Letter from the Dean

Dr. Srini Kambhampati

Dean
Professor of Biology

It is my pleasure to welcome you to the second issue of Foundations, the magazine of the College of Arts and Sciences at Lawrence Technological University. Many talented people contributed to this issue, including Reneé Ahee, our writer; LTU’s Marketing and Public Affairs department, and all of the faculty and staff who donated their time to provide material for the various articles you see here. I hope you will enjoy reading about the many things happening in the college in both teaching and research.

We are thrilled to announce that our Physician Assistant program, initiated in 2020, has received provisional accreditation from the ARC-PA, the body that oversees all PA programs across the country. Several people, including those from the Dean’s office, the Department of Natural Sciences, and the faculty and staff in the PA program, worked very hard to achieve the provisional accreditation. The first cohort of 30 students is currently on campus. A formal ribbon cutting ceremony was held in August to usher in the newly renovated PA program facilities. The PA program is part of a larger initiative to offer additional health-related degree programs by LTU. It started with the Nursing program in 2017, followed by the PA and cardiovascular perfusion programs. Stay tuned for additional programs to be announced in the future.

We are also proud to showcase the wonderful accomplishments of our faculty and students in this issue. As you peruse the articles, you will learn about the theory and practice research and education being carried out by faculty in computer science, mathematics, and psychology. Psychology and computer science faculty are working together to study various aspects of human-computer interactions to better understand and mitigate the negative outcomes of technology usage. One of our mathematics faculty (Dr. Matthew Johnston) recently received a large grant from the National Science Foundation to study Covid-19 transmission and infectivity. A computer science faculty member (Dr. CJ Chung) hosted 8 undergraduate students interested in programming self-driving vehicles in the summer of 2022 with a Research Experiences for Undergraduate (REU) award from the National Science Foundation. Additionally, I draw your attention to articles on course-based research experiences for undergraduate students, funded by the prestigious Howard Hughes Medical Institute. This program has been a huge boost to our undergraduate education by making research an integral part of every course and promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion. Last, but not least, we are proud to profile one of our own alumni, Dr. Dan Johnson, who received two undergraduate degrees from the College of Arts and Sciences. Dr. Johnson went on to a very successful and accomplished career in engineering and technology.

A male comet moth in Madagascar.

We are always looking at new ways to enhance curriculum and research in the college. Looking forward, the college with its unique set of disciplines, will strive to enhance interdisciplinary collaborations among faculty. These may include team-taught interdisciplinary classes, co-advising of graduate students by two or more faculty in different departments, and providing incentives for pursuing cross-disciplinary initiatives whether they are in research or undergraduate education.

Thank you once again for reading the magazine of your alma mater. I personally invite our alumni to visit the campus of LTU to witness firsthand the many innovative things that are happening in our College and the University. If you have questions, comments, or suggestions, please do not hesitate to contact me by email (skambhamp@ltu.edu).

Sincerely,

Srini Kambhampati

Dean and Professor Biology