At the culmination of App State’s weeklong celebration of research and creativity activity, the university honored Drs. Curtis Ryan and Alecia Jackson with the Chancellor’s and Provost’s Awards, respectively. They were recognized for superior achievement in their fields and sustained productivity.

Dr. Christine Hendren began her new position as director of Appalachian’s Research Institute for Environment, Energy, and Economics Aug. 3. She comes to Appalachian from Duke University, where she served as executive director of the school’s Center for the Environmental Implications of NanoTechnology.

Appalachian English majors Jay Phillips and Victoria Goff have been named winner and runner-up, respectively, of the university’s Truman Capote Literary Trust Scholarship for Creative Writing in poetry for 2020–21. As the winner, Phillips was awarded a $3,649 scholarship.

Appalachian’s College of Fine and Applied Arts has named Cara Hagan as its Dean’s Fellow for Diversity and Inclusion, a role she assumed in July. Hagan is an associate professor of dance studies in the college and president of Appalachian’s Black Faculty and Staff Association.

Appalachian senior Abigail Miles and alumna Barclay Ann Blankenship ’20 are the recipients of Appalachian’s inaugural David Hodgin English Award. They will each receive a $350 scholarship and their creative works will be published in Appalachian’s literary journal, Cold Mountain Review.

Appalachian’s Dr. Megen Culpepper, Dr. Leah Hamilton, Dr. Vicky Klima and Dr. Rachel Wilson have been accepted into the 2020 BRIDGES Academic Leadership for Women program. The theme of this year’s program is “Leading in a Time of Transformation.”

Appalachian art professor Dr. Mira Rai Waits has been named a 2020 American Council of Learned Societies Fellow for her book project “Colonial Carcerality: The Birth of the Modern Prison in India,” which explores the spatial history of British colonial prisons in India.