An Oakland University professor will be paired this month with a prestigious scholar from Arizona State University as part of the new PI Academy mentoring program at OU.
On Monday, March 5 and Tuesday, March 6, the PI Academy welcomes Ronald G. Askin, Ph.D., a professor in the School of Computing, Informatics and Decisions Systems Engineering at Arizona State University. He will serve as a mentor for Nasim Nezamoddini, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the Industrial and Systems Engineering Department.
 |
| Dr. Nezzamoddini |
According to the ASU website, Dr. Askin received a B.S. in Industrial Engineering from Lehigh University, and an M.S. in Operations Research and a Ph.D. in Industrial and Systems Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology. He is a member of INFORMS, SME, ASEE and a Fellow of the IIE.
 |
| Dr. Askin |
Dr. Askin currently serves as editor-in-chief of IIE Transactions and vice president of Meetings for INFORMS. He also was general chair of the 2012 INFORMS Annual Meeting and is a former president of the IIE Council of Fellows and former chair of the Council of Industrial Engineering Academic Department Heads (CIEADH) and INFORMS’s Association of Chairs of Operations Research Departments (ACORD).
In addition, Dr. Askin has authored over 120 publications focusing on the application of operations research and statistical methods to the design and analysis of integrated production systems. His awards include an NSF Presidential Young Investigator Award, the Shingo Prize for Excellence in Manufacturing Research, the IIE Transactions Development and Applications Award, the IIE Transactions Focus Issue on Design and Manufacturing Best Paper Award (twice), and the Eugene L. Grant Award from The Engineering Economist. He is also a two-time recipient of the IIE Joint Publishers Book-of-the-Year Award.
Later this semester, the PI Academy will welcome Catherine Snow, Ph.D., a professor of education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Tomoko Wakabayashi, Ed.D., an associate professor in the Department of Human Development and Child Studies, will work with Dr. Snow as her mentor.
 |
| Dr. Snow |
According to the Harvard GSE website, Dr. Snow is an expert on language and literacy development in children, focusing on how oral language skills are acquired and how they relate to literacy outcomes. She has chaired two national panels — the National Academy of Sciences committee that prepared the report "Preventing Reading Difficulties in Young Children," and the Rand Reading Study Group that prepared "Reading for Understanding: Toward an R&D Program in Reading Comprehension."
Her research activities include a longitudinal study of language and literacy skills among low-income children who have been followed for 15 years since age three; following the language development of young children participating in the Early Head Start intervention; studying the vocabulary development of first- and second-language learners; and considering aspects of transfer from first to second language in the domains of language and literacy.
Her book, Preparing Our Teachers: Opportunities for Better Reading Instruction, is one of several efforts she is involved in to develop consensus among teacher-educators about what pre- and in-service elementary teachers need to know about language and literacy. Snow has also written about bilingualism and its relation to language policy issues such as bilingual education in the United States and in developing nations, and about testing policy. She is currently involved in efforts to improve middle-school literacy outcomes, in partnership with other Boston area researchers and the Boston Public Schools.
More information about the events, as well as the PI Academy, is available on the Research Office website at PI Academy.
About the PI Academy for Research and Engagement
The PI Academy provides professional development in research and engagement to a cohort of 30 non-tenured, tenure-track faculty members from across campus. The program includes training sessions, workshops, and other activities intended to enhance their abilities as principal investigators. Academy participants are also matched with an external mentor to further develop their skill set and career network. The PI Academy offers a great opportunity for interdisciplinary connections to be made between faculty of all disciplines. The program helps attract, support, and retain productive and engaged faculty, and grows research at OU.