Before the coronavirus restricted global travel, University of Pittsburgh at Bradford faculty members were publishing, presenting and receiving promotions this academic year.

Dr. Jonathan Chitiyo, assistant professor of special education, has published several papers. He published “The Impact of Child Maltreatment on the Educational and Psychological Well-being of Students” in the Journal of School Counseling.

“Autism in Zimbabwe: A Brief Review of Trends, Conditions, Challenges, and Intervention Practices” appeared in the International Journal of Education Research.

At the 48th Teacher Education Assembly in Harrisburg, he presented a paper titled “The Relationship between School Personnel’s Confidence with Using the School-wide Positive Behavior Intervention Support Model and its Sustainability.”

Additionally, Chitiyo and Dr. Donna Dombek, associate professor of education, co-presented a paper at the same conference on “Pre-service Teachers’ Understanding of the Nature and Causes of Problem Behavior.”

Dr. Jodi Burns, academic advisor and coach in the academic advising center, served as a delegate to the 6th World Congress on Positive Psychology in Melbourne, Australia. She made a presentation, “Knocking Out Procrastination with Purposeful Practice: Helping Students Become the Greatest Version of their Academic Selves” at the National Academic Advising Association’s Western Pennsylvania Conference at Edinboro University and at the association’s national conference in Louisville, Ky.

Composition instructor Ann Hultberg had 10 creative nonfiction pieces published in recent months, including the essays “Something to Hold on to” in the online journal Drunk Monkeys and “Turn on the Moon” in the online magazine Persimmon Tree.

Five professors received promotions to associate professor: Dr. Helma De Vries-Jordan, political science; Dr. Tammy M. Haley, nursing; Dr. Matthew M. Kropf, energy science and technology; Anna K. Lemnitzer, art; and Dr. Denise Piechnik, biology.

Two instructors received promotions to assistant professor: Orin James, biology, and Martha Dibble, nursing.

Dr. Ovidiu Frantescu, assistant professor of petroleum technology, was named director of the Allegheny Institute of Natural History.

Dr. Sarah Ruffell, assistant professor of biology, co-published a paper with Tommy Mayberry titled “Promoting Science Communication with Children’s Literature as a High-Impact Assessment” in the journal of the American Society for Microbiology. Ruffell also presented a poster on “Recipe for Disaster: Using Algal Morphology to Identify Edible, Non-toxic Algae” at the 20th Annual Conference on Case Study Teaching in Science in Buffalo, N.Y.