Fin-Tastic Vol. 3 Spring 2021
Message from Dr. Al M. Panu, Chancellor
Considering the impact of the pandemic and the challenges we have all had in
the operations of our academic enterprise, I could not be prouder of the
resilience our faculty and staff have demonstrated in so many ways. This
edition of Fin-tastic is yet another evidence of the creativity, persistence, and
hard work of many. Who would have thought that such time-treasured
university traditions like face-to-face classes, research, campus activities,
graduation and celebratory dinners would be reconstructed, revisited,
rearranged, reimagined...? And so we end the academic year with a renewed
purpose in a new paradigm, but resolute in our goal of serving all students in a
highly engaged manner. We are thankful for those whose resilience and
fortitude are manifest herein. These are our faculty and staff who have
overcome the many challenges presented by COVID and led us to become an
even stronger USCB. We celebrate them.
Fins-up, fellow Sand Sharks!
Angell, Joanna E., MFA • Assistant Professor of Art (Dept. of Visual Art and Design)
- Awarded. Joanna’s ceramic sculpture “Listen” was awarded Best in Show during the 2021
South Carolina Palmetto Hands Juried Exhibition, North Charleston, SC. Exhibition Website. - Exhibited. Joanna’s ceramic cups were accepted into two national juried exhibition
exhibitions, FILLED UP: A Ceramic Cup Show, New Harmony Gallery of Contemporary Art,
New Harmony, IN. (Gallery website) and SIP: A Ceramic Cup Show, May 2021, Savannah, GA. Exhibition Website.
Brandt, Kenneth, MS Ed • Adjunct Professor of Astronomy (Department of Natural Sciences)
- Featued. Ken joined leading experts on MSNBC Weekends to talk about NASA's helicopter
Ingenuity making its debut test flight. Interview Website.
Canada, Brian, PhD • Associate Professor of Computational Science and Chair(Dept. of Computer Science)
- Selected. Brian has been selected to moderate a panel discussion on “Cyber Security as Part
of Your Digital Edge Strategy and Architecture,” as part of a USA-India Business Summit /
Georgia Tech webinar on "Global Trends in Digital Infrastructure" held on Thursday, May 6th,
2021. Webinar website.
Heiens, Richard, PhD • Professor of Marketing (Dept. of Business Administration)
- Published. Rick published “The Impact of Brand Origin on Relationship Marketing Outcomes
in a Market with a Large Migrant Population,” in International Journal of Services, Economics
and Management, (2020) Vol. 11, No. 3. Article Website. - Presented (Conference Presentations and Conference Proceedings). Richard presented
with Ravi Narayanaswamy (USC Aiken) and Emily Siegfried (USCB Marketing major) “An
Exploratory Examination of the Impact of Customer Service Features on Conversion Rates forOnline Retailers" at the Association of Marketing Theory and Practice Annual Meeting.
Presentation website. - Presented (Conference Presentations and Conference Proceedings). He also presented
with Ravi Narayanaswamy (USC Aiken) “An Exploratory Examination of the Relationship
between Digital Traffic Channels and Web Sales for Hedonic Products” at the Association of
Marketing Theory and Practice Annual Meeting. Article website. - Published (Journal). Rick also co-authored the article “The Impact of Digital Social
Legitimization on Website Visits and Web Sales,” in International Journal of Electronic
Commerce Studies. Article website.
Holderfield, Ann, MA Ed, M.L.I.S. • Art/Reference and Instruction Librarian (USCB Library)
- Published. Ann published “Librarian as Curator: Teaching Research through the Artist
Bibliography Book Display in an Art Department Gallery” in Art Documentation: Journal of
the Art Libraries Society of North America. Publication website.
James, Timothy “Mac”, PhD • Professor of History (Dept. of Humanities)
- Awarded. Fulbright-Hays to Mexico “The Third Root – Exploring African Heritage in Mexico”
for Summer 2021. Grant Website.
Lahar, Cindy, PhD • Professor of Psychology and Chair (Dept. of Social Sciences)
- Invited Panelist. Cindy was invited to serve as a Fulbright panelist for “Fulbright Faculty
Scholar Panels: Being Ready and Getting It Done,” sponsored by the SC Fulbright Chapter and Coastal Carolina University on Feb 24-25, 2021. Association Website.
Marlowe, Bruce, PhD • Professor of Educational Psychology-Special Education and Chair (Dept. of Education)
- Awarded. 2021 University of South Carolina - Carolina Trustees Professorship. Award
Website.
McCoy, Erin, PhD • Associate Professor of Interdisciplinary Studies (Dept. of English, Theater & Interdisciplinary Studies)
- Published. “Re: Feminist Perspectives on the Humanities and Higher Education.” Oh, The
Humanities! March 2021/Issue XI. Third Chapter Project. Article Website. - Presented. “'Los Yanquis quieren fuego': Exploring the Cultural Rhetoric of 1970s Music
Lyrics.” “1970: Nixon and Discord in the Vietnam War.” Texas Tech University Vietnam
Center & Sam Johnson Archive/Institute for Peace and Conflict, Annual Conference (virtual).
April 9, 2021. Conference Website. - Presented. “The Theater of the Living: Sports and the Humanities.” “Cultural Divides:
Bridging Gaps and Making Connections.” Humanities Education and Research Association
Annual (HERA) Conference (virtual). March 5, 2021. Conference Website.
Montie, Eric W, PhD • Associate Professor of Marine Biology (Dept. of Natural Sciences)
- Published. Marian AD, Monczak A, Balmer BC, Hart LB, Soueidan J, Montie EW. “Long-term
passive acoustics to assess spatial and temporal vocalization patterns of Atlantic common
bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) in the May River estuary, South Carolina.” Marine
Mammal Science DOI: 10.1111/mms.12800 1-25. Article Website. - Published. Soueidan J, Warren A, Pearson M, Montie EW. “A changing estuary:
Understanding historical patterns in salinity and fecal coliform levels in the May River, SC.”
Marine Pollution Bulletin 168:1-13. Article Website. - Invited. Eric presented “Tracking Courtship Behavior of Estuarine Fishes with Passive
Acoustic Recorders to Estimate Reproductive Potential and Comparisons to Young-of-the-yearAbundance” as a Webinar, hosted by the South Carolina Chapter of the American Fisheries Society. Society Website.
Ricardo, Libby, M.F.A. • Assistant Professor of Theater (Dept. of English, Theater, and Interdisciplinary Studies)
- Presented. Libby presented “I am Patient: Creating detailed narratives in a simulated
patient class to condition and promote empathy” at the 2nd Annual Writing and Well Being
and 2nd UNR Crossings Conference, held virtually on January 5, 2021. Conference Website. - Presented. Libby submitted a virtual presentation, “The Performance of Caring,” for the
2021 South Carolina Arts in Higher Education Forum. This content will be available ondemand through Insight! A Virtual Collaborative Conference App through October 22, 2021. Forum Website. - Performed. Libby performed the lead role of Jesse in Lean Ensemble Theater’s Zoom
production of Cry It Out, written by Molly Smith Metzler. The play streamed from March 5-
14, 2021. Theater Website. - Presented. Libby participated in roundtable on “Reflections and Resilience” at Teacher to
Teacher, a multi-session event at the 2021 Conference on College Composition and
Communication, held virtually on April 10, 2021. Conference Event Website.
Sawyer, Caroline, PhD • Assistant Professor of Communication (Dept. of Social Sciences)
- Awarded. 2021 University of South Carolina Breakthrough Stars. Award Website.
- Presented. Caroline presented a Behind the Scenes look at By The River with Holly Jackson,
author Jo Hackl, and USCB Communication Studies Senior, Makayla Bing. Recorded Presentation.
Villena-Alvarez, Babet, PhD • Professor of French, Spanish & Global Studies and
Interim AVCAA (Dept. of Humanities)
- Listed. Babet is officially added to the Fulbright Specialist for a four-year roster tenure.
Program Website. - Invited. USCB Study Abroad Program and students were invited and featured at the American Association of Teachers of French’s “The French Advantage: Where Will French Take You?” Apr 24, 2021. Conference Website.
Zhang, Xiomei, PhD • Assistant Professor of Computer Science (Dept. of Computer Science)
- Published. Xiaomei published a research paper in the Journal of Computer Communications:
“Enhancing mobile cloud with social-aware device-to-device offloading,” Computer
Communications, Volume 168, 15 February 2021, page 1-11, Elsevier. Research Paper
USCB Faculity Collaborations
McCoy, Erin, PhD Associate Professor of English and Interdisciplinary Studies (Dept. of
English, Theater, and Interdisciplinary Studies), Ricardo, Libby, M.F.A. Assistant Professor of
Theater (Dept. of English, Theater, and Interdisciplinary Studies)
- Awarded. Erin and Libby received a $1000 South Carolina Humanities Mini-Grant for the 2021USCB Virtual Interdisciplinary Conference on Race, Identity, & Equality. The conference, coplanned by Erin and Libby, was held February 15-16, 2021. The generous funding from the South Carolina Humanities Council allowed for the conference’s two exceptional keynote speakers: Dr. Vernon Burton and Dr. Gloria Holmes. Conference website.
Wheeler, Jana, DNP Assistant Professor of Nursing (Dept. of Nursing and Health Professions),
Ricardo, Libby, M.F.A. Assistant Professor of Theater (Dept. of English, Theater, and
Interdisciplinary Studies)
- Presented. Jana and Libby presented “Performance of Caring & Implicit Bias” on the Building
Advocacy while Navigating Bias panel at USCB’s First Annual Virtual Interdisciplinary Studies Conference on February 16, 2021. Conference website.
USCB Grants
When other organizations recognize the substantial value of our faculty, staff, and
students’
research works to invest monetary value to the future knowledge these studies would
bring
forth, that is a testament to academic dedication and future growth here at USCB.
Ultimately,
the goal of research is to improve life on earth, so we distinguish the contributions
of those in
this list. USCB Grants awarded July 1, 2020 – May 3, 2021.
- Brugler, Mercer. Characterizing the biodiversity and anticoagulant repertoires of
marine leeches in Port Royal Sound. ASPIRE $14,995. - Brugler, Mercer. Deep-sea genomics: Elucidating the molecular mechanism behind
extreme longevity in black corals. RISE $6,000. - Brugler, Mercer. Elucidating Oyster Reef Biodiversity with eDNA. Spring Island Trust,
$25,000. - Brugler, Mercer. Sharing Flower Garden Banks with the World Through Telepresence.
Global Foundation for Ocean Exploration, $22,694. - Bushey, Dean, Program Director and Skipper, Eric, Principal Investigator. South Coast
Regional Cybersecurity Education and Development Program., US Dept of Defense
Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation, $1,302,815.
Calvert, Charles. Vision for the Future: A Collaboration between USC Beaufort and theTown of Hilton Head Island 2020-21. Town of Hilton Head Island, $184,522. - Cavanagh, Kimberly. Digging Deeper: 18th Century Life at the Barnwell Tabby. RISE
$5,997. - D’Antonio, Edward. Early Stage Drug Discovery for Coronavirus Disease 2019.
Community Foundation of the Lowcountry ($10,000); Dr. Jane T. Upshaw ($375),
Cycling Turtle Woodworks ($500). - DebRoy, Swati. Statistical Modeling (Spatial-Temporal Data Analysis) of the Obesity
Epidemic in Lowcountry of South Carolina. Occidental College/National Science
Foundation, $5,250. - Heiens, Richard. An Exploratory Examination of the Impact of Customer Service
Features on Conversion Rates for Online Retailers and the Presence of Distinct
Customer-Service Based Strategic Clusters. RISE, $5,999. - McCoy, Erin. USCB Virtual Interdisciplinary Conference on Race, Identity and Equality.
South Carolina Humanities Council, $1,000. - Montie, Eric. Demonstrating an Estuarine Soundscape Observatory Network in the
Southeast: Understanding baseline rhythms of biological sounds and correlations to
traditional biodiversity measurements to support long-term sustainable monitoring.
Southeast Coastal Ocean Observing Regional Association, $74,726. - Montie, Eric. Listen in: Acoustic Monitoring of Estuarine Communities Facing Ecosystem
Change. University of Texas Austin/DOC, $20,212. - Morris, J. Brent. USCB Reconstruction Institute. Anonymous grantor, $35,000.
- Olivetti, Keri. Bluffton Ambassador Program 2020-21. Town of Bluffton, $17,500.
- Pettay, Daniel and Brugler, Mercer. Acquisition of a Hand-held Multi-omics Nanopore
Sequencer to Innovate Faculty Research and Enhance Student Employability. ASPIRE,
$89,322. - Pettay, Daniel. Long Term Environmental Monitoring of the Port Royal Sound Estuary
Using Citizen Scientists. Port Royal Sound Foundation $11,442. - Ritchie, Kim. USCB Marine Science Research. Port Royal Sound Foundation $30,000.
- Sawyer, Caroline. Going National: Revising Season 2 of USCB’s and SCETV’s By the
River for National PBS Distribution by National Education Telecommunications
Association. RISE $5,854. - Thomas, Najmah. Gullah/Geechee Agro-Culture: Sustaining Culture to sustain
agriculture in the Lowcountry. USDA/University of Georgia SARE $325,160. - Warren, Alan. Town of Bluffton Water Quality. Town of Bluffton, $120,00.
(Pending: RII Track 1: Materials Assemble and Design Excellence in South Carolina:
Made in SC. NSF EPSCoR, $179,874.)
We are also recognizing Dr. Eric Montie as the sole
USCB ASPIRE II grantee from 2017
Community and Professional engagments
Angell, Joanna E., MFA • Assistant Professor of Art (Dept. of Visual Art and Design)
- Contributed. Joanna contributed ceramic bowls to the Empty Bowls Project in Savannah
Georgia, an international project to bring awareness and to end hunger regionally. Project
Website. - Contributed. Joanna’s solarplate intaglio edition was part of the annual postcard
exchange New Beginnings at Iowa State University's College of Design in Ames, Iowa. Article
website. - Contributed. As an invited participant, Joanna contributed video content to Martha Brim’s
Artist-in-Residence project Follow the Thread, Richland County Public Library, Columbia,
SC. Event website.
Hritz, Nancy, PhD • Associate Professor of Hospitality Management(Dept. of Hospitality Management)
- Community Presentation. Nancy gave a presentation to the Lowcountry Property
Management Association on January 19, 2021 titled “Travel sentiment and forecast for 2021.” Event Website.
Montie, Eric W., PhD • Associate Professor of Marine Biology (Dept. of Natural Sciences)
- Community Presentation. Eric and Alyssa Marian (lab manager) presented “Our Local
Dolphins,” hosted by Old Field Outfitters. Plantation Website by the Port Royal Sound
Foundation. Foundation Website - Community Presentation. Eric presented “What’s All that Racket! Estuarine Soundscapes in
South Carolina” as a Webinar, hosted by the Port Royal Sound Research Task Force.
Foundation Website
2020-2021 Academic Awards for Faculity and Staff
We honor and celebrate those who have been selected by their peers for their dedication
and excellence.
- Chastain, Jerry, MA • Vincent P. Mesaric Award
- Fazio, Gia, PhD • Adjunct Professor of the Year Award
- Hutchison, Lynne, PhD • Academic Advisor Award
- Dudas, Kimberly, PhD • USCB Professor of the Year
Magellan Mentors and Scholars
We salute our faculty working on their research and involving our students to give
them the
Experiential Learning Advantage.
- Lindsey Moon • Honors, Junior, Biology, USC Beaufort
Magellan Scholar, Summer-Fall 2021 The Prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 Variants in Beaufort County Wastewater Mentor: Tye Pettay, PhD • Natural Sciences, USC Beaufort - Bruce Brasseur • Junior, Computational Science, Mathematics, USC Beaufort
Magellan Mini-Grant, Spring 2021
Evolving Artificial Neural Network Cost Functions Using Genetic Programming
Mentor: Brian Canada, PhD • Mathematics and Computational Science, USC Beaufort - Shane Carey • Honors, Sophomore, Biology, USC Beaufort
Magellan Scholar, Spring 2021 Synthesis and Evaluation of N-Phenylbenzenesulfonamides as Effective Trypanosoma cruzi Inhibitors
Mentor: Edward D'Antonio, PhD • Natural Sciences, USC Beaufort - Emily Siegfried • Honors, Senior, Marketing, USC Beaufort
Magellan Scholar, Spring 2021 The Impact of Customer Service Features on Conversion Rates for Online Retailers in the U.S. and European Markets
Mentors: Richard Heiens, PhD • Business Administration, USC Beaufort, Ravi Narayanaswamy, PhD• Management, USC Aiken - Bryanna Cantrell • Junior, Media Arts, USC Beaufort
Magellan Scholar, Summer-Fall 2020
Digital Sculpting in a Virtual Reality Environment
Mentor: James Sidletsky, MFA • Natural Sciences, USC Beaufort - James Smith • Senior, Computer Science, Anthropology, USC Beaufort
Magellan Mini-Grant, Fall 2020 Using Cybersecurity Data Science to Detect Malicious URLs Mentor: Xiaomei Zhang, PhD • Mathematics and Computational Science, USC Beaufort
USCB Student Research and Scholarship Day
Special dedication to Beth Hammond for her supreme efforts in coordinating our largest
group of
student presenters, reviewers, moderators and monitors into a virtual event through
Blackboard
Collaborate. Thank you, Beth! Our most since appreciation to Kim Cavanagh and Brian
Canada
for their leadership and initiative.
- Keynote Speaker: Morgin Jones Williams
- 2021 SRSD Committee: Kimberly Cavanagh, Co-Chair, Beth Hammond, Co-Chair, Andrew
Baldino (student), Joanna Angell, Mollie Barnes, Brian Canada, Swati DebRoy, Joe Iglesias,
Joe Staton - Mentors: Kishwar Ahmed, Joanna Angell, Mollie Barnes, Chesanny Butler, Brian Canada, Jena
Chojnowski, Swati DebRoy, Carmen Farrell, Alice Holland, Joe Iglesias, Chip Landrum, Xuwei
Liang, Ellen Malphrus, Lukasz Pawelek, Summer Roberts, Jim Sidletsky, Jayne Violette - Judges: Kishmar Ahmed, Butch Alvarez, Mercer Brugler, Laura Burcin, Jena Chojnowski, LeeAnn
Halbert, Melanie Haynes-Ramos, Joanne Kuehn, John Leadem, Bruce Marlowe, Kelly
McCombs, Diana Reindl, Libby Ricardo, Jim Sidletsky III, Volkan Sevim, Charlie Spirrison,
Sarah Stone, Peter Swift, Tania Thomas - Moderators: Joanna Angell, Mollie Barnes, Serkan Catma, Kim Cavanagh, Swati DebRoy,
Carmen Farrell, Ann Holderfield, Mac James, Joleesa Johnson, Lynn McGee, Summer Roberts,
Angela Simmons, Sarah Swofford, Babet Villena-Alvarez, Kim Walsh, Brandon Wright
USCB's First Virtual Interdisiplanary Studies Conference
The Interdisciplinary Studies Degree's Annual Virtual Conference featured outstanding panels on this year’s theme of “Race, Identity & Equality,” composed of USCB students, faculty, librarians, and alumni, as well as presentations by scholars stretching from nearby USC Salkehatchie to as far away as Stanford University.
- Conference Chairs: Erin McCoy, Libby Ricardo
- Conference Participants: Joanna Angell, Brian Canada, Gloria Holmes, Morgin Jones
Williams, Amy Leaphart, Bruce Marlowe, Brent Morris, Sarah Swofford, Jana Wheeler
Discover UofSC
Research beyond USCB provides our faculty and students with a wider lens and a better
perspective of their discipline beyond our institution and region. Kudos to those
who are willing
to reach further and farther.
PARTICIPANTS
- Faculty Mentors: Jim Sidletsky, Richard Heiens, Xiaomei Zhang, Jena Chojnowski
- Student Presenters: Bryanna Cantrell, Emily Siegfried, James Smith, Kelley Tollison
Faculty Reviewers: Kishwar Ahmed, Joanna Angell, Mercer Brugler, Morgin Jones Williams,
Joanne Kuehn, Renarta Tompkins, Babet Villena-Alvarez
Jasper County Vaccination Clinic Volenteers
In the face of adversity and difficult times, volunteers shine their giving light
to help
others in our community.
March 5, 2021 Mass vaccination Clinic
Vaccinators: Nana Ackaah, Kimberly Alicea, Christian Annunziata, Susan Beverung, Kelly
Bouthillet, Chesanny Butler, Maggie Couch, Chad Deaton, Kim Dudas, Olivia Geisel,
Sara
Glancy, Linda Lanni-Kreisel, Grace Lindsey, Christian Lorenzo, Mackenzie Mansfield,
Madeline
Matusik, Molly Minasi, Darby O'Donnell, Kathryn ONeill, Pamela Phillips, Josie Ray,
Destiny
Roper, Henry Schubert, Aushatavia Stiney
Helpers/Runners: Butch Alvarez, Marilyn Arseneau, Adam Bessenger, Karen Chavarria, Lily
Clough, Hannah Clowers, Caroline Coker, Carmella Coughlin, Allison Davis, Dick Herrin,
David
Lunin, Katerine Molina, Quin Monahan, Al Panu, Antonia Quintero, Olayah Safouan, Angela
Simmons, Babet Villena-Alvarez, Shayla Walters, Preethi Wilson
April 2, 2021 Mass Vaccination Clinic
Vaccinators: Susan Beverung, Richard Herrin, Lynne Hutchison, Lindsey Moon, Emily
Penzenik, Pamela Phillips, Madison Rine, Susan C. Williams
Helpers/Runners: Butch Alvarez, Chassity Anderson, Clint Butler, Carmella Coughlin, Carmen
Farrell, Nicki Grace, Dick Herrin, Heidi Herrin, Quin Monahan, George Pate, Antonia
Quintero,
Libby Ricardo, Olayah Safouan, Angela Simmons, Babet Villena-Alvarez