Recent accomplishments by the university community were earned by faculty/staff Anita Breckbill, Les Carlson, David Jones, Kathy Krone, Kaci Nash, William G. Thomas, Allan Vyhnalek, Ruiguo Yang and Limei Zhang.

Faculty/Staff

• Anita Breckbill, professor at University Libraries and head of the music library, wrote a research article that earned a place on the cover of September 2017 issue of The Flutist Quarterly. The article, “Dismal Sounds: Flute Playing in the Fiction of Charles Dickens,” examines the way Dickens portrays flutists in four different stories. The National Flute Association publishes The Flutist Quarterly.

• Les Carlson, Nathan J. Gold Distinguished Professor of marketing, has been named a fellow of the American Academy of Advertising. Carlson started attending AAA meetings in the early 1990s. Carlson, a native of Oakland, Nebraska, originally got involved with advertising by chance. He received his doctorate from Nebraska Business and focused on consumer socialization. The AAA has given Carlson an outlet to express his research ideas with colleagues from throughout the world. He served as president of the AAA in 2007, and has served other roles such as treasurer and vice president. For more information, click here.

• David Jones, associate dean of engineering, has been appointed the interim head of the Department of Biological Systems Engineering beginning July 1. Jones has served as an associate dean since August 2011. He is also a professor of biological systems engineering and a courtesy professor of food science and technology. As a faculty member, Jones was involved with curriculum development, continuous improvement for accreditation, teaching, recruiting and student advising. His research is in the fields of process analysis, food engineering, thermochemical conversions, and developing models for risk-based decision-making.

• Kathy Krone, professor of communication studies, received the Fredric M. Jablin Award for Outstanding Contributions to Organizational Communication from the International Communication Association on May 30. In a nomination letter, Michael W. Kramer of the University of Oklahoma said Krone is a dedicated scholar who has produced significant amounts of important research and has mentored important younger scholars in the communication studies field. Krone is an organizational communication scholar whose research highlights the ways in which various forms of organizing enable and constrain participation and the development of voice.

• Kaci Nash, research associate at University Libraries, Robert Shepard, doctoral candidate in geography, and William G. Thomas III, professor of history and John and Catherine Angle Chair in the Humanities, have earned the John T. Hubbell Prize for the best article published in Civil War History during 2016. Their study, “Places of Exchange: An Analysis of Human and Materiél Flows in Civil War Alexandria, Virginia,” Civil War History (December 2016), was selected by the journal’s editorial advisory board. The recipients earn a $1,000 award from The Kent State University Press. For more information, click here.

• Allan Vyhnalek, extension educator at Northeast Research and Extension Center, will lead the Nebraska Extension’s educational effort focused on farm succession and transition starting July 1. Vyhnalek has worked in extension in Iowa and Nebraska for more than 29 years. A native of Saline County, Vyhnalek received his bachelor and master degrees from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in agricultural education. He taught in high school and post-secondary classrooms for eight years prior to joining extension. For more information about Nebraska Extention, click here.

• Ruiguo Yang, assistant professor of mechanical and materials engineering, and Limei Zhang, assistant professor of biochemistry, earned Early Stage Investor Project awards from the Nebraska Center for Integrated Biomolecular Communication. They will be joined by Armen Petrosyan, assistant professor of biochemistry and molecular biology at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. The work of these three investigators is interrelated to each other and to other members of the center through a fundamental focus on aspects of biomolecular communication within and between cells and tissues. The center’s long-term goal is to foster the development of collaborative research teams with broad disciplinary representation to interrogate complex disease pathways. For more information on the Center for Integrated Biomolecular Communication, including the research focuses of Yang, Zhang and Petrosyan, click here.

Departments/Colleges/Units

• Beta Theta Pi, Alpha Tau chapter, received a chapter award of distinction from the North-American Interfraternity Council. The award recognizes undergraduate chapters that are highly functioning, in compliance with council standards, seek to educate others about the benefits of a values-based fraternity experience, and work to maintain a healthy relationship with the national/international organization. Beta Theta Pi has received the Knox Award from its national organization for four consecutive years. The honor is the national organization’s highest honor. The chapter has been a leader in awareness and understanding of issues affecting female students. They recently held a women’s formal dinner with eight executive officers from various sororities to have an open conversation about how fraternity men can assist with the prevention of sexual assault and support of survivors. For more information about the national honor, click here.

This column is a regular Friday feature of Nebraska Today. Faculty, staff and students can submit their achievements to be considered for this column via email to achievements@unl.edu. For more information, call 402-472-8515.