News
Notes
&
December 2013
News & Notes in this issue... 3 Dean’s Note 4 Activities 10 Appointments
December 2013
a publication of the College of Allied Health Sciences Georgia Regents University Augusta
11 Welcome 12 Publications 13 Achievements & Awards 14 Outreach & Service 16 Alumni 17 Calendar 2
On the Cover: OT Assistant Professor Sharon Swift snapped this photo as she and a group of students touched down in Jamaica. See page 14 to learn more about their trip.
Dean’s Note Dear colleagues and friends of CAHS, The holiday season is upon us! Many of us will take time off to share with family and friends, to relax and rejuvenate. Let us also reflect and celebrate the many giant strides our college has taken in just one short year! Our most recent accomplishments and activities are highlighted in this edition of News & Notes, so please keep reading. Speaking of big steps, we are developing new partnerships in Georgia and abroad. I’ve recently made a series of visits to Georgia Tech, one of the country’s top-ranked engineering schools, to explore collaborative opportunities, primarily in the area of rehabilitation engineering. And, in October, I had the pleasure of traveling to China with a GRU delegation led by Vice-Provost Roman Cibirka. Our mission? To exchange thoughts and discuss possible fields of collaboration between our university and East China Normal University, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, and Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Wherever we go, we find many opportunities for cooperation with our colleagues and much enthusiasm about sharing education practices, exchanging talented students, and promoting faculty interactions. New partnerships such as these will certainly advance the GRU vision of becoming an internationally recognized leader in higher education. As we look forward with excitement at what 2014 will bring, I wish you all the happiest of holidays! best,
Andrew Balas, MD, PhD Dean and Professor
CAHS Dean Andrew Balas with Dr. Jianrong Shi, Vice President of Shaghai University of Traditional Medicine 3
Activities A giant in public health visits CAHS We were truly honored to have Dr. David Satcher, former U.S. Surgeon General, Assistant Secretary for Health, and Director of the Centers for Disease Control, as our guest Oct. 17 in the CAHS Dean’s Research Seminar Series. Attendance was so high an overflow room was required, and several media outlets were on hand as Dr. Satcher shared his experiences in public health leadership and spoke on a wide range of topics affecting health care in the United States. Prior to his talk in the Health Sciences Building, Dr. Satcher, the first Surgeon General to write a report on oral health in the U.S., visited the College of Dental Medicine Class of 2017 at the invitation of Kate Ciarrocca in the Department of Oral Rehabilitation. After his lecture, he graciously stayed to talk one-on-one with many of his admirers. If you were unable to attend the lecture (or get in!), you may view the ECHO recording here. Our thanks to Interim Associate Dean for Research Abiodun Akinwuntan for arranging Dr. Satcher’s visit. For information on upcoming speakers in the series, click here.
Dr. David Satcher
Abiodun Akinwuntan (far right) introduces the guest speaker to an overflow crowd 4
Partnering with local nuclear workforce brings national focus to GRU Our thanks to Greg Passmore (NMT), who worked tirelessly this fall to bring National Nuclear Science Week 2013 to campus through a partnership with the Savannah River Site Nuclear Workforce Initiative. His efforts brought more than 60 bright high school sophomores and juniors from Technical Career Magnet School in Richmond County and Evans High School in Columbia County for GRU Education Day Oct. 24 to learn about nuclear technology benefits and to explore career opportunities. The students participated in hands-on programs on atomic structure, fundamentals of nuclear fuel, and benefits of nuclear medicine, all taught by nuclear experts from the Ruth Patrick Science Education Center and Shaw Areva MOX Services in Aiken, S.C., and supported by our CAHS Nuclear Medicine Technology and Radiation Therapy faculty. After a lunch provided by CAHS, Lynne Eggert (RTT) and Mimi Owen (NMT) joined a panel of experts for a Q & A session. National Nuclear Science Week is an annual week-long celebration to focus local, regional, and national interest on all aspects of nuclear science. GRU was a major corporate sponsor of this year’s events.
Potential future GRU students from Technical Career Magnet School (left) and Evans High School take part in Education Day at GRU during National Nuclear Science Week
CAHS initiative poised for regional, national expansion Imagine a patient about to be discharged from an acute care facility, one with numerous medical conditions that require intervention from multiple health care practitioners. Coordinating such needs was the focus of our inaugural Interdisciplinary Discharge Conference, developed by Malorie Novak (PT) to promote best practices to health professions students and thereby improve the future of health care. The competition was such a success that it is slated for expansion in the coming year to other 5
Southeastern universities, with a goal of national participation by 2016. GRU Clinical Laboratory Science, Occupational Therapy, Physician Assistant, Physical Therapy, Respiratory Therapy, and Nursing students volunteered to participate in teams to determine a culturally competent, patient- and family-centered interdisciplinary discharge plan for a virtual patient. The plans had to include appropriate continuum of care placement, interventions, equipment, and community resources. Receiving first place honors, award certificates, and Amazon gift cards were Emily Gilbert (PA), Sydney Knapp (CLS), Angela Mundy-Swartz (PT), and Lindsey Waller (CON). Receiving certificates of merit were Kenneth Henkes (PA), Amanda Jackson (OT), Meghan Kubicek (RT), Kara Livingston (PA), Ashley Moore (CLS), Katherine Rudder (PT), Alexandria Sampson (CON), and Janet Rehm (CON). Receiving certificates of participation were Lisa Shead (CON), Ashley Thompson (PA), Paul Turner (PT), and Malorie Novak (from left) congratulates IDC winners Emily Gilbert, Sydney Knapp, and Angela Mundy-Swartz. Not pictured: Lindsey Waller Angela Zaki (CLS). Congratulations to all the students for rising to the challenge! We are proud of each of them for their excellent work. We also thank faculty reviewers Lynn Jaffe (OT) and Stevie Redmond (PA) for their assistance reviewing the presentations. A ceremony to announce the winners was held during the CAHS Chairs Council meeting Dec. 4.
Ahead of the curve on interprofessional education In October, Stevie Redmond (PA) attended the 18th Annual College of Nursing and Health Professions Educator Conference at the University of Southern Indiana in Evansville, where she spoke on GRU’s experience developing and implementing interprofessional education. Stevie and fellow faculty members Lori Anderson (CON), Michael Brands (MCG), Miriam Cortez-Cooper (PT), Matthew Diamond (MCG), Mahmood Mozaffari (CDM), and Barbara Russell (CLS), developed the university’s IPE project, which debuted in 2012 and has, so far, had participation from nearly 350 GRU students in seven disciplines. A big thumbs up to Stevie, Miriam, and Barbara for helping lead this important move toward interprofessional education, one that is increasingly required by credentialing bodies. 6
Intercollege mentorship recognized at national conference Tiana Curry-McCoy (CLS) and her research assistant Amanda Thomas (College of Science and Mathematics ’16) attended the 42nd Annual Autumn Immunology Conference in Chicago in November, where Tiana was named the John Wallace Diversity Program Mentor and spoke about the experiences of first-time faculty, and Amanda’s poster presentation, “Compound Effects of Alcohol and High Caloric Diet Consumption on Alveolar Cells,” was named the conference’s Best Undergraduate Poster by Trends Journal. “Mentoring the next generation of scientists is a fulfilling and rewarding experience,” Tiana says. “There may be hiccups along the way, but the end result is worth the journey.” Amanda’s research came out of MLIRS’s first basic science laboratory, which Tiana began in 2012.
Heading eastward, far eastward
Tiana Curry-McCoy and mentee Amanda Thomas
OT faculty members Mariana D’Amico, Lynn Jaffe, and Robert Gibson, presented a poster on “ProcessOriented Guided Inquiry Learning: A Natural Fit for Occupational Therapy” at the 2013 American Occupational Therapy Association’s Education Summit in Atlanta in October. The poster has been accepted for presentation at the World Federation of Occupational Therapy World Congress in Yokohama, Japan, in June 2014. Fellow OT faculty member Pam Kearney’s presentation, “Educating Students to Work with Diverse Clients,” has also been accepted for the Congress. Congratulations to all!
Celebrations abound! The college celebrated National Allied Health Professions Week Nov. 3-9 with a drop-in breakfast for students, faculty, staff and alumni, sponsored by the GRU Alumni Association, and with a visit to Augusta Mayor Deke Copenhaver’s office for an official proclamation.
Kaylee Dowling (OT ‘14, from left), Mindy Hickman (PT ‘16), Dean Balas, Mayor Copenhaver, Kristin Cadavos (PA ‘15), Shands James RTT ‘15), and Christi Snider (HMI ‘15) 7
Radiation Therapy students honored their clinical instructors by hosting breakfast at each of the program’s clinical affiliates during National Radiologic Technology Week in November. Faculty members Sharon Chestnut and Lester Pretlow and RTT student Alexis Harville (’14) did a great job spreading the word as guests Nov. 6 on the WGAC Coffee Break show with Harley Drew and Mary Liz Nolan, introducing the radio audience to radiation therapy and nuclear medicine technology as professions. Physician Assistant students, faculty, and staff enthusiastically celebrated PA week Oct. 6-12 by participating in many activities on and off campus, including an op-ed piece in The Augusta Chronicle (see the Publications section below), an appearance on radio station WGAC’s morning show, and a visit to Augusta Mayor Deke Copenhaver’s office for an official proclamation (we certainly kept the Mayor busy!). Community activities included numerous Class of 2015 PA students Leah Meadows (from left), Dayana Matute, Kristin Cadavos, presentations at local high schools about the Mayor Copenhaver, Mallory Bodolosky, and Luis Valdes PA profession and our GRU program, and a donation of 50 influenza vaccines to the Christ Church Health Clinic by the Class of 2015. A report on the week’s activities by first-year students Melissa Morgan and C.J. Brooks appears in the December issue of PA Professional, published by the American Academy of Physician Assistants. Congratulations to the entire department for their efforts in reaching out to the community and to aspiring PA students!
And wait, there’s more! Maureen Akins, CAHS Instructional Analyst, presented “Faculty Partnerships for Teaching Online” at the University System of Georgia’s Georgia Summit Conference in September. The presentation outlined a SoTL (Scholarship of Teaching and Learning) research team project that investigated faculty motivators for teaching online. Abiodun Akinwuntan (PT) gave a presentation on “Simulator Adaptation Syndrome and the Vestibular System: An Exploratory Study” at the 4th International Conference on Road Safety and Simulation in Rome, Italy in October. Co-authors are Raymond Chong (PT) and Class of 2012 alumni Geoffery Daniel, Johnathan Fleming, and Kenneth Lokey. 8
Bill Andrews (MI) was an invited speaker at the American Medical Student Association’s Empowering Future Physicians Conference at the Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta in October. His presentation, “Vision & Perception: The Art of Medicine,” guided the audience through art and photography into an exploration of how visual perceptions of life sciences are inextricably bound to culture and contextual social framing. Lori Bolgla (PT) and Class of 2014 students Leah Forlines, Mark Grayson, and Cassandra Sage made a poster presentation on “Trunk, Hip, and Knee Muscle Function and Performance during a Single-Leg Squat Test” during the Fall Meeting of the Physical Therapy Association of Georgia in Atlanta in October. Physician Assistant faculty members Lisa Daitch, Kathy Dexter, and Judith Stallings attended the Physician Assistant Education Association’s Annual Education Forum in Memphis, Tenn., in October. “On the road with Multiple Sclerosis: Challenges in Assessment and Rehabilitation” was the title of a presentation given by Hannes Devos (PT) at the European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis’ 18th Annual Conference of Rehabilitation in MS in Copenhagen, Denmark in October. Nasrul Hoda (CLS) has been invited to the International Stroke Conference 2014 in San Diego in February, where he will have a poster presentation on “Remote Ischemic Conditioning, a Combined Regimen of Per- and Post-Conditioning, Provides Long-term and Cognitive Benefits in Murine Embolic Stroke Model.” Malorie Novak (PT) gave a poster presentation on “Measuring Health Professions Students’ Orientation Toward Lifelong Learning” at the annual meeting of the American Association of Medical Colleges in Philadelphia in November. She received a Scholarship of Teaching and Learning grant from the GRU Office of Faculty Development and Teaching Excellence to support her attendance at the meeting. Gregory Passmore (NMT) conducted a workshop on “Concept Mapping as a Meaningful Learning Tool to Promote Conceptual Understanding and Clinical Reasoning” at the Southeastern Chapter of the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging’s annual meeting in Charlotte, N.C., in October.
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Appointments Changes in the Dean’s Office We are pleased to announce the appointment of Lester Pretlow as Associate Dean for Academic Affairs in the College of Allied Health Sciences. In this capacity, Lester will promote and maintain program accreditations, expand program enrollment, develop new programs, and improve student experiences and educational outcomes. He will also oversee strategy development and create models of health professional education while advancing national rankings of our education programs. Lester most recently served as Chairman of the Department of Medical Laboratory, Imaging and Radiologic Sciences. Prior to joining GRU in 2002, he was Officer in Charge of Chemistry and Hematology for the Department of Pathology at Fort Gordon’s Eisenhower Army Medical Center. He has a doctorate in biomedical science from Old Dominion University and a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from the University of Virginia. and a farewell… After serving on the CAHS faculty since 2003, including as Program Director for Clinical Laboratory Science, Barbara Russell, Interim Associate Dean for Strategic Initiatives and Faculty Affairs, has accepted a position as the Phase 2 Curriculum Coordinator for the Department of Pathology in the Medical College of Georgia. Barbara’s expertise and leadership has been a tremendous asset to our college, and her many colleagues, friends, and students will certainly miss her, but it’s great to know she’ll be just across the street. Barbara, we wish you continued success in your new endeavors! A goodbye drop-in for Barbara will take place Dec. 19 from noon - 1:30 p.m. in EC-3316B. Barbara Russell
Lester Pretlow
Behr chosen for EII Fellowship Amanda Behr (MI) has been selected for the 2014 GRU Education Innovation Institute’s Teaching Scholars Fellows program. The fellowship provides extensive training for educators who wish to develop additional expertise in teaching, program development, learner evaluation, and mentoring. For more information about the program, click here. 10
Eggert embraces multiple national service roles Lynne Eggert (RTT) becomes very busy with appointments to the American Society of Radiologic Technologists Committee on Nominations; the American Society of Radiologic Technologists SergeantAt-Arms Committee; and the Association of Educators in Radiologic Sciences Research and Scholarship Committee.
Welcome We are pleased to announce the appointment of Raghavan Raju (MLIRS) as Professor in the Clinical Laboratory Science program. He comes to us from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, where he was an Associate Professor in the School of Medicine and a Scientist in the Center for Cardiovascular Biology and the Comprehensive Diabetes Center. A widely published researcher with NIH funding, his primary interest is studying injury through a systems biological approach, with the long-term goal of developing therapeutic injury management methods. Prior to UAB, Raghavan was a Senior Staff Fellow at the NIH National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, and held positions at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., the universities of Wisconsin and Minnesota, and the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi, where he earned his doctorate in biomedical sciences. He has a master’s degree in medical biochemistry from the University of Delhi. Marlo Vernon, previously a Research Coordinator at the Georgia Prevention Center, is now a Public Health Analyst for the Institute of Public and Preventive Health, housed here in the CAHS and working with Dean Balas. An excellent addition to our college, Marlo spent 10 years at the GPC, where she worked on several NIH-funded studies with an emphasis on obesity prevention among women and children. She earned an MPH in Health Promotion, Education, and Behavior from the University of South Carolina and a bachelor’s degree in English Literature from Franciscan University of Steubenville in Ohio. Marlo Vernon 11
Raghavan Raju
Publications Local to international, we’re in print (and even on the cover!) Abiodun Akinwuntan (PT) and Hannes Devos (PT) continue their publishing success with “Driving and Off-Road Impairments Underlying Failure on Road Testing in Parkinson’s Disease” in the journal Movement Disorders. Co-authors are William Vandenberghe, Mark Tant, Willy De Weerdt, Alice Nieuwboer, and Ergun Uc. PA students Mallory Bodolosky and Luis Valdes were guest columnists in the Nov. 3 edition of The Augusta Chronicle in conjunction with National Physician Assistant Week. In their excellent article, they touted the national need for more PAs and our outstanding program at GRU. Read the column here. The textbook Portal Design in Radiation Therapy, 3rd ed. by Sharon Chestnut (RTT) and co-authors Byron Dasher, Anne Marie Vann, and Nancy Wiggers, has been published by DWV Enterprises. New faculty member Nasrul Hoda (MLIRS) has had his manuscript, “Remote Ischemic Perconditioning is Effective After Embolic Stroke in Ovariectomized Female Mice” accepted for publication in the journal Translational Stroke Research. It is his fourth publication since joining the college in August! Pavani Rangachari (MPH) is the lead author of “The Evolution of Knowledge Exchanges Enabling Successful Practice Change in Two Intensive Care Units,” an article published ahead-of-print in Health Care Management Review. See the ePub article here. Chandramohan Wakade’s (PT) article “Axonal Fasciculation and the Role of Polysialic Acid-Neural Cell Adhesion Molecule in Rat Cortical Neurons,” was chosen as the cover story for the November edition of the Journal of Neuroscience Research. Click here to read the full article. Congratulations, Mohan! CLS student Angela Zaki (’15) has had her first publication “Thymoquinone: Fifty Years of Success in the Battle against Cancer Models” printed in Drug Discovery Today. Her co-authors are Regine Schneider-Stock and Chirine El-Baba at the Friedrich-AlexanderUniversity-Nuremberg in Germany and Isabelle Fakhoury and Halu Gali-Muhtasib at the American University in Beirut.
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Achievements & Awards We couldn’t do it without YOU Congratulations and many thanks to our CAHS faculty and staff who were recently recognized for reaching milestones in their service to the university. All received certificates and were honored by GRU President Azziz at Service Recognition Ceremonies where they also received service pins.
20 years: Lynn Jaffe (OT) and Pam Edwards (PT) 15 years: Kay Bennett (DH), LaDonna Butler (RT), Mimi Owen (NMT), and Lisa Daitch (PA) 10 years: Sharon Swift (OT) 5 years: Kandyce Mack (DH) and Andrew Mazzoli (RT)
Click here to see photos from the events.
Recognizing the very best In September, Mariana D’Amico (OT) received the prestigious Barbara E. Grant Award of Merit from the Georgia Occupational Therapy Association for her outstanding global contribution to the OT profession in service, leadership, education, and advocacy. This award is the association’s highest honor. Congratulations, Mariana, for this well-deserved award!
Accreditation renewed Congratulations to our Radiation Therapy program for successfully maintaining its eight-year accreditation after a review of its Interim Report by the Joint Review Committee on Education in Radiologic Technology. The next self-study and site visit will take place in Spring 2017.
Mariana D’Amico (center), with Diane Wolfe, GOTA nominations committee Chairwoman (left) and Mary Shotwell, GOTA President
Multidisciplinary PSRP grant awarded Lori Bolgla (PT), Lester Pretlow (MLIRS), Gloria Sloan (CLS), and Matthew Lyon (Emergency Medicine) have received a one-year $15,000 grant from the GRU Intramural Pilot Study Research Program to determine individuals at-risk for patellofemoral pain and osteoarthritis through the assessment of patella alignment, cartilage biomarkers, pain, and function. 13
Outreach & Service Beyond borders – OT students make a difference in Jamaica Sharon Swift (OT) led a group of 13 Class of 2014 Occupational Therapy students to Jamaica in October for a Study Abroad program, the first-ever visit by U.S. OT students to Jerusalem!, an orphanage for nearly 160 disabled children and adults. The week-long trip fulfilled the students’ pediatric fieldwork requirement and introduced methods for engaging the residents that were so successful Mustard Seed Communities, which operates the orphanage, has instituted their use by all visiting mission organizations. A group of first-year OT students will make a return visit in March, and plans for an October trip are being finalized.
Jamaica bound!
Click here to view a heartwarming YouTube video featuring OT students Alex Alzheimer, Catherine Clark, Danielle Deramus, Kaylee Dowling, Lauren Heard, Shannon Lynch, Lindsay Merrick, Julia Story, Amber Strickland, Jordan Theis, Charlie Turk, Lauren Wessel, and Shelly Woodward working with residents of the orphanage – a true labor of love! 14
Dental Hygiene students embrace community service During September, Dental Hygiene students conducted screenings for kindergarteners through fifth graders at Lamar-Milledge Elementary School, and then held four clinic sessions on the GRU campus in October and November. Dubbed “Children Dental Days,” senior DH students provided preventive dental treatment, including prophylaxis, sealants, and fluoride treatments, to 106 children! The kids also found out, in a fun way, what happens during a dental visit while learning about proper oral hygiene, nutrition, and overall preventive dental care through coloring and activity books designed by Dental Hygiene faculty. They took home crayons, toothbrushes, toothpaste, floss, and a tooth holder to put under their pillow in anticipation of the Tooth Fairy! A Minority Faculty Development grant from the American Dental Education Association provided funding for this worthy project. Senior Dental Hygiene students turned GRU Family Day into Family Community Outreach Day on Sept. 28 as Casey Simmons, Molly Smith, Rhonda Smith, and Michelle Williams made oral health presentations at the Annual Tabernacle Health Fair on Laney-Walker Boulevard, while Charlina HollieBlackwood and Jackie Bascino spoke at the Faith Deliverance Women’s Conference on oral care for women.
Learning about good oral health - the fun way!
DH students also participated in the Women’s Clinic held by the College of Nursing in October for migrant workers from Costa Layman Nurseries, providing dental screenings and fluoride applications, a much-needed service for a population with limited access to oral health care. Way to go, dental hygiene students!
Thank you to all who gave the gift of life The November blood drive in the Health Sciences Building was a great success! Over 70 people came by, reported Sheila Tinsley, GRU Transfusion Services Manager. Along with her thanks, Sheila reminds us that blood donor volunteers are needed every day, especially during the holidays when donations drop significantly. The Blood Donor Room is open daily from 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. If you are able to donate, please make an appointment at 706-721-3695. 15
Yee-haw! RTT students help Alzheimer’s Association Radiation Therapy students volunteered at the Alzheimer’s Association’s Hay Bales & Cocktails fundraiser at the Julian Smith Casino in November, serving up Sconyer’s barbecue and manning the beer and wine tasting stations. They even demonstrated mechanical bull riding and assisted those who were brave enough to try taking a ride! All proceeds from the event were donated to the Alzheimer’s Association.
Front row from left: Taylor Gray (‘15), Syndi McClintock (‘14), Andrea Perkins (‘14), and Christina McClain (‘15) Back row: Shands James (‘15), Lauren Wadella (‘15), and Mallorie Shaw (‘14)
Alumni Recent HMI graduate Alan Soskel (’13) was profiled in the October issue of AHIMA Advantage, the member newsletter of the American Health Information Management Association. Read about this remarkable alumnus here. Daryl Hall (PT ’12) was recently featured in his hometown newspaper, the Bainbridge Community News, in a story about Bainbridge State College, where he attended his first two years of college. Read more here. Kenneth Whitlow (PT ’95) has joined the Rehabilitation Institute of Northeast Georgia Medical Center at its Dawsonville location. He previously was in private practice in Dawsonville, where he owned and operated Cornerstone Physical Therapy. Alumni, please send news of your actvities
and accomplishments to alumni@gru.edu and/or shwalls@gru.edu for publication in News & Notes and in the GRU alumni magazine Gravity. 16
Calendar December 24-25 Happy Holidays!
January 1 11 15 18 28 New Year’s Day Holiday Superhero Resolution 5k sponsored by PA Class of 2015 Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday CAHS Day with the Jags Christenberry Fieldhouse, 3:30 p.m. State of the Enterprise Address Maxwell Performing Arts Theater, Noon
February 8 American Heart Association Heart Ball
March 8 American Heart Association Heart Walk 13 GRU University Senate Spring Assembly and Faculty Awards 28-29 Georgia Academy of Sciences Annual Spring Meeting hosted by GRU
April 7-11 Spring Break 24-27 GRU Alumni Weekend
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Just one more
Senior OT student Alex Alzheimer plays baseball with an orphange resident in Jamiaca. See page 14.
Please send information about student, faculty, staff, and alumni news, including community and outreach events; appointments; program and membership updates; grants, awards and publications; alumni activities; and your newsletter comments, suggestions and ideas to the editor: Sharron Walls EC-3408 706-721-7955 shwalls@gru.edu 18