesting a professional leave either through the Assigned Research Appointment or the Faculty Improvement Leave mechanisms for the 2020-21 AY, please complete the leave PDF form (including relevant attachments) and then email them to Allen no later than Tuesday, October 15, 2019, at 5 p.m. Although faculty leave requests are not due to the dean until November 1, it is important that we know about faculty requests well beforehand because leaves have an impact on our departmental teaching schedules — thus, it is important that we know about possible contingencies in advance. Failure to meet the October 15 notification deadline will remove one from consideration for leaves next year. If you have any questions, please talk to Allen well in advance of the October 15 deadline.

CAS Distinguished Educator address on Sept 17

2019 Distinguished Educator Award winner Lynette Hudiburgh, Senior Lecturer, Department of Statistics will present a talk entitled, “Statistics: Confused, Misused, and Abused, orHow to Avoid Being Swept Away in the Data Deluge” on Tuesday, September 17, 2019, from 4-5:30 p.m. in 002 Upham. This is an update for the time and location.

NetDisk web-based application being discontinued

IT Services will be retiring the NetDisk web application this coming winter.

NetDisk is the web interface for accessing documents stored in the M drive on IT Services maintained servers (i.e., MyFiles, MUFiles, and departmental file space). NetDisk has been used by students, faculty, and staff to store files for access from multiple computers, anywhere on or off campus. However, the application is written in a programming language no longer supported by security updates – and thus, IT Services is turning it off.

These files are not being deleted. However, the web-based interface is going away. There are many alternate tools for sharing and storing files such as Canvas, Google Drive, and Filelocker that are all readily available and convenient. You will also still be able to access the files stored on the M drive. Please see IT’s decommission notice for a full list of alternatives and instructions for how to access those.

OARS fall networking events

The following comes from Amy Hurley Cooper, Assistant Director of Proposal Development.

Casual networking events: Thursday, September 12, 5-7 pm at Books&Brews and 
Tuesday, November 12, 5-7 pm at Cru Gastro Lounge

In response to feedback from the research community, we’re offering two opportunities for informal networking. There’s no program for these informal get-togethers that set the stage for productive research collaborations — just a chance to meet new colleagues and catch up with old ones. These are no-host events; see the restaurant websites (links above) for menus and pricing. No registration is required.

Second annual research community networking in the club lounge event:
Tuesday, October 29, 5-6:30 pm at Goggin Ice Arena Club LoungeThis event is directed toward new and experienced researchers who have submitted proposals in the past year or received a grant in the last several years as well as new faculty. Invitations will be sent to researchers in the coming weeks. The event is also unscripted with the goal of encouraging new friendships and the exchange of ideas. We invite you to register and stop in any time between 5:00 and 6:30 pm for drinks and hors d’oeuvres.

Proposal writing workshop: Early October through mid-November (exact dates TBD — see below).This hands-on, 6-week workshop will assist faculty in developing a grant proposal for submission to an external funding agency. It is designed to:

  • Help participants identify external funding sources
  • Assist participants in step-by-step proposal development
  • Integrate peer review in the proposal development process
  • Familiarize participants with internal resources for funding, statistics, evaluation, and compliance

To select a weekday and time that work for as many faculty as possible, we’re asking those who are interested to please complete this survey. Once we’ve settled on a day and time we will contact survey respondents with the workshop details.

Gina McCarthy, former EPA chief, keynote address on Sept 13

Miami’s Institute for the Environment and Sustainability is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, and Gina McCarthy is coming to Miami to be the keynote speaker to kick off the festivities. Ms. McCarthy headed the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 2013-2017 under President Barack Obama. She is currently director of the Center for Climate Health and the Global Environment (C-CHANGE) and professor in Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

Her keynote address will take place on Friday, September 13 at 5 pm in Wilks Theater, inside the Armstrong Student Center at Miami’s Oxford campus. All members of the public, including students and professionals in environmental science, are invited to attend.

Gina McCarthy has long been a strong advocate for a sensible, impactful, and science-based environmental policy. Her 35-year career in public service, dedicated to environmental protection and public health, culminated when she led the EPA during Obama’s second term. Her leadership and perseverance at the agency have led to federal, state, and local actions on critical environmental issues consistent with a growing US economy, including advancement of clean energy, public transportation, and public health.

Search committee member still sought in clinical on regionals

As I mentioned at our Department Meeting, PSS on the regionals will have two searches this year, one in experimental/i-o psychology and the other in clinical psychology. Barb Oswald asked if we could have one Oxford campus faculty member serve on each committee (in part because she’s the only psychologist who can serve on the committee because of leaves). Fortunately, Jay Smart agreed to serve on the experimental/i-o search committee (thanks Jay!), but Barb still needs someone to serve on the clinical search committee. Having Oxford faculty on this committee is important not only to help out our regional campus colleagues, but also because regional campuses offer PSY courses (and some of their students transfer to the Oxford campus), so having some voice in how PSY courses is taught is important. Below is an excerpt from the clinical ad, and she is willing to work with our faculty to schedule many meetings in Oxford rather than Hamilton. Can you reach out to Barb to let her know if you’re willing to serve in this capacity?

The Social and Behavioral Science Department at Miami University’s Regional Campuses seeks outstanding candidates for a tenure-track assistant professor in Psychological Science with a focus on Clinical Psychology to begin in August of 2020. Primary responsibilities of the position include teaching undergraduate courses on the regional campus; advising and mentoring undergraduate students; providing meaningful campus, discipline, and community service; and establishing a program of scholarly activity. Faculty in the department teach courses such as introductory psychology, abnormal psychology, personality psychology, counseling, and research methods & statistics, with opportunities to teach other courses in area of specialization.

Require: Applicants are required to have a Ph.D. in clinical psychology or closely related field by time of appointment.

Consideration may be given to candidates that have demonstrated experience and excellence in college teaching, especially in introductory, abnormal, research methods, and statistics; a well-documented service and scholarly record or articulated agendas for both active community service and continued scholarship; experience with non-traditional students; experience with online learning; advising experience; and strong skills in interacting and collaborating with students, faculty, and staff from diverse backgrounds and disciplines. The campus is especially interested in candidates who can contribute to the diversity and excellence of the Miami community through synthesis among their teaching, service, and scholarship.

Submit: Cover letter, curriculum vitae, teaching philosophy (with evidence of teaching effectiveness, such as course evaluations or peer review), and upload statement of service and scholarly agenda under “Other” and 2-3 representative reprints/preprints under “Writing Sample” to (add PageUp link here). Ensure email contact information is provided in the application system for three professional references. Letters of reference will be requested upon receipt of application.

Inquiries about the position can be directed to Dr. Barbara Oswald at oswaldbb@miamioh.edu.
Review of applications will begin on December 1, 2019 and continues until position is filled.