Faculty and Staff Experts
Spelman College faculty and staff members are available to provide expert commentary and analysis on a broad range of topics. If you need assistance finding an expert, contact:
Denise T. Ward
Associate Vice President for Communications and Marketing
deniseward@spelman.edu
Office: 404-270-5892
Cell: 770-862-4028
AUC Scholar Expertise Portal
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February 2021
Dorian Brown Crosby, Ph.D., C'91, assistant professor of political science at Spelman College, published her first book, "Somalis in the Neo-South: African Immigration, Politics and Race," in December 2020. Her work chronicles three years of research that she conducted with Somali communities in Clarkston, Georgia and Nashville, Tennessee, and offers a balanced and insightful look at Somalis in the southern United States.
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December 2019
Through DNA testing, Aditi Pai, Ph.D.’s students receive their genetic profiles and study them to understand the evolutionary factors that influence biological traits or conditions, such as a predisposition to certain diseases.
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November 2018
Kimberly Jackson, Ph.D., chair of the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, shared best practices on the education and training of Black women in STEM during the STEMM Equality Congress in Amsterdam.
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February 2018
During the month of February, Cancer Prevention Month, Kristen Abatsis McHenry, Ph.D., assistant professor in Spelman College’s Department of Comparative Women's Studies, reminds individuals to be aware of environmental exposures that can cause cancer. She encourages students taking her courses to consider their own exposure from personal care and household products by exploring the Environmental Working Group’s “Skin Deep Database,” a resource that rates the health risks of various products.
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January 2018
According to the American Psychological Association’s 2017 report “Stress in America: The State of Our Nation,” Americans are stressed about money, work and the future of the nation. When you add the stressors of the holiday season into the mix, Natalie Watson-Singleton, Ph.D., says the health and well-being of many Americans can be affected.
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December 2017
According to the U.S. Department of Education school districts across the country are still feeling the effects of a national teacher shortage. Some reasons provided for the lack of teachers are low pay, evaluation methods and testing requirements. Spelman College continues to tackle the issue one student at a time. “Spelman College is preparing highly qualified teacher candidates everyday,” said Valeisha Ellis, an assistant professor and Teacher Performance Assessment coordinator for Spelman and Morehouse Colleges.
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October 2017
T. Lang is redefining the way the world views African women and their contributions to U.S. history through creative storytelling and dance. Lang is the chair of Spelman College’s newly formed Department of Dance Performance and Choreography. In and outside of the classroom, she continues to lean forward and inspire the next generation to take risks and cultivate change through movement. Lang has a substantial portfolio of work that tells the story of the African Diaspora from slavery to present. She continues to set a precedent for modern-day feminism.
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July 2017
Cyber security findings, company sales, shopping trends and the impact of social media are driven by big data. By 2021, according to a 2017 Business-Higher Education Forum report, “Investing in America’s Data Science and Analytics Talent: The Case for Action,” college graduates with a skill set that incorporates data science and analytics, will be two times more likely to be hired than their peers. With less than one in four graduates possessing these skills, Brandeis Marshall, Ph.D., associate professor and chair of the Spelman College Department of Computer and Information Sciences, is preparing Spelman students for this major shift in the job market.
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August 2016
From August 5 to August 21, 2016, fans of mega sporting events will have sustained focus on Brazil as athletes from around the globe converge on the country for the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. Associate Professor Erica Lorraine Williams, Ph.D., a Black feminist anthropologist at Spelman College, has extensively examined Brazilian transnational tourism, gender, race, culture and sexual politics. Dr. Williams can provide perspective on sexism, racism, feminism, and socio-economic inequality as it relates to Brazil as well as transnational tourism and mega sporting events such as the Olympics.
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February 2016
Aditi Pai, Ph.D., associate professor of biology and co-director of the Teaching Resource and Research Center, Spelman College will pilot an introductory biology course and take part in a genetics and genealogy project, with curriculum based on Harvard University Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr.’s PBS series “Finding Your Roots.” Dr. Pai can provide perspective on the following topics: evolutionary biology, behavioral ecology and host-parasite evolution.
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November 2015
An associate provost for global education and professor of international studies, ‘Dimeji Togunde, Ph.D. leads the Spelman Going Global! initiative and administers the Gordon-Zeto Center for Global Education.