Chiu-Yen Kao, Keck Foundation Professor of Applied Math and Computer Science, received a new research grant from the National Science Foundation’s Computational Mathematics Program to develop and analyze new computational methods for solving extremal eigenvalue problems.
Gabriel Cook, Associate Professor of Psychological Science, earned a grant from the Mental Research Institute. With grant funding, Cook will explore the intersection of transactional memory and prospective memory within married couples, investigating how partners share and manage delayed intentions in daily life.
Wendy de los Reyes, Assistant Professor of Psychological Science and Director of the AMPLIFY Lab (Advocacy, Mentorship, and Participatory research with Latine Immigrant Families and Youth) published two articles.
Minxin Pei, the Tom and Margot Pritzker ’72 Professor of Government and George R. Roberts Fellow, published The Broken China Dream: How Reform Revived Totalitarianism (Princeton University Press, 2025).
Professor of Government Nicholas Buccola, also the Dr. Jules K. Whitehill Professor of Humanism & Ethics at CMC, published One Man’s Freedom: Goldwater, King, and the Struggle over an American Ideal (Princeton University Press, 2025). The book examines the clash between Arizona Senator and former GOP presidential candidate Barry Goldwater and civil rights trailblazer Martin Luther King Jr.
Tamara Venit-Shelton, Professor of History, published the book, 1905: Buffalo Bill and his Wild West Show on the Prairie des Filtres (Éditions Midi-Pyrénéennes,2025), co-authored with American-studies specialist Emmanuelle Perez-Tisserant. The book recounts the famous American cowboy’s venture through Toulouse, France, along with his troupe of 800 men and women, many of them Native Americans, and their influence on the city’s culture and heritage.
Henri Cole, the Josephine Olp Weeks Professor of Literature, appeared as a guest on The New Yorker’s Poetry Podcast, hosted by Kevin Young, the magazine’s poetry editor.
Steven Zhou, Assistant Professor of Psychological Science, received multiple awards for his dissertation on shared leadership using computational modeling. For his outstanding contribution to the field of leadership, Zhou was honored with the 2025 Alvah H. Chapman Jr.
Colin Rathbun, Assistant Professor of Integrated Sciences: Chemistry, received a research grant from the National Science Foundation for a collaborative project with the Missouri University of Science and Technology. Rathbun and his Missouri S&T associate are developing methods, using engineered enzymes, to eliminate environmentally harmful chemicals, specifically PFAS, from soil and groundwater. Human-made PFAS, used in common products such nonstick cookware, food packaging, and electronics, can accumulate in the human body and pose problems to human health.
Professor of Philosophy Dustin Locke was recognized with the 2024 Anthony J. Lisska Prize for Excellence in Research and Teaching at Small Liberal Arts Colleges. The prize, sponsored by Denison University in partnership with the American Philosophical Association, honors the legacy of Dr. Anthony J. Lisska (1940-2022), who taught at Denison for 52 years.
