Pitt Business faculty member Paul T. Harper has been named co-chair of a new Racial Justice Committee of the Social Issues in Management Division of the Academy of Management.

The committee “will work to facilitate the creation of new knowledge, new networks and a new curriculum that benefits business research and education,” said Harper and his co-chair, Robbin Derry of the University of Lethbridge in announcing the formation of the ad-hoc group.

“The establishment of this committee is evidence of our division's responsiveness to the global Black Lives Matter movement and a broader social movement to eradicate systemic racism. Given our division's emphasis on justice, it makes sense that we would seek to provide leadership during this crucial period.”

Harper is a clinical assistant professor of business administration in the Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business, where his research and teaching are focused on entrepreneurship, strategy and business ethics. His research interests include racial justice, social entrepreneurship and inclusive innovation.

The Academy of Management (AOM) is the preeminent professional association for management and organization scholars. Its membership of nearly 20,000 spans more than120 countries. The AOM’s Social Issues in Management Division studies the social issues, institutions, interactions and impacts of management. 

Alaina E. Roberts, assistant professor in the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences' Department of History, wrote an essay that appeared in History@Work, a blog of the National Council on Public History, on the commemoration of the Tulsa Massacre. 

The massacre, which occurred from May 31 to June 1, 1921, was an attack by White Americans on Black residents and their businesses in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in a wealthy community known as “Black Wall Street.” An estimated 100 to 300 African Americans were murdered.

In her essay, "Commemorating the Tulsa Massacre: A Search for Identity and Historical Complexity," Roberts discusses her personal connection to this point in history and the discovery of her Native American ancestry. According to Roberts, the broader historical context behind the massacre is not widely known—namely, the stories of the Native American and Black people who immigrated to and shaped the area almost a century before the massacre.

“Just as my research on Black-Native history helped me better understand myself and my career trajectory, the broader history behind the Tulsa Massacre allows us to better understand that Tulsa was a place shaped by its history of settlement by Native Americans and the people of African descent who lived within their nations,” Roberts said. “Acknowledgment of these intersections makes the process of telling and illustrating history more complex but also more accurate and inclusive.”

Roberts will further explore this topic in her upcoming book, “I’ve Been Here All the While: Black Freedom on Native Land,” which will be published in April 2021 by the University of Pennsylvania Press.

How do you get started in science writing? Elaine Vitone, senior editor of Pitt Med magazine and writer/producer of Pitt Medcast, recently shared her story with The Open Notebook, a nonprofit organization that provides tools and resources to help science, environmental and health journalists at all experience levels sharpen their skills.

Vitone, who earned her MFA from Pitt’s Writing Program in 2006, has been on the staff at Pitt Med since 2010. She has won numerous awards for her reporting, including the inaugural Excellence in Institutional Writing Award from the National Association of Science Writers. She also mentors early career writers through the magazine’s internship programs.

Her latest feature story, “No Recharge for the Weary: Stress is an Inequitable Arbiter of Health,” was published in the winter 2021 issue of Pitt Med. Her latest podcast episode, “Like Daughter, Like Mother,” was released in February.

Shannon Reed, a visiting lecturer in the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences’ Writing Program, was recognized by People magazine for her new book, “Why Did I Get a B?: And Other Mysteries We’re Discussing in the Faculty Lounge.” 

Reed’s new work of memoir and humor was named Book of the Week by the magazine for its July 6th issue. In the write-up, the magazine calls the book “funny” and “revealing,” and also encourages readers to “send this book to your favorite teacher.”

The book, which was released on June 30, is composed of essays full of “humor, heart and wit,” and draws upon Reed’s 20 years working with students in ages ranging from preschool to college.

Writer’s Digest also featured Reed’s new book in its July/August 2020 issue. Reed earned a master of fine arts degree from the English department in 2015.

The Pitt Business Backstory, an online feature created by communicators in the College of Business Administration, is among the winners in the Graphic Design USA 2020 American Web Design Awards.

Each Pitt Business Backstory features a CBA student’s individual journey from the classroom, to the city, to the world at Pitt Business.

CBA staff members RJ Thompson, Erin Noonan, Kenzie Sprague and Derek McDonald contributed to the winning series of student profiles.

To date, 18 students have told their stories in the ongoing feature, with more to come. Read about them online.

Read about the projects at the Swanson School’s website.

Mostafa Bedewy, assistant professor of industrial engineering in the Swanson School of Engineering at Pitt, was recently given a nearly $245,000 EAGER award by the National Science Foundation to study a new scalable laser patterning process for directly growing tailored nanocarbons on flexible polymers.

The research will enable patterning functional nanocarbons needed for a number of emerging flexible-device applications in healthcare, energy and consumer electronics.

“The multi-billion dollar global market for flexible electronics is still in its infancy, and is expected to grow exponentially because of accelerating demand in many applications,” said, Bedewy, who also leads Pitt’s NanoProduct Lab. “Exploring potentially transformative carbon nanomanufacturing processes is critical for realizing cutting-edge technologies.”

Carli Liguori, a visiting instructor in the School of Education, has been named a finalist in the American Society for Nutrition Translation Award Program.

The award recognizes “outstanding early-career scientists and clinicians interested in translating their research to a defined audience to improve public health and/or health outcomes.”

Liguori was one of four finalists chosen from a pool of 70 applicants for the award.

In particular, Liguori, along with fellow School of Education faculty members in the Department of Health and Human Development, John Jakicic and Renee J. Rogers, were recognized for their study, “Changes in Dietary Intake with Varying Doses of Physical Activity within a Weight Loss Intervention: The Heart Health Study.”

In the study they found that following a calorie-restricted diet resulted in roughly the same amount of weight loss, about 20 pounds, regardless of a person’s level of physical activity. The team also saw that participants’ level of physical activity did not affect their ability to keep their calorie and fat consumption within bounds.

The team was honored at a virtual event held by the American Society for Nutrition in June 2020.

Two professors in Pitt’s School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences recently earned a prestigious honor in physical therapy.

Janet Freburger, professor, and Sara Piva, associate professor, have been named Catherine Worthingham Fellows of the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA), the highest honor among APTA’s membership categories. To be eligible, individuals must have advanced the physical therapy profession through frequent and sustained efforts for a period of no less than 15 years. They also must have demonstrated excellence in one primary domain, such as advocacy, education, practice or research, and made significant contributions, achievements or leadership to at least two other domains.

Freburger and Piva become the 9th and 10th current and former Department of Physical Therapy faculty members, respectively, to receive designations as Catherine Worthingham Fellows.