Dr. Amanda Mohler, assistant professor of occupational therapy, accepted the gavel and formally began her term as president of Faculty Senate Friday during the group’s first meeting of 2024-25. Outgoing president Dr. Ed Salo was recognized for his service. Mohler, who joined the faculty in 2016, previously served at a local rehabilitation facility. Her research interests include geriatrics and quality of life, and enhancing clinical practice for practitioners.

Dr. Maureen Dolan (left), associate professor of molecular biology, and Shea Harris (right), outreach coordinator, Arkansas Biosciences Institute, are collaborating this year with the Aspirnaut Discovery Science Pipeline and the program’s creators, Drs. Billy and Julie Hudson of Vanderbilt University Medical Center. The program, which will bring Wynne High School students to A-State, promotes introduction and orientation to STEM careers. The Hudsons will be keynote speakers for the ABI 20th anniversary celebration.

Dr. Nina Crutchfield, assistant professor of agricultural education, is involved with a $200,000 U.S. Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) grant with researchers from other Arkansas universities. The grant will focus on women and minorities in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics). Crutchfield will help establish a Minorities in Agriculture Natural Resources and Related Sciences chapter at A-State. Details are online.

Craig Estes, procurement manager in Procurement Services, has been elected as a member and will serve as secretary for the 2024-25 TOAL board. TOAL, the regional chapter of the National Association of Educational Procurement (NAEP), serves professional members in Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana. NAEP members follow a code of ethics that prioritizes institutional objectives and policies, along with getting the most value for each dollar expended.

Dr. Richard Segall, professor of information systems and business analytics, is co-author of a research article with undergraduate Prasanna Rajbhandari of Nepal. Titled “Image Processing of Big Data for Plant Diseases of Four Different Plant Categories: Represented by Rice, Banana, Sunflower, and Potato,” the article is in International Journal of Computer Vision and Image Processing. Their research was funded by Arkansas Biosciences Institute 2024 Summer Undergraduate Internship Program.