NEWS

UNC professor pens book of essays on black literature

Dr. Trudier Harris-Lopez, the J. Carlyle Sitterson distinguished professor of English at UNC, examines the work of famous and up-and-coming black writers in her latest book, "South of Tradition: Essays on African America Literature."

Published by the University of Georgia Press, the book addresses themes of sexual and racial identity, re-conceptualizations and transcendence of Christianity, analyses of black folk and cultural traditions and issues of racial justice.

A specialist in black literature and folklore, Harris-Lopez said the book's title refers to her interpretation of the works. "I tried to look at the pieces in ways that they haven’t been covered before, to step outside of normal interpretive paths," she said.

The point of departure for the essays is "a slant, an angle, or a jolt below the line of what would be considered the norm for usual responses to African-American literature," she said.

The title also alludes to Harris-Lopez’s inclusion of authors other than those traditionally linked with black literature, as well as the geographical connection all the writers have to the South.

Harris-Lopez's other books include "Saints, Sinners, Saviors: Strong Black Women in African American Literature" (2001, Palgrave); "The Power of the Porch: The Storyteller’s Craft in Zora Neale Hurston, Gloria Naylor and Randall Kenan" (1996, University of Georgia Press); "Fiction and Folklore: The Novels of Toni Morrison" (1991, University of Tennessee Press); and "Black Women in the Fiction of James Baldwin" (1985, University of Tennessee Press).

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UNC faculty member wins national teaching award

Dr. M. Deborah Bialeschki, an associate professor in recreation and leisure studies, has won the Excellence in Teaching Award from the Society of Park and Recreation Educators, a branch of the National Recreation and Park Association.

Bialeschki was honored at the association’s annual national congress in Tampa, Fla., in mid-October. The department of recreation and leisure studies at UNC nominated Bialeschki for the award.

"She was honored for the innovation and the success of her teaching of majors and minors in recreation," said Dr. Karla Henderson, department chair.

Bialeschki joined the department in 1985 and has directed graduate studies since 1996. She received the Tanner Faculty Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching from UNC in 1999. A native of Tolono, Ill., Bialeschki was the World Leisure and Recreation Association’s delegate to the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women and the International Conference for Women in Beijing.

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Henderson lecturer to discuss technology use in the South

Dr. William R. Ferris, associate director of the UNC Center for the Study of the American South, will present the UNC School of Information and Library Science’s 2002 Lucille Kelling Henderson Lecture.

The free public lecture will be at 3:30 p.m. Thursday (Nov. 7) in Wilson Library’s Pleasants Family Assembly Room.

Ferris, co-editor of the Pulitzer Prize nominee "Encyclopedia of the South," will discuss the emergence of technology within Southern culture and its importance in increasing access to library resources.

"Professor Ferris is an acclaimed scholar of the American South who is committed to bringing the history and culture of our unique part of the world to national and international attention," said Dr. Joanne Marshall, school dean.

Ferris, a professor of history and adjunct professor of folklore, is a former chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Recently, he spoke at UNC’s University Day convocation.

Established in 1990, the annual Henderson lectures honor the memory of Lucile Kelling Henderson, a faculty member and dean during her 28 years with the school.

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Indiana University education dean to speak at series for women educators

"Leadership for Social Justice: Accessing Historical Wisdom from Women of Color" will be the title of a free public speech hosted by UNC's School of Education Nov. 16.

Dr. Khaula Murtadha, executive associate dean of the School of Education at Indiana University in Indianapolis, will speak during the UNC school's semi-annual Smallwood Dialogue Series for Women Educational Leaders. The event will include brunch and take place from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Morehead Building banquet hall.

The series is funded by the Frances C. and William P. Smallwood Foundation, a Ft. Worth, Texas-based family foundation that has funded a number of innovative projects at UNC. Registration is required and will close Nov. 12. For more information or to register, contact Wendy Borman at (919) 962-5381 or borman@email.unc.edu.

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UNC professor receives research award from American Herpes Foundation

Dr. Jennifer Webster-Cyriaque, a UNC assistant professor in the departments of dental ecology and microbiology and immunology, won the American Herpes Foundation's Gertrude B. Elion Research Award on Oct. 24. She received a $10,000 cash prize to split with the UNC School of Medicine.

The award recognizes distinguished accomplishment or achievement in herpes research. Webster-Cyriaque's research concerned understanding determinants of oral infection and developing oral systems for the study and local treatment of these infections.

Webster-Cyriaque received her doctorate of dental surgery from SUNY-Buffalo in 1992, her doctorate in microbiology and immunology from UNC in 1998 and her general practice residency certificate from the UNC School of Dentistry in 1998.

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Dr. Jianqing Fan, professor of statistics, is among the 10 most-cited mathematical scientists in the world, according to the "Science Citation Index," published by the Institute for Scientific Information.

Fan’s research addresses one of the most important problems of modern statistics: finding nonlinear relationships among large sets of variables. Two years ago he received the Committee of Presidents of Statistical Societies Presidents’ Award, the top international award given to a statistician under the age of 40.

Fan, a member of the statistics department in the College of Arts and Sciences since 1989, is now conducting research in Hong Kong.

Dr. Jo Ann Dalton, a professor at the School of Nursing, has been awarded one of the state’s highest nursing honors from the North Carolina Nurses Association.

Dalton received the association’ Board of Directors Award at the organization’s annual convention in mid-October. The award recognizes those who have made outstanding contributions to nursing in North Carolina.

"The Board of Directors Award is a special honor," said Dr. Susan Pierce, the association’s president-elect and an associate professor at the School of Nursing. "We don't give it every year. We wait to find someone worthy, awarding it perhaps every three to four years."

The state nurses association is the affiliate of the American Nurses Association and the legislative voice of professional nursing in the state. The association acts as the registered lobbyist for nursing in North Carolina and as the workplace advocacy voice for nurses across the state.

Dalton is well known among health-care professionals for her expertise in pain measurement and management. Her current work involves the development, evaluation and refinement of treatment programs designed to alter cancer patients’ responses to pain. She says that in addition to traditional cancer pain treatments that have focused on medications, cognitive-behavioral therapies such as distraction, relaxation and thought refocusing can reduce the sensation of pain caused by cancer.

Dalton has served in leadership roles with the state nurses association as well as the N.C. Board of Nursing and Sigma Theta Tau, the international honor society of nurses. She also is the founder and co-chair of the North Carolina Cancer Pain Initiative and is a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing.

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School of Nursing contact: Sunny Smith Nelson (919) 966-1412
Contact: UNC News Services, (919) 962-2091