We are happy to introduce our CSFE Faculty Affiliates for 2020-21. Our goal with the Faculty Affiliates (FA) program is to gather the work of faculty and their students from various disciplines who are working on subjects related to our areas of support, especially Covid-19 impact and recovery. With the FA program, we set out to connect faculty from different parts of campus, to draw lessons by combining their interdisciplinary perspectives, and to increase impact by integrating faculty and their students with people in our communities where needs are greatest.
Our 2020-21 cohort initially begins with 12 faculty from six disciplines representing four of WCU’s six colleges. Their work covers a range of topics and is improving understanding of Covid-19’s impact on diverse populations, and on the best conditions for recovery.
- Jackson Déziel, assistant professor, director of the Emergency Medical Care Program, will examine emergency services response to the pandemic and pertinent policy actions
- Angela Dills, Gimelstob-Landry Distinguished Professor of Regional Economic Development, will research the effect of telehealth parity laws on mortality rates
- Turner Goins, Ambassador Hyde Distinguished Professor of Gerontological Social Work, will conduct interviews and analysis of those 65 years and older and their experiences with COVID-19
- Inhyuck “Steve” Ha, professor of economics, will measure the economic impact of a WCU closure on the campus and the region
- Marco Lam, associate professor of accounting, will study the municipal bonds market and public policy implications
- Edward Lopez, professor of economics, is studying attitudes toward and conditions that support bottom-up rural economic development
- David McCord, professor of clinical psychology, will research postpartum depression and, with students, develop a new screening method
- Emma Miller, assistant professor of social work,is studying post-traumatic growth as it relates to Covid-19 in WNC
- Stephen Miller, Adams Bibby Chair of Free Enterprise at Troy University (and former WCU professor of economics), will conduct a comparative analysis on the impact of COVID-19 on states and regions
- Sean Mulholland, professor of economics, will study the impact of the pandemic on small businesses in the travel, hospitality and entertainment business sector
- Audrey Redford, assistant professor of economics, will examine the impact of North Carolina’s “death by distribution law” on unintentional drug deaths
- Martin Tanaka, associate professor of engineering, will investigate mutually beneficial industry and academic partnerships for communicating (specifically Zoom)
You can read a bit more about these stellar individuals and their students at our CSFE People Page. Throughout the academic year and beyond, we will profile each of our FA’s and their students, promote their work, and look for connections with needs in our communities. So please keep an eye out for more on this blog and on our social media. We couldn’t be more excited to be partnering with our 2020-21 FA’s!