Faculty Sabbaticals for 2010-11 Announced

Eight NMU faculty members will be granted sabbatical leave for 2010-11 to conduct research and engage in activities to enhance their areas of expertise. Those approved for sabbaticals are:

• John Bruggink (Biology) will work with graduate students to complete several research projects involving bird communities at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. The result of this research, which will be described in three journal articles, will contribute to better understanding of how forest management practices affect bird communities.
• Stephen Burn (English) will complete three scholarly books, including one examining the way the American novel has responded to the neuroscience revolution.
• Sandra Burr (English) will be investigating primary rare documents connected to Harriett and Louise Beaufort, two Anglo-Irish writers who published scientific texts for children in the early 19th century. This research, which will be conducted at the Huntington Library in San Marino, Calif. and the Trent University Archives in Peterborough, Ontario, will reveal lost information about the writers, their lives and their strategies.
• Neil Cumberlidge (Biology) will complete a book–length manuscript that will be the first comprehensive review of freshwater crabs found in the vastly forested region of Central Africa, where freshwaters crabs have yet to be to be subjected to taxonomic study. This work is expected to be an important source for researchers studying the tropical rainforests and savannas of Africa and Madagascar.
• Zhuang-Zhong Lehmberg (English) will write a book about learning and teaching English as a second language, based partly on her own experiences and the experiences of other second-language learners. The book is expected to be a valuable resource for professionals in second language acquisition and second language writing. 
• Kia Richmond (English) will conduct research on current trends in the teaching of English language arts in Michigan while serving as president of the Michigan Council of Teachers of English. The results of her research will be submitted for publication in a professional journal, presented at the national conference of the National Council of Teachers of English and incorporated into NMU English education courses.
• Harry Whitaker (Psychology) will write a psychology textbook that will be the first contemporary textbook to touch on the differences in behavioral and neural science. He also plans to co-author a series of vignettes that will depict overlooked events and ideas in the history or neuroscience. The research will be incorporated into his NMU courses.
• G. Jailan Zalmai (Mathematics and Computer Science) will continue his study and research in the area of mathematical programming called “nonsmooth semi-infinite programming” and related areas. The results will find practical applications of mathematical programming in many areas of operations research, management science, economics, engineering and applied mathematics.