Faculty & Staff

Leaders from Oakland University and Washtenaw Community College have signed agreements that will help streamline the transfer process for students pursing bachelor’s degrees in business administration, applied health sciences and nursing. 

Nicolas Giallombardo, a student in OU’s Master of Accounting Program, is one of only 207 students in the country to receive a $10,000 scholarship from the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB). 

Oakland University’s Bachelor of Science in Information Technology is ranked among the 25 best programs of its kind according to a recent survey by ValueColleges.com.

Oakland University’s School of Music, Theatre and Dance presented James and the Giant Peach — directed by Lynnae Lehfeldt and based on Richard George’s adaptation of Roald Dahl’s fantastical tale — on May 17, May 19, June 7 in Varner Recital Hall on the OU campus.

As part of an ongoing effort to provide an efficient and cost-effective transfer process, Oakland University has signed an additional articulation agreement with Delta College. 

Growing up in a small town in North Carolina, Dr. Amy Tully, D.M.A., discovered her passion for the performing arts — a passion she hopes to share with Oakland University students, faculty and staff as the new director of the School of Music, Theatre and Dance within the College of Arts and Sciences.

A group of Oakland University students immersed themselves in history this summer when they spent 10 days in England as part of a study abroad. The course, “Tudors of England,” focused on the lives of the highly influential family of monarchs who ruled England from 1485 to 1603. 

As part of an ongoing effort to provide an efficient and cost-effective transfer process, Oakland University has signed an additional articulation agreement with St. Clair County Community College. 

As part of an ongoing effort to provide an efficient and cost-effective transfer process, Oakland University has signed an additional articulation agreement with Macomb Community College. 

At its annual House of Delegates Meeting, the American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP) presented Richard Olawoyin with the 2019 Charles V. Culbertson Outstanding Volunteer Service Award for Professional Development – Technical Publication, Editor and Author. 

OU’s Senior Director of Career Services, Wayne Thibodeau, recently received the Don Hunt Service Award from the Michigan Career Educator and Employer Alliance (MCEEA). 

The efforts of Oakland University’s Industrial Systems and Engineering (ISE) Department to integrate Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) concepts, techniques and tools into its curriculum are highlighted in Product Lifecycle Management (Volume 4): The Case Studies — the latest book by Dr. John Stark, an internationally recognized expert on PLM.

De Witt S. Dykes, Jr., associate professor in the Department of History at Oakland University, has been selected as a 2019 Michigan Chronicle “Men of Excellence” award recipient. 

From interacting with alumni to working on budgets, to updating web pages, Shanna Dawson does a little bit of everything in her role as an office assistant for the Office of Alumni Engagement at Oakland. 

Study.com has published its 2019 rankings for the best Master of Science in Nursing programs in the country, and Oakland University came in at No. 44. 

Oakland University’s Professional and Continuing Education program and School of Engineering and Computer Science are partnering to offer a one-week SAT Preparation Camp. 

On Friday, May 17, around 1,200 fifth graders participated in Oakland University’s 13th annual Clinton River Water Festival. The students came from schools in the Clinton River Watershed community in Oakland County, and learned about the vital role that water and the Clinton River play within the region. 

Destiny Stock and Dylan Pattullo sample invertebrates in a stream in Carrara National Park. For Macy Jackson, studying abroad opens the door to experiences that simply aren’t possible within the U.S. The environmental science major was among a group of OU students who recently spent 10 days in Costa Rica for a class in tropical field ecology. 

Adam LeRoy, of the OU/PSA Office presented at the 2019 AERA (American Education Research Association) conference on April 6, 2019 and April 8, 2019. The AERA conference is the largest research conference in North American.

The Office of Public School Academies hosted its annual Board appreciation dinner on April 30th. Board members and school administrators, along with SEHS Dean Jon Margerum-Leys, and Associate Dean Michael McDonald, and for the first time, PSA scholarship recipients, joined us to celebrate and recognize the achievements of the school year.

Jacob Corll, an Oakland University alum whose research led to the discovery of a master gene that regulates the expression of other genes involved in the development of corn kernels, was recently recognized as the co-first author of a manuscript published in The Plant Cell, a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal published by the American Society of Plant Biologists.

Beginning with the fall 2019 incoming freshman class, OU’s School of Engineering and Computer Science will sponsor the new Engineering and Computer Science Academic Promise Scholarship. The scholarship will assist students with financial need, ensuring that all tuition and housing costs are covered, as well as provide opportunities for involvement within the School of Engineering and Computer Science. 

Professor Shannon Flumerfelt was recently interviewed by Michigan Business Weekly in regards to her Lean work in developing a Lean Graduate Certificate at Oakland University.

Oakland University’s Bachelor of Science in Information Technology was ranked among the 25 best programs of its kind in country, according to a study by BachelorsDegreeCenter.org. 

In his new book, Oakland University film scholar Hunter Vaughan pulls back the curtain on what he calls “Hollywood’s dirtiest secret.” 

Kimberly Holka, DNP, MSN, MSA, RN, APHN-BC, CNE, full-time adjunct instructor and RN-BSN degree completion coordinator, has been awarded the 2019 Adelle F. Robertson Emerging Professional Continuing Educator Award winner by the University Professional and Continuing Education Association (UPCEA).

Last August, Oakland University’s Department of Psychology welcomed Fulbright scholars Anna Szala and Rania Bellaaj to campus. 

Dr. Sara Arena and Dr. Chris Wilson, assistant professors of physical therapy at Oakland University, have created the Home-based Older Person Upstreaming Prevention Physical Therapy (HOP-UP-PT) program, which is designed to provide early preventative interventions to senior citizens at risk of being homebound by facilitating partnerships between community centers and local physical therapists.

Alex Johnston was a freshman when he started as a clinical volunteer in the emergency department at a Detroit area hospital. After seeing several patients lose their life to heart attack and sudden cardiac arrest, the now senior biology major says he grew curious about the events that lead to heart attacks and how to prevent them. 

Each spring, the Oakland University Board of Trustees takes time to recognize three senior students for distinguishing themselves as outstanding scholars and leaders on campus and in the community. 

In recognition of her outstanding contributions to the advancement of women at Oakland University, Stephanie J. Lee, administrative associate to the Provost, has been named the 2019 Phyllis Law Googasian Award winner.

The Oxford Handbook of Evolutionary Psychology and Behavioral Endocrinology, just published by the Oxford University Press, is edited by Oakland University’s Associate Professor of Psychology, Lisa L.M. Welling, Ph.D., and Distinguished Professor and Chair of the Department of Psychology Todd K. Shackelford, Ph.D.

Oakland University’s vision statement pledges to “unlock the potential of individuals and leave a lasting impact on the world through the transformative power of education and research.” 

The Oakland University community will gather in the Oakland Center Winter Garden at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, April 17 for a remembrance event honoring faculty, staff, retirees and students who passed away during the past year. RSVP’s are requested.

Elizabeth Allan, Ph.D., associate professor of writing and rhetoric, is among a distinct group of scholars whose work will be showcased in the 2019 Best of the Journals in Writing and Rhetoric. 

More than 40 years ago, Marguerite Mahler was reading the Detroit Free Press when she noticed an article about a new legal assistant program starting at Oakland University. The 40-something wife and mother had left a career in laboratory science to raise her family and was looking to re-enter the workforce. 

A new study by Daniel J. Goble, Ph.D., associate professor of exercise science, has been published in the Journal of Athletic Training. The study examined more than 10,000 male and female athletes, ages 8 to 21, to provide normative data for the BTrackS Balance Test (BBT), a tool that Dr. Goble invented for concussion balance testing. 

As part of its Richard J. Burke Lecture Series in Philosophy, Religion and Society, Oakland University will host a discussion on “The Lies That Bind,” with Dr. Kwame Anthony Appiah from 7:30-9:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 28 in Banquet Rooms A and B in the Oakland Center. 

Alison Powell, Ph.D., assistant professor of creative writing in the Department of English at Oakland University, has had her essay entitled “Already We Are Less Than Ever Before” selected as a Proximity Magazine Personal Essay Prize winner.

To offer an inclusive day of fun for people with autism spectrum disorders, the Joanne & Ted Lindsay Foundation Autism Outreach Services (OUCARES) is hosting its 16th annual Family Fun Day from noon-4 p.m. on Saturday March 23 at the Oakland University Recreation Center. 

The Honors College recently hosted a talk by Cardie Mortimer, son of Charles G. Mortimer Jr., the influential television producer who worked on hit shows, including The Beverly Hillbillies, Get Smart and Bonanza. Cardie and family recently donated the Charles G. Mortimer Jr. Film and Television Collection to OU’s Honors College. 

The Oakland University Department of Biological Sciences recently hosted a genomics symposium, drawing researchers from around the country to discuss the latest advances in a field that is providing new insights into the function of genes, the promise of genomic medicine and the history of life itself. 

On Wednesday, April 3, Oakland University will welcome Academy Award-winning costume designer Ruth E. Carter to campus. Her talk will spotlight her remarkable career in Hollywood, and will take place at 7 p.m. in the Oakland Center Founders Ballrooms.

Following a search, Dawn Aubry, of Oakland Township, has been selected to become Oakland University’s associate vice president for Enrollment Management. Her new role is effective March 1. 

Each day, faculty mentors help guide students toward their academic and personal goals, passing down knowledge and wisdom that will last a lifetime. 

Marking its 35th year, Oakland University’s Women and Gender Studies Film Festival will present Challenging Femmephobia: Breaking the Gender Binary in Queer Communities. This year’s festival features screenings of the films “Making Masculine” and “The Same Difference.” The screenings, and a panel discussion, will take place from noon-3 p.m. on Saturday, March 9, in room 1050 of the Human Health Building on OU’s Rochester campus. 

Elizabeth Smart, who captured the nation’s attention when she was abducted from her home in 2002, will speak at Oakland University at 7 p.m. on Thursday, March 21, in the Oakland Center Founders Ballrooms. A book signing will take place immediately following her talk. 

For the third straight year, Oakland University received a gold ranking, the highest possible rating for veteran-friendliness from the Michigan Veterans Affairs Agency (MVAA). The organization recognizes institutions of higher learning for dedication to student veterans and dependents using their G.I. Bill and other educational benefits.