Dean's Letter
Scholarly Activities of the Dean's Office
Office of Development
Research Centers and Initiatives
Academic Departments and Programs
Undergraduate Programs
The Graduate School
Student Services
Appendices
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THE GRADUATE SCHOOL
THE GRADUATE SCHOOL The Graduate School at Rutgers – Camden has had a very successful year. In terms of enrollment, the Graduate School matched its all-time high of 437 students, and we have expanded the number of graduate programs. In addition, the achievements of our students have been notable. After a decrease in enrollment during the 2005-2006 academic year, we increased our enrollment this year by 6%. To some extent, this was accomplished through the addition of new programs. We also expect our enrollment to grow as a result of students being admitted under the dual-degree option. During the 2006-2007 year, there were seven graduate students who began as dual-degree students. However, during the 2006 – 2007 academic year, 19 students were accepted into the program. In addition, the hiring of a recruitment coordinator for the Graduate School and adult learners should have a significant impact upon the number of quality of our applicants. We are now in the process of hiring the recruitment coordinator. In the area of new programs, this year the graduate school enrolled its first students in the newly created master’s program in Psychology. Because this program was not formally approved until the summer, it did limited recruitment for its entering class. This program should enroll a significant number of students once it becomes publicized. The Childhood Studies program began accepting students for its Ph.D. program, and the Board of Governors has already approved an MS degree in Computer Science (to start in the Fall 2007 semester) and an MFA in Creative Writing (to start in the Fall 2008 semester). We are also waiting approval from the Board of Governors on the establishment of a Doctorate in Physical Therapy. Finally, proposals for Ph.D. programs in Computational Biology and Public Affairs should be submitted for approval in the near future. The health track in the M.P.A. program was discontinued because of lack of interest. On the other hand, the newly created track in Educational Policy and Leadership, after graduating a cohort of Camden city educators, should start attracting teachers from the South Jersey area. Our students have also excelled. Twelve students who were supported by the Dean’s Research and Travel Fund presented their research at professional conferences, and a number of other students who we could not support because of limited funds also presented papers at professional conferences. A graduate student in Chemistry, Kristin Lammers, received the Coblentz Society Student Award for her work on vibrational spectroscopy; the M.P.A. program had another winner, Jessica DeVreeze, in the Presidential Management Fellows Competition; and a student in History, Kim Mauroff, received the Barry Millet Award for service to the campus community. In addition, a number of our graduates will be continuing their education at other institutions throughout the country including the University of Virginia, NYU, Florida State University, University of Florida, Drexel, and San Francisco State University. Many of these students have received scholarships and teaching fellowships. It is clear that the future looks promising for the Graduate School. We are in a period of growth, but this also presents challenges. For example, new space needs to be created and fellowship funds must be increased if Rutgers – Camden is to be considered a premier center of graduate education in the state.
During the 2006-2007 academic year, a total of 62 students (35 female, 27 male) were enrolled in the Graduate Program in Biology. Of these, 47 were matriculated and 15 were non-matriculated. Twelve students received master’s degrees in the current academic year, three of which were in the Plan A option, which requires laboratory research and a research thesis. Our cross-registration arrangement with the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ) was utilized by ~10 students, and appears to be an efficient mechanism for enhancing the variety of courses available for students in both programs. The Graduate Program in Biology at Rutgers-Camden offered one new course this past year: “Bioinformatics” instructed by Dr. Bruce Byrne. In July 2006, Drs. Joseph Martin and Daniel Shain participated in the NIH-funded program SPARC (Science Preparation Alliance at Rutgers-Camden), an outreach program designed to enhance middle and high school science projects. Both faculty members committed a week of lecture/laboratory exercises that trained schoolteachers about specific scientific topics: Dr. Martin focused on slime mold aggregation and Dr. Shain focused on annelid development/regeneration (both presentations considered the effects of nicotine and caffeine on these processes). Considerable progress has been made on the prospect of a new Center for Computational Biology that would house several science departments at Rutgers-Camden, Coriell Institute, and Cooper Hospital. Resources (~$50 million) for an appropriate building were secured from a state supported stem cell initiative. Funds for a Computational Biology Program that will include a doctoral program are currently being negotiated with administrators at Rutgers University. This program will emphasize interdisciplinary research among science departments at Rutgers-Camden.
The chemistry graduate program had another successful year. Twenty-two
students were enrolled (eight full-time, fourteen part-time) during
the 2006-07 academic year. Five students completed their M.S. degrees
in January or May 2007.
Some thirty-three active graduate students are enrolled according to figures for May 2007. In May 2007, four students received their master’s in Criminal Justice. As of May of this year, seventeen new students had been admitted for graduate study. In its first year, our new relationship with the School of Social Work appears to be working well. The courses offered by Social Work contribute a valuable outlook that is very relevant to our field and our students are delighted about the new course options. We also met with the Law School about expanding the list of course available to our students and the potential for seven new courses was added to our offerings. Our graduate faculty is well represented on editorial boards or are associate editors for journals, including the Journal of Offender Rehabilitation, Journal of Criminal Justice Education, Lexicon, Women and Criminal Justice, and Social Justice. Graduate student Michael Chewkanes completed his master’s research project on the outcomes for probationers in Camden County under the direction of Drs. Meyer, Michelle Meloy, and Drew Humphries. All of the students in Dr. Meyer’s graduate research methods course completed a survey of the members of the Safer Cities committees for the Senator Walter Rand Institute for Public Affairs. Dr. Meyer continues to be involved in the Camden Safer Cities Initiative (CSCI) as the evaluator and co-principal investigator; CSCI is an anti-violence initiative funded by the Office of the Attorney General.
This has been another excellent year for the Graduate English Program. GRE scores and GPAs continue to rise through a concerted effort to attract the most talented students to the program and use the teaching assistantships we have as recruiting tools. Our arrangement with Camden County College continues to appeal to our Teaching of Writing track students, where a number teach basic composition. In addition, this summer the graduate director explored with Susan Albertine, the Dean of the School of Culture and Society at The College of New Jersey, and Mary Goldschmidt, the Writing Program Director at The College of New Jersey, the possibilities of establishing a similar relationship there for the benefit of our graduate students. Discussions are ongoing. We continue to offer a wide array of courses at the graduate level, and strategic cross-listings with the Graduate Liberal Studies Program have allowed us to expand our offerings further. In addition, the program sponsored for the third year a professional development series, which featured workshops on applying to PhD programs, compiling a teaching portfolio and resume, and preparing an abstract and paper for presentation at a conference. These sessions aimed at giving our students advice on how to position themselves for success in their chosen field. Three teaching assistants had papers accepted at scholarly conferences. Candice Kaup presented her paper “Accessing Students’ Online Behavior: Using Netspeak to Help Us Teach” at SUNY Stony Brook in February 2007 and “Reading Margaret Atwood with Harry Potter” at the New Jersey College English Association conference in March 2007. In addition to her presentation on teaching immigrant literature at the NCTE conference, Betsy Allen will present her work on teaching Chocolat for the UNC English Graduate Student Association conference in September 2007. Peter Bryant’s paper on Maus and composition theory will be presented at the Mid-Atlantic Popular Culture Association conference in Philadelphia this November. Fourteen students graduated with the English MA this year (down somewhat from 20 in AY 2005-06). Eleven of these students submitted a creative writing portfolio or scholarly thesis in satisfaction of the degree requirements. The graduate director undertook and completed a complete overhaul of the program’s listing in the graduate catalog. The annual Spring and Summer Writers’ Conferences, directed by Professor Lisa Zeidner, continue to be popular with students in the program, providing them with opportunities to meet established poets and novelists. In 2007, noted poet Billy Collins and other well-known writers gave readings on campus that were open to the public. The conferences also function as important recruiting events for the graduate program. Finally, under the leadership of Professor Zeidner and the graduate
director, the proposal for an M.F.A. program (to begin in Fall 2008)
on campus was accepted for approval by the University. The graduate
director (as PI) received a $50,000 Academic Excellence Fund grant
for start-up of the new program. Much work has gone into preparing
brochures, a website, and curriculum development. Careful enrollment
management with respect to the existing M.A. program, in light of
the upcoming M.F.A. program, will keep our student numbers in line
with resources as we move forward.
The Graduate Program in History included forty matriculated students and five non-matriculated students. Nic Wood received the Alumni Award for Academic Achievement and Michelle Ferranti the Lansbury Prize for Academic Excellence. Dr. Howard Gillette’s book, Camden After the Fall, won four prizes, and Dr. Jacob Soll’s Reading the Prince received the American Philosophical Society Award. Dr. Soll also was awarded the Fernand Braudel Fellowship at the European University Institute in Florence, Italy, where he will be spending the Fall 2007 term. Last, Dr. Laurie Bernstein was one of the recipients of this year’s Provost’s Award for Teaching Excellence. Nic Wood’s M.A. research project in U.S. Civil War history led to the Alumni Award for Academic Achievement and to his securing a full fellowship for doctoral studies in history at the University of Virginia. The second year of the Lees History Seminars presented eight research papers to audiences that ranged from fifteen to thirty-five. Dr. Andrew Lees’ endowment of the seminars assures they will continue to be organized and offered in future years. Graduate student Kim Mauroff was active in student affairs and the university senate and received the Barry Millett Award in recognition of extensive service to Rutgers. We expect stable enrollments, numbering between forty and fifty students in total, taking in about a dozen new students each fall and three or four for January starts. We have been working to improve the overall quality of degree candidates, more by counseling out those not performing well than by narrowing the opportunity to try M.A.-level work through restrictive admissions.
The Graduate Liberal Studies Program peaked in 2002 with an enrollment
of 55 students, but since then it has spiraled downward to a current
enrollment of about 35 students. Two MALS students graduated in
May 2007 and 11 students were admitted for the spring and fall 2007
semesters. The decline in MALS enrollment is a cause for concern,
though no obvious cause can be identified. We are engaging in two
initiatives that hopefully will serve to bolster enrollment. First,
we realize that it is no longer enough to rely on word of mouth
recommendations to spread information about the program. Therefore,
we have produced a promotional brochure that will soon be distributed
to local area schools, where prospective students may be found among
the teachers, and other institutions. Second, preliminary discussions
have begun with Ray Caprio of the Office for Continuous Education
and Outreach regarding an external MALS program to be offered at
a location near the Jersey shore. Although the demand and reception
of a MALS program in that area remains to be determined, this seems
like a promising project.
GRADUATE PROGRAM IN MATHEMATICS Joseph Gerver, Director The graduate program of the Department of Mathematics had forty-two
students enrolled in the fall 2006 semester, including fourteen
new students. Fifteen students completed the program during the
2006-2007 academic year.
There were forty-four matriculated students during the time period of this report. Eight individuals completed requirements for May 2007 graduation. Fourteen students entered the second year of the program and a new class of twenty-two students began on May 29th, 2007. The last joint Master of Physical Therapy degree graduates completed requirements in May 2007. A new curriculum was initiated in May 2006. The first class of the new program will earn a Doctor of Physical Therapy degree from UMDNJ and a Master of Physical Therapy degree from Rutgers-Camden. If the D.P.T. is approved for Rutgers by May 2009, this class will be awarded a joint D.P.T. degree. The Doctor of Physical Therapy degree was approved by the Rutgers Board of Governors and is pending state approval. A new memorandum of understanding between the joint partners is under development, which will result in a dual DPT degree for graduates of this program. A matriculation agreement that develops a 3 + 3 degree option for Rutgers-Camden undergraduates has also been proposed. Dr. Jodi Handler collaborated with Dr. Ann Tucker in developing courses for the Graduate Certificate in Aging for Dieticians and Physical Therapists, which will be offered by UMDNJ-SHRP. David Kietrys, PT, MS, OCS, Associate Professor and his colleagues’ (Barr AE, Kietrys DM, Brown AM, Handy M, Amin M, Barbe MF) poster, “Repetitive Motion Leads to Declines in Reach Motor Performance in a Rat Model” was designated as top scored ORS article for wrist and hand posters at the Orthopedic Research Society’s 53rd Annual Meeting in San Diego, California in February 2007. John Talty and Kevin Schnitzer, Class of 2007, were awarded the M.P.T. Program Clinical and Academic Excellence Awards, respectively, by UMDNJ-SHRP. Marissa Mejia, Class of 2007, was awarded the M.P.T. Program Excellence Award. Alumna (class of 2006) Lauren D’Aquino, was honored with the Stanley S. Bergen Medal of Excellence at the UMDNJ-SHRP Recognition Program. Professor David Kietrys published an article in the journal Work. He was co-author of a book chapter published by Mosby Elsevier Publishing. Professor Robert Dekerlegand was co-author of a book chapter published by Saunders. Professors David Kietrys and Evan Cohen served as manuscript reviewers for peer-reviewed journals in physical therapy. Professor David Kietrys successfully defended his dissertation proposal. P.T. Program students presented their research at the following venues: APTAnj Annual Conference in West Windsor, New Jersey in April 2007. P.T. Program students complete a minimum of four full-time clinical internships as a component of the curriculum. Internships ranged from one week to twelve weeks. P.T. faculty made site visits to 21 institutions: Advanced Physical Therapy Associates, Atlanticare Medical Center, Bacharach, Breakthru Physical Therapy, Burdette Tomlin Memorial Hospital, Care One (Highlands, Morris), Caldwell Therapy Center, Children’s Seashore, Concentra Medical Center (Edison), First Cerebral Palsy of NJ, Helen Hayes, Kennedy Hospital (Washington Twp, NJ), Kessler Institute (Saddlebrook), Ladicin Network, Magee Riverfront, Nova Care (Medford, NJ), Our Lady of Lourdes, Medical Center at Princeton, Rehab Connections, Strive P.T. P.T. faculty and students participated in a wide range of community and campus service activities of the past year. These included: the Migrant Screening Project; Physical Therapy Month promotions of physical therapy as a career, its utilization in the health career arena, marketing activities for the physical therapy profession and our program, interdisciplinary collaborative educational activities, community presentations on physical therapy topics, hosting of professional meetings, and clinical services for individuals who are HIV+. Dr. Krencicki was re-appointed to the New Jersey State Board of Physical Therapy. Professor David Kietrys was an invited speaker for the following physical therapy programs: Virginia Commonwealth University, Drexel University, Temple University, and Arcadia University. Dr. Marie Koval Nardone was an invited speaker for the physical therapy program at UMDNJ-Newark and Richard Stockton College. Drs. Jodi Handler and Dennise Krencicki served as guest faculty members in the course Principles and Practices of Interdisciplinary Health Care Delivery, sponsored by UMDNJ-SOM Family Medicine Department. Dr. Handler was also a guest faculty member for Atlantic County Community College. Professor Dekerlegand was an invited speaker at the University of Delaware and Neumann College. The overall market for the hiring of physical therapy graduates continued to improve this past year. The newly implemented D.P.T. Program increased the pool of qualified applicants for admission to the program. Professor Robert Dekerlegand assumed the role of webmaster for our program’s website and kept information updated on a regular basis, which improved our marketability. The yield of accepted students also increased (nineteen students in 2006 and twenty-two students in 2007). The faculty worked diligently in assisting qualified students to choose the P.T. Program, which is jointly sponsored by UMDNJ-SHRP and Rutgers-Camden, and in assisting matriculated students in completing the program successfully. Attrition was stable. Graduates continue to utilize the D.P.T. option with the UMDNJ-Newark Physical Therapy Program. This program will be phased out over the next few years. Graduates have been notified that they should apply to the program this year in order to take advantage of this special program. The D.P.T. Program will be re-evaluated by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy (CAPTE) in 2009. The five full-time faculty attended CAPTE Self-Study Workshops this past year in preparation for the accreditation process. A faculty search is underway to replace Dr. Jodi Handler, who transitioned from full-time faculty to adjunct status at the end of March 2007.
PT Program Annual Report 2006- 2007 Rutgers Graduate Council – Dr. Marie Koval Nardone CAS Nursing Chairperson Search Committee – Dr. Marie Koval Nardone UMDNJ-SHRP Chair of the Faculty – Dr. Marie Koval Nardone UMDNJ-Stratford Library Committee – Professor Evan Cohen, Dr. Jodi Handler Committee on Academic Integrity - Dr. Marie Koval Nardone Interdisciplinary Institute Curriculum Committee – Dr. Jodi
Handler. Dr. Marie Koval Nardone Admissions Committee – Professors Robert Dekerlegand (co-chair), David Kietrys (co-chair from 3-07 to 6-07), Professor Evan Cohen, Drs. Dennise Krencicki, Marie Koval Nardone and Jodi Handler (chair until 3-07). Academic Standing Committee - Professors David Kietrys (chair), Evan Cohen, Robert Dekerlegand, Drs. Marie Koval Nardone, Dennise Krencicki, and Jodi Handler. Curriculum Committee - Dr. Marie Koval Nardone (chair), Professors Evan Cohen, David Kietrys, Robert Dekerlegand, Drs. Dennise Krencicki, and Jodi Handler Advisor: Student Physical Therapy Association – Dr. Dennise Krencicki P.T. Faculty Search Committee –Dr. Marie Koval Nardone (chair), Professors Evan Cohen, Robert Dekerlegand, Drs. Dennise Krencicki, and Jodi Handler Graduation Luncheon Co-Chairs: Professors David Kietrys and Robert
Alumni Newsletter Editor – Professor David Kietrys Migrant Project Coordinator – Dr. Dennise Krencicki Clinical Excellence Award Task Force - Dr. Dennise Krencicki,
Professor Evan External American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) APTA, Specialization Academy of Content Experts American Physical Therapy Association Geriatrics Section CSM Educational
Planning American Physical Therapy Association Section on Education American Physical Therapy Association Neurology Section New York New Jersey Physical Therapy Clinical Education Consortium
Pennsylvania Physical Therapy Association PT Program Annual Report 2006- 2007 P.T. faculty: Drs. Nardone, Krencicki, and Handler; Professors Cohen, Kietyrs, and Dekerlegand; and Physical Therapy Program students participated in the screening of migrant farm workers and their children at three different sites in 2007. One hundred forty-five students were screened on June 28th, 2007 at Winslow Township School #6 and fifty-three students were screened on July 5th, 2007 at West Avenue School in Bridgeton. Twenty-nine adults were screened on June 14th at Cumberland County Community College. Dr. Dennise Krencicki coordinated the project. The P.T. Program hosted the following P.T. Month Activities. P.T. faculty and staff represented SHRP at the Science Preparation Alliance of Rutgers and Camden (SPARC) Allied Health Sciences Expo on January 26th, 2007. Dr. Jodi Handler, Professors David Kietrys, Evan Cohen, and Robert Dekerlegand; and staff member Beverly Fraietta represented the program at various times during the full-day event. Approximately 800 students from middle and high schools in southern New Jersey attended the event. The P.T. Program hosted a meeting of the Southern District of the APTAnj on January 30th, 2007. The P.T. Program faculty, staff, and students hosted Information Sessions for prospective applicants on November 4th and January 6th. The program hosted informal “Meet and Greet” sessions for prospective students on July 11th, August 9th, September 13th, October 9th, December 7th, January 3rd, February 7th, March 8th, April 10th, May 2nd, and June 14th. The following faculty participated: Drs. Marie Koval Nardone, Dennise Krencicki and Jodi Handler, Professors David Kietrys, Robert Dekerlegand, and Evan Cohen. Marlene Burrell and Beverly Fraietta provided staff support. P.T. faculty participated in the Interdisciplinary Course, which
is offered by UMDNJ-SOM Family Medicine Department. Dr. Jodi Handler
and Dr. Dennise Krencicki presented on “The Scope of Physical
Therapy Practice.” Dr. Handler presented on “Motivation
and Conflict Resolution” in September and December 2006 and
March 2007. Dr. Denny Krencicki participated in simulated team conferences
on September 21st, 2006 and March 9th, 2007. Professor David Kietrys
presented “Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Issues
in Health Care” to the SOM Patient Dynamics course in August
2006. Dr. Dennise Krencicki completed a pilot program for the Advanced Clinical Instructor Training Program of the APTA on January 27th and 28th in Alexandria, Virginia. Professor Robert Dekerlegand served as a facilitator for the American Physical Therapy Association’s (APTA) Build Your Career event for new professionals during the APTA’s Combined Sections’ meeting on February 15th, 2007 in Boston. Professor Evan Cohen volunteered at the APTA Neurology Section Membership Desk and Professor Robert Dekerlegand volunteered at the APTA Cardiopulmonary and Vascular Section Information Booth at CSM 2007 in Boston, Massachusetts. Professor Evan Cohen was an invited presenter at the University
of Pennsylvania Hospital on the "Physical Therapy Management
of the Patient with Multiple Sclerosis" on March 27th, 2007. Publications: Dekerlegand, RL, Cahalin, LP, Perme, C. (2007). Respiratory Failure. In: Cameron, MH & Monroe, LG Physical Rehabilitation: Evidence-Based Examination, Evaluation, and Intervention (pages 689 – 717). St. Louis, Missouri: Saunders, an imprint of Elsevier, Inc. Galantino, ML, Kietrys, DM. (2006). Human immunodeficiency virus infection: Living with a chronic illness. In Umphred, DA. Neurological Rehabilitation, 5th edition. St. Louis, Missouri: Mosby Elsevier Book Chapters in Press: Manuscript Reviews: Abstract Reviews: Professional Presentations: Posters: Handler JG, Vona K, Talty J, Mejia M, Ravelo S, Barge T. (2007, June). “Cues to move: A review of the use of external cues to facilitate gait rehabilitation in patients with Parkinson’s Disease.” American Physical Therapy Association PT2007. Denver. Faculty: Kietrys, DM, Barbe, MF, Brown, AM, Handy, M, Amin, M, Barr, AE.
(2007, May). “Repetitive motion leads to declines in reach
motor performance in a rat model.” Annual Meeting of the Philadelphia
Chapter of Society for Neuroscience, Philadelphia. Cohen, E (2007, March 27) “Rehabilitation Considerations
for the Person with Multiple Sclerosis” Hospital of the University
of Pennsylvania, Neurology Special Interest Group, Philadelphia,
PA.
Graduate students being advised, or co-advised, by Dr. John Dighton, the station director, during this period include six Ph.D. graduate students and one M.S. graduate student in the Ecology & Evolution Program at Cook College. In addition, he advises two M.S. graduate students in the biology program at Camden and co-advises two M.S. graduate students in the Chemistry Department at Camden. The director is also on the committee of seven other Ph.D. graduate students including one at Drexel University and one at the University of Pennsylvania. Dennis Gray (Ph.D.) was awarded the Ralph Good Student Award for 2006. The field station dormitory has been used by a number of directed student visits from Rutgers and other universities. A number of graduate students working in the Pine Barrens are using this facility for their home base whilst conducting research. A Rutgers University Development grant has allowed us to collect preliminary data on fungal spore distribution within the forest canopy to provide preliminary data to incorporate into a revision of an NSF grant application. A grant with Dr. Gladis Zinati (Rutgers Extension Service) from the North East SARE will allow us to develop further our preliminary findings of mycorrhizal stimulation of growth of woody ornamentals in nurseries and optimization of nursery practices. A total of ten presentations at scientific meetings or invited lectures were presented by members of the research group during this period, including an invited poster at the World Soil Congress, and invited talks to Harvard University and the Finnish Forest Research Institute, Helsinki. New students are being recruited in both graduate programs for Fall 2007. Dennis Gray is offering a new summer course on chemical analysis of ecological materials, concentrating on phosphorus and nitrogen. This course will run at the field station in addition to the director’s summer course on ecological methodology. A new undergraduate/graduate course entitled ‘Medical, Industrial and Environmental Mycology’ is to be developed during Dighton’s sabbatical leave in Spring 2008 and will be offered in Camden.
GRADUATE PROGRAM IN PSYCHOLOGY The first class of the graduate program in psychology has nine matriculating students, six of whom are full-time, and one non-matriculating student. In addition, several of our most talented undergraduates are taking graduate courses as part of the dual degree program. Because the program is new, we have actively solicited comments and suggestions from our students and faculty. Overall, the feedback has been very positive. In response to a commonly reported deficiency, we have added a first-semester course that introduces students to our standards for graduate-level work in statistics and writing. The core mission of our program is to train students to apply scientific research methods to address problems in psychology, and there is evidence that we are accomplishing this goal. Several of our students presented their original research at regional and national conferences. Angela Meluso presented her work on the reliability of children’s eyewitness testimony at both the Biennial Meeting of the Society for Research in Child Development (SRCD) and the meeting of the Eastern Psychological Association (EPA). Ines Meier presented her research on improving the effectiveness of public health messages at the EPA meeting. Liz Kassabian presented her work on cross-cultural differences in children’s attention at the SRCD meeting. Angela and Liz were able to travel to the SRCD meeting in Boston because of the generous support of the Dean’s Graduate Student Travel Fund.
This year forty-three students graduated from the M.P.A. Program, one of our largest graduating classes. The DPPA adopted a change in the course of study for the Education Policy and Leadership concentration to offer more flexibility for students and to provide an opportunity for students in the concentration to earn necessary state certification for supervisory positions without exceeding the total of 42 credits required for the M.P.A. degree. In addition, the Health concentration was terminated. Many of our students were awarded with honors this past year. Jessica L. DeVreeze graduated from the Master of Public Administration Program with a 3.9 GPA and was accepted by the Presidential Management Fellows Program in a national competition and has taken a position with the Agency for International Development, working on Iraq redevelopment. M.P.A. graduate Michelle Ryan was recognized at a Peace Corps conference for coordinators of university programs for her multiple accomplishments during her service in Tonga despite having virtually no equipment or resources with which to work. Elizabeth Myers and Kafayat Dirisu, who took part in Dr. Christine Brenner’s Financial Management course, have prepared analyses of the fiscal health of twelve cities in the United States; the Chief Financial Officer in San Francisco has requested their final report and wants to incorporate their findings in the next budget cycle. Working with Dr. Richard Harris, Donna VanderPloeg completed an evaluation of the Municipal Recovery and Economic Revitalization Act’s (MRERA) impact on government capacity building; it will be turned over to the newly appointed Chief Operating Officer. A student team in Professor James Garnett’s Organizational
Behavior class has developed a “waste less, mug more”
communication campaign to promote mug use at the Rutgers-Camden
Campus Starbucks. The team has cooperated with Starbucks, the Campus
Center, and the Rutgers University Department of Purchasing.
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