Tag Archives: scholarship

Miranda Worthen Recognized for Early Career Achievements

Congratulations to Miranda Worthen, Department of Health Science and Recreation Assistant Professor, for receiving the Early Career Investigator Award for 2016!

According to the Research Foundation, the award recognizes tenure-track faculty who have excelled in the areas of research, scholarship or creative activity as evidenced by their success in securing external funds for their research, publishing in peer reviewed publications, and demonstrating other scholarly and creative activities, at an early or beginning point in their career.

“I felt really honored to be recognized,” said Miranda as she was surprised to be awarded and had not considered applying for the award. She received a nomination from Anne Demers, Department Chair of Health Science and Recreation, soon after being encouraged to submit an application from the College of Applied Sciences and Arts’ Associate Dean of Research, Amy D’Andrade. Amy said that Miranda’s work is competitive and that she should apply.

Miranda’s work is interdisciplinary and includes epidemiology of psychosocial factors, the development of context-appropriate mixed methodologies that emphasize academic rigor and community validity, and intervention research. She focuses on social factors that mitigate or exacerbate the physical and mental health impact of exposure to violence and stress.

Strongly believing in paying it forward, Miranda plans to encourage other faculty to apply for grants and support them through the application process. She also believes that the award is a great example for her students as she promotes nominating themselves for scholarships and awards as sometimes it is hard for students to apply as they may have never won academic competitions.

“It is especially important to encourage our students to try their Luck. I’ll definitely share this experience to illustrate for my students that even when you don’t think you will be competitive, you might actually win.”

The College of Applied Sciences and Arts is proud of Miranda and looks forward to her continued success.

Dr. Cohen Completes Fulbright Scholar Activities

Dr. Ed Cohen, School of Social Work, spent the Spring 2016 semester in Vietnam on a Fulbright Scholar grant. Dr. Cohen developed and taught a course on mental health for undergraduate students majoring in social work at Dalat University, located in the country’s Central Highlands.

The course is the first of its kind in Vietnam for the new profession of social work. Since Vietnam does not have a recent textbook about mental illness, Dr. Cohen developed a course textbook on the prevalence, etiology, assessment, and treatment of mental illnesses specifically geared towards Vietnam and translated into Vietnamese. The course was an elective for a class of 36 final-year students from many surrounding provinces.

“In Vietnam, there is a very powerful stigma about mental illness which is similar to other regions in Asia – made even worse by the intense shame of having a mental illness or being in the family.”

Due to the stigma regarding mental illness, Dr. Cohen said that there is a lack of general knowledge about common problems such as depression and anxiety. However, people want to talk about these problems since the majority of people are suffering from these problems, has a family member, or knows someone with emotional problems. Enter social workers and it provides the people with someone to start the conversation.

During a reception by the U.S. Embassy Deputy Chief of Mission in Vietnam, Dr. Cohen received recognition of his contributions to the curriculum, which will be used by the faculty at Dalat University starting Fall 2016, as well as disseminated to other universities offering social work degrees in Vietnam. During his stay in Vietnam, Dr. Cohen also provided conference presentations, workshops on social work in healthcare settings, and faculty seminars on research methods in the social sciences.

Dr. Cohen said that the Vietnamese students show more outward affection to their professors because educators are held in very high esteem. However, the Vietnamese students are much more similar than different to SJSU students. Even though most students told Dr. Cohen that their parents would rather have them study engineering or business, they were proud to major in social work.

“Even though there aren’t enough social work jobs for graduates, they have a lot of class spirit and identify strongly as social work majors.”

The Fulbright Scholar grant gave Dr. Cohen the opportunity to live abroad for the first time, but it wasn’t hard to make friends. He said people are very warm and his university colleagues invited him to many family gatherings. He enjoyed the food while eating at small family-run kitchens and adjusted well even though the communication was difficult at times as the general public did not speak much English.

“I feel like I have just scratched the surface learning about the culture!”

Click here to see a photo journal of Dr. Cohen’s experience in Vietnam.

Accepting Applications for Faculty Led Programs Summer 2016

Get culture, get credit! The College of Applied Sciences and Arts’ Nutrition, Food Science and Packaging (NuFS) department are offering three different Faculty Led Programs (FLP) for summer 2016. Applications are being accepted now. This is a great opportunity for students to experience Hong Kong, Taiwan, or Puerto Rico all while earning 3-6 San José State University (SJSU) credits.

FLPs are short-term summer opportunities for students to travel abroad in order to study or participate in a service learning experience. SJSU faculty members organize this program to different parts of the world every summer. Scholarship opportunities are available throughout the year.

Hong KongFLP to Hong Kong, June 12 – 25, 2016 offers students 6 GE units:

  • NuFS 144i – Food Culture – Consuming Passions
  • NuFS 135i – Health Issues in a Multicultural Society

Example of activities:

  • Food exploration and food tasting adventures
  • Walking tours of Hong Kong’s diverse neighborhoods; learn about its colonial history and modern-day Chinese influence
  • Explore Hong Kong’s mega shopping culture
  • Learn about & experience traditional Chinese medicine
  • Join a host family for a home-cooked meal

Kasuen Mauldin, NuFS professor, and Van Ta, Health Science and Recreation associate professor, will co-lead the Hong Kong trip. For more information about Mauldin, Ta and the Hong Kong program visit FLP Hong Kong.

TaiwanFLP to Taiwan, June 13 – 23, 2016 offers students 3 GE units:

  • NuFS 115i – Issues in Food Toxicology

Example of activities:

  • Visit agricultural institute
  • Learn tea production and tea culture
  • Visit food processing factories in Taiwan
  • Experiencing Taiwanese culture

Irene Chou, NuFS profressor, will lead the Taiwan trip. For more information about Chou and the Taiwan program visit FLP Taiwan.

Puerto RicoFLP to Puerto Rico, June 14 – 28, offers 6 GE units:

  • NuFS 144i – Food and Culture: Consuming Passions
  • NuFS 139i – Hunger and Environmental Nutrition

Examples of activities:

  • El Yunque National Rainforest
  • Arecibo National Observatory
  • Bioluminescent Bay experience
  • Local open air markets
  • Organic coffee plantation tour
  • Artisanal cheese making

Deepa Singamsetti, NuFS lecturer, will lead the Puerto Rico trip. For more information about Singamesetti and the Puerto Rico program visit FLP Puerto Rico.

Find out what other FLP programs are offered by the College of Applied Sciences and Arts and apply today!

Air Force ROTC students recognized for achievements

On Nov. 22, two San José State University Students and Air Force ROTC Cadets were recognized during the Air Force Association (AFA) – Tennessee Ernie Ford Chapter 361’s 34th Annual Awards Banquet. Gavril Torrijos, a Meteorology major received, the AFA Cadet Community Service Award for his numerous hours contributed to various community service activities such as Habitat for Humanity and local area clean-up efforts.  Additionally, Torrijos has a passion for music and teaching. He volunteered his time to prepare high school marching bands for competitions.

Stephen Rose, an Aerospace Engineering major, was awarded the AFA Outstanding Cadet Award. The award is given to the cadet who demonstrates the highest level of maturity, intellect and academic achievement. Rose is an active member of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. He was recognized last semester for his scholastic, community and engineering endeavors by the Society of American Military Engineers.

In addition, on Dec. 4, the Silicon Valley Armed Forces Communications & Electronics Association (AFCEA) Chapter awarded two scholarships to deserving cadets enrolled in the Air Force ROTC (AFROTC) program at San Jose State University.  The scholarships, presented to SJSU students Henry Salazar and Steven Wong, totaled $1,000 for use towards tuition, books or other college expenses.  Bob Moorhead, chapter president, and Bob Landgraf presented the awards during the AFROTC Detachment 045 Fall Dining-Out.  The Fall Dining-Out is the Cadet Wing’s formal event of the school year where more than 175 cadets, friends and family celebrate their achievements of the semester.  The guest speaker, Colonel Matthew Lupone, Commander, Defense Contract Management Agency in Sunnyvale, spoke to the Cadet Wing about leadership characteristics they should possess to be effective on active duty.

Summer study-abroad students: Apply for scholarships now

The College of Applied Sciences and Arts at San José State University is offering 12 scholarships in the amount of $500 each to support students in the college who are enrolled in faculty-led study abroad programs this summer. Students can apply for the Helen L. Stevens Faculty-Led Program Scholarships for the College of Applied Sciences and Arts through March 21.

The Faculty-Led Program is a unique way to introduce students to the idea of the world as an educational resource, while giving students who may have never considered it a possibility the opportunity to study abroad. The College of Applied Sciences and Arts is committed to helping a broad range of SJSU students overcome the financial barriers to study abroad by offering the Helen L. Stevens Faculty-Led Program Scholarship to qualified students in the College of Applied Sciences and Arts, made possible by a generous donation from Helen L. Stevens, former Director of International Programs and Services at San José State University.

Deadline

Summer 2014 applications must be submitted electronically to Mimi Nguyen (mimi.nguyen@sjsu.edu) in the College of Applied Sciences and Arts by Friday, March 21, 2014.

Scholarship Amount

12 scholarships in the amount of $500 each

Eligibility

1. Applicants must be SJSU students in the College of Applied Sciences and Arts at the time of application and must have at least one remaining semester back on campus prior to graduation from SJSU.

2. Applicants must have at least a cumulative GPA of 3.0 at the time of application to be eligible for this award.

3.  Applicants must have been accepted to an official SJSU Faculty-Led Program administered by International Programs and Services.

4. Applicants must complete this form electronically and email it to Mimi Nguyen (mimi.nguyen@sjsu.edu) in the College of Applied Sciences and Arts by March 21, 2014 to be considered for the scholarship.

5. Students already receiving a scholarship specifically to attend a Faculty-Led
Program are NOT eligible to apply for this scholarship.

Application

A copy of the application form with a fillable PDF can be downloaded here (Helen L. Stevens Faculty-Led Program Scholarship for the College of Applied Sciences and Arts Fillable PDF application.)