Four Women Scholars Who Have Been Designated for New Roles

Zheng Jennifer Huang has been selected as the new department head for Fine Arts at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College in Tifton, Georgia, effective July 1. Dr. Huang joined the faculty in 2018 after teaching at Darton State College and Albany State University.

Dr. Huang received a bachelor’s degree in piano performance from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music in Ohio. She holds master’s degrees in harpsichord and piano performance from Mannes College of Music in New York City, and a doctor of musical arts degree in harpsichord performance from the State University of New York at Stony Brook.

Cristina Davis, professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at the University of California, Davis, has been given the added duties of associate vice chancellor of interdisciplinary research and strategic initiatives. Dr. Davis has served for the last six months as the associate dean for research in the College of Engineering. She joined the faculty at the university in 2005.

Professor Davis is a graduate of Duke University, where she majored in mathematics and biology. She holds a Ph.D. in biomedical engineering from the University of Virginia.

Marcia Ostrom, an associate professor in the School of the Environment at Washington State University, is the new director of the university’s Food Systems Program. She was the founder of the university’s Small Farms Program, which she led for 15 years, Dr. Ostrom has been a faculty member at the university for 21 years.

Dr. Ostrom earned a bachelor’s degree in biology and anthropology from Harvard University. She holds a master’s degree in development sociology from Cornell University and a Ph.D. in environmental studies from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Cleveland State University has conferred the honor of Distinguished Professor on Samantha Baskind for her contributions to the department of art and design, its College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences, and to the university. This is the first such honor given by the university to any member of faculty in its history. Dr. Baskind joined the faculty in August 2004, having previously taught at the University of Miami.

Dr. Baskind is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, where she majored in English and art history. She holds a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in art history from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.