Stetson University in the News, Sept. 1-7, 2018

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Hari Pulapaka

Hari Pulapaka, associate professor of mathematics at Stetson and renowned chef, was featured in The Daytona Beach News-Journal on Sept. 6 in “DeLand’s acclaimed Cress Restaurant marks 10 years.” The restaurant switched to an events-only format last year and may return to regular hours in the future, if owners Pulapaka and his wife, Jenneffer Pulapaka, can find help. “As a chef and a cook, ultimately, I’m not done. I seem to have found a new energy,” Hari Pulapaka said.

  • Clay Henderson, executive director of the Stetson Institute for Water and Environmental Resilience, was quoted in The Daytona Beach News-Journal and the St. Augustine Record for the story, “Florida springs plans on hold until 2019.” Henderson said, “I am hopeful that this will give all the interested parties a chance to tweak the rules in the meantime.”
Clay Henderson, Stetson University
Clay Henderson
  • Law Professor Ciara Torres-Spelliscy is quoted in the Aug. 31 Law360, “In State Farm Trial, Veiled Donations May Stroke Juror Anger.” Professor Torres-Spelliscy is quoted in the Sept. 3 Huffington Post, “Here’s What Experts Would Ask Brett Kavanaugh At His SCOTUS Confirmation Hearing.”
  • Stetson’s Hand Art Center was included in “Orlando Arts Season Preview 2018-19: Art” in the Orlando Sentinel on Sept. 6. The section listed six exhibits at Hand Art Center through May 2019.
  • Chris Ferguson, Ph.D., professor of psychology at Stetson, was interviewed on Spectrum News 13’s In Depth on Sept. 4 about the recent mass shooting at a video game competition in Jacksonville. “There is evidence to suggest that competition can increase aggressiveness, but that’s true for lots of different things. It’s true for real football,” he said.
Ciara Torres-Spelliscy, Stetson University
Ciara Torres-Spelliscy
  • The mother of former Stetson student and football player Nick Blakely has started a foundation in his honor, according to WAGA-TV Online Fox 5 in Gwinnett County, Georgia, and other media outlets. Smiling Hearts: The Nick Blakely Foundation works to raise awareness about the signs of sudden cardiac arrest and what to do in those situations.
  • Law Professor Peter Lake is quoted in the Sept. 4 Diverse Education, “Guns on College Campuses Debate Ushers in New School Year.” Professor Lake is quoted in the September 6 Columbia Spectator, “Leaked DeVos rules could trigger drastic changes in Columbia’s sexual assault policies.”

Other News:

A group of cadets stand at attention outside an academic building at ERAU.
Stetson is one of five campuses offering the AFROTC Detachment 157 program, hosted at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, above.
  • Stetson University was mentioned in a story on the Financial Wire about new commander, U.S. Air Force Col. Jason Patla, taking over for the Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps (AFROTC) Detachment 157 on Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University’s Daytona Beach Campus, which also includes cadets at Stetson.
  • Stetson University will attend the Straz Center’s inaugural Performing Arts College Fair on Sept. 30 in Tampa, and meet with students interested in pursuing college degrees in such areas as theater or music, according to School Notes in the Tampa Bay Times Online Sept. 3.
  • Lynn Bria, the most successful women’s head coach in Stetson University history, will be one of the featured speakers at the Florida Association of Basketball coaches annual clinic at Bishop Moore on Sept. 8, according to the Orlando Sentinel.
  • Law Professor Rebecca C. Morgan wrote the Aug. 30 Elder Law Prof Blog, “Rep Payee Reviews.” Professor Morgan wrote the Sept. 4 Elder Law Prof Blog, “Podcast about Brooke Astor Case.” She wrote the Sept. 5 Elder Law Prof Blog, “Rituals for the Death of Residents in LTC Facilities.”
  • The Sept. 6 24-7PressRelease reports in multiple national media outlets that two new professors, Professor Andrew Appleby and Professor Anne E. Mullins, have joined Stetson University College of Law.
  • Kenneth L. Stilson, former assistant professor of Communication Studies and Theatre Arts at Stetson, recently had the 12th edition of his textbook, “Acting is Believing,” ranked number one on Ezvid Wiki’s “Top 10 Acting Textbooks of 2018.” Stilson is now chair of The Jeanine Larson Dobbins Conservatory of Theatre and Dance at Southeast Missouri State University, according to the university’s website.
  • Four Leesburg High School students in Junior Reserve Officer’s Training Corps (JROTC) have received scholarships to Stetson, according to Lake & Summer Style. Three of the students, Katia Baita, Sarah Munnigh, and Connor Smith, were awarded three-year Army ROTC Scholarships. Doreen Barrett, another Air Force Junior ROTC student was presented with a one-year scholarship.
  • Stetson student Jessica Kamuche received a scholarship of $8,200 from the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, according to Gwinnett Daily Post in Georgia on Sept. 1.
  • Samantha Kaye, a student at Stetson, received a $5,000 scholarship from the John M. Shank Memorial Scholarship Fund, awarded to students who are employees or children of employees of Johnstone Supply, according to Air Conditioning, Heating & Refrigeration News Online on Sept. 3.

Alumni:

  • cup of coffee on a table next to print newspaperAlumnus Tim Ballesteros has joined MORE Health, a medical co-diagnosis and second opinion global healthcare company, as a regional vice president, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Online, DMN Newswire and numerous other media outlets. Ballesteros lives in DeLand, home of his alma mater, where he played baseball, according to the reports.
  • Alumna Helmi Banta has been selected for the 2019 Board of Governors for Newfields, a Place for Nature and the Arts, which includes the Indianapolis Museum of Art, according to ArtDaily.org. Banta earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Stetson.
  • The Aug. 31 Veterans Resources reports that Law alumnus Jim Byrne has been named VA Acting Deputy Secretary.
  • The Sept. 1 Tampa Bay Reporter reports that Law alumnus Chris Hunter, who is running for the District 12 seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, has set a fundraiser for Sept. 7.
  • The Sept. 5 Channel 8 Eyewitness News reports that Law alumnus Fred S. Ridley has been appointed as an independent director to Starwood Property Trust, Inc. Board of Directors.
  • Troy Henninger, who earned a certificate of advanced study in educational leadership from Stetson, has become a school principal, according to the Portland Press Herald and other media outlets in Maine.