Deadline Extended for the Eastern Conference on the Teaching of Psychology

 

The department of psychology at James Madison University is still accepting registrations for the annual meeting of the Eastern Conference on the Teaching of Psychology (ETOP).  

Top Five Reasons to Attend ETOP:


1.       The registration deadline has been extended to June 1.
2.       The registration is dirt cheap.
3.       We are still accepting submissions for poster presentations.
4.       Regan Gurung and Scott Lilienfeld are our keynote speakers.
5.       The Shenandoah Valley is a beautiful place to visit in the summer – come and enjoy a mini-vacation.


For more information, visit http://www.psyc.jmu.edu/undergraduate/etop.html.

Psychology Major Earns Award at OCCJE Research Conference

Congratulations to Megan Sneeringer (Psychology & Criminal Justice double major) who received the Ohio Council of Criminal Justice Education (OCCJE) Undergraduate Baccalaureate Achievement Award for the 2010-11 academic year.  For details on this award, please see the official Ashland University press release by clicking here.  Megan, a 2011 AU graduate, will continue her education at Marymount University in Arlington Virginia this fall as she enrolls in their Master's program in Forensic Psychology.  Congratulations Megan!

Ashland University Study Abroad Programs Meet in Berlin, Germany

Drs. Mitchell Metzger and Mark Hamilton, along with eight AU students, met up with Dr. Chris Swanson and his five AU students in Berlin, Germany on May 20.  Metzger and Hamilton are studying with students in the "AU in Germany" program, while Swanson was wrapping up his "Capital Cities of Europe" tour with students from the Ashland University Honors Program.  Swanson's group was already scheduled to be in Berlin that day, and Metzger's group was only an hour away in Wittenberg.  A few emails back and forth between Metzger and Swanson was all it took to coordinate getting the groups together.  This might be the first time that two separate study abroad groups from Ashland University met up in a country outside of the United States!  Pictured are students from both groups in front of the Berliner Dom (the Berlin Dome) in the heart of Germany's capital city.

Congratulations to Brittany Potter!

Brittany Potter, a Psychology/English double major who graduated earlier this month recently landed a summer internship with Ketchum Public Relations in Washington, DC.  Ketchum Public Relations is an international public relations firm that is established in sixty-five countries around the globe.  Brittany starts her internship on June 6.  Congratulations, Brittany!

Alumni Spotlight - Lauren Cieslak '10

After graduating from Ashland University in May of 2010 with a Bachelors of Science in Psychology, I moved back home to Cleveland to pursue my career. Like many graduates, I was unsure of the direction I wanted to go in. I ended up applying for a position with a Staffing Agency and I now find myself in sales and recruiting. I went all four years at Ashland without taking a single business course and I have successfully ended up in the business field.  My degree in psychology has still helped me in my job today. I work with a variety of individuals through interviewing and getting them through the entire job searching process. I have applied my communication skills and my knowledge of psychology every day at work. The struggles I faced in my undergraduate years have formed me into the successful young professional I am today. My career in sales has already progressed from simply being here after one year, to where I am now preparing myself for a promotion within the next three months. All of the professors in the psychology department have helped me to grow and I could not be happier to have been a part of such a successful department at AU. I learned that psychology can open a variety of career options, so make sure to explore them all!

AU in Germany

Drs. Mitchell Metzger (Psychology), Glenn Kumhera (History), and Mark Hamilton (Philosophy) arrived in Wittenberg, Germany with eleven Ashland Univeristy students on Sunday May 15.  This group will spend the next three weeks in eastern Germany, where they will teach/take classes and travel to cities such as Leipzig, Berlin, Erfurt, Eisenach, Weimar, and Dresden.  Students who take part in this program come from a variety of programs on campus, and two of the students on this trip are psychology majors (Niki Valentine and Katie Schuster).  Pictured here is Stadtkirche (town church), which sits in the middle of Wittenberg and is just off the main square in the middle of town.  "AU in Germany" has run annually since 2005, and Dr. Metzger is the director of this program.  He is actively recruiting the group of students who will go in 2012, so if you would like more information about this great opportunity please visit the AU study abroad page by clicking here.

Rachel Carson Wins 1 of 14 National Psi Chi Summer Research Grants

Congratulations to psychology major Rachel Carson for winning one of only 14 summer research grants awarded by Psi Chi (the international honor society in psychology) and the Association for Psychological Science!  Competition for these grants is very competitive and draws applicants from across the nation.  Rachel will receive a stipend of $3500 and will be spending her summer in West Long Branch, New Jersey to work with Dr. Gary Lewandowski, Jr. from Monmouth University.  Rachel will be conducting a research project titled "Embodiment of Self-Expansion: Benefits for Individual Efficacy and Effort".  Great work, Rachel!

Students Present Research at Midwestern Psychological Association Conference in Chicago, IL

On Thursday, May 5, thirteen psychology majors and minors presented their research projects at the 83rd annual Midwestern Psychological Association (MPA) Conference in Chicago, Illinois.  This was a wonderful opportunity for our students and an honor to be selected to present their research.  Congratulations to all of the students who attended and presented at the conference!

Below are pictures from MPA.  If you are a psychology major or minor and have interest in conducting research to present at next year's MPA conference, please contact one of the department faculty members (Drs. Bonfiglio, Ickes, Mattingly, Metzger, Moore, or Petrill) for more information.

Rachel Carson and Kayla Hoover 

Fred Grant and Falynn Almeda 

Jennifer Schultz (not pictured: Shawn Yambor) 

Nicki Tiberi (not pictured: Stephanie Gordon) 

Niki Valentine and Lauren Goossens (not pictured: Jessica Bates) 

Megen Valerino and Sarah Sladick 

Megen Valerino, Dr. Mattingly, and Sarah Sladick

Thirteen Psychology Majors Graduate During Spring Commencement

The Psychology Department congratulates the thirteen psychology majors who walked at spring commencement on Saturday, May 7th.  The commencement speaker was United States Senator Sherrod Brown, a Mansfield, Ohio native.  This was the first graduating class to receive their diplomas at Deb and Jack Miller Stadium, with over 5,000 family, friends, faculty, staff, and administrators in attendance to congratulate the more than 800 undergraduate and graduate students who received their degrees.  Of the thirteen students, five received a BA degree and eight received a BS degree.  Pictured below are Michael Byrne, Jessie Clements, Stephanie Gordon, Fred Grant, Megan Klubnik, Brittany Potter, Sarah Sladick, Holly Smith, Megan Sneeringer, Nicki Tiberi, Megen Valerino, and Stephanie Whitesel.  Congratulations!!!

Psychology Majors Defend Ashbrook Theses

Congratulations to the following graduating psychology majors who successfully defended their Ashbrook Theses at the end of the Spring 2011 semester.

• Megan Sneeringer - "The Criminal Mind:  Innate, Created, or Both?" 
• Michael Byrne - "An Exploratory Study of Free-Will in the Social Sciences"
• Stephanie Gordon - "Nonviolence Isn't Just for Hippies: How Peace Psychology Could Be Used to Alter the United States Current Mindset to Stop Violent Forms of Conflict"

Alumni Spotlight - Lisa Burg '07

I graduated from AU in 2007 with a B.A. degree in Psychology and a minor in Spanish. After graduation, I accepted a job with a non-profit study abroad provider located in Indianapolis, IN. It was a great opportunity to work with college students and colleagues from around the world. I was especially fortunate to travel to Costa Rica and Peru--major perk! (The photo is me at the famed Incan ruins of Machu Picchu.) Last summer I returned to Northeast Ohio and I am currently finishing up my first year in the graduate program in School Psychology at Cleveland State University. When I complete my second year I will be awarded an M.A. degree in Psychology. I will then complete a one-year, full-time internship in a local school district. Upon successful completion of the internship and passing the Praxis, I will receive a Psychology Specialist (Psy. S.) degree in School Psychology and will be licensed and ready for a full-time job in K-12 schools! I have thoroughly enjoyed my first year in the program and I am learning a lot. I had the opportunity to do a case study with a student in the Cleveland Metropolitan Schools this semester, which was very interesting, and somewhat heartbreaking, given the state of the school district. Next year, I will be doing field placement two days a week in Strongsville. I definitely feel like my psychology education from AU has set me up for success in this program. Designing and conducting my own research at AU has definitely put me at an advantage. I have a research assistantship with a psychology professor at CSU and I have more experience writing research papers. I highly recommend the CSU program and I'm really glad that I ended up here, even though it took me a few years to figure out exactly what I want to do. Best of luck wherever your psychology degree might take you! :-)