Volume 8, Spring 2013 UNCWPSYCHOLOGY
Department NewsleƩer
Faculty editor: Robert Hakan
Student editors: Kathryn Rankin & Nastassia Broszkiewicz
WELCOME FROM THE CHAIR
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
NEW FACULTY
2,
4, 5
AWARDS
2
FACULTY
3
PROFILE
ALUMNI
4
PROFILE
FACULTY
6
HIGHLIGHTS
HOMECOMING
PICS
12
Over the years
our faculty and
students have
engaged in many
projects
designed to
improve the lives
of others.
Greetings,
UNCW
Psychology
Department
Alumni. If
this year
were a
Rich Ogle
race, it
would have been equal parts
marathon and sprint. For the
department, the starter’s gun
fired on Aug. 16 when we
received permission to enter
the new Teaching Laboratory
to unpack and prepare for
the first day of classes on
Aug. 22 and host a UNCW
Board of Trustees event in
the new building on Aug. 23r
(Whew!!!). We ended the year
on a high note by crossing
the finish line with a fun and
fulfilling departmental
graduation ceremony. In
between, we welcomed three
new faculty (see faculty
profiles in this issue) who
made strong contributions to
the department during their
first year, we celebrated our
40 anniversary with a
homecoming luncheon in the
new building, we had the
pleasure of congratulating
275 undergraduate and 18
graduate new alumni at
departmental
commencements in the
winter and spring, and we
hired a new faculty member
in the area of social and
quantitative psychology.
Each of these events
enriched our department and
reminded us how great it is
to be part of this big family.
We appreciate that you are
part of the 40-year history of
a department that is a jewel
in the crown of UNCW and
we offer this edition of the
newsletter so that you can
stay connected to UNCW
psychology. In this edition,
we bring you news of these
and other events as well as
sharing with you our
excitement about a
number of great projects
currently happening within
the department. Enjoy and
keep in touch.
Applied Neuroscience: Cutting Edge Community Engagement
The power of psychological
science and practice comes
from its fundamental focus
on understanding and
improving the human
condition. Over the years
our faculty and students
have engaged in many
projects designed to
improve the lives of others.
In January, three faculty
members: Julian Keith,
Kate Nooner and Rich Ogle
added another program to
the long list when the
Department of Psychology
Pediatric Neurofeedback
Clinic began treating
clients. The focus of this
clinic is to provide
neurofeedback, an
evidence-based treatment
for attention deficit
disorder, to children and
adolescents from lowincome households.
Continued on page 3
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VOLUME 8, SPRING 2013
N E W FAC U LT Y P R O F I L E : K AT E N O O N E R
By Nastassia Broszkiewicz
The Department of
Psychology is very excited to
welcome Kate Nooner as an
assistant professor this year to
our distinguished faculty.
Nooner’s research emphasis is in
trauma and PTSD in children. In
her first year at UNCW, she taught
Introductory Statistics for
Behavioral Science as well as
Interviewing Skills for the
Treatment of Substance Abuse to
our graduate students. Nooner
attended graduate school in
California where she obtained her
Ph.D. from San Diego State
University / University of
California San Diego in 2007.
Prior to UNCW, Nooner was an
assistant professor at Montclair
State College in New Jersey.
Nooner’s research interests include
trauma of maltreated youth,
evidence based treatments for
youth with substance use disorders,
post-traumatic stress disorder
(PTSD), and attention deficithyperactivity disorder (ADHD), as
well as various psychosocial and
neurocognitive mechanisms
involved in risk and resilience
ensuing childhood abuse. Nooner is
passionate about understanding
clinical disorders by studying brain
function. She believes it is
important for clinical psychologists
to “understand what is happening
within the brain to help inform
prevention and intervention
efforts.” Continued on page 7
Kate Nooner
The department is
proud to welcome her
as a fellow Seahawk,
and students and
faculty alike will
undoubtedly benefit
from her experience
and expertise in the
field of psychology.
PSYCHOLOGY AWARDS
1. The Williams/Kowal Award, named for John Williams, who was the first chair of the Department of
Psychology and Kathleen Kowal, one of the department’s first distinguished scientists. The Williams/
Kowal award is given annually to an outstanding student focusing on basic science research. This
year’s winner is Derek McMullen.
2. The Bradley Award is named after Michael Bradley, the first faculty member of the department. Many
of you have had him as an instructor as he still teaches for us in his retirement. The Bradley Award is
for an outstanding student with interests in applied psychology. This year’s winner is Alyssa Gandhi.
3. The Cape Fear Area Psychological Association Award is for basic science or applied research by an
outstanding student interested in graduate work in applied areas and this year’s winner is Jasara
Hogan.
UNCW PSYCHOLOGY NEWSLETTER
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FACULT Y PROFILE: TONY PUENTE
Tony Puente
To those of you who experienced
Puente in his “History and
Systems” psychology course, it
may come as little surprise that he
was on the phone with Sperry’s
wife when I began my interview.
For those who aren’t aware,
Puente has spent many years
investigating the psychological
contributions made by physiology
or medicine Nobel Prize winner
Roger Sperry, and is currently
working on Sperry’s biography.
He has also begun to put
together his own autobiography
and according to Puente “writing
objectively about myself is one of
the hardest things I have ever
done.” No doubt this is because
of his humility, as Puente has
been prolific in the field in
multidimensional ways. Puente
believes in the “ScientistPractitioner” model of psychology
and that the fruits of
psychological research are of
paramount cultural value. Puente
has recently received a well
deserved “Lifetime Achievement
Award” from the American
Psychological Association for the
practice of psychology. He says that
the classroom represents only a
small fraction of the work that we
put in as psychologists here at
UNCW, and indeed he has
published eight books, 20 chapter
contributions to other books, over
one hundred research articles and
has given over 4,500 professional
presentations. In addition, he has
served as expert witness in
hundreds of cases where brain
damage was implicated and serves
on the National “Current Protocol
Terminology” committee. To top this
all, when the conditions are good,
you are likely to find Puente ripping
the waves at a local beach!
Go Tony!
APPLIED NEUROSCIENCE, CONTINUED
Children and adolescents receive a
comprehensive diagnostic
assessments and up to 24 sessions
of neurofeedback. Not only does
this clinic provide a valuable service
for those seeking treament other
than medications, it provides
training experience and
employment for undergraduate and
graduate psychology students. We
are fortunate and appreciative of
the support of the Cape Fear
Memorial Foundation for awarding
us a two year grant to fund the
clinic. We hope that we can develop
the means to finance this clinic
beyond this time frame. One way in
which we hope to do so is through
donations to our applied
neuroscience trust. For more
information on how to donate to the
Pediatric Neurofeedback Clinic
please contact department chair,
Rich Ogle at ogler@uncw.edu.
By Robert Hakan
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VOLUME 8, SPRING 2013
ALUMNI PROFILE: AMY TILLER
Amy Lynn Tiller received her B.A. in
psychology, along with a B.A. in
philosophy and religion, from
UNCW. She is currently working with
PPD in a global quality and
compliance excellence role. She
believes that her background in
psychology has been a valuable
building block in business and that
her experience with research at
UNCW really accelerated her
abilities. For Tiller, attending UNCW
was more than just obtaining a
degree; it was an important time in
which she was mentored,
challenged and depended-upon to
build skills that are important in
everyday life of the business world:
critical thinking, problem solving,
creativity and professionalism. She
was very influenced by William
Overman and Mark Galizio and
their commitment to research. Their
passion for furthering scientific
endeavors and commitment to
knowledge was an inspiration to
her. Working with them gave her
the opportunity to be a part of
memory and early drug research
which led her to choose a career in
pharmaceuticals. The responsibility
of managing laboratory efforts
taught Tiller to be attuned to
regulations and the compilation of
By Kathryn Rankin
research. These skills have helped
her further specialize in quality and
compliance throughout her career.
She describes the hands-on
experience, a true strength of the
UNCW psychology department, as
being the most important aspect of
her education, knowing that she
was a part of collecting real data
NEW FACULT Y PROFILE: RACHEL KOHMAN
The UNCW Psychology
Department is thrilled to welcome
Rachel Kohman as one of our
newest additions to our faculty.
Kohman received her Ph.D. In
behavioral neuroscience from
Texas Christian University and
completed her postdoctoral fellow
at Rutgers University as well as The
Beckman Institute at the University
of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Kohman’s research background
has been in the field of
psychoneuroimmunology where
she explored the connections
between neuroscience and
immunology. This year, her lab has
explored the links between agerelated increasing
neuroinflammation and decrease
in cognitive functioning as well as
reductions of neurogenesis in the
hippocampus. She is also
interested in whether increasing
exercise may reduce
neuroinflammation in individuals.
According to Kohman, “The longterm goal of my research program
is to characterize the functional
consequences of increased
inflammation within the brain,
identify the neural mechanisms of
these changes and identify
interventions to attenuate the
aversive effects of
neuroinflammation. A large focus
of my work is in understanding how
factors such as age, sex, diet and
exercise influence the response to
an immune
Continued on page 7
UNCW PSYCHOLOGY NEWSLETTER
Page 5
NEW FACULT Y PROFILE : ANNE-MARIE ISELIN
Anne-Marie Iselin is
also one of our newest
faculty members to join the
UNCW team and
Department of Psychology
is overjoyed to have her
aboard. Iselin completed
both her Master of Arts as
well as her Ph.D. in Clinical
Psychology with a
Psychology and Law
Concentration from the
University of Alabama at
Tuscaloosa. Prior to coming
to UNCW, she spent three
years at Duke University as
a postdoctoral research
associate. During her first
year, Iselin taught abnormal
psychology to our
undergraduates. Iselin’s
research interests include
the exploration of various
dimensions of antisocial
behavior in adolescence
and understanding the
etiology of the disorder, how
it develops as well as
researching methods of
how it is best treated. She
is currently involved in
several research projects
pertaining to antisocial
behaviors in youth. “One
project is a longitudinal,
cross-cultural study of how
emotion regulation and
social information
processing influence the
relations between parenting
styles and aggression in
early adolescence.
A second project
examines whether early
intervention with children at
high-risk for antisocial
behavior creates lasting
biological, social and
behavioral changes in
young adulthood.” In
describing her research
program, Iselin has noted
the goal of examining
issues that could ultimately
serve to help shape policy:
“I consult with the state
legislature (e.g.,
alternatives to suspension
in schools, raising the age
of juvenile court
jurisdiction) and work with
key officials within North
Carolina’s Division of
Juvenile Justice.” She
moved from working on the
more individual level to a
more macro policy level to
implement changes dealing
with the juvenile justice
system. She also wants to
continue to help the
division of juvenile justice
system in NC develop
“really good policies,
procedures and practices
for adolescents who come
in contact with the law.
One reason that
prompted Iselin to come to
UNCW is the location
because she has an
established relationship
with the Division of Juvenile
Justice in NC and wanted to
continue that relationship
she begun three years prior.
Also, upon interviewing at
UNCW, Iselin said the other
faculty here were very
“warm, friendly and
supportive” and wanted
junior faculty to succeed.
She says this was a “big
deciding factor” for her
joining the department.
What Iselin likes
about the Wilmington area
is the beach and the
beautiful campus, as well
as the fact that the campus
was smaller and her class
sizes were more intimate as
well. In the coming years
Iselin looks forward to
building an “academic
lineage” by helping
undergraduate students
develop their careers.
“I consult with
the state
legislature and
work with key
officials within
North Carolina’s
Division of
Juvenile Justice.”
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VOLUME 8, SPRING 2013
FACULT Y HIGHLIGHT S
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Melanie Bachmeyer’s applied behavior analysis lab began conducting research on the behavioral
treatment of pediatric food refusal.
Alyssa Dark-Freudeman was reappointed as assistant professor.
Graciela Espinosa-Hernandez was reappointed as assistant professor.
Mark Galizio published two articles and had another accepted this year. He continued work on a
research grant funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse in the amount of $224,000 and the
project was selected by NIDA as a site for the, “Summer Internship with NIDA for Underrepresented
Students” program.
Cameron Gordon created a new course on Positive Psychology. He also continues to serve on the
editorial board for the Journal of Family Psychology and media coverage of his research appeared
this year in Psychology Today, APA’s gradPsych magazine, and PsySociety.
Andy Jackson received a Discere Aude Award for student mentorship and served on the board of
directors of Coastal Care MCO.
Julian Keith was awarded a $500,000 grant from the National Center for Alternative and
Complementary Medicine to study the effects of neurofeedback on attention deficit disorder.
Rachel Kohman established a behavioral neuroscience laboratory during her first year as an
assistant professor. Her research is funded by a $750,000 grant from the National Institute on
Aging.
Len Lecci along with former graduate student John Resendes, published his work in Psychological
Assessment examining the use and proper interpretation of the MMPI-2 in parental competency
evaluations and how this differs from its use in child custody evaluations.
Sally MacKain, in collaboration with colleagues in the School of Nursing, recently published two
articles: one in the Journal of the Association for Nurses in AIDS Care on anxiety disorders in people
with HIV+ and another in Military Medicine PTSD awareness among military spouses.
Bryan Myers completed data collection for his research on victim impact statements and capital
sentencing funded by the National Science Foundation, and published two articles in forensic
psychology journals.
Simone Nguyen published two articles this year focusing on young children’s flexible thinking skills
and how language can be used to facilitate this ability in children.
Kate Nooner received a two year grant along with Julian Keith and Rich Ogle to provide free
neurofeedback training to children with ADHD who come from low-income families.
Rich Ogle received a two year grant along with Julian Keith and Kate Nooner to provide free
neurofeedback training to children with ADHD who come from low-income families.
Wendy Donlin Washington was promoted to associate professor with tenure.
UNCW PSYCHOLOGY NEWSLETTER
Page 7
NOONER, CONTINUED
In the coming years, Nooner looks
forward to continuing to build her
lab and have her students work on
lab and have her students work on
new and exciting projects that build
on her work related to
understanding trauma and PTSD in
the brain and how it effects
children’s lives. She is interested in
ways to find novel interventions, like
neurofeedback, as well as
important resilience and risk factors
in these areas to help children cope
better. She looks forward to
collaborating with students on
publications, going to conferences
and hopefully having doctoral
students in her lab. Nooner was
excited to come to our department
at UNCW because of the strengths
in electroencephalograph EEG
(measure electrical activity in the
brain) research and alcohol and
substance use. She is interested in
trauma and PTSD in the children’s
brains and how it relates to
substance use, particularly alcohol
use. She was excited to see that the
program had a master’s in
substance abuse treatment and the
possibility of a doctoral program in
the near future. What Nooner most
enjoys about the Wilmington area is
the beach. She enjoys spending
time outdoors with her family,
particularly Carolina Beach State
Park and Halyburton Park where
she enjoys hiking. What surprised
her coming to Wilmington was how
“welcoming and friendly people
were and how eager people were to
work with her in the department.”
She enjoys the pace of life and the
fact that she can get to work in 10
minutes.
KOHMAN, CONTINUED
challenge and subsequent effects
on cognitive function.” Kohman was
prompted to come to UNCW partly
because of the atmosphere of the
department and partly due to the
fact that there were a lot of people
with similar research interests as
her own. It was important for
Kohman to have an opportunity to
collaborate with people outside of
her area as well as people who have
similar research interests. The town
of Wilmington and the proximity to
the beach was also a motivating
factor in deciding to come here.
What most surprised Kohman upon
arriving to Wilmington was “how
friendly people are, both here at the
university and even out on the
town… People seem pretty genuine
and pretty eager to help.” Kohman
is eager to continue in her main
area of research but is also
interested in helping her students
explore new areas of research.
Another goal that Kohman is hoping
to fulfill is to learn how to surf.
NEW PSYCHOLOGY DEPARMENT STRATEGIC PLAN
As much as celebrating our past brings us joy over
accomplishments and memories, planning for the
future brings us excitement about the possibilities
ahead. This year we set a course for the future of the
Psychology Department through developing a new
Mission and Vision Statement as well as a new Strategic Plan. The process allowed us to focus on who
we are and where we are going. Both are linked on
our web page and can be viewed online at:
http://www.uncw.edu/psy/about/mission.html &
http://www.uncw.edu/psy/about/strategicplan.html
We would love your feedback and ideas. Feel free to
send this to ogler@uncw.edu.
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VOLUME 8, SPRING 2013
PEGGY ROGGENSTEIN SCHOLARSHIP ESTABLISHED
Peggy Roggenstein was a highly
valued member of the UNCW
community. She started her career
at UNCW in 1992 and worked in
many university departments
before arriving at her last job as an
office assistant within the
psychology department.
Roggenstein’s
position in the psychology
department gave her access to the
students she loved the most. With
her cheerful smile and friendly
disposition, she always found the
time to assist students with their
questions or problems. She
received many letters of gratitude
from psychology students for
helping them make their time in
the department a pleasure and for
being so helpful. Roggenstein
retired in 2007 and enjoyed her
short retirement doing what she
liked best: traveling to new places,
boating and fishing. Roggenstein
died on January 30, 2011, and will
be missed by all who knew her.
To honor Roggenstein’s
memory and her love for students,
her family has established a
scholarship to be awarded to an
incoming graduate student in
psychology each academic year. If
you would like to contribute to the
scholarship fund, please visit
http://www.uncw.edu/giveonline to
make a tax-deductible gift. When
asked to designate the gift, select
“Other” and enter “Peggy
Roggenstein Scholarship.”
UNCW PSYCHOLOGY NEWSLETTER
THE UNCW TEACHINGLABORATORY
Photos from our 40th Anniversary Homecoming Luncheon
Page 9