The University of South Florida (USF) has presented Outstanding Research Achievement Awards to associate psychology professor Lindsey Rodriguez, PhD, and psychology professor Edelyn Verona, PhD, “for achievements that defied the disruption” caused by COVID-19. Rodriguez, whose research focuses on how relationships affect substance use and treatment, was among those who predicted that people would turn to alcohol amid the stress and fear of the pandemic. Journalists and health experts have cited her research widely during the pandemic and she earned several new research grants in 2020. Verona studies violence risk and prevention and evidence-based interventions to reduce crime and incarcerationopens in new window. She recently secured $1.2 million in new funding from the National Institute of Justice to implement interventions in a county jail and cofounded the Center for Justice Research & Policy.
Georgetown College has named Rosario Ceballo, PhD, as its new dean starting Jan. 1, 2022. Ceballo is currently a professor of psychology and women’s and gender studies and associate dean for the social sciences at the University of Michigan, as well as a former chair of APA’s Committee on Socioeconomic Status.
Emory University presented this year’s Albert E. Levy (Junior) Award for Excellence in Scientific Research to Dorian Lamis, PhD, ABPP, an assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Emory’s School of Medicine. He conducts research and provides clinical services at the Grady Memorial Hospital Behavioral Health Outpatient Center with patients who are diagnosed with serious mental illness and/or are at risk for suicide.
Howard University professor of counseling psychology Ivory A. Toldson, PhD, has been named the NAACP’s new director of education innovation and research. Toldson plans to work on strengthening funding and equity across Historically Black Colleges and Universities and breaking down communication barriers among academe, policymakers, and the public. He spent 5 years as the chief executive officer of Quality Education for Minorities, a nonprofit dedicated to improving education for BIPOC students.
University of California, Berkeley, developmental psychologist Alison Gopnik, PhD, has won the Carl Sagan Prize for Science Popularization from the nonprofit organization Wonderfest. The annual $5,000 prize recognizes researchers who have expanded the public’s understanding and appreciation of science. Gopnik is the author of several popular press books on child development and writes frequently for the media, including a regular column on new psychological research for The Wall Street Journal.
Southern Illinois University Carbondale has named Robert D. Morgan, PhD, as dean of the College of Health and Human Sciences. Morgan was previously the John G. Skelton Jr. Regents Endowed Professor in Psychology at Texas Tech University since 2011 and chair of the university’s Department of Psychological Sciences since 2015. He also served as director of the university’s Institute for Forensic Science since 2014.
Wesleyan University has presented a Binswanger Prize for Excellence in Teaching to associate psychology professor Anna Shusterman, PhD. In addition to her teaching responsibilities, Shusterman cochairs the College of Education Studies and directs research in the Cognitive Development Labs on how young children’s experiences shape their thinking and behavior.