Skip to Navigation
University of Pittsburgh
Print This Page Print this pages

January 9, 1997

PEOPLE OF THE TIMES

Mark W. Van Tilburg has been named director of public relations and marketing for Pitt's Bradford campus (UPB). Tilburg comes to UPB from Baton Rouge, La., where he was the chief information director for the Louisiana Systemic Initiatives Program, which is working to reform mathematics, science and technology education in that state's K-12 school systems.

**************

Associate professor of industrial engineering Alice Smith and professor of materials science and engineering Nicholas Eror have been named recipients of the School of Engineering's Board of Visitors Faculty Award. They were presented with the award for their outstanding achievements in scholarship and research.

**************

Ian Nettleship, an assistant professor in the School of Engineering's Department of Materials Science and Engineering, has been appointed chair of the Powder Metallurgy Technologist Certification Commission of APMI International, the largest professional society in North America devoted to the field of powder metallurgy and particulate materials.

**************

School of Engineering professor of surgery and mechanical engineering David Vorp has been awarded a three-year, $210,000 grant from the Whitaker Foundation. The grant is for research on bioengineering studies of abdominal aortic aneurysm, the 13th most common cause of death in the United States, claiming 15,000 lives annually.

**************

The Katz Graduate School of Business has named Mark T. Carter director of the school's Center for Executive Education. Carter comes to Pitt from the Bayer Corp., where he held various technical and managerial posts in research, sales, marketing, technical services and human resources. At Katz, he will be responsible for the operational management of the center with special emphasis on non-degree programs.

**************

John Fung, chief of the Division of Transplant Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh's Medical Center's Thomas E. Starzl Transplantation Institute, is "Dr. May" in the 1997 "Studmuffins of Science" calendar available in The Book Center and the University of Pittsburgh Health Book Center.

In addition to a large color photo of a different "studmuffin of science" every month, the calendar includes milestones in science history, amusing notes on patent medicine items, conference dates and filing deadlines for National Institutes of Health and National Science Foundation grants. "People who buy this calendar obviously aren't doing it to see me," Fung said. "They'll probably skip May."

**************

The Nationality Rooms and Intercultural Exchange Program has announced the 1997 winners of the John G. Bowman Faculty Grants for Research Abroad. Each of the 10 winners will receive $1,000 for research abroad to prepare for teaching a new course or to enhance a course already being taught. Bowman served as Pitt chancellor from 1921 to 1945. This year's winners are: Joseph K. Adjaye, Africana studies, to document aspects of cultural production in Ghana.

Robert Altamura, geology and planetary science, to study the structural geology and tectonics of the Gulf of Suez in Egypt.

Walter Page Carson, biological sciences, for research on tropical forest diversity following fragmentation and anthropogenic degradation in Costa Rica.

Susan Felsenfeld, communication science and disorders, to study an innovative stuttering treatment program being used on children in Australia.

Jane Gary Harris, Slavic studies, for research on women's publishing and women's magazines in Russia.

Karen Sturgeon Peterson, public health, to conduct interviews with women in three generational groups to determine perceived generational differences in Ecuador.

Jeffrey Schwartz, anthropology, to study the collection of hominid fossils in Kenya.

M. Alison Stones, history of art and architecture, to take copyrighted slides of architectural monuments in Italy for use in teaching medieval art and architecture electronically.

Sekai Turner, psychology and education, for research on juvenile delinquency and prevention within the context of post-apartheid Namibia.

**************

Sabine von Dirke, Germanic languages and literatures, to update ongoing research on multiculturalism in Germany and to research site locations and teaching materials relating to Bavaria for a future course in Germany. n ught Germany. n Patricia Stranahan has been named director of the Asian studies program in Pitt's Center for International Studies. A member of the Texas A&M University faculty since 1980, Stranahan has been on leave from that institution since 1995 serving as executive director of the Committee on Scholarly Communication with China in Washington, DC. Stranahan earned her undergraduate degree from Westminster College. She holds a Ph.D. in oriental studies from the University of Pennsylvania.

**************

Donald L. Priestly has been named director of Information Systems in the Katz Graduate School of Business. Priestly will oversee technology systems and technical support efforts at the Katz school. Prior to coming to Pitt, Priestly operated his own consulting firm, DP Consulting, and served as a consultant with KCS, Inc. Information Technology Solutions. He also has worked for Mellon Bank and Alcoa.


Leave a Reply