Carla Noack (Theatre)
Carla Noack teaches acting for the MFA Professional Actor Training Program. She recently enjoyed her fourth year as member of the Great River Shakespeare Festival acting company, where recent roles include Rosalind in As You Like It, Katherine in Taming of the Shrew and the Nurse in Romeo and Juliet. For ten years she was a co-artistic director of the Commonweal Theatre Company in Lanesboro, MN. She has also worked regularly with Minneapolis-based companies Ten Thousand Things and Theatre Latte Da. Most recently, she played Helen in Kansas City Repertory Theatre’s production of The Borderland, Queen Elizabeth in the Heart of America Shakespeare Festival’s production of Richard III, and a whistling, drumming, Irish ping-pong champ named Josie Horgan in “Boom! An International Lost and Found Family Marching Band”, created by her colleague, Stephanie Roberts. Carla earned her MFA from UMKC in 1992, and first came back to Kansas City in 1997 to play “C” in Kansas City Repertory Theatre’s acclaimed production of Three Tall Women. She is thrilled to back now in the training grounds that provided the foundation for her career.
Ian Besse (Mathematics and Statistics)
Dr. Besse got his B.A. in Mathematics from Grinnell College and his M.S. in Mathematics and Ph.D. (2010) in Applied Mathematical and Computational Sciences, both from the University of Iowa. HIs area of research is broadly mathematical biology, with particular emphasis on the mathematical modeling of the electrophysiology of electrophysiology cardiac cells and neurons. He has a background in teaching, having taught at the secondary level both domestically and overseas, directed a college mathematics tutoring center, served as a teaching assistant and worked as an adjunct mathematics instructor at a community college. He is a member of the American Mathematical Society, the Mathematical Association of America, the Society for Mathematical Biology, and the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics.
Joan McDowd (Psychology)
Joan M. McDowd is a graduate of Washington University and received her doctoral degree in Psychology from the University of Toronto with a specialization in cognition and aging. Her research interests are in attention and executive function in aging. She is recognized nationally for her work in attention in typical aging, and has expanded that work to include age-related neurological deficits such as stroke, Parkinson’s disease, and Alzheimer’s disease. Of particular interest is the relation between performance on measures of attention and functional outcome.
William Stadler (Criminal Justice and Criminology)
Professor Stadler earned his Ph.D. from the University of Cincinnati and his MS and BA from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. He has served as an adjunct professor and undergraduate internship coordinator for the Criminal Justice Department at the University of Cincinnati. Dr. Stadler has also worked closely with a local social service agency in Cincinnati, conducting research related to offender assessment and treatment. His research interests include offender risk/needs assessment and classification, correctional and community rehabilitation, gender-responsivity, correctional policy, crime theory, and white-collar crime.
Thomas Fisher (Mathematics and Statistics)
Dr.Fisher received his BS degree in Computer Science from University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and an MS and a Ph.D. (2009) in Mathematical Sciences from Clemson University. His research focuses on multivariate statistics and their applications in modern science; specifically in genetics and economics. His published findings include a recent article in the Journal of Multivariate Analysis He is currently investigating estimators for the covariance matrix for applications in biology and finance. He has been teaching for 5-years, most recently at Clemson University as a Visiting Assistant Professor.
Massimiliano Vitiello (History)
Dr. Vitiello is a Visiting Assistant Professor specializing in Roman history and Late Antiquity, particularly the Germanic Kingdoms and the history of Rome and Constantinople. He studied in Rome (“La Sapienza”) and in 2001 completed his Ph.D. at the University of Messina. Since then, he has been honored with postdoctoral scholarships in Europe and in Canada. As a fellow of the “Alexander von Humboldt” foundation, he continued his research activity at the University of Münster (Germany) between 2004 and 2006. Most recently he has been a research fellow at the “Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies” in Toronto (Canada), where he earned the License in Mediaeval Studies. Dr. Vitiello is the author of two books, Il principe, il filosofo, il guerriero: lineamenti di pensiero politico nell’Italia ostrogota (Stuttgart 2006) and Momenti di Roma ostrogota: aduentus, feste, politica (Stuttgart 2005) as well as numerous articles in international journals. His research interests include Roman historiography and Quellenforschung (History of Texts), as well as political, social and economic history. His current research project includes a third monograph on the Gothic King Theodatus and a study of the damnatio memoriae.
Pearlie M. Johnson (Black Studies)
Dr. Johnson has an Interdisciplinary Ph.D. in Art History and Sociology from the University of Missouri-Kansas City (2008). Her dissertation African American Quilts: An Examination of Feminism, Identity, and Empowerment in the Fabric Arts of Kansas City Quilters, explores a complex system of symbols and encoded images that address theoretical issues related to African and African American studies. A current research project involving her work is the upcoming exhibition African American Quilts Today: A Celebration of Motherhood, Sisterhood, and the Matriarchs, scheduled for October 21 – December 31, 2010, at the New England Quilt Museum in Lowell, Massachusetts. Johnson joins the University as Visiting Assistant Professor of Black Studies.
Paul J. Schroeder (Psychology)
Professor Paul J. Schroeder received his Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. His research interests include working memory, text comprehension, and changes in cognitive function that accompany healthy aging. He teaches introductory and advanced undergraduate psychology courses.
Welcome back! Here we are at the beginning of another academic year. There is always much excitement about a new beginning and especially this year when we engage our largest incoming class at UMKC ever! As one of our challenges is to recruit and retain more students, we know that our increased numbers were made possible by the dedication and hard work of so many of our faculty and staff. This service to the College is important and we are seeing the results. In addition to the service that faculty and staff do to help make our College run as smoothly as possible, you will read in this issue and others throughout this year about the teaching and research efforts of our faculty and the many other important things going on in the College. Please celebrate with us as you read about the many activities and accomplishments of our great faculty, staff and students. Go Roos!
Lester Porter, (Physics) Senior Research Design Engineer retired on July 30, 2010 after 15 years of service to the College of Arts and Sciences. Les worked to design and build scientific equipment for both Physics and Chemistry faculty, as well as researchers at the Stowers Institute. Les trained faculty in the research shop, and a few generations of students on safe and effective machining practices in the student shop. He brought much needed improvement to the existing machinery, expanded the shops’ capabilities and also making them more responsive to the users’ needs. Les also helped members of the Society of Physics Students build impressive demonstrations such as the giant vortex generator and the electromagnetic can crusher.