The Academic Minute for 2021.06.21-2021.06.25

The Academic Minute from 06.21 – 06.25

Monday, June 21st
Amy Barlow – Rhode Island College
Student Power and Meaning-Making in Library Collections
Amy Barlow is an Associate Professor and Reference Librarian in the James P. Adams Library at Rhode Island College. She has more than a decade of experience as a teaching librarian and subject specialist for the Humanities. She is an active supporter of public humanities initiatives and creator of projects that foster meaningful connections between undergraduate students, libraries, and the community. Her writing and professional presentations are concerned with research methods, collections-based learning, and the digital humanities. Forthcoming publications include a chapter about distant reading in Teaching Critical Reading Skills (ACRL Press) and an essay for student researchers at Smarthistory, the Center for Public Art History.

Tuesday, June 22nd
Mikaila Mariel Lemonik Arthur – Rhode Island College
Where Do Students Go After Graduation?
Dr. Mikaila Mariel Lemonik Arthur is Chair and Professor of Sociology at Rhode Island College. Her research focuses on organizational change in higher education and policy issues surrounding regional comprehensive colleges and universities. She has published three books, including Law and Justice Around the World (Chicago), a text on comparative law designed for undergraduate readers and others new to sociolegal studies, and Student Activism and Curricular Change in Higher Education (Routledge), an investigation of the processes leading to the establishment of women’s studies, Asian American studies, and queer/LGBT studies programs in North American colleges and universities. In the classroom, she specializes in research methods courses and those serving Rhode Island College’s Justice Studies program. She is also involved in initiatives to increase the representation of women in elected office and in advocacy around public higher education funding and access.

Wednesday, June 23rd
Frederic Reamer – Rhode Island College
Research Matters
Frederic Reamer is professor in the graduate program, School of Social Work, Rhode Island College, where he has been on the faculty since 1983.  His teaching and research focus on professional ethics, criminal justice, mental health, health care, and public policy.  Reamer received his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago and has served as a social worker in correctional and mental health settings. He served on the State of Rhode Island Parole Board from 1992 to 2016. Reamer has lectured nationally and internationally in India, China, Singapore, South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, and in various European nations.  His books include Heinous Crime: Cases, Causes, and Consequences; Criminal Lessons: Case Studies and Commentary on Crime and Justice; On the Parole Board: Reflections on Crime, Punishment, Redemption, and Justice; Social Work Values and Ethics; Risk Management in Social Work; The Social Work Ethics Casebook; Ethical Standards in Social Work; Boundary Issues and Dual Relationships in the Human Services; Ethics and Risk Management in Online and Distance Behavioral Health; Moral Distress and Injury in Human Services; and The Social Work Ethics Audit, among others.

Thursday, June 24th
Katherine Lucas – Rhode Island College
Why We Need to Include Human Behaviors in Climate Models
Katherine Lacasse, Ph. D. is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology at Rhode Island College. She is a social psychologist broadly interested in understanding the motivations behind people’s concern and willingness to take action to address social problems. Much of her work is conducted as part of interdisciplinary teams, integrating ideas and methods from several fields to generate new approaches to studying environmental issues. She has investigated risk-perception and decision-making in relation to climate change, environmental infrastructure projects, health behaviors, and intergroup relations.

Friday, June 25th
David Abrahamson – Rhode Island College
Mathematical Modeling
Dave grew up in suburban Los Angeles and was a mathematics major at Harvey Mudd College.  He came to Brown University to earn a doctorate in differential equations in their renowned Division of Applied Mathematics, and he has lived in Rhode Island since graduate school. He has taught at Rhode Island College since 1986, during which time he has taught over 30 different courses.