Retired faculty honored with granting of emeritus status

The Bowling Green State University Board of Trustees granted emeritus status to 20 retired or retiring faculty at the May 3 meeting in honor of their distinguished service to the University and achievements in teaching, service and research.

Emeritus status is conferred in recognition of distinguished service to the University. To be designated as emeritus, individuals must have been at the University for at least 10 years and been recommended by their department for the designation.

Emeritus Professor

• Dr. Bonnie Berger came to BGSU in 1999 as director of the School of Human Movement, Sport and Leisure Studies, a position she held for 10 years before returning to a full-time faculty role. Her teaching has focused on exercise psychology, sport psychology and research methods.  She has also been a significant contributor to graduate education. A prolific scholar, her research has focused on the role of exercise in mood and quality of life. She was named a fellow of the American Psychological Association, the Association for Applied Sport Psychology and the National Academy of Kinesiology. Berger also served as president of the Association for Applied Sport Psychology.
• Dr. Thomas Chibucos served as director of the School of Family and Consumer Sciences for 10 years after joining the University in 1993, and then taught as a full-time faculty member in the school for 15 years. He brought his expertise in developmental psychology to his teaching, which has focused on courses related to children, families and social policy in the Human Development and Family Studies program. He also served on the graduate level. His publishing career began in 1971 and continued through his retirement, aided by grants totaling nearly $2 million. A fellow of and Senior Policy Committee Advisor to the National Council on Family Relations, he is affiliated with the National Poverty Center at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Health at the University of Michigan and research centers at BGSU.
• Dr. Lynda D. Dixon, communication, joined BGSU in 1996. She has dedicated her career to the cause of communication across barriers aggravated by cultural conflicts and health concerns. She has been an active scholar in the areas of health and intercultural communication and issues relating to the indigenous Native American communities of Oklahoma. In addition to teaching undergraduate and graduate courses in communication, she has directed numerous doctoral dissertations and served on thesis and doctoral committees in her own and related disciplines.
• Dr. James Evans, geology, has had great impact on undergraduate and graduate education at BGSU since arriving in 1987, all while maintaining a dynamic, internationally recognized research agenda. Among his many professional honors, he received the Distinguished Service Award three times from the Geological Society of America, for which he served as the Congressional Science Fellow in 1987-88, among numerous other roles. His expertise in hydrology and public policy have led to his being called upon to provide his professional opinion in controversial issues. Highly regarded as a teacher, he has embedded field trips and experiential learning at all levels of geology coursework, and his students have gone on to successful careers. He also served for many years on BGSU Faculty Senate, earning the Faculty Distinguished Service Award.
• Dr. Daniel Fasko came to BGSU in 2001 as a tenured full professor in the School of Educational Leadership and Policy, and has taught Educational Foundations and Inquiry graduate and undergraduate courses in educational psychology and human growth and development. He has served as EDFI division chair and program coordinator as well as area coordinator for educational psychology. He has also been a faculty affiliate with the Honors College, teaching courses in creative and critical thinking. He is widely published in the areas of moral education, the role of creativity in educational settings, critical thinking, enhancing attention in learning and reducing anxiety. Since arriving at BGSU, he has published five books as author or co-author, and was named a fellow of the Psychonomic Society. He has been active in professional societies and BGSU committees, and has been the faculty adviser to the BGSU Equestrian Team since 2006.
• Dr. John Laird, four-term chair of the Department of Physics and Astronomy, joined the University in 1987. His research has focused on astronomy and the scholarship of science of teaching and learning, and he has been a leader of STEM education including serving as the coordinator for the annual regional Science Olympiad competition. He has been greatly involved in the development of curriculum, including the creation of the bachelor of arts in physics. A committed mentor of students, in 2007, he received the Elliott Blinn Award for Faculty-Undergraduate Student Innovative Basic Research/Creative Work. He was also honored in 2019 with the presentation of the Faculty Senate Leadership as a Chair/School Director Award.
• Dr. Victor Odafe, natural and social sciences faculty in mathematics at BGSU Firelands, has had a distinguished career as a teacher of mathematics at all levels, from remedial to advanced calculus. He served as department chair for 13 years, receiving the Faculty Senate Leadership as a Chair/School Director Award in 2013.  He has also worked in math education and become nationally and internationally known for expanding best practices in that area. More recently he extended his educational reach by teaching online courses. Among his many recognitions from BGSU Firelands is the Distinguished Creative Scholar Award.
• Dr. Katerina Rüedi Ray served as director of the School of Art from 2002-17, when she returned to full-time teaching in art history and architectural history. An architect by training, Ray has been a highly productive scholar, publishing six books as author, co-author or co-editor since 2003, and a dozen over the course of her career, not counting new editions, translations and catalogs. She also has a forthcoming textbook for architecture students. Praised as an effective leader, mentor and advocate for the school, she was also a founding member of the University’s Arts Village residential learning community. Her community outreach for the arts in northwest Ohio has led to partnerships and opportunities for students and faculty to get involved.
• Carol Singer has had a 21-year career as faculty and reference and instruction librarian with the University Libraries’ Department of Library Teaching and Learning. She has responsibility for managing and shaping the Government Documents collection and providing library instruction to students, faculty and staff. Her LibGuide pathways are heavily used by BGSU students and linked to by external universities because of their comprehensiveness. She was one of the first library faculty members to pilot and sustain office hours in an academic department. A productive scholar, she has published books, book chapters, peer-reviewed articles and more.
• Dr. Marie Tisak joined the Department of Psychology in 1989. An excellent classroom teacher, she earned the 2017 Psychology Professor of the Year from the Undergraduate Psychology Association. An expert in adolescent aggression, she worked closely with the local juvenile justice system and published in high-quality national and international journals. She initiated a relationship with the University of Rome and served as a visiting professor there in 2015.

Emeritus Associate Professor

• Dr. Catherine Cassara, School of Media and Communication, has taught at the University since 1992. Her research has ranged extensively, from topics in journalism history and American press coverage of international events to the role and contributions of media outlets in the Middle East. Grants she obtained from the U.S. Department of State enabled a connection between BGSU and universities in Algeria and Tunisia. A well-traveled scholar and researcher, Cassara has made significant contributions to BGSU’s International Studies Program and has provided opportunities or BGSU students to gain international experience.
• Dr. Eileen Cherry-Chandler, Department of Theatre and Film, joined BGSU in 2005. A recipient of the Northwestern University Legacy Award, her teaching interests have focused on exploring cultural diversity through performance. Her commitment to diversity and inclusion included community outreach to area public school students. Theatrical productions she directed at BGSU include “My Children! My Africa!” and “The Mountaintop,” in addition to workshops based on her stories about her childhood experiences, “The Winter Barrel Stories.”
• Dr. Nancy William Fordham has been with the School of Teaching and Learning since 2000, serving at times as assistant director and program coordinator. She also served the College of Education and Human Development as coordinator of Educative Teacher Performance Assessment. She is a specialist in best practices in literacy education, around which her scholarship, outreach and teaching have revolved. Known for her leadership and collaborative style, she prepared students to be strong teachers, especially in reading. 
• Dr. Mary Hare has taught in the Department of Psychology since 1998. A recognized cognitive psychologist, her research has focused on the neuroscience of human cognition and linguistics. As an expert in the context of language syntax, her work has contributed significantly to the psychology of language and has been funded by the National Institute of mental Health and the National Institute of Human Development. She has been an editorial board member for the prestigious journal Cognitive Science. Her work and her willingness to mentor drew numerous students to her lab.
• Dr. Susan Norris Huss, who died in February 2019, was awarded associate emeritus status posthumously. She joined the formerly named School of Education and Intervention Services in 1997 and retired in 2017 in the School of Counseling and Special Education. A licensed counselor, her academic background and professional experiences informed her strong contributions to graduate education in the Mental Health and School Counseling program. She spearheaded the initial efforts to gain accreditation for the program and provided leadership until her retirement, including developing new courses to meet state and national standards.
• Dr. Wilfred Roudebush has been with the construction management department in the College of Technology, Architecture and Applied Engineering for 26 years. He has served in administrative roles from department chair, interim chair and acting chair, and interim associate dean of graduate studies. He holds professional licensure in three states, is certified by the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards and has Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Accredited Professional credentials. He brings his professional and scholarly experience to his undergraduate and graduate teaching and his oversight of cooperative education experiences. He has served as research adviser on more than 50 student committees and helped develop curriculum for nine courses.
  

Emeritus Senior Lecturer

• Elizabeth Burns joined the Department of Mathematics and Statistics in 2002. She is a pedagogical expert who helped develop curriculum in the department and in other programs across campus that has had a profound effect on the quality of students’ education and the graduate assistants who taught courses. She designed math courses specially geared toward students in construction and architecture. A member of the Chapman Advisory Group, she also volunteered for the AIMS and TRIO programs, for which she was named a “Special Friend” in 2011.
• Winifred Rex joined the computer science faculty as an instructor in 1985 and was instrumental to the early success of the students, teaching many of the early courses. She helped develop curriculum and served in an elected position on the Executive Committee, which manages a variety of central issues in the department. As a member of the Continuous Improvement Committee, her contributions were especially important when the department was preparing for ABET accreditation for its Bachelor of Science in computer science. Students valued her advice, and she played a role in retention, both as a Retention Committee member and as a trusted mentor.
• Roddy Roark has been instrumental in the development and success of the respiratory care program at BGSU Firelands. Over more than 24 years, he has kept the program current and accredited with best practices and advances in care, and now health care facilities seek out Firelands program graduates. As program director, he has expanded clinical affiliations from six to 15, helping provide students with the scope of experience necessary for a registered respiratory therapist. He was also critical to the establishment of a satellite program at Lorain County Community College, and to the development of the Bachelor of Science in respiratory care, which has been approved at the state level and is pending approval by North Central Accreditation.

Emeritus Lecturer

• Elizabeth Sheets has been a School of Art faculty member in the art education division since 2003. Known as a crusader for art education, she kept abreast of constantly shifting licensure standards and played a vital role in the resurgence of the art education program. Committed to student mentorship, she developed strong relationships with area school districts, which has been important to 100% employment of art education students the past five years.