Victoria Banyard, PhD, psychology professor at the University of New Hampshire, received the Margaret M. Riggs Distinguished Contributions Award from the New Hampshire Psychological Association for research that has advanced psychology in the state. Banyard studies the long-term mental health consequences of interpersonal violence, including community approaches to prevention and resilience in survivors.
Appalachian State University's Board of Governors honored associate psychology professor Shawn Bergman, PhD, with an Excellence in Teaching Award. Bergman is known for using principles of industrial-organizational psychology in his teaching to motivate students and inspire them to be confident in their academic abilities.
Former APA President Patrick DeLeon, PhD, was named a 2015 Honorary Fellow by the Fellows of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners. DeLeon was honored for supporting the work of nurse practitioners in his role as chief of staff to the late Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii). He is now a professor at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences School of Nursing.
The University of Texas system has named University of Texas San Antonio psychology professor Mary McNaughton-Cassill, PhD, to its Academy of Distinguished Teachers. In addition to teaching multiple psychology courses and co-teaching an honors course on the science and psychology of everyday life, McNaughton-Cassill conducts research on stress and coping. She is also working to increase campus support for veteran students and to promote awareness of student mental health issues.
Neuropsychologist and dementia researcher Glenn E. Smith, PhD, has been named the Elizabeth Faulk Professor and chair of the department of clinical and health psychology at the University of Florida College of Public Health and Health Professions. He was previously a professor of psychology in the College of Medicine at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, the associate director of education resources at the Mayo Clinic Center for Clinical and Translational Science and deputy director of education at the Kern Center for the Science of Health Care Delivery.
On July 1, Anita Jones Thomas, PhD, will be the new dean of the University of Indianapolis School of Psychological Sciences. Thomas comes to the university from Loyola University Chicago, where she began teaching in 2005. She spent three years as director of Loyola's graduate program in counseling psychology and served most recently as associate dean of academic affairs and research in the School of Education. She taught previously at Northeastern Illinois University and National Louis University.
The University of Chicago has named Amanda Woodward, PhD, the new deputy dean of faculty affairs for the university's Division of Social Sciences. Her three-year term will start July 1. Woodward is the university's William S. Gray Professor of Psychology and chairs the department of psychology. Her research focuses on social cognition in infancy and childhood.