KU Kudos December 2025: Celebrating Jayhawk achievements
LAWRENCE — It’s time to celebrate Jayhawk colleagues’ achievements: KU News Service accepted submissions and combed websites, social media and newsletters for recent external honors and awards for current faculty and staff at the Lawrence, Edwards and Medical Center campuses and affiliates.
KU Kudos is published 6-7 times a year. Have something to share? Submit by Jan. 14 for the next edition. Self-nominations are encouraged. Learn more about how to submit your professional achievements.
Jordan Atkinson, professor of the practice and program director, School of Professional Studies, co-wrote a book chapter titled "A Communication Traits Approach to the Teaching and Learning of Public Speaking" in the new Routledge Handbook of Public Speaking Research and Theory.
Darin Beck, vice provost and director of police training at the Kansas Law Enforcement Training Center, gave a keynote for Sterling College's Criminal Justice Program in November.
Caroline Bennett, Charles E. & Mary Jane Spahr Professor in the Department of Civil, Environmental and Architectural Engineering, was selected to receive the 2026 T.R. Higgins Lectureship Award from the American Institute of Steel Construction. She will be honored in April 2026.
Josh Bolick, head of the David Shulenburger Office of Scholarly Communication & Copyright, was elected to the Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition Steering Committee. The organization, which represents 250 libraries and academic organizations across North America, supports open systems for research and education.
Nancy Brady, professor in the Intercampus Program in Communicative Disorders, received the 2025 Honors of the Association from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. This notable achievement recognizes distinguished contributions to the discipline of communication sciences and disorders and is the highest honor the association bestows.
Jack Campbell and Crystal Golightley, captains with the KU Police Department, graduated from the Law Enforcement Leadership Academy Command School, an 11-month program with a cohort of 25 law enforcement officers.
Nick Carswell, program manager with Kansas Public Radio, won a Phoenix Award from the city of Lawrence. He was honored in the Musical Arts and Advocacy category. Winners were honored Dec. 14 at the Lied Center of Kansas.
Lisa Didion, assistant professor of special education, received the Council for Exceptional Children 2026 Outstanding Student Chapter Advisor Award. Didion will be recognized for the national award at the CEC 2026 Awards & Recognition Luncheon.
Tammara Durham, vice provost for student affairs, received the James J. Rhatigan Outstanding Dean Award from the National Association of Student Affairs. The award is given to a senior administrator who serves as the senior student affairs officer on their home campus and is recognized as collaborative, effective and inspirational by colleagues across campus.
Christy Evers, clinical assistant professor in the School of Nursing, was honored this fall as a fellow in the American College of Nurse Midwives.
Brian Gordon, professor of sport management, has been recognized by the Sport Marketing Association as a research fellow. He was honored at the 2025 Sport Marketing Association Annual Conference in Glendale, Arizona.
In honor of National Rural Health Day, Joyce Grayson, director of KU Rural Health Education and Services, was honored by Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly for her leadership and continued dedication to supporting the health and well-being of the state's rural communities.
Kansas Geological Survey researchers Scott Ishman, senior scientist; Tony Layzell, assistant scientist, and Blair Schneider, associate researcher and science outreach manager, presented their work in October at the Geological Society of America meeting.
Quincy Johnson, assistant professor of health, sport & exercise sciences and associate director of the Jayhawk Athletic Performance Laboratory, was selected to receive Midland University’s 10 under 10 Award. The 10 Under 10 Awards celebrate the remarkable achievements of Midland University graduates from the past decade.
Susan Koerner, clinical assistant professor of hearing and speech, was recently honored as the Speech-Language Pathologist of the year by the Kansas Speech-Language Hearing association. She received the award in recognition of her work to make augmentative and alternative communication more accessible in the Kansas City area through the establishment of the Children’s Miracle Network AAC Lab and hosting an AAC Camp in the summers.
Murali Mantrala, Ned Fleming Professor of Marketing, has been named the 2026 recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Selling and Sales Management Special Interest Group of the American Marketing Association, one of the most distinguished honors in the field of academic sales research.
Margaret Marco, professor of oboe, presented two papers in August at the Fifth International Women's Work in Music Conference: Brave New Worlds at Trinity Laban College in London.
Val Mazzotti, Roy A. Roberts Distinguished Professor of Special Education and researcher with the Kansas University Center on Disabilities, gave a keynote address at the National Council for Special Education Research Conference in Dublin in November.
Zachary Mohr, associate professor of public affairs & administration, received the Scholarly Engagement Award from the Association for Budgeting & Financial Management. He also co-authored a proposal, “Funding Election Administration with an Election Advertising Tax,” honored earlier this fall at the Institute of Election Administration Research and Practice symposium at Auburn University.
Prakash Neupane, professor of medical oncology, has been named a fellow of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. This honor recognizes his commitment to advancing cancer care and research.
Samuel Ofei-Dodoo, assistant dean of medical education and associate professor of internal medicine and population health, was highlighted by the Annals of Family Medicine Inc. for his presentation of “Disparities in Alcohol-Related Counseling by Health Care Professionals: A Population-Based Cross-Sectional Study of U.S. Adults” at its 53rd annual meeting in Atlanta.
RB Perelmutter, director of Jewish studies and professor of Slavic languages & literatures, won the World Fantasy Award for Best Novella for "Yoke of Stars," published under the pen name R.B. Lemberg. The award was presented at the World Fantasy Convention earlier this fall in Brighton, United Kingdom.
Malika Pritchett, assistant professor of the practice of applied behavioral science, presented Culturally Responsive Ecological Systems in October at the Nevada Association for Behavior Analysis conference.
Steve Rottinghaus, career and outreach coordinator with the William Allen White School of Journalism & Mass Communications, received the Kansas Association of Colleges and Employers 2025 Career Services Member of the Year Award in early December. He will also serve as the KACE president in 2026.
Tarun Sabarwal, professor of economics, was invited to give a seminar on his research at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.
Midori Samson, assistant professor of bassoon, toured with the Flying Carpet Festival, a circus arts organization that performs for children and families living in conflict zones. In September, she performed with multidisciplinary artists from over 20 countries in eight cities on the Turkey-Syria border.
Rebekka Schlichting, assistant professor of the practice in journalism, was a panelist in “Community Conversation: Moments of Truth,” which took place in September at the National World War I Museum in Kansas City. The experts discussed the key moments that shaped today’s media landscape and what comes next for news and information.
Akiko Takeyama, professor of women, gender & sexuality studies, and Kris Ercums, curator of global contemporary and Asian art at the Spencer Museum of Art, participated in a public dialogue on Puccini’s "Madam Butterfly" Nov. 1. The panel explored the opera through the lens of Orientalism, gendered and racialized power, art and history within U.S.-Japan relations.
Lecturer in design and Book Arts program coordinator Linda Talleur’s limited-edition book, "The Phoenix," was featured in the exhibition "Press On: A Juried Exhibition of Letterpress Art" at the Pyramid Atlantic Art Center near Washington, D.C.
David Tamez, assistant research professor with the Institute for Information Sciences (I2S), gave presentations at the International Conference for an Inclusive Digital Society in September in Leuven, Belgium, and at the IE Law School’s Lawtomation Conference in Madrid, speaking on artificial intelligence topics.
Laura Tatpati, dean of the KU School of Medicine-Wichita, has been honored as one of Wichita Business Journal's Power 50 honorees.
LesLee Taylor, associate dean of academic and faculty affairs in the School of Health Professions, was conferred as a new fellow of the Association of Schools Advancing Health Professions.
Al Wallace, lecturer in journalism, was inducted in November into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame. Wallace covered sports for WDAF-TV in Kansas City for 33 years, from 1985 to 2018.
Susan Whitford, Criminal Justice Program director, was an invited expert for a live webinar in October at the European Forensic Institute. Whitford presented on “Rethinking Criminal Justice Education.”
Frank Zilm, professor emeritus and lecturer in architecture, received the Distinguished Service Award from the American Institute of Architects-Missouri in recognition of his extraordinary leadership, lifelong dedication to advancing health care design and profound contributions to the profession at local, state, national and international levels.
Sam Zipper, assistant professor and assistant scientist at the Kansas Geological Survey, received the Hydrologic Sciences Early Career Award from the American Geophysical Union.
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