Author: iharrell

NSU Division of Research Hosting Research Connect

All faculty and staff researchers are invited to join the NSU Division of Research and Economic Development for a dialogue related to research at NSU via Zoom. Our next Research Connect quarterly town hall meeting will be on Monday, Nov. 6, from noon to 1 p.m.

Each of the Research Connect events will highlight a different research-related topic, resource, and/or process with the next topic of discussion being: NSU Procurement. Experts from the Office of Procurement Services will talk about the procurement process and supporting researchers, followed by a Q&A session with the experts.

To attend through Zoom, please RSVP using the following link, https://bit.ly/Nov6ResearchConnect, and don’t forget to add the event to your calendar. Lastly, to help answer as many questions as possible during the event, we encourage you to submit questions prior to the event to dor@nova.edu.

Posted 10/26/23

Miniaci Sets the Stage for an NSU Eclectic Extravaganza

Shannon Hall, the general manager of the Rose and Alfred Miniaci Performing Arts Center

Theatre. Numbers. People.

These are the three ingredients in life that bring joy to Shannon Hall, the general manager of the Rose and Alfred Miniaci Performing Arts Center. Hall has been with the Broward Center of the Performing Arts for more than 15 years and GM for the Miniaci PAC for five of those years.

The Miniaci PAC, a venue affiliated with the Broward Center of Performing Arts, is a 498-seat seat theatre that is part of the Alvin Sherman Library, Research, and Information Technology Center on Nova Southeastern University’s main Davie Campus. This gem is in its 22nd season and supports many NSU academic engagements as well as promoting and contributing to the cultural life of the NSU community and of the community at large.

The Miniaci family, led by the late matriarch Rose and her late husband Alfred, inspired their family to generously support NSU and the South Florida community, helping create the Rose and Alfred Miniaci Performing Arts Center.

The world has been a stage for Hall since she was a young girl, getting cast in shows in elementary school and capturing the lead role in a Girl Scout production as “Daisy,” the affectionate nickname of Juliette Gordon Low, the founder of the Girl Scouts. From there, Hall took part in numerous high school production and received a theatre scholarship and graduated with a Bachelor in Fine Arts in Theatre.

“Fresh out of college, I was fortunate enough to get a job with Broadway Across America, the largest Broadway company of touring shows in Fort Lauderdale as an assistant bookkeeper,” she says. “From there I worked for Live Nation Concerts and eventually found my way back to my first love, theatre, and then took a job as the settlement accountant working with numbers, my second love.”

Now Hall calls herself “lucky” to be the GM of the Miniaci PAC, where she enjoys working on a “beautiful campus and building some exciting programming and partnerships.”

Hall beams when asked about the joys of her job.

“You know what’s great?  Being surrounded by young adults just beginning their life journey,” she says. “I feel like we are in a new beginning here too at the Miniaci PAC, especially post-COVID. The passion that each collaboration affords me feels refreshing, fun, and energetic.”

Over the years, the Miniaci PAC has been home to some top acts. In collaboration with the Division of Student Affairs, the center held an NSU Life 101 Speaking Series with artists such as John Legend, Jason Taylor, Vanessa Williams, Anthony Bourdain and Dwayne Johnson also known as “The Rock.”  It also has held sellout concerts such as the Peruvian superstar Eva Ayllon and Matisyahu, as well as a mix of iconic groups such as the doo wop group The Coasters, popular Irish folk group The High Kings, and Ken Block and Drew Copeland of Sister Hazel.

And the future continues to be bright, when it comes to upcoming acts, Hall says.

The dance company Dimensions Dance Theatre of Miami returned with two ballets this season, the first “Falling for Dance” and a soon-to-be announced Mother’s Day brunch and ballet event. Miniaci PAC also is introduced its first-ever comedy series featuring HBO and BET’s Shang, Greek American LGBTQ+ stand-up comedian Gus Constantellis, Netflix’s Abby Hatcher, and the jaw-dropping Samantha Ramsdell, known for earning the Guinness World Record for the world’s largest mouth.”

“With a new team and outlook here, we are looking forward to recreating what we do at the Miniaci PAC,” Hall says. “It’s so heartwarming to see patrons moved by the performing arts when they watch or learn from an event – with every spectrum of emotion.”

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE MINIACI PAC AND ITS UPCOMING PERFORMANCES.

Posted 10/22/23

Military Affairs Holds ‘Nominate a Veteran’ Contest Under Way

For the third year, the Nova Southeastern University Military Affairs’ Veterans Resource Center will be holding its “Nominate a Veteran” contest, honoring veterans on campus.

Here’s your chance to nominate a NSU veteran or military-affiliated person who you regard as someone who goes above and beyond in the Shark Community.

You can nominate a student, staff or faculty member, a cadet, or an alum. One winner in each category will be chosen. The winners will be honored during NSU’s Veterans Day ceremony on November 11 and will be given a NSU challenge coin. They also will be photographed.

Make your nomination today. The contest ends November 3.

Posted 10/23/23

USchool Robotics Teams Score High in Competition

NSU University School Middle School Robotics teams delivered impressive results at the 2nd Annual Great Philosopher’s Get Together.

Notably, Team 63724B finished second place in skills, qualification matches, and in finals, and is now ranked #1 in the state for skills. Team 63724A finished seventh in qualification matches and third place in skills, and is now ranked #2 in the state for skills. Among the 29 teams competing, just four of them were middle school teams.

Learn more about NSU University School’s college preparatory program for students in Preschool – Grade 12 at www.uschool.nova.edu.

Posted 10/22/23

Art Museum Invites Members to Special Exhibit Opening

The NSU Art Museum is welcoming members to the opening of “Walasse Ting: Parrot Jungle.” This exhibition will provide viewers the opportunity to immerse themselves in Ting’s neon-soaked visions of nubile women, flora, fauna, and an endless menagerie of cats, parrots, and hibiscus.

Simultaneously, the show will establish a biographic narrative, in which viewers will learn about the diasporic life of Ting; whose transnational identity left him without the typical ambassadorship countries engage in to display their creative wealth.

This exhibition is curated by the Museum’s Bryant Taylor Curator, Ariella Wolens. It will be accompanied by a full-color, hard-bound monograph published by Skira, edited, and with an essay by Wolens and additional text by Pierre Alechinsky, Bonnie Clearwater, Xiao (Amanda) Ju, and Ting’s daughter Mia Ting.

“Walasse Ting: Parrot Jungle” is sponsored by those who wish to remain anonymous, Stephen & Joan Marks, Barron Family Foundation, Imperfect Family Foundation, Funding Arts Broward, Inc., Sam Francis Foundation in honor of Francis’ 100th Birthday, Marlène Brody, Marion Lefebre & Robert S. Pynoos, David Stonehill & Caroline Cruise, Wenise Wong & Eric Barron. This event will be held at the NSU Art Museum (One East Las Olas Boulevard, Fort Lauderdale, FL, 33301) on Thursday, Nov. 9 from 6 to 8 p.m.

For more information please contact the NSU Art Museum, moareservations@moafl.org or call 954.525.5500.

Posted 10/18/23

Halmos Professor Coauthors Study with Canadian Scientists

Louis Nemzer, Ph.D.

NSU Professor Louis R. Nemzer, Ph.D., of the Halmos College of Arts and Sciences recently coauthored a research study with scientists from the University of Ottawa about the effect of network connectivity on the probability that a novel trait will evolve in a spatially separated population.

This collaboration started when Prof. Nemzer was visiting Canada as a Fulbright distinguished research chair on a Sabbatical during the 2019-2020 academic year. Evolutionary graph theory (EGT) is a field of study that attempts to describe organisms that live on separate patches connected by possible migration paths. The researchers felt that the previously used EGT models did not capture the nuances of real life, so Nemzer wrote a new agent-based model that kept track of each simulated bacterium individually.

The in silico results were compared with in vitro experiments with real bacteria, which helped support the conclusion that network connectivity can, in some situations, increase the chance a favorable mutation will eventually become widespread in a population. This work can help explain the ways antibiotic resistance can emerge, especially in settings that contain disparate locations, such as a hospital or neighborhood.

“I want to thank my amazing colleagues at the University of Ottawa, as well as the Fulbright program for promoting international cooperation on projects that impact all of humanity, such as the challenge of antibiotic resistance,” Prof. Nemzer said.

The research was just published in Evolution Letters, which is ranked among the top 15 journals in the field of Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics.

Posted 10/22/23

Honors Students Participate in World Mental Health Day

Students take a group picture after completing the Mental Health First Aid certification course.

Each year on Oct. 10, we celebrate World Mental Health Day (WMHD), a day where individuals and organizations raise awareness of mental health issues around the world to mobilize efforts in support of mental health. During this day, individuals working on mental health field share their current work and what needs to be done to make mental health and wellbeing a reality all.

In celebration of WMHD this Oct. 10, 16 students in the Farquar Honors College became certified Mental Health First Aiders. Similar to First Aid in which individuals are able to help others in an emergency situation, Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) is an evidence-based, early intervention and public education program that helps individuals identify, understand, and respond to those exhibiting signs of mental problems or crises. There are separate training courses for assisting adults and youth, and a variety of specialized training topics which focus on those working with vulnerable populations such as Fire/EMS, Military/Veterans, Public Safety, and Higher Education, to name a few.

The training was offered through the Exploring Population Mental Health and Wellbeing course (BPH 3990H) taught by Christi M. Navarro, Ph.D., M.S., an Assistant Professor of Public Health at the Dr. Kiran C. Patel College of Osteopathic Medicine and certified MHFA Instructor. Navarro offers the training through an ongoing partnership with the United Way of Broward County who has certified over 100 NSU students in MHFA since 2020.

If you are interested in learning more about Mental Health First Aid or are interested in scheduling a training for your department or organization, please contact Dr. Navarro at cnavarro@nova.edu.

Posted 10/22/23

NSU Makes Strong Showing at SENDCon Regional Meeting

NSU Davie and Tampa campuses were well represented at the recent SENDCon meeting in Atlanta, Ga., with two of our colleges in attendance – Pharmacy and Psychology/Neuroscience.

SENDCon, which stands for the Southeastern Neurodegenerative Disease Conference, is a new regional meeting whose parent organization is the Alzheimer’s Association USA:  https://www.alz.org/sendcon/overview.asp. Last year (2022) the meeting was supposed to take place in Bonita Springs, but a hurricane canceled it. There were about 200 people in attendance in-person and another 200 or so who attended virtually at the 2023 meeting. There were several posters presented by NSU.

Posted 10/22/23

University School Earns Spot on AP School Honor Roll

NSU University School has earned a place on the College Board’s AP School Honor Roll for the 2022-23 school year. The AP School Honor Roll recognizes schools that have done outstanding work to welcome more students into AP courses and support them on the path to college success. NSU University School is being further recognized with the AP Access Award, which honors schools that encourage underrepresented minority students to take AP courses.

Learn more about NSU University School’s college preparatory program for students in Preschool – Grade 12 at www.uschool.nova.edu.

Posted 10/22/23

Honors College Student Publishes Poetry Book

Lakshmi Srikari Ravulaparthi and the front cover of her poetry book.

Farquhar Honors College student Lakshmi Srikari Ravulaparthi published a self-written poetry book on BookLeaf Publishing titled “Intricate Simplicity.” Ravulaparthi’s book is a collection of short poems that focuses on embracing life’s myriad emotions through escapism while remaining in the truth of reality.

Ravulaparthi’s inspiration for her poetry book sprouted at a young age when she discovered her fascination with art, nature, beauty, and the world around her. From traveling and living in numerous places to being trained as an Indian classical dancer, photographer, and music experimenter, that fascination cultivated into a passion as Ravulaparthi grew to express herself through poetry to convey her inner thoughts.

“I always hoped to publish an original work, and Intricate Simplicity is only the beginning of this personal journey towards self-discovery,” said Ravulaparthi, a senior behavioral neuroscience major. “Storytelling has always been a part of my life in distinctive ways, be it dance or reading books to my younger sister during childhood. I derive fun and happiness from creating and communicating scenarios.”

While being a full-time undergraduate student and a self-published writer, Ravulaparthi has no upcoming writing projects but has already envisioned potentially publishing a children’s fantasy book in the future.

After graduation, she plans to attend medical school to become a physical medicine and rehabilitation physician and a social worker for her community. Ravulaparthi is dedicated to helping others around her. She hopes to someday combine her passions for the arts and community service by establishing her own non-profit organization to help underserved children who can’t pursue an interest due to financial issues.

“Being an honors student helped me grow in ways I wouldn’t have otherwise,” said Ravulaparthi. “From the Carreyrou Reading Seminar my sophomore year to the Microorganisms Open Classroom my junior year… each experience either offered new insight into significant topics or became an unforgettable experience as part of my undergrad journey. I will forever be grateful for all my connections through this honors family.”

Learn more about the book.

Posted 10/22/23

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