Faculty and Staff Awards Convocation — 2008

Six faculty members and two staffers were named recipients of major college honors as part of Penn State Harrisburg»s annual Awards Convocation March 26.

The award winners included:

Elizabeth Tisdell

Dr. Elizabeth Tisdell

Termed a "consummate scholar" by one of her nominators, Dr. Tisdell was honored for bringing strong interests in gender, race, diversity, and equity issues to the doctoral program in Adult Education. Her current research focuses on how underlying spiritual commitments motivate and influence the educational practices of a multicultural group of women educators who are teaching across borders of race, class, gender, and culture for social action and transformation. She has published three books, a monograph, and has written 22 book chapters. In addition, she has contributed 15 refereed publications, 38 refereed conference proceedings, 4 book reviews, 4 magazine articles, a digest, and more than 35 refereed international and national scholarly papers.

John Haddad.jpg

Dr. John Haddad

Since his arrival at Penn State Harrisburg in 2003, Dr. Haddad has "amassed a remarkable record of accomplishment in the scholarship of service while still maintaining excellence in research and teaching," states one nominating letter for the Faculty Service Award. His contributions to the national association representing his academic discipline, stewardship of the college Honors Program, and service to the external community were all cited by colleagues as examples of his overall commitment to service. Extending his service commitment outside the college, he was elected chair of the Regional Chapters Committee of the national American Studies Association and serves as editor of the Middle Atlantic American Studies Association’s newsletter.

Dr. Oranee Tawatnuntachai

Dr. Oranee Tawatnuntachai

Described as an "innovative, enthusiastic, dedicated, and concerned faculty member," Dr. Tawatnuntachai joined the School of Business Administration as a lecturer in 1999 and currently serves as the coordinator of its Finance program. She was singled out for emphasizing interpersonal interaction with the students and for incorporating a variety of technologies to facilitate student learning. For example, she has worked with instructional designers from Education Technology Services to develop a multimedia learning tool for specific content in her courses.

AB Shafaye

Mr. AB Shafaye

A faculty member in the School of Science, Engineering, and Technology since 1986, Mr. Shafaye has not only established a reputation for excellence in advising to students, but consistently receives the gratitude of graduates he continues to counsel. Alumni of the electrical programs spanning several decades point to his constant availability for advice and guidance when they were students and his willingness to continue their relationship after graduation. One writes, "AB’s advising does not stop at graduation. He continues to make himself available for guidance. One example is the network he has created to keep information flowing regarding potential jobs. What a wonderful benefit!"

DAWN HAMATY

Mrs. Dawn Hamaty

Mrs. Hamaty’s list of contributions to the school and college is extensive. She has served as secretary of the college Commission for Women since 2006 and is the School of Business Administration’s staff representative to the United Way campaign. She has shared her objectivity, enthusiasm, and expertise with the faculty and staff giving campaign, as a member of search committees, as an invited speaker representing the school and college at the National Consortium for Continuous Improvement, as a member of the Public Relations Subcommittee of the college Diversity and Educational Equity Committee, as a longtime member of the Judicial Affairs Hearing Board, and a Kids College advisory board member.

Lori Ricard

Ms. Lori Ricard

Ms. Ricard recently served a two-year term as chair of Penn State Harrisburg’s Commission for Women (CFW) and in doing so, revitalized the organization’s programming efforts. During her term as chair, membership and CFW campus activities grew substantially. With her leadership, she helped the CFW members organize panel discussions, vigils, plays, and other special events based around women’s issues. She has also dedicated much of her time to numerous activities which raised several thousand dollars to aid domestic violence awareness efforts and victim assistance programs in Dauphin County.

Raffy Luquis

Raffy Luquis

An untiring advocate for diversity in academia and the community, Dr. Luquis co-chairs the Outreach/Linkages Subcommittee of the Diversity and Educational Equity Committee on campus and is a member of the Faculty Senate Committee on International and Intercultural Affairs. He helped create a graduate-level course entitled Multicultural Issues in Health which is now a core requirement for all students in the master’s degree program in Health Education and in the community, he developed the American Association of Health Education’s position statement on cultural competency, served on the AIDS Planning Coalition of Southcentral Pennsylvania, and as chair of the Asthma Disparity workgroup on the Pa. Department of Health.

Ella Dowell

Ella Dowell

Mrs. Dowell was honored for her commitment to creating a welcoming climate for everyone at the college. Her commitment to the college’s international activities and students was singled out, including taking the time to work with visiting students and even inviting them to her home for dinner with her family. She has also demonstrated her active involvement in campus activities by serving as chair of Take our Daugters and Sons to Work Day and the Martin Luther King Day poster project.

Also honored at the convocation were Penn State Harrisburg employees marking 25 years of service to the University. They are:

Acknowledged for their retirements over the last year were:

Archive of Past Winners

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Original drama, concert to highlight King Day observance

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Penn State Harrisburg’s community observance of Martin Luther King Day on Monday, Jan. 19 will again include an original dramatic production and a musical celebration.

For the 11th consecutive year, the day’s observance begins at noon in the Capital Union Building on campus with an original play written by faculty member and Harrisburg resident Dr. Dorothy King. Then at 4 p.m., Harrisburg’s G.A.T. Fellowship Choir will take the stage for a celebratory concert.

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