Message from the chair
Dear Alumni, Emeriti,
and Friends:
It's been a year of exceptional growth and excitement for the department, as we successfully recruited eight new faculty members. Samantha Joel and Jacqueline Chen join the social psychology program, and Lee Raby, Pascal Deboeck, and Bruce Ellis join the developmental psychology program. We invite you to learn more about them in the pages of this newsletter.
As part of our continuing commitment to outstanding teaching and clinical instruction, we've hired three outstanding new career-line faculty: Trisha Weeks, Kristina Rand, and Sommer Thorgusen. We've also been fortunate to add two talented new staff members to our Psychology Advising Center, Ashley MacPherson and April Sanders-Aboulila.
What's next? This fall, we are conducting a national search for an assistant professor in Applied Cognitive Neuroscience. This hire is part of a transformative excellence program designed to galvanize research on the neural basis of behavior, learning, and memory. The transformative excellence program puts us in partnership with the Departments of Bioengineering and Neurobiology and Anatomy and the broader campus Neuroscience Initiative. This program will ultimately bring three new faculty to campus.
New Psychology and U Lecture Series
We will debut a new lecture series, Psychology and U, designed to showcase psychological science and its contribution to society. David Strayer will present the latest findings from his influential program of research on distracted driving, with plenty of time for questions and discussion. The lecture is free and open to the public. Please join us on Tuesday, October 18, 7 PM in the Crimson View Room of the Olpin Student Union. Free parking is available after 6 PM, and light refreshments will begin at 6:30 PM. Find more details here.
Brian Baucom Receives Irwin Altman Outstanding Psychology Faculty Award
The Irwin Altman Outstanding Psychology Faculty Award has been established by his family and supported by the university to recognize a faculty member in the Department of Psychology who exemplifies the combined values of teaching/mentoring, research/scholarship and service that Irwin Altman demonstrated throughout his career.
The 2016 winner of the award was Dr. Brian Baucom. Brian has a strong record of creative research, focusing on the links between intimate relationships, mental health, and well-being and increasing the efficacy of couple-based interventions
University of Utah designated as a Center of Excellence (CoE) in Tourette Syndrome (TS)
Michael Himle and Dr. Fran Filloux in the Department of Neurology serve as codirectors of the program. The goal of the TS CoE program is to improve the quality of life of people living with TS and other tic disorders by promoting the highest level of care, research, education and training, and advocacy and awareness of these conditions. The U of U is one of nine programs nationally to receive this designation and one of only three to receive funding from the Tourette Association to support its mission and activities.