Five Penn State Greater Allegheny Faculty received promotions effective July 1, 2007.
Promoted faculty pictured are (left to right) Dr. Clifford Manlove, Associate Professor of English; Dr. Verónica Montecinos, Professor of Sociology; Dr. MaryEllen Higgins, Associate Profesor of English; Dr. Jay Breckenridge, Professor of Theater Arts; and Galen Grimes, Associate Professor of Information Sciences and Technology. Manlove, Higgins, and Grimes were also granted tenure by the University.
Greater Allegheny had the distinction of having more faculty promotions than any University College campus for the 2007-08 academic year.
Galen Grimes joined the University as an instructor in 1999 and was moved into a tenure track position in 2001. The first new faculty member hired for the campus's four-year Information, Sciences, and Technology program, Grimes has been instrumental in establishing the IST curriculum and in the development of new classes for the program. A graduate of the University of Pittsburgh communications program as an undergraduate, Grimes continued his graduate studies at the school, receiving an M. S. in Information Sciences. Research interests include network security and the influence of spam on the computer user.
Both Dr. Higgins and Dr. Manlove became members of the campus's English Department in 2001. Dr. Higgins completed her graduate studies at the University of Texas, receiving her Ph.D. and M.A. in Comparative Literature. She earned a B. A. in English from Providence College. Currently the Campus Department Coordinator for English, Higgins has been involved with the coordination of Short Course Study Abroad opportunities for Penn State Greater Allegheny students and the organization and funding for the Tournees Film Festival at the campus. Her book, Historical Dictionary of French Cinema, was recently published by Scarecrow Press. Research interests include African literature and cinema.
Dr. Manlove received his B. A. in English from Drake University, studied abroad for a year concentrating in Welsh Literature at Trinity College in Wales, earned an M.A. in English from the University of New Hampshire and completed his Ph.D. studies at the University of Missouri. Manlove is involved in the campus's international program and has been instrumental in planning trips abroad for campus students to Wales in 2004 and the upoming 2007-08 trip to Ireland. Manlove has published works in postcolonial literature and reggae culture. Current work includes editing and compiling for publication a comprehensive volume of the material which has appeared in the Stars and Stripes, America's independent military newspaper, during its 146 year history.
Professor Breckenridge has served the Unviersity since 1971. Heading the Theatre Arts Department at the campus, Dr. Breckenridge adapts and directs two plays a year in which his students become involved in all aspects of the production from stage design to acting in the final work. One presentation every year focuses on children's theatre. These productions are performed by Penn State Greater Allegheny students at local elementary schools. Breckenridge's D.A. was earned at Carnegie Mellon University, his M. A. was received from Penn State and undergraduate studies were completed at Thiel College. Still active in the Greater Pittsburgh theatrical community, Breckenridge is on the Board of Directors and is the technical director for the Heritage Players of Bethel Park, a community theater. Since 2005 he has been instrumental in capturing the oral history of the steel industry from Mon Valley residents. Through research at the Rivers of Steel archives and recordng the words of local storytellers, Breckenridge is planning to mount the folk drama for presentation in Mon Valley communities.
Dr. Verónica Montecinos achieved the rank of Professor of Sociology, effective July 1. Having joined Penn State in 1990, Professor Montecinos has served the University and Commonwealth Colleges as Division Head and Discipline Coordinator for Social Sciences and Education from 2002 to the present. Montecinos completed her undergraduate studies at the Institute of Sociology, Catholic University, in Chile. Her M. A. degrees in Political Science and Sociology and her Ph.D. in Sociology were earned at the University of Pittsburgh. An international scholar, Dr. Montecinos has been invited to present her work at conferences throughout the world. Her research has focused on economics in the Americas and has been published in both English and Spanish. Montecinos had led the campus's succesful internationalization of the curriculum campaign and is working to recruit students to the campus from other countries.