Master of Arts News

Anne Roth, M.A. 2012

Tue, 11 Dec 2012 14:55:59 GMT

As a special education teacher in Tennessee, Anne Roth focused her studies in the Master of Arts on the achievement gap between low income children and their more privileged peers. She has seven years of experience working with both inner-city and rural children and adolescents in Tennessee. Roth watched the heartbreaking pattern of children living below the poverty line experiencing an ever-widening achievement gap and wondered how best to teach them. Roth explains, “My passion is to help those children who are born into communities and homes where education cannot be priority because daily survival is often insecure.”

Her thesis research showed that students fall behind during their time outside of school, so government programs focusing on families with young children, e.g. the early Head Start program, have the greatest impact. Successful programs coordinate with other efforts to consider such important aspects as targeting, developmental timing, intensity, and accountability.

Roth traveled to Haiti this summer to provide assistance to families there that ranged from bringing toothbrushes, setting up a soccer ministry, feeding a village of children and their families, to bringing school supplies to children in orphanages. Roth exclaims, “I am so excited to bring back experiences that will help enrich my teaching strategies and to help those who I work with understand the lifestyle of those living below poverty, whether in our country or elsewhere.”

Rachel Martinez, M.A. 2012

Tue, 11 Dec 2012 14:54:40 GMT

Although she was already an IBCLC-certified practicing lactation consultant and educator, the MA Program provided Rachel Martinez a tremendous opportunity for career growth. While researching her thesis, Prenatal Breastfeeding Education: Impact on the Early Postpartum Period, she was able to apply discoveries made along the way to her work at the hospital throughout the entire process. She observes, “What really surprised me is how the experience showed me what is possible for the work I do and how I can now move forward with it.”

In addition to writing her thesis, Martinez also produced a prenatal breastfeeding education series that has garnered statewide interest. Martinez was invited to present her education series at the Breastfeeding Coalition of Oregon’s Annual Meeting in March 2012. Area prenatal practitioners, hospitals, and multiple county WIC offices will be participating in implementing the series.

Martinez acknowledges, “I credit much of what I have gained through the Master’s Program to the supportive and knowledgeable staff, and my classmates who introduced me to varied experiences, perspectives, and camaraderie.” She leaves the M.A. with an extended circle of new colleagues from all over the country to continue to draw upon for a community of practice.

S. Amy Desjarlais, M.A. 2012

Tue, 11 Dec 2012 14:53:29 GMT

A graduate of the M.A. and Center for World Indigenous Studies partnership program, Amy Desjarlais’s final project was a journey of both self-discovery and research into culturally-appropriate consultation methods. The thesis, “Emptying the Cup: Healing Fragmented Identity: an Anishinawbekwe Perspective on Historical Trauma and Culturally Appropriate Consultation,” addresses how historical tribulation continues to impact daily lives. Desjarlais explains that she uses the metaphor “Emptying the Cup” to describe the healing process: “The healing that takes place is akin to pouring the negative, self-defeating, and DANGEROUS ideals out of the vessel in order to make way for new things to replace it with. I sought out wisdom-keepers who could help me fill my vessel with teachings of our people, ways of healing and learning how to practice our way of life.”

The Canadian government has mandated consultation with First Nation peoples, which led Desjarlais to ask, “How can two completely different cultures successfully communicate, let alone consult, when the frameworks are so profoundly at odds with each other?” Her thesis is an exploration of the ways to bridge the worldviews, so individuals can come together to determine common goals, objectives, and understandings. The first step is to "translate" the consultation discussion so that the intent for all involved is similar. Desjarlais points out that building a culturally appropriate consultation will be unique for each group consulted.

Kristin Casas, M.A. 2012

Tue, 11 Dec 2012 14:52:38 GMT

According to Kristin Casas’s research, over 400,000 children worldwide in 2007 acquired HIV from their mothers during the pregnancy process or through breastfeeding. Casas’s thesis explored the complex issues involved in determining whether an HIV-infected mother should breastfeed or use formula. In resource-rich countries where formula is safe and readily available it is an easy choice. However, in resource-poor areas, the choice is complicated by the high infant mortality rates for those who do not breastfeed. Casas also found that the highest transmission of HIV occurred in infants who received both breast milk and formula. (The intermittent use of formula inflames the baby’s gut, increasing the likelihood of contracting HIV.) For mothers who choose to breastfeed, there is highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) to reduce the chances of the mother transmitting HIV to her nursing baby. By preserving breastfeeding in low-income contexts with the aid of HAART treatment, infants may be able to live longer, healthier, HIV-free lives compared to their formula-fed counterparts. The choice of an HIV-infected mother of whether to breastfeed or bottle-feed a baby is very convoluted. Casas explains, “Although I set out to discover what the safest feeding method would be for an infant born to an HIV-infected mother, the results from studies revealed that it differs for each individual.”

Concetta Spano, M.A. 2010

Tue, 11 Dec 2012 14:48:51 GMT

Concetta Spano, alumna of the History and Culture Concentration, recently received the 2012 New Jersey Governor’s Teacher Recognition Award for the Hopatcong School District. More importantly, she reports, “The greatest gift was my students telling me that I am the best teacher and many saying I am ‘awesome.’ It brought tears to my eyes.

Spano first became interested in becoming a teacher while she was in high school. Inspired by President Herbert Hoover’s quote, “Children are our most valuable resource,” she chose to volunteer at a middle school to help troubled adolescents. There she discovered she has a real talent and passion for teaching. She went on to complete her bachelor’s degree in elementary education (K-8) and began to work for Hopatcong Middle School. Spano lives by Dr. Robert H. Shaffer’s philosophy on teaching: “We must view young people not as empty bottles to be filled, but as candles to be lit.” She enjoys each child and encourages their individual gifts. Spano’s pupils exclaim, “Mrs. Spano we love that you come every day and just listen to us.”

Lissa Pohl, M.A. 2006

Tue, 11 Dec 2012 14:30:08 GMT

In 2006, within the Master of Arts Program at UI&U, Lissa Pohl studied how people embody leadership competencies and from that developed an equine-guided leadership education program where individuals receive immediate feedback on their leadership qualities through working with horses. Horses, as intelligent herd animals, are willing followers of people who successfully present themselves as leaders. As Pohl explains, “Collaborating with horses increases people’s awareness of kinesthetic intelligence and the effective use of body language. Working with horses can teach people how to effectively lead and manage by creating productive and collaborative relationships with others that are based on mutual respect, consistency, clear boundaries, integrity, intention and authenticity.”

Now Pohl regularly facilitates Herd Dynamics for Leaders workshops with both students and organizations through the Center for Leadership Development at the University of Kentucky. This year she is embarking on pioneering research into equine-guided leadership education through collaboration with UK Chandler Hospital. The research study will look at how interaction with the horses develops emotional intelligence in expert nurses.

Cathleen Rockwell, M.A. 2011

Tue, 11 Dec 2012 14:29:12 GMT

Since graduating from the Master of Arts Program in 2011, Cathleen Rockwell’s writing career has blossomed. She is now writing an online blog for Gainesville's edition of Italian Foods Examiner and Holiday Examiner. INsite Magazine hired her as a freelance writer to do theatre reviews and cover events such as the Epcot Food & Wine Festival and Universal Studios Mardi Gras Celebration. They have been so pleased with her work that they offered her the position of one of their staff writers as a movie columnist and film writer. She has also been given the opportunity to interview celebrities. She recently interviewed comedian Ron White in January. She also will be writing reviews for concerts like George Strait and Andrea Borcelli in February.

Rockwell will be the official media/press person for INsite Magazine at the Hoggetowne Medieval Faire in January and will be snapping pictures to go with the articles. Rockwell was also nominated to have her photo and bio in January's issue as a contributing journalist. She looks forward to this leading to full-time work as a writer.

Stephanie David, M.A. 2011

Tue, 11 Dec 2012 14:27:44 GMT

Stephanie David-Chapman began working on her final document, “Weaving Creativity, Culture and Indigenous Education,” with the question “How can teachers share ‘i ka olelo ke ola i ka olelo ka make?’ She loosely translates this to be “How can teachers share the life in literacy? How can teachers share the life in words and the death in words? In what ways could teachers have students taste the flavor of words and share the power and intimacy of text?”

Through an action research study with native Hawaiian middle and high school language arts students, Stephanie identified six recommendations on how to use creative teaching strategies to promote student motivation and self-actualization: set the foundation, discover student’s creative appetite, feed appetite, learn the internal library of your students, establish real and genuine relationship, and find a project with purpose and relevance. She applied these strategies to placed-based, project-based and culturally-focused education in Hawaiʻi, which allowed students to channel, direct and develop their own creativity. These creative teaching strategies resulted in an exciting increase in student performance, motivation, skill-building and relationship-building per the pre- and post-class assessments.

This school year Stephanie primarily works as a middle school project teacher. She uses her six recommendations to ground her interdisciplinary curriculum design. This year's project surrounds genealogy, relationship building and community service. Students will take part in a yearlong study of their genealogy, birth stories, and place of birth in order to envision their goals and sense of place for the future. Occasionally, she shares her action research project, findings and observations during school wide professional development and through indigenous education networks around Hawaii.

Amy Pizzuti-Brown, M.A. 2011

Tue, 11 Dec 2012 14:27:03 GMT

Like many woman before her, Amy Pizzuti-Brown’s interest and passion for breastfeeding began when she became a mother. It was only when she was expecting her first child and started reading the abundance of parenting literature did she realize how important breastfeeding is for the long term health of both children and mothers. However, to her surprise she discovered that breastfeeding is hard work, both time consuming and exhausting. It was certainly not the rosy picture of maternal happiness that she once envisioned. Out of this struggle grew her desire to become a support for women like herself and she proceeded to research the steps she would need to follow in order to become a lactation consultant. Ultimately, her search led her to Union Institute & University, which has one of the few programs for lactation consulting in the United States. UI&U set up affiliation agreements with local hospitals and breastfeeding programs for Amy to complete the required internship within her Master of Arts application courses. Amy describes her experience:

“I found the M.A. Program exciting and challenging as I found my way around academia. At the completion of my program, I had interned at a hospital, a non-profit, and a city health department. I believe that it was due to the diversity of job experience in the program that qualified me to be considered for a position as perinatal educator and lactation consultant at Del Sol Medical Center. I am incredibly proud and very excited that my final document, 'Guilt, Breastfeeding and Health Behavior Change' was recommended for both publishing and presenting at an upcoming international conference on breastfeeding."

Amber Fellure, M.A. 2011

Tue, 11 Dec 2012 14:26:01 GMT

Amber Fellure strengthened ties with her grandmother, Ann Brown, during her archival research locating primary sources for her final document. Their shared passion for genealogy made the discovery journey fun for both of them. Fellure focused her study on the “French 500” who settled in her town, Gallipolis, Ohio. These French aristocrats, fleeing from the French Revolution, purchased deeds to the area around Gallipolis from land speculators. However, those that survived the shipwreck and other hardships to reach this promised land discovered their deeds were worthless. Fellure dug into their original accounts of how they managed to survive on the Ohio frontier and created a fascinating final document.

Amber Fellure, J.D., is the assistant city prosecutor for Gallipolis. After graduating from the M.A. Program, she began to teach history, law, and criminal justice classes at her local community college.

Dalene Fisher, M.A. 2011

Tue, 11 Dec 2012 14:21:47 GMT

While completing Teaching Writing I and her final document, Dalene Fisher lined up a job to teach three sections of Composition I at Oklahoma Wesleyan University upon graduating. Dalene has five years of experience teaching high school English and maintains a blog, The Musty Study, to encourage the hesitant reader to discover the timely nature of the old classics in English literature.“UI&U has enabled me to reach my goal of teaching at the university level” explains Dalene. “From engaging in challenging writing exercises, I am able to empathize with my own students and have been truly stretched as a writing teacher. I've shed tears of both sorrow and joy! I loved teaching high school, but I feel prepared now to move to a new level of instruction."

Jan Hurndon, M.A. 2011

Tue, 11 Dec 2012 14:20:06 GMT

Jan Hurndon started a blog as part of her Applications course to document her European travels that brought her up-close-and-personal with the subject of her research, French Gothic art and architecture. Hurndon’s primary focus has been on the use of light in the architecture. She explains,

The builders of the great Gothic cathedrals sought to recapture the holy light of creation in a literal and figurative sense, to recreate the Heavenly Jerusalem for the earth-bound believer. The Gothic cathedral would also serve to illumine the mind and transport the spirit of the medieval pilgrim in a way that no physical structure before or since has been able to do. It is a seemingly immortal testimonial to faith, as imposing and inspirational in its quiet presence as it was nearly a millenium ago.

The Chartres workshop was led by leading French researchers and restoration archaeologists, and provided the inspiration for her own research. Hurndon’s final document for her MA degree was titled From Lux to Inluminare: Light as agent of enlightenment in the labyrinth and related elements of the French Gothic cathedral. She credit Union’s experiential and personalized approach with encouraging her to combine her interest in various disciplines – language, European history, her Christian faith, and Gothic architecture – into a culminating project that she found both academically challenging and personally enriching. Hurndon now teaches Western Art Appreciation on the college level and hopes to share that same cross-disciplinary focus and hands-on passion with her own students.

For more information about Hurndon’s travels, please visit her blog.

Jon Neal Wallace, M.A. 2008

Tue, 11 Dec 2012 14:19:11 GMT

Jon Neal Wallace’s final document, “Light from Design,” presents a concept for a new design principle for art entitled, “Directions,” that correlates art and physics. Wallace’s innovative design principle got him noticed by the international art community. Since graduating from the M.A. Online Program, his environmental and political art have been shown in San Francisco, Chicago, New York, Miami, London, and Europe. His art was originally scheduled to be included in a show for Beijing, but some of the show’s controversial stance on communism was quickly vetoed by the Chinese government. Currently, his work is under consideration for an exhibit in Paris.

Wallace’s other passion is writing, which he is pursuing within an MFA program. He is presently working on a historical novel about the civil War, Ragman’s Roll. It involves the reader in the cause of freedom for everyone through the dedicated eyes of the narrator, Tom Jackson, friend of Gen. William H.L. Wallace whose heroic life he witnesses.

In addition to his art and writing career, Jon Wallace hopes to share his passion for these topics with his own students one day.

Elizabeth Jacquet, M.A. 2011

Tue, 11 Dec 2012 14:17:17 GMT

Elizabeth Jacquet focused her Final Document on the lesser-known civilization of the Etruscans, contemporaries of the ancient Greeks and Romans. Through careful examination of the artifacts these people left behind in burial chambers, Jacquet seeks to debunk the slanderous claims made by their Roman enemies. One of the most fascinating aspects of the Etruscan culture that Jacquet reveals is the equity between men and women. Iconography in the hand mirrors, for example, honors women as brides, wives, and mothers. Some reflect men and women reading together or competing as equals in games. One mirror shows a man and a woman playing a board game wherein the inscription reads “I’m going to beat you” above the woman, and “I do believe you are” carved above the man. Based on this and other iconography, Jacquet asserts that the hand mirrors are “Not just a tool, but a gift for a bride and a dedication to the deceased. The uniquely Etruscan bronze hand mirror demonstrated the power and equality of Etruscan women."

The M.A. degree from UI&U has not only enhanced Jacquet’s career as a history teacher, it has also given her the courage to start a high school summer program in France, called "L'Atelier au Chateau," with her husband. Although the curriculum emphasizes the fine-arts, creative and scholastic thinking are intertwined in each lesson. “I believe that my work at Union has given me the edge to stand behind such scholastic and artistic pursuits, and to confidently represent our program as a professional and scholar,” explained Jacquet enthusiastically. For more information, view their website at drawinginfrance.com.

Daniel Van Horn, M.A. 2011

Tue, 11 Dec 2012 14:16:16 GMT

Daniel Van Horn made an exciting historical discovery during his Applications course of a cache of original drawings and letters from the first official WWI artist commissioned by the U.S. government, J. Andre Smith. Not only did he focus his final document on J. Andre Smith’s role in the war, Van Horn’s find also resulted in his being asked to design a new, permanent exhibition at the Maitland Art Center in Florida.

Van Horn’s discovery showed the steadfast leadership of J. Andre Smith as he guided the “Art Squad” engaged to document the Great War. Smith operated under the belief that the Art Squad’s role was to faithfully create historical documentation of the war through their works of art. However, others felt the true purpose of the Art Squad was to roll out propaganda for use in the government’s ongoing struggle in the battle of public opinion. Smith’s perspective won out and, for the 8 months they were engaged before the end of WWI, the Art Squad’s drawings revealed the unsensational business side of war.
A House in Badonviller by J Andre SmithFor example, Smith admired the soldiers’ complacency around death, and documented soldiers relaxing in the bombed building remains as if the war “was a thousand miles away and not just the other side of the next building."( J. André Smith, In France with the American Expeditionary Forces (New York: A. H. Hahlo, 1919), 59.)

The scope of this primary source is so vast that Daniel Van Horn was able to use only a small part of it for his final document, and is continuing his research into Andre Smith to develop a complete biography. Based on his serious academic scholarship and successful museum exhibit of the life and work of Smith, Van Horn has been approached about other research and book opportunities.

Aaron Moe, M.A. 2009

Tue, 11 Dec 2012 14:15:28 GMT

Aaron Moe has recently published "Chaos & the 'New' Nature Poem: A Look at E. E. Cummings' Poetry." CT Review 32.1 (2010): 11-24. It is a continuation of the work he completed for his final document within the M.A. Program.

Moe is now pursuing his doctorate in English. He is currently exploring W. S. Merwin's poetry, specifically how Merwin's ecological anguish leads to an unprecedented poetics of humility. Along with his literary research, he teaches composition courses for the university's undergraduate program. He explains his composition philosophy as follows:

Indeed, rhetoric creates the backbone of my composition philosophy. Ethos, pathos, logos, kairos, and decorum. These words encapsulate ideas that guide the composing process, for they define some of the ways through which we persuade. The composing process must include a rhetorical awareness of how the framing of language--whether its typeface, punctuation, paragraph breaks or facial gestures, intonations of voice, or bodily tilts--contributes to the Protean possibilities of meaning making.

For more information about Moe’s work, see his website: http://www.aaronmoe.com/.

David Gentilini, M.A. 2010

Tue, 11 Dec 2012 14:12:56 GMT

David Gentilini focused his studies at UI&U on how to create a relevant and accessible museum experience ̶ making the museum the "lung of a city." He continues his imaginative programming through his involvement in collaborating with five Columbus art galleries to produce On Display ’10 at Capital University Museum's Schumacher Gallery in Columbus, Ohio. The five galleries that displayed at the museum each represented their own niche in the art world, so they are able to collaborate to draw attention to the collective galleries and Ohio artists in general. The display was designed to introduce the general public to the galleries and spark further interest in art. For more information, see Columbus City Scene Magazine ’s article: “Five Visions.”

Glenda Taylor, M.A. 2010

Tue, 11 Dec 2012 14:12:14 GMT

Eminent cultural historian Glenda Taylor describes herself as a “griotte,” a mistress of words and music. Her master's thesis was published in 2011 and is available through Amazon.com: The Jalimuso’s Drum: African American Female Entertainers as Cultural Historians/Griottes. Using autobiographical lenses of African American celebrities, Taylor explores Civil and Human Rights Movements within twentieth century America through their diverse perspectives.

Other books she has written include Blind Light, The Secrets of Success: Quotations by African American Achievers, The Secrets of Success: The Black Man’s Perspective, and Truth Beyond Illusion: African-American Women 1860s-1950s.

Melanie Diedrich, M.A. 2009

Tue, 11 Dec 2012 12:40:12 GMT

Melanie Diedrich in the lab

Upon graduating from UI&U, Melanie Diedrich founded Archaeological Macroflora Identification (AMI), a subcontracting business serving archaeologists. She explains, “Macrofloral analysis from archaeological excavation is an important component of the overall analysis of a site.” Diedrich has been hired for this specialized work by such organizations as the Washington State Department of Transportation, Drayton Archaeology Research, and Rain Shadow Research, Inc., and Cultural Resource Consultants, Inc.

Diedrich’s successful academic career at UI&U resulted in articles published in both the Journal of Wetland Archaeology and Archaeology in Washington Journal. The articles Diedrich authored in Journal of Wetland Archaeology, Volume 9, focus on the site work she completed at Sunken Village Archaeology Site on Sauvie Island, Oregon, during her application courses. Her thesis work, "Pacific Northwest Paleobotany: Native Seeds and the Creation of a Comparative Library," was published in Archaeology in Washington Journal and describes the importance of sampling for botanical material in Pacific Northwest Archaeology, her efforts to design a seed-key, and the digital photography of native seeds as a comparative library for research.

Kym Kennedy, M.A. 2010

Tue, 11 Dec 2012 12:36:05 GMT

Kym Kennedy
(photo courtesy The World)

While wrapping up her master's coursework at UI&U, Kennedy was offered a job teaching writing and composition at Southwestern Oregon Community College. She is also working on her Ph.D. in adult and postsecondary education. Kym's goal in earning a M.A. with a concentration in literature and writing was to “become the type of college professor that can transmit passion for literature to students and show them how literature and writing are relevant to their lives regardless of their majors.”