Barbara McCaskill was named distinguished research professor at the University of Georgia. She has been with the university since 1992. For the past eight years, she has served as the associate academic director of the Wilson Center for Humanities. She is the editor or author of several books, including Love, Liberation, and Escaping Slavery: William and Emily Craft in Cultural Memory (University of Georgia Press, 2015).
Dr. McCaskill is a summa cum laude graduate of what is now Columbus State University in Georgia, where she majored in English. She holds a master’s degree and Ph.D. in English from Emory University in Atlanta.
Beth Gibbs has joined the faculty in the School of Music at the University of Nevada-Reno as an assistant professor and director of choral activities. She comes to her new appointment from Florida Southern College, where she was a professor and director of choral studies. Her current research focuses on Basque choral music.
Dr. Gibbs holds master’s degrees in conducting and vocal performance from East Carolina University in Greenville, North Carolina, and a doctor of musical arts degree in choral conducting from the University of Miami.
Amy Durham has been appointed associate dean for education at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine. A Penn faculty member since 2008, she currently teaches as a full professor of anatomic pathology. Her scholarship focuses on oncologic pathology with a particular interest in lymphoma in domestic animals.
A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, Dr. Durham holds a masters degree in neuroscience from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. She holds a doctor of veterinary medicine degree and a master’s degree in medical education from the University of Pennsylvania.
Eunjoo Cho has been named assistant dean of the honors program in the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food, and Life Sciences at the University of Arkansas. She first joined the faculty in 2013 and now teaches as full professor of apparel, merchandising, and product development. Her academic work focuses on digital fashion branding, retailing, and sustainability in the fashion business.
Dr. Cho received her bachelor’s degree in apparel design and product development and master’s degree in apparel merchandising from Hanyang University in Seoul, South Korea. She holds a Ph.D. in apparel merchandising and consumer behavior from Iowa State University.
Shannon Wanless has been named director of the University Center for Social And Urban Research at the University of Pittsburgh. A faculty member since 2011, she has served as executive director of the university’s Office of Child Development in the School of Education for the past seven years. In her work, she focuses on building community and social change among adults that are helping young children thrive.
Dr. Wanless holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology, anthropology, and psychology from Denison University in Ohio, a master’s degree in early childhood education from the University of Michigan, and a Ph.D. in human development and family sciences from Oregon State University.
Elizabeth Askren has joined the faculty of the Yale School of Music as an associate adjunct professor and director of the Yale Symphony Orchestra. She has been serving as the first principal guest conductor for the Hawai’i Opera Theatre and a music staff member at the Lyric Opera of Chicago. Additionally, she is the founder and artistic director of the Transylvania Opera Academy, the first-ever opera studio in Romania.
Professor Askren holds degrees in piano and conducting from The Juilliard School in New York, Oberlin Conservatory in Ohio, and Bard College in New York.
A. Carla Staver has joined the faculty at Princeton University as a professor of ecology and evolutionary biology. She comes to Princeton from Yale University, where she has taught for over a decade. A scholar of plant and ecosystem ecology, she previously served as associate director of the Yale Institute for Biospheric Studies.
A graduate of Columbia University in New York City, Dr. Staver holds a master’s degree from the University of Cape Town in South Africa and a Ph.D. from Princeton.
Cynthia Minkovitz has been named vice provost for faculty development at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. A faculty member with Johns Hopkins for more than three decades, she currently serves as the William H. Gates, Sr. Professor and chair of the department of population, family, and reproductive health. Her research focuses on enhancing systems of care and the quality of preventative services for children and families.
Dr. Minkovitz holds a bachelor’s degree, a master of public policy degree, and a medical degree all from Harvard University.
Sooyun Kim has been joined the faculty at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music as an assistant professor of flute. A professional flutist specializing in classical music, she has performed with orchestras and symphonies around the world. She previously taught at the Longly School of Music at Bard College.
A member of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Professor Kim studied at the New England Conservatory in Boston.