October 6, 2023

Achievements | Honors, appointments and publications for Oct. 6

Steffany Lien twirls batons of fire at the Husker football game halftime show.
Craig Chandler | University Communication and Marketing

Craig Chandler | University Communication and Marketing
Steffany Lien twirls batons of fire during the Husker football game halftime show Sept. 16.

Recent achievements for the campus community were earned by Ariana Joy Cobler, Tim Gay, Lori Harvey, Ben Lennander, Elsbeth Magilton, Lina Maria Luisa Marin-Diaz, Ava Winter and Harriet Wintermute.

Honors

  • Ariana Joy Cobler, a junior in the College of Journalism and Mass Communications, was recently named to the second New York Times Corps cohort. Cobler is one of 19 undergraduate students from across the country selected to participate in the talent-pipeline mentorship program. The program pairs students from underrepresented groups in journalism with current Times employees, who serve as advisers and offer career-building advice. Cobler, a journalism and broadcasting double major, will work with Ed Lee, assistant editor for Trust and Credibility. Learn more here.

  • Tim Gay, Willa Cather Professor of physics and astronomy, contributed to a documentary that recently won a regional Emmy from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. The documentary, “The Immaculate Reception: How a Last-Second Heave Led to One of the NFL’s Biggest Controversies,” commemorates the 50th anniversary of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ iconic game-winning play from the perspective of their opponents, the then-Oakland Raiders. Gay, who helped craft the script, features prominently in the documentary, explaining some relevant physics to a group of Raiders who competed in the fateful AFC playoff game. Click here to watch the documentary.

  • Lori Harvey and Ben Lennander, both business and finance, have been selected for the 2023-24 Emerging Leaders Program of the National Association of College and University Business Officers. They are among 73 business officers across the country accepted into the program, which is designed for mid-level managers who want to advance their careers in higher education business and finance. Through next April, the group will work to enhance their leadership skills, examine business models and financial communications strategies, and build their professional network.

  • Lina Maria Luisa Marin-Diaz, a first-year doctoral student in piano studying with Mark Clinton, professor of piano, won fourth prize at the 20th Concurso Nacionales De Piano (National Piano Competition) in Colombia. Out of 150 applicants, Marin-Diaz was one of 11 participants selected to participate in the live semi-final round in Bucaramanga, Colombia, and advanced to the final round with five other performers. Learn more here.

  • Ava Winter, lecturer in and alum of the Department of English, is a winner of the National Poetry Series competition for their debut poetry collection, “Playing With The Jew.” The book will be published by Milkweed Books in fall 2024. Winter is the author of a poetry chapbook, “Safe House.” NPS is a literary awards program that sponsors the publication of five books of poetry each year. Awardees are selected by poets of national stature.

Appointments

  • Elsbeth Magilton, director of externships, executive director of the Space, Cyber, and Telecommunications Law programs, and adjunct professor of law at the College of Law, has been named a Scowcroft National Security Fellow at the Eisenhower Center for Space and Defense in the U.S. Air Force Academy for the 2023-24 academic year. The Eisenhower Center provides students and faculty with unique opportunities to participate in research and policy discussions on the future of American security through first-hand contact with senior leaders and experts in the military, civilian government and private sector from the United States and major space-faring nations.

  • Harriet Wintermute, associate professor in University Libraries, was appointed chair of the Acquisitions, Cataloging, Metadata, E-resources department. She will lead librarians and staff in identifying and ordering books, journals and other resources in both physical and electronic formats, as well as describing, categorizing and naming materials to make them accessible through the Libraries’ discovery tools. The type of research she plans to work on includes improving metadata workflows and collaboration within a sustainable framework.