Faculty Focus
Dominican faculty help build awareness and boost the reputation of the university. We’re pleased to highlight some of their recent accomplishments.
Spring 2026
Borra College of Health Sciences
Dr. Dylan Bellisle, assistant professor in the School of Social Work, co-authored the article “Child Tax Credit Utilization in Immigrant Households: A Focus on Child Investment and College Funds,” in SN Business & Economics.
Dr. Kevin Miller, assistant professor in the School of Social Work, presented research on “Youth Perspectives on Identity and Internalization in Out-of-School Programs” at the 11th International Congress of Clinical and Health Psychology in Children and Adolescents in Málaga, Spain.
Dr. Julia Sonnichsen, program director of Physician Assistant Studies, and Dr. Cheng Hsieh, lecturer, presented “Hiring a Retention Specialist to Improve Student and Program Outcomes” during the 2025 Physician Assistant Education Association annual conference.
College of Business, Information Studies, and Technology
Dr. David Aron, professor of marketing, presented “You Own Your Origin Story: Creating Identity and Coaching Confidence Through Narrative,” at the London Arts-Based Research Centre conference.
Dr. Bill Crowley, professor in the School of Information Studies, authored “Library Censorship as a Health and Safety Issue” in The Political Librarian, December 2025.
Dr. Jennifer Dunn, professor of communication arts and sciences, presented the paper “Love is Blind: A Case for Applying Ethical Research Standards to Social Experiment Reality Television,” at the National Communication Association’s annual convention in Denver, Colorado, in November 2025.
Dr. Sujin Huggins, professor in the School of Information Studies, served as jury chair of the 2026 Coretta Scott King Book Awards, which honor African American authors and illustrators of outstanding books for children and young adults.
Dr. Keerti Banweer, assistant professor of computer science, presented two research papers at the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Frontiers in Education Conference, held in November 2025 in Nashville, Tennessee: “A Qualitative Study of How Computer Science Students Develop Debugging Skills in a Curriculum” and “Code Insight: Evaluating an Active Learning Framework for Novice Programmers to Promote the Development of Code Review Skills.”
Dr. Elvira Kizilova, assistant professor of marketing and international business, presented her co-authored research, “Impact of Reproductive Health Legislation on Women’s Perceived Access to Health Services,” at the Marketing and Public Policy Conference in Washington, D.C.
Dr. Sakthi Mahenthiran, associate professor of accounting, co-authored the paper “Culture, Trust, and Procedural Justice on Sustainable Organizational Information Sharing in Cloud Computing Adoption,” which was honored with a Best Paper Award at the 2025 Insight 360 International Conflux of Business, Law and Sustainable Futures Conference.
Dr. Kara Malenfant, assistant professor in the School of Information Studies, co-authored the chapter “Digital Equity in Higher Education” in the 2025 book Legislative Advocacy and Public Policy Work for Academic and Research Library Workers: Perspectives and Strategies.
Dr. Brooke Reavey, professor of marketing and the John and Jeanne Rowe Distinguished Professor in the Brennan School of Business, earned second place in the 2025 Fox School of Business International Case Study Competition (AI, Automation and Analytics track), for her peer-reviewed case, “Albertsons: Customer Insights to Increase Adoption of a New mHEALTH App,” which she co-authored.
Dr. Cecilia Salvatore, professor in the School of Information Studies and coordinator of DU’s Archives and Cultural Heritage Program, was the recipient of the Spirit of Uplift Award from the Maywood-based nonprofit Uplift, Inc. The award recognized the work of Salvatore and SOIS students in helping to preserve and archive the collection held by the West Town Museum of Cultural History in Maywood.
Rosary College of Arts, Education, and Sciences
Dr. Daniela Andrei, professor of chemistry, was selected to join the 2026 U.S. National Chemistry Olympiad (USNCO) coaching program, which helps prepare high school students for the 2026 USNCO local and national exams.
Dr. Jodi Cressman, professor of English, participated in a summer writing fellowship at the prestigious Bread Loaf Writers Conference in Middlebury, Vermont. The conference was founded in 1926 by Robert Frost to bring emerging and contemporary writers together for writing and mentorship.
Dr. Aly Dramé, associate professor of history, published the book The Institutionalization of Islam in Southern Senegal: Intermarriage, Qur’anic Education, and Jihad (University of Michigan Press, 2025).
Dr. Claudia Herrera-Montero, assistant professor of theology, presented the peer-reviewed paper “Participando: Imagining Mujerista Theology through Participatory Action Research (PAR) with College-Age Latinas” at the Academy of Catholic Hispanic Theologians of the United States Annual Colloquium in 2025.
Dr. Jane Hseu, professor of English, was named president of the Chicago Literary Hall of Fame Board.
Dr. Clodagh Weldon, vice president for Mission and Ministry and professor of theology, was the recipient of the Emerging Colleague Award from the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities and the Catholic Higher Education Mission Officers Network. The award recognized her work in promoting and facilitating mission integration at Dominican University.
Fall 2025
Borra College of Health Sciences
Dr. Dylan Bellisle, assistant professor in the School of Social Work, co-authored the article “Child Tax Credit Utilization in Immigrant Households: A focus on Child Investment and College Funds,” in SN Business & Economics, Aug. 5, 2025
Dr. Kevin Miller, assistant professor in the School of Social Work, is co-author of the paper “Patterns of Resilience, Patterns of Tragedy: Perspectives from Inside and Outside to Theorize Beneficial Interventions Serving Urban African American Youth Struggling with Community Violence,” published Sept. 12, 2025 in Clinical Social Work Journal. Miller was also the co-author of two other papers this year: “‘Mentors Need Mentors:’ The Perspectives of Adolescent Cross-Age Mentors of Colour About Their Instructors’ Supports,” in Journal of Social Work Practice, May 2025; and “Toward a Theory of Resistance for an Emancipatory Social Work,” in Journal of Progressive Human Services, April 2025.
Maura Waldron, adjunct clinical instructor of nursing, was recognized by the Illinois Nurses Foundation among the 40 Under 40 Emerging Nurse Leaders for 2025. The award celebrates nursing leaders who are shaping the future of the profession.
Dr. Jonathan Uebelhor, assistant professor of nursing, was the recipient of the Mother Evelyn Murphy Excellence in Teaching Award from Dominican University, presented during May 2025 Commencement.
College of Business, Information Studies, and Technology
Dr. Annette Bochenek, PhD LIS ’19, adjunct professor in the School of Information Studies, was a panelist at the American Library Association’s 2025 Annual Conference and Exhibition, where she spoke on accessing business archives and history.
Dr. Elizabeth Collier, professor of ethics, was awarded the 2025 Sr. Diane Kennedy, OP, Exemplar of Mission Award from Dominican University.
Dr. Bill Crowley, professor in the School of Information Studies, is the author of “Fight if You Can Win. Otherwise, Negotiate,” in The Political Librarian, Sept. 24, 2025; and "Politics, Traditional Librarianship, Progressive Librarianship, and Conflicting Visions of Services for Children,” in Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal), Sept. 24, 2025.
Dr. Anne Drougas, associate dean of the College of Business, Information Studies, and Technology, participated in a two-week Visiting Professorship Program residency at the University of Strasbourg Business School in France. Drougas worked with students as a “green finance” professor, sharing insights on sustainable investing; environmental, social and governance trends; and the future of responsible finance.
Dr. John Jenks, professor of communication arts and sciences, presented the research paper “Aligning Africa: Reuters and the Development of National News Agencies, 1957-1970,” at the International Communication Association conference in Denver, Colorado.
Dr. Kara Malenfant assistant professor in the School of Information Studies co-authored “Digital Equity in Higher Education” in the 2025 book Legislative Advocacy and Public Policy Work for Academic and Research Library Workers: Perspectives and Strategies.
Rosary College of Arts, Education, and Sciences
Dr. Maggie Andersen, professor of English, is the author of the memoir No Stars in Jefferson Park, Northwestern University Press, 2025.
Dr. Dan Beach, professor of psychology, was the recipient of the 2025 Hugh McElwain Distinguished Service Award for his 50 years of service to Dominican University.
Dr. Irina Calin-Jageman, professor of biology, authored the chapter “Neurophysiology” in a new, peer-reviewed, open-access neuroscience textbook, Introduction to Behavioral Neuroscience.
Dr. Robert Calin-Jageman, professor of psychology and director of the neuroscience program, was awarded the 2025 St. Catherine of Siena, OP, Outstanding Faculty Scholarship Award from Dominican University.
Drs. Irina and Robert Calin-Jageman published an invited review on “Transcriptional Regulation Underlying Long-Term Sensitization” along with student co-author Theresa Wilsterman in the Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Neuroscience; and “Evidence of Active-Forgetting Mechanisms? Blocking Arachidonic Acid Release May Slow Forgetting of Sensitization in Aplysia” in eNeuro with student co-authors Bryan Gonzalz Delgadillo, Elise Gamino, Zayra Juarez, Anna Kurkowski, Nelly Musajeva, Leslie Valdez, Diana Wittrock, Theresa Wilsterman, and Jashui Zarate Torres.
Dr. Jodi Cressman, professor of English, participated in a summer writing fellowship at the prestigious Bread Loaf Writers Conference in Middlebury, Vermont. The conference was founded in 1926 by Robert Frost to bring emerging and contemporary writers together for writing and mentorship.
Dr. Jane Hseu, professor of English, was named vice president of the Chicago Literary Hall of Fame, which works to honor and preserve the city’s literary heritage.
Dr. Nkuzi Nnam, professor of philosophy and founding director of the Black World Studies program, was the recipient of the 2025 Black Excellence Award from the Center for Cultural Liberation for excellence in scholarship, community service and elevating Black and African American students.