22 recently promoted Miami faculty members embrace their new positions

In January, Vanessa Cannon, a professor in emerging technology in business and design (ETBD), turned in a 20-page promotional document explaining the work she has done for her department, the university, her students and her service. On July 1, she was promoted from assistant lecturer to associate lecturer.

Cannon is one of 22 members of Miami’s Teaching, Clinical Professors and Lecturers (TCPL) faculty to be promoted to higher positions within their tracks at the university. This series of promotions comes after the University Board of Trustees voted to ratify the Faculty Alliance of Miami’s contract.

The promotion process is a lengthy one — TCPL employees begin their tracks at the lowest rank, eventually moving up through meetings with the chair, submitting a promotional document, hearing a decision from the dean of the school and finally hearing a decision from the provost.

For Cannon, the biggest change regarding her new position is a change in focus, directing her attention toward how she can continue to better the university. Currently, a large amount of her time goes toward the MiamiTHRIVE initiative, a plan to help meet evolving student needs, as well as other larger projects and responsibilities at the university.

“It’s not a huge shift as far as my day-to-day work,” Cannon said. “It’s more like, where is next for you and what’s the vision for the next piece of service for the university.”

Amy Sullivan, a professor in the department of biology, started as a visiting assistant professor and was promoted to an associate teaching professor. This promotion comes with a salary increase and more responsibilities.

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Sullivan said she loves learning and teaching students about the world around us, and that's what continues to inspire her career. She’s also a part of Project Dragonfly, a hands-on learning initiative for graduate students pursuing biology. Since the start of her career, she has transitioned from viewing her job as imparting knowledge onto students to helping them come to their own understandings about what they learn.

“I feel like I have grown a lot and am now in a position where I can see additional ways I can contribute to the department of biology and Project Dragonfly, and I’m really excited about those,” Sullivan said. “Having just been promoted, I now get to reevaluate where I’m at in terms of my professional goals.”

Robert Leonard, a professor in the Department of Information Systems and Analytics, was promoted from assistant teaching professor to associate teaching professor. He said as the department grows, it’s difficult to anticipate what may come with his promotion.

Leonard said his promotion process was difficult, having been denied the first time as the decision was based almost exclusively on student evaluation numbers. When he explained to his department that the input in his document was more valuable, he received his promotion.

“Now I have to really dig in and try to make a difference so that people understand they can’t continue to teach the way they’ve been teaching,” Leonard said. “It’s more of a business model than it is a social responsibility.”

Other promoted faculty consist of Renee Gottliebson, clinical professor of speech pathology and audiology; Chip Hahn, clinical professor of speech pathology and audiology; Devin Birt, associate clinical lecturer of nursing; Gabriele Bechtel, teaching professor of English; Jacqueline Daugherty, teaching professor of individualized studies; Aaron Abbott, associate lecturer of sociology and gerontology; Matthew Arbuckle, associate teaching professor of political science; Kerrie Carsey, associate teaching professor of marketing and first-year integrated core (FYIC); Jacob Matig, associate teaching professor of marketing and FYIC; Justin McGlothin, associate teaching professor of management and FYIC; Chelsea Meyers, associate teaching professor of sport leadership and management; Carla Nietfeld, associate teaching professor of economics; Katherine Setser, associate teaching professor of architecture and interior design; Corey Shank, associate teaching professor of finance; David Motta, associate lecturer of Spanish and Portuguese, Ben Nicholson, associate lecturer of ETBD; Karl Reiff, associate lecturer of mechanical and manufacturing engineering; Elizabeth Troy, associate lecturer of entrepreneurship and FYIC; and Geoff Zoeckler, associate lecturer of entrepreneurship and FYIC.

powers40@miamioh.edu