Faculty & Staff News
On February 23, Halmos College biology alumna Veronica Akle ’03 met with biology students and gave a presentation on her research and career path since leaving NSU. Currently an associate professor at Universidad de los Andes, Dr. Akle shared her research with zebrafish and investigating their circadian responses to light in the environment.
Students at the University of Belize in Punta Gorda Town, Belize received lessons on finance and customer service from Albert Williams, Ph.D. during his spring break visit. Williams, who serves as associate professor and acting chair of the Finance and Economics Department at the H. Wayne Huizenga College of Business and Entrepreneurship, regularly returns to his country of origin to give back to residents.
In a presentation on financial management, Williams discussed cash flow and project valuation, encouraging students to consider project viability when making any financial decisions. To illustrate his point, he shared that he once gave a small loan to a farmer for the purchase of a dairy cow. The cow, he explained, could provide the farmer with milk, and the farmer could sell some of that milk to repay the loan. After emphasizing the positive relationship between risk and expected return he challenged students to answer, “How can you invest $1,000 in this small town?”
With tourism being the biggest contributor to the GDP in Belize, Williams’ second presentation was geared toward students studying hospitality, with a focus on customer service. In this presentation, students were encouraged to be friendly, attentive, honest, and caring. Williams strongly emphasized that all guests, regardless of racial background or other differences, be treated with the same level of service and care. The local guests should not receive a lower standard of service than the foreign guests, regardless of the level of tips provided. He also made sure that students were aware of the respect they deserve when they are doing their jobs.
In addition, Williams, who is known for his guitar solos at NSU, played guitar and sponsored snacks for both groups of students. The food and music helped break the ice and resulted in active participation during both presentations. Not only did the students benefit from this experience, but they were proud to have one of their own coming from the U.S. to enlighten them. Campus Director, Roy Polonio, and Glen Enriquez, lecturer for both classes, were thankful for the professor’s valuable contributions to their students and the community.
Williams eagerly embraces opportunities that allow him to give back to the community. Last summer, he assisted with the filling of a street in the community. On this recent trip, he organized for more materials be put in one part of the same street, in anticipation of the rainy season. We applaud Williams for embracing “community,” one of the core values of NSU.
The 2019 sea turtle season has started! It began with Gumbo Limbo Sea Turtle Day. There the Broward County Sea Turtle Conservation Program, managed by Halmos College, received a $7,700 check from the Adopt-a-Nest program. This long-standing partnership between the National Save the Sea Turtle Foundation and the Broward County Sea Turtle Conservation Program supports sea turtle conservation in Broward County. The conservation program employs 23 field workers who are primarily NSU Halmos College graduate students or recent graduates. They patrol over 38 km of Broward County beaches each morning at dawn, from March 1 through September 30. Endangered sea turtle nests are identified, marked, located by GPS and sometimes relocated from intensely lighted beaches to avoid hatchling disorientation. Fifty percent of all funds raised from the Adopt-a-Nest program comes directly to the Broward County Sea Turtle Conservation Program.
People interested in this program can adopt their own nest, or give it as a gift.
Florida accounts for 70% of the nation’s sea turtle nesting and Southeast Florida, from the Space Coast to the Gold Coast, is the second most important nesting area in the world for loggerhead sea turtles. Broward County serves as a consistent nesting area of three specific species of sea turtles: the loggerhead (Caretta caretta) sea turtle, the green (Chelonia mydas) sea turtle, and leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea) sea turtle. By monitoring nests and creating public awareness, the Broward County Sea Turtle Conservation Program (BCSTCP) helps protect these fragile creatures.
During March, Halmos faculty member Jose Lopez, Ph.D. published a new paper entitled, “Multiple Facets of Marine Invertebrate Conservation Genomics” in the prestigious journal, Annual Review of Animal Biosciences. Papers in the Annual Reviews series provide a synthesis of the latest state of research in specific fields, and are highly cited.
Dr. Lopez is a professor in the Department of Biological Sciences. His main interests lie in molecular evolution, biodiversity, microbial symbiosis and genomics. Characterization of gene sequences from rare and relatively overlooked marine invertebrates and microorganisms have enabled Dr. Lopez to contribute to increasingly valuable genetic biodiversity research and data during the current period of accelerated worldwide habitat destruction.
For more Information: https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/full/10.1146/annurev-animal-020518-115034
Kevin James, Ed.D., graduate of NSU’s Abraham S. Fischler College of Education (FCE), School of Criminal Justice has been appointed Interim President of Morris Brown College by its board of trustees.
James is a native of Columbia, South Carolina. He has resided in Atlanta, Georgia since 2015, where he was the Interim CEO of 100 Black Men of America, Inc. James has over 20 years of experience in higher education as a senior level administrator, with positions at Strayer University and Herzing University as dean of academic affairs as well as a senior dissertation advisor at Grand Canyon University.
His first order of business at Morris Brown College is working to obtain accreditation, ensure financial stability, build a strong relationship with alumni, and enrollment growth.
James earned his Doctorate of Higher Education with FCE in 2009.
Kisha Bellande-Francis, Ed.D.
Kisha Bellande-Francis, Ed.D., graduate of NSU’s Abraham S. Fischler College of Education (FCE) is currently involved in the process of opening a K-8 school, Legacy Academy of Innovation, in West Palm Beach, Florida. The school is slated to open in 2021, and will be a non-profit institution that will offer students with socioeconomic challenges an education beyond the traditional grade-based methods. The school’s goal is to provide disadvantaged children opportunities that will enrich their educational experience, thus leading them to higher levels of success.
Legacy Academy of Innovation will use a competency-based education framework. Competency-based education meets students where they are academically, provides opportunities for choice, and awards students credit for evidence of learning, not time spent studying a subject.
Bellande-Francis, Ed.D., earned her doctorate degree with FCE in 2018. Presently, she is an instructional specialist who develops the best instructional practices in 12 districts across 7 states.
For a detailed description of Legacy Academy of Innovation’s Vision and to meet the Board, please visit: https://tinyurl.com/yy27ttpk
Jimena Castro, Ph.D.
Jimena Castro, Ph.D., 2018 graduate of the doctoral program in the Department of Marriage and Family Therapy (DFT) in NSU’s College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences (CAHSS) is an assistant professor of psychology at Our Lady of the Lake University in San Antonio, Texas. As part of her work, Castro, a native of Columbia, is one of the leaders of the program, “Our Lady of the Lake Psychological Services for Spanish Speaking Populations.”
In addition to her doctoral degree, Castro earned two other graduate degrees from CAHSS, her M.A. in Cross-disciplinary Studies (MACS) and M.S. in Family Therapy.
Melissa Forges, M.S.,
Melissa Forges, M.S., 2013 graduate of the College Student Affairs program in NSU’s College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences is the Higher Education Program Manager for the Seminole Tribe of Florida, Hollywood. Previously she was the Director of Student Services for Keiser University, Pembroke Pines Campus, and Senior Assistant Director, Employer Relations/Liaison to the College of Business, Florida State University. While at NSU, she was active in the College Student Affairs Association. In addition to her master’s degree from NSU, Forges has a B.A. in Sociology from the University of Florida.
NSU’s master’s in College Student Affairs is the only CSA program to offer courses from the Department of Conflict Resolution Studies, bringing that conflict resolution expertise to the students.
Philip Bullock, M.S.,
Philip Bullock, M.S., graduate of NSU’s Abraham S. Fischler College of Education (FCE), was named the 2019 Broward County Principal of the Year at the annual Broward County Public Schools’ (BCPS) Caliber Awards.
Mr. Bullock started his career with Broward County Public Schools as a kindergarten teacher at North Side Elementary thirty-three years go. His first appointment as principal was at Miramar Elementary, where he served as principal for seven years. Taking the school over just one year after the school was a “D” rated school, the school became an “A” school the following year, where it maintained that “A” rating for six consecutive years—the entire time that he served that community. The school’s achievement received recognition from the District, State, and even Nationally, when then-governor Jeb Bush and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg visited the school and named it a “Title 1 School of Excellence”. He was then assigned to Coral Cove Elementary, where he served five years as principal.
In 2015, Superintendent Runcie appointed Mr. Bullock to Walker Elementary. At the time, Walker Elementary was the lowest achieving elementary school in Broward County and one of the lowest achieving schools in the State of Florida. Walker Elementary moved up two letter grades over the past two years, a 131% increase in student achievement over that timespan, which was the highest increase by percentage of all elementary schools in Broward County.
Mr. Bullock earned his M.S. in Elementary Education with FCE in 1991. For More information on the 2019 Caliber Awards, please visit: https://www.browardschools.com/Page/46708
Rochelle S. Clarke, Ph.D.
Rochelle S. Clarke, Ph.D., LMFT, graduate of the master’s and doctoral programs in the Department of Family Therapy (DFT) in NSU’s College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences (CAHSS) was promoted to the Director of Quality and Organizational Development at Catholic Hospice. Clarke has extensive experience in Catholic Hospice, including as the Supervisor of Bereavement Services and Bereavement Camp Director, and the Bereavement Coordinator.
Previously, Clarke was the Director of Advancement and Community Relations and the Associate Director of Special Events and Projects at NSU. In addition to her Family Therapy degrees, she has an M.S. in Human Resource Management from NSU and a B.A. in Sociology and Women’s Studies from Florida Atlantic University.