Maier, Nicole

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JMU Scholarly Commons (James Madison Univ.)

 Madison Scholars for 2005, (l-r): JoAnne Brewster, Tamara L. Jetton, JamesLiu, Iain S. Maclean and Nancy Nichols.Five Madison Scholars honored at JamesMadison Day 2005Story by Nicole Maier (Õ05) While police psychology, the literacy processes, the qualitative theory ofdifferential equations, comparative examination of religion and politics, and taxlaw have little to do with one another, they are topics which earned fiveprofessors the honor of being named Madison Scholars for 2005-2006. Theaward recognizes their scholarly achievement within their respectivedisciplines. Winners are selected by their individual colleges and must havecompleted five years at JMU as assistant or full-professors. During theacademic year each recipient will present a lecture on their area of researchand expertise.JoAnne BrewsterPrior to becoming a professor of graduate psychology at JMU, Dr.JoAnne Brewster received her Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology fromMcMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario and was trained in Clinical Psychologyat UVA. Since 1985, Brewster has been a Licensed Clinical Psychologist inVirginia and has had her own private practice with Augusta PsychologicalAssociates in Staunton. ÒI began teaching part-time at JMU in 1988, while Iwas still in private practice, and enjoyed it so much that I sought and obtained afull-time position in 1992,Ó says Brewster.As secretary and past president of the Society for Police and CriminalPsychology, she joined the professional organization in holding their firstinternational conference in Italy in 2004. There she was awarded by the hostinguniversity for her contributions to the field of police psychology. Much ofBrewsterÕs current research focuses on the investigating accuracy of variouspsychological tests which predict who will become a good police officer.ÒThe think I enjoy most is my relationship with my students andcolleagues,Ó says Brewster. Brewster teaches classes at both undergraduateand graduate levels in addition to working closely with a handful of studentseach semester on research projects related to police psychology.Tamara L. JettonSix years ago, Tamara L. Jetton joined the JMU faculty after earning herPh. D. while teaching at Texas A&M University. Jetton earned her masterÕs atBradley University, after 10 years teaching middle and high school English inHouston.JettonÕs most recent research focuses on, studentÕs literacy processesas they engage in different learning environments that include the text of onlinediscussion boards, hypertext, traditional texts and the oral texts of classroomdiscussions. Jetton has contributed to two books in the last two years andpublished an article on this topic in The Journal of Research in TechnologyEducation.The Small-town atmosphere of Harrisonburg drew Jetton to JMU, butshe says she has Òbeen pleased by the encouraging atmosphere of herdepartment. I am most impressed with the ability of the faculty of the College ofEducation to work together in creating an excellent college. My colleagueshave been very supportive and friendly. I am also very encouraged that we nowhave a Dean of education who wants to take the college in a positive futuredirection.ÓJames H. LiuAfter receiving his B.S. and M.S. in China, James Liu came to the UnitedStates and earned his Ph.D. at Southern Illinois University, where he taught forone year before coming to JMU in 1992 as a professor of Mathematics.LiuÕs research interests focus on the topics of qualitative theory ofDifferential Equations, Integral Equations, and their applications. He has hadthe honor of having a number of his articles published as well as listed onMathSciNet of the American Mathematical Society. In 2003, Liu published hisfirst textbook, A First Course in the Qualitative Theory of Differential Equations.For the past 13 years, Liu has found JMU to be conducive to bothteaching and conducting research in mathematics. However, he mostappreciates the, Ògood professional relationship among colleagues.ÓIain S. MacleanÒIt was a surprise and very encouraging that the university and collegewere recognizing my work,Ó says Dr. Iain S. Maclean, professor of religion, inresponse to being named a Madison Scholar by the College of Arts andLetters.As a graduate from the Universities of Cape Town, Rhodes, SouthAfrica, Princeton and Harvard, and having taught at Harvard and Washingtonand Lee University, Maclean came to JMU six years ago. He has receivednumerous awards such as the Danforth Writing Fellow for undergraduateteaching at Harvard University, as well as, the Edna T. Schaeffer SummerResearch Award at James Madison University.Much of MacleanÕs research focuses on the comparative examinationof religion and politics. In 1999 he published Opting for Democracy: LiberationTheologians and the Struggle for Democracy in Brazil and has since authored,co-authored and edited a number of books and scholarly articles. Maclean islooking forward to the release of his new book titled, Reconciliation: Nationsand Church in Latin America. He is most pleased with the university and hiscolleagues because, Òthey encourage research, the thing that I am intenselyinterested as it stimulates teaching in the class and I believe is important forcontinuing learning and international education.ÓNancy B. NicholsÒThe College of Business has many outstanding researchers, so to beselected as a leading scholar is quite a privilege,Ó says Dr. Nancy Nichols,professor of accounting.Before coming to JMU, Nichols received her B.A. in accounting from theUniversity of South Florida, and her M.S. and Ph.D. from the University of NorthTexas. ÒWhen I left my doctoral program, I was looking for a university with astrong accounting program and a passion for teaching as was as a smallercommunity with strong values for raising a family,Ó says Nichols. ÒJMU wasthe perfect fit.ÓFor the past eight years, Nichols has taught while conducting researchon the topics of tax law and international accounting issues. ÒI thoroughlyenjoy working with the students in the accounting program,Ó says Nichols.ÒThey are bright, hard working, and enthusiastic. In addition to the students, Iam extremely fortunate to work with a group of talented and dedicated faultythat challenge me to achieve.Ó 

Five Madison Scholars honored at James Madison Day 2005

https://commons.lib.jmu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1077&amp;context=monty

Five Madison Scholars honored at James Madison Day 2005

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