I was excited to announce earlier this week the 2024 Commencement Honorary Degree Recipients and Speaker. Alumna Alix Dorsainvil '14, nurse and humanitarian, and Social Justice Advocates Charlotte Wagner and Alix Cantave are this year's honorees. You can read about their extraordinary accomplishments here.
Congratulations to our graduate ABA, Communications, and Social Work programs for being recognized among the top nine percent of best online and hybrid master's degree programs by OnlineMastersDegree.org.
Student News and Achievements
Congratulations to Lilla Torontali '24 for defending her Humanities Honors Thesis "Wollstonecraft, Behn, and Barbauld: Proto-Feminist Interrogations and Solutions to the Condition of Female Thralldom." Lilla's work explores the advancement in opportunity for women writers that was forged by the three British authors named in the title. The defense committee—Professors Krusinger, Fitzgerald, and Clemence—was impressed by Lilla's sophisticated and in-depth analysis.
The Center for Internships and Career Development hosted a successful Career Readiness Fair today for undergrad students who had the opportunity to create their LinkedIn profile, take a professional headshot, conduct a mock interview, and have their resume reviewed. Thanks to all our professional staff volunteers.
Junior dental hygiene students attended the Yankee Dental Congress January 25-27 at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center, the premiere meeting in the US for dental professionals. They attended the national board dental hygiene exam three-day review session along with Karen Hallisey-Pesa, program director, and Marissa Suarez, assistant professor.
Karen also sat in as a faculty observer during the hands-on component of the National Dental Association (NDA) presentation New Tips and Techniques for Oral Screening and Oral Hygiene. She hopes to help the NDA leadership promote this event next year as interprofessional collaboration is a dental hygiene accreditation standard and is a concept we emphasize throughout the curriculum.
Kristin Barrett ’24, marketing and communication major/business management and journalism minor and SGA president, wrote a great story in The Regis Herald on the 2024 NCAA Convention she attended with Dean of Athletics Pam Roecker. The convention resulted in passing four proposals related to revising the DIII philosophy statement, tennis participation, stunts, and the legislative process.
Congratulations to the men's and women's swimming and diving teams for their exemplary performances at last weekend's GNAC Swimming and Diving Championships. The men finished in second place, and the women finished in fourth place. Olivia Luhnau '25 and Cody Werner '26 won individual titles, and both teams received the GNAC Institutional Sportsmanship Award. Congrats to Head Coach Diana Matthews '95 who was voted GNAC Coach of the Year by her peers within the conference!
And for our most senior students, the 2024 spring LLARC course registration is open. Registration is available here. Sample courses include Around the World in 80 Days, Great Film Performances II, and Climate Change. Contact Bill Koehler at LLARC@regiscollege.edu with any questions.
Faculty and Staff News and Achievements
Associate Provost Kate Edney's presentation "'Africa' on Broadway: A Work in Progress" was accepted for the Music Theatre Dance Association's Winter Symposium next week. The presentation will include a synopsis of Kate's work thus far in gathering, categorizing, and examining white-created musicals which represent the continent of Africa, and discuss what's next in terms of this ongoing project.
Together with colleagues, Associate Professor Emily Laubscher recently published a paper in the American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology titled: "You Just Want to Be Able to Communicate With Your Child": Parents' Perspectives on Communication and AAC Use for Beginning Communicators on the Autism Spectrum. The paper explores how parents' experiences can help inform communication intervention for young autistic children with limited speech to improve outcomes for both children and their families.
Michael May '23, associate director of graduate admissions, is presenting a poster at the Eastern Communication Association Conference next month titled: “Mpox and the Theory of Planned Behavior: An Investigation of Attitudes Towards the Mpox Vaccine.”
President's Office
Please consider joining me and showing your love for Regis next Wednesday, February 14 for #RegisGivingDay!
I am so very grateful that 80 members of the staff and faculty supported Regis last year on Giving Day—helping to raise more than $100,000 in just 24 hours. Gifts of all amounts will make a great impact. There are some fun raffle prizes just for you—including a $100 VISA gift card, a Yeti cooler, and a reserved parking spot outside of College Hall for one month that I am donating from the President’s Office! There will also be free coffee, pizza and treats throughout the day. Visit the Giving Day website to learn more.
Thank you for all you do for Regis!