Rebecca Cuthbert is an Adjunct Lecturer at SUNY Fredonia, specializing in poetry and speculative fiction with a focus on horror and the grotesque. She holds an M.F.A. from West Virginia University. Her work explores themes of the Feminine Grotesque, body narratives, and the Uncanny, often intersecting with feminist and social critiques. She has published widely, including her poetry collection IN MEMORY OF EXOSKELETONS (2023) and forthcoming hybrid collection SELF-MADE MONSTERS (2024). Her teaching philosophy emphasizes accessible writing education and the iterative creative process. Education: M.F.A., West Virginia University Professional Memberships: Horror Writers Association (New York Chapter), Horror Writers Association Her research interests include Feminist Horror, quiet horror, and the intersection of history and place. She has presented at venues like StokerCon 2023 and the Fredonia Literary Festival. Awards include the SUNY Chancellor's Award for Adjunct Teaching (2023) and a Pushcart Prize nomination (2022).
Jamie Arndt is a Professor at the University of Missouri , affiliated with the College of Arts and Science and the Department of Psychological Sciences . He serves as Senior Associate Dean and leads the Existential Motivation Lab , where he explores the intersection of mortality awareness, meaning-seeking, and social behavior. Research Interests : Arndt’s work bridges existential philosophy and empirical psychology, focusing on how awareness of death (Terror Management Theory) shapes aggression, prejudice, health decisions, and cultural identity. He investigates existential isolation, metaphorical framing in health communication, and the interplay between defensive processes and creativity. His research spans social, personality, and health psychology. Article Trends : Recent publications emphasize metaphor-based interventions in health behavior, demographic shifts in policy attitudes, and existential isolation’s impact on well-being. Collaborations with students like T. Jimenez and P.J. Helm highlight interdisciplinary approaches to mortality cognition and social dynamics. Labs & Teams : The Existential Motivation Lab at Missouri Center for Addiction Research and Engagement explores theoretical and applied questions through experimental social psychology, mentoring graduate students and fostering cross-departmental research partnerships.
Victor Akinwande is a doctoral researcher at Carnegie Mellon University's Computer Science Department under advisor J. Zico Kolter. His research focuses on robust machine learning systems, causal inference for global health applications, and advancing vision-language models through generative modeling techniques. He holds an MSc in Information Technology (CMU, 2016–2018) and a BSc in Computer Science from the University of Ilorin (2011–2015). His work spans key areas including adversarial robustness, generalization bounds for prompt-based learning, and causal effect estimation in public health. Notable contributions include HyperCLIP (2024), AcceleratedLiNGAM (2024), and foundational work on subset scanning for anomaly detection in health data (2020–2022). Victor has been recognized with an Outstanding Paper Award (ICLR 2024 workshop) and a Distinguished Paper Award Nomination (AMIA 2022). His research bridges theoretical machine learning advancements with practical applications in global health systems and AI safety.
Michael Wieser is an Assistant Professor at the University of Klagenfurt's Department of Psychology. He specializes in psychotherapy and psychodrama, with a focus on mental health interventions in palliative care, trauma, and death education. His affiliations include membership in the Curricular Commission for Social Competence and the Works Council for Academic Staff. Education: Mag.phil. (1991, University of Salzburg), Dr. phil. (1997, University of Klagenfurt), Certified Mediator (1999) Research Interests: Psychodrama techniques, palliative care psychology, trauma therapy, and death education programs Awards: Dr. Alexander Friedmann Award and Dr. Bruno Kreisky Award (2018) His research explores innovative therapeutic methods such as monodrama and phototherapy, with recent studies on death literacy in schools, mental health in prisons, and pandemic-related spiritual counseling. He has contributed to European collaborative projects like the EMPoWER initiative addressing gender-based violence. Wieser's articles span empirical studies on psychodrama efficacy, palliative care training for students, and qualitative analyses of grief dynamics in ambiguous loss scenarios.
Sean Landsman is an Assistant Professor, Teaching Stream in the Department of Biology at Carleton University, affiliated with the Faculty of Science. His research focuses on fisheries science, science communication, and aquatic conservation. He teaches courses in science communication and actively practices science outreach through freelance writing and photography for outlets like National Geographic and CBC. His research interests include the behavior of fish post-capture, conservation policy evaluation, urban aquatic ecosystems, and anadromous fish ecology. He emphasizes interdisciplinary collaboration between scientists and engineers to improve fish passage infrastructure and advocates for knowledge co-production in fisheries management. Landsman actively recruits undergraduate students for Honours programs and offers opportunities for students interested in science communication through creative writing, photography, and multimedia. His recent publications highlight topics such as freshwater biodiversity frameworks, fish behavior in regulated waterways, and the societal impacts of conservation policies. While no scientific awards are explicitly listed, his work demonstrates a strong commitment to both academic research and public engagement. His teaching and outreach efforts aim to bridge the gap between scientific research and broader societal understanding.
Catherine Elizabeth Bell is a Professor in Visual Arts at La Trobe University's School of Arts and Humanities. Her work centers on the intersection of art, death studies, palliative care, and feminist practices, often involving collaborations with neurodiverse communities and hospice settings. She explores themes of memorialization, corporeal relics, and sensory memory through installations, performances, and interdisciplinary projects. Key Themes: Death rituals, feminist reinterpretation, palliative care, archival research, and community engagement. Artistic Mediums: Sculpture, digital media, performance, and participatory installations. Notable Collaborations: Cathy Staughton, La Trobe Art Institute, Caritas Christi Hospice. Her research emphasizes the role of art in processing mortality and fostering emotional resilience through creative practices.
Megan Volpert serves as part-time Adjunct Faculty in the MFA Writing program at Reinhardt University's College of Humanities, Sciences, & Technology and concurrently holds a part-time Assistant Professor position in Interdisciplinary Studies at Kennesaw State University. She is also a Fellow at the American Institute for Philosophical and Cultural Thought and Director of Insights for Halo Media. Her research traverses popular culture through interdisciplinary lenses, blending philosophy with music criticism, television analysis, queer theory, and creative writing. Notable projects include anthologizing philosophical examinations of cultural phenomena like Tom Petty's music and RuPaul's Drag Race, establishing her as a cross-disciplinary scholar. Volpert's creative-academic output includes 15+ books recognized with significant honors: Two-time Lambda Literary Award finalist American Library Association honoree 2019 Georgia Author of the Year for poetry collection Boss Broad
Alan Jennings is an Assistant Professor in the Animation department at Massachusetts College of Art and Design (MassArt), where he contributes to the academic and creative development of students in experimental and independent animation. He holds an MFA in Animation from California Institute of the Arts and a BFA from MassArt, grounding his teaching in both formal education and professional practice. Education: MFA, Animation, California Institute of the Arts, 2017 Education: BFA, Animation, Massachusetts College of Art and Design, 2007 His research and creative work centers on experimental animation, stop-motion, and documentary storytelling, often exploring personal narratives and human experiences through innovative visual techniques. Jennings blends hand-crafted aesthetics with digital media, as seen in his acclaimed short films like The Northeast Kingdom and The Bill Jennings Mysteries , which examine identity, memory, and familial bonds. The trends in his filmography reveal a consistent focus on character-driven stories, psychological depth, and formal experimentation. His works frequently employ mixed media, gouache painting, and constructed sets, placing him at the intersection of fine art and cinematic animation. These films have been showcased at prestigious international festivals including Animafest Zagreb, Stuttgart International Festival of Animated Film, and the London International Animation Festival. Alan Jennings has received several recognitions for his work, including: Special Mention for Best Portrait, Rising of the Lusitania AnimaDoc Film Festival, 2020 Best Student Film, The Northeast Kingdom, 2017 Student Academy Awards Semifinalist, 2017 Artist Fellowship Grant, Somerville Arts Council, 2009 Multiple special mentions at international animation festivals in 2018 His creative projects have been funded by organizations such as The Somerville Arts Council, and he has collaborated with major media outlets like NPR, Comedy Central, and The School of Life. While there is no explicit mention of formal student advising, his role as a professor suggests mentorship of emerging animators. He maintains an active creative profile through his personal website and Vimeo, where he shares his evolving body of work and engages with the animation community. Alan Jennings operates at the nexus of academia and independent art filmmaking, contributing significantly to contemporary animation through both pedagogy and practice.
Mark Osteen is a Professor in the Department of English at Loyola University Maryland, where he teaches courses on literature, film, and jazz. His office is located in the Humanities Center (242B) at 4501 N. Charles St., Baltimore, MD 21210. Osteen holds a Ph.D. from Emory University and has established himself as a leading scholar in multiple fields including American literature, film noir, and Beatles studies. Osteen earned his Ph.D. from Emory University. His academic journey has led him to become a prominent editor and scholar, most notably serving as the editor for the Library of America's collection of Don DeLillo's works. Volume I, covering DeLillo's 1980s novels, was published in 2022, with a second volume containing 1990s works following shortly after. Professor Osteen's research spans several interconnected fields. He is a leading DeLillo scholar who has edited significant collections of the author's work. His interests extend to film noir studies, where he examines the intersection of cinema and literature. Osteen also explores neurodiversity in literature and film, drawing from personal experience with his son Cameron. His work on The Beatles, particularly the White Album, demonstrates his ability to bridge popular culture with academic scholarship. Additionally, he has made contributions to medical humanities through creative nonfiction exploring disability and healthcare experiences. His scholarly output shows consistent productivity across multiple domains. Recent work demonstrates increasing focus on neurodiversity and disability studies, alongside continued engagement with DeLillo and film noir. Osteen's publications reveal a scholar who moves fluidly between literary analysis, cultural criticism, and personal narrative, often blending these approaches in innovative ways. Dorothy Churchill Cappon Nonfiction Award (2016) Seventeenth Annual Deans' Symposium Award for outstanding achievement in research, teaching and service (2014) Nachbahr Award for outstanding scholarly accomplishment in the Humanities (2000) Winner of the SAMLA Essay Prize for 2016-17 While specific grant information isn't detailed in the provided text, Osteen's extensive publication record and editorial work suggest successful funding for his research projects. His role as editor for the prestigious Library of America collection indicates significant scholarly recognition. Osteen has mentored students through courses like EN 399 Seminar in Literary Topics after 1800: Neurodiversity, though specific advisees aren't listed in the provided materials. Professor Osteen is actively involved with the Cold Spring Jazz Quartet, which he leads, blending his musical and academic interests. The ensemble has performed for over twenty years, presenting themed shows like "Shades of Jazz in Film Noir" that connect to his scholarly interests. In November 2024, the Loyola Jazz Combo performed his composition "Mortal Coil," demonstrating his ongoing creative output. His recent album "Next of Kin" (2024) features his original compositions inspired by family and community.
Peggy Tahir serves as a Research & Copyright Librarian at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) Library, providing specialized expertise in biomedical research literature and copyright law. Based at 530 Parnassus Avenue, #001 in San Francisco, she supports UCSF students, faculty, and staff through consultations, classes, and departmental presentations focused on literature search strategies and information management workflows. Her educational background includes: MLIS in Library & Information Science from UC Berkeley (1986) MA in English: Creative Writing from San Francisco State University (1982) BA in English: Creative Writing from San Francisco State University (1977) Certificate in Copyright Management and Leadership I from University of Maryland University College (2011) Tahir specializes in biomedical research librarianship with expertise spanning literature search strategies, information management systems, systematic review methodology, and US copyright law as applied to academic research. Her work enables researchers to overcome bottlenecks in their research by educating them on literature search engines, databases, and public data sets. She has developed numerous online guides that support the UCSF research community in navigating complex information landscapes. Analysis of her publication record reveals a strong focus on systematic reviews across diverse medical specialties including HIV/AIDS treatment, urology, dermatology, reproductive medicine, and health disparities research. Her collaborative work frequently addresses methodological aspects of literature searching and systematic review processes, reflecting her dual expertise in library science and biomedical research. Her notable professional recognitions include: UCSF School of Pharmacy 2022 Summer Dean's Apple Teaching Award Northern California & Nevada Medical Library Group 2013 Professional Development Grant Northern California & Nevada Medical Library Group 2009 Award for Professional Excellence Marine Biological Laboratory Medical Informatics Fellow (2003) National Library of Medicine Associate Fellow (1986-1987) As an in-house expert on US copyright law, Tahir plays a critical role in helping UCSF researchers navigate copyright questions that arise in academic and professional activities. Her teaching activities extend beyond traditional library instruction to include topics related to diversity, equity, and inclusion in healthcare education. She actively contributes to scholarly literature through co-authorship on systematic reviews across numerous medical specialties, demonstrating her ability to support research across the biomedical spectrum.
Nanako Nakajima is Associate Professor at Waseda University’s School of Culture, Media and Society, a pioneer of dance dramaturgy, and a certified master of traditional Japanese dance (Kannae Fujima). She holds a Ph.D. from Freie Universität Berlin (2010) and has held visiting professorships there; her dramaturgical work spans award-winning productions in New York, Berlin, Yokohama and Kyoto, while her books appear with Routledge, Palgrave and transcript. Education: Ph.D. 2010, Freie Universität Berlin. Research interests: Nakajima interrogates how aging, disability and tradition reshape choreographic practice across Euro-American and East-Asian contexts. She theorises dance dramaturgy as an intercultural, collaborative process, emphasising post-modern legacies, butoh, digital archiving and critical age studies. Publication trends: Her recent articles foreground the aging body as a site of aesthetic innovation, archive activism and intermedial translation, bridging performance studies, media theory and disability discourse. Awards & recognition: Special Commendation, 2017 Elliott Hayes Award for Outstanding Achievement in Dramaturgy (Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas). Grants & advising: She leads JSPS and Kyoto-funded projects on dance dramaturgy genealogies and inter-Asian laboratories, co-supervises Japanese and international graduate researchers, and mentors emerging dramaturgs through curated platforms and festival labs. Labs & teams: Nakajima heads the bilingual Dance Dramaturgy web portal, curates the continuing Dance Archive Box touring programme, and convenes long-term research circles with partners in Canada, Germany, Singapore and Australia.
Claude Barbre serves as a Distinguished Full Professor in the Clinical Psychology Department at The Chicago School of Professional Psychology's College of Professional Psychology. With over 25 years of clinical experience, he coordinates the Psychodynamics Concentration in the Psy.D. Program and leads the Psychology and Spirituality focus of study. His career spans academic, clinical, and community roles across New York and Chicago. Dr. Barbre's research integrates psychology with religion, spirituality, and the humanities. His clinical work emphasizes foster care systems, child and adolescent development in poverty contexts, and cross-cultural therapeutic approaches. He has pioneered school-based psychoanalytic training programs serving underserved communities, including directing The Harlem Family Institute which provided 60,000 therapy sessions to Harlem residents. His 13 recent publications reveal consistent focus on psychoanalytic theory (particularly Otto Rank's work), trauma ethics, and religion-spirituality integration. Key themes include creative will psychology, death anxiety in marginalized populations, and critical examinations of fundamentalism. This body of work bridges clinical practice with philosophical inquiry across psychology, religion, and cultural studies. 5-time Gradiva Award recipient (National Association for the Advancement of Psychoanalysis) Distinguished Achievement in Research and Writing Award (American Association of Pastoral Counselors, 2008) William B. Given Jr. Fellow (Episcopal Church Foundation) Daniel Day Williams Fellow in Psychiatry and Religion (Union Theological Seminary) Recipient of Margaret Morgan Lawrence Award (2010) for service to Harlem communities As Editor-in-Chief of Gender and Psychoanalysis and Associate Editor of Journal of Religion and Health for 15 years, Dr. Barbre has shaped discourse at psychology-religion intersections. His clinical supervision extends through The Chicago Center for Psychoanalysis and hospital chaplaincy programs. Current grant work focuses on trauma-informed care in foster systems and spiritual dimensions of community mental health. He maintains active clinical practice through Immigration Services (Law Office of Ruben Sanchez) and hospital chaplaincy roles, grounding theoretical work in direct service to vulnerable populations including refugees and urban youth.
胡佳 is a Full Professor at Tsinghua University's School of Economics and Management and Schwarzman College, holding the Citigroup International Business Chair Professorship since May 2024. Previously, she served as a Tenured Full Professor at Ohio State University's Fisher College of Business (2022-2024) and achieved early tenure at the University of Notre Dame's Mendoza College of Business. Her academic journey includes a Ph.D. in Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management from the University of Illinois at Chicago (2012), an MA in Human Resource Management from Renmin University (2007), and a BA in Business Administration from Central University of Finance and Economics (2005). Her research focuses on prosocial team leadership, remote work dynamics, gender diversity in leadership, and data science applications in organizational effectiveness . She investigates critical questions about leadership behaviors that enhance team health, factors motivating prosocial management behaviors, technological impacts on leadership efficacy, and work-family implications of remote work. Her work bridges theoretical rigor with practical applications through collaborations with organizations including McKinsey, BMS, IBM, Bank of America, Lenovo, and Vanke. Her publication portfolio includes over 30 articles in top journals like Academy of Management Journal and Journal of Applied Psychology , with more than 10,000 Google Scholar citations (i10-index=29). Her research has been featured in Forbes , Fortune , and TIME . Current publication trends emphasize digital work environments, gratitude interventions in leadership, and gender-inclusive leadership development , reflecting growing scholarly interest in post-pandemic work structures and ethical leadership. Elsevier Highly Cited Chinese Researchers (2024) Stanford University Top 2% Scientists (2024) AOM Leadership Division Mid-Career Standout Scholar Award (2023) SIOP Fellow (2023) Poets & Quants 40 Under 40 Professors (2021) Personnel Psychology Best Reviewer (2019) As a dedicated mentor, she has supervised doctoral students who now hold faculty positions at top US research universities. She currently serves as Associate Editor for Journal of Applied Psychology and Editor-in-Chief for Management and Organization Review , while sitting on editorial boards of premier journals including Academy of Management Journal and Personnel Psychology . Her industry collaborations span multiple sectors through evidence-based research partnerships. She leads executive education initiatives as former Academic Director of Leadership Center programs at Ohio State University and teaches leadership courses across Tsinghua's Global MBA, Schwarzman Scholars, EMBA, and doctoral programs. Her upcoming book 心性：女性管理者的8项自我修炼 (2025) integrates management and psychological research for practitioner audiences.
Dr Barbara Piotrowska is a Lecturer at the School of Applied Sciences , Edinburgh Napier University, with a focus on developmental dyslexia, bilingualism, and cognitive science. Her research explores visual-spatial-motor integration, sensorimotor theory, and early identification tools for dyslexia, often intersecting with artificial intelligence and health themes. Education: PhD in Developmental Dyslexia (2018), Edinburgh Napier University. Her work investigates how sensory, motor, and socio-economic factors influence learning disorders, particularly dyslexia, and extends into decision-making rationality in bilingual individuals. Recent outputs include public health studies on emergency healthcare access and pandemic impacts. Her research trends highlight interdisciplinary approaches combining educational psychology , visual cognition , and technology-driven screening tools , with a shift toward broader health and policy implications in 2024. As a supervisor, she guided Fiona Thomson (2021) in a study of teacher risk judgments for dyslexia identification. She collaborates with the Psychology Research Group and Centre for Mind and Creativity Research , contributing to projects on sensorimotor theory and digital health interventions.
Michell Zethson is a Lecturer at Konstfack University of Arts, Crafts and Design, affiliated with the Department of Arts and Crafts . Their work bridges arts and crafts practice with critical theoretical inquiry, focusing on intersections between material culture, writing, and cultural analysis. Research interests include: Posthumanist and new materialist frameworks Critical pedagogy in arts education Material semiotics and everyday objects Deleuzean philosophies in artistic practice Gender and spatial politics Selected publications explore topics ranging from milk flows as gendered infrastructure (2019) to conceptual frameworks for analyzing small things (2024). They contributed to Konstfack Research Week 2022 with analyses of cocoons and political embodiment. Their pedagogical approach emphasizes irrational knowledge and diffraction as creative research methods, particularly evident in their 2021 monograph Kokoligrafi . While not explicitly listing students or awards, their collaborative work appears in multidisciplinary publications like Details: Cultural Analytical Approaches (2024).
