E&H Faculty Spotlights

DR. LISA WITHERS is the dean of the School of Arts and Sciences at Emory & Henry College, where she also teaches private and group piano. Since her arrival as an Emory & Henry faculty member in 2002, Dr. Withers has taught courses in music theory, music history, women in music, film music, Mozart opera and Beethoven symphonies, among others.

Dr. Withers has previously served roles as the chair of the Music Department, chair of the Division of Visual and Performing Arts and director of the McGlothlin Center for the Arts.

In May, Dr. Withers was recognized with an Arts Alliance Mountain Empire (AAME) Arts Achievement Award, an award that recongizes five individuals each year who have made outstanding contributions to the arts in the region. A! Magazine for the Arts referred to Dr. Withers as a “champion of the performing arts” in its June 2023 issue.

“It is a great honor and pleasure to be getting this AAME Arts Achievement Award,” Dr. Withers told A! Magazine. I know so many of the former recipients and feel very grateful to be included in such an impactful and talented group of people. This community has been a wonderful artistic home for me for 20 years, and my performing and teaching here have helped me to feel an integral part of this vibrant and meaningful community.”

ADAM ALLEY & JODY HANSHEW published their recent research on library social media: Alley, A., & Hanshew, J. (2022). “A long article about short videos: A content analysis of U.S. academic libraries’ use of TikTok” in The Journal of Academic Librarianship

DR. JONATHAN LINDSAY recently published an article on state dependent learning in the proceedings of the National Academy of the Sciences titled “A neuropeptide signal confers ethanol state dependency during olfactory learning in Caenorhabditis elegans.”

DR. AMY SORENSON & DR. SHELLEY KOCH published their recent research on disasters and social justice titled “For the Poor, It Was Just Friday: The Implicit Focus on Middle-class Habitus in Conceptualizing Disaster.”

DR. MATTHEW SHANNON recently published a book chapter titled “Christian Missionaries and the Foundation of Modern Schools in Iran” in Christian-Muslim Relations: A Bibliographical History , Vol. 20 Persia and Afghanistan , 2023.

DR. AMANDA BLEVINS, clinical assistant professor in the Occupational Therapy Department, was recognized with a Hope Award from the College. While at Emory & Henry, Blevins incorporated service learning in many of her classes. She is now completing research on the effect of implicit bias on the delivery of healthcare services in rural areas in an effort to mitigate existing health disparities.

DR. SANDY FREDERICK initated the development of a new program, trauma-informed care training, that is now offered by the College’s Department of Education. Filmed in front of a live audience, the 15 continuing education units that make up the Resilient Schools: A Toolkit Creating Trauma- Informed School Professionals program are now available online for asynchronous instruction.

DR. CHRIS FIELITZ, professor of biology, has refuted a previous 1981 study on a fossil eel from late Cretaceous rocks of western Kansas, finding it to be related, instead, to a different group of fossil eels.

DR. SCOTT SIKES and his team at the Appalachian Center for Civic Life led a spring break trip with 27 students and more than 15 community members from the Emory Campus through the history of the Civil Rights Movement in Alabama.

DR. MARK FINNEY, professor of media and communication, analyzed more than 700 articles published by major news outlets to better understand how media interventions can both negatively and positively affect international conflicts–in this case, between the U.S. and Cuba.

DR. MATTHEW FREDERICK, associate provost and director of bands, will be embarking on a trip to France and Normandy in November 2023 with the E&H Marching Band and alumni. The band will perform at the Colleville-sur-Mere American Cemetery in Normandy, Christmas Market public performance in Caen, a Christmas theme park festival in Paris and at the Champs Elysees in Paris. More details are forthcoming.