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Curry faculty are continuously recognized in their craft, showcasing their hard work, dedication, and commitment to scholarly growth. Through their publications, awards, and/or presentations, we celebrate the many achievements of our faculty who work tirelessly to shape our students in the classroom while also advancing knowledge in their fields.
Congratulations to the following faculty who achieved great things in Spring 2026:
Dr. Jennifer Balboni, Professor, Criminal Justice and Sociology, co-presented at a roundtable at the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences, "Facing an External Program Review? Learn how ACJS can help with Quality Standards and Reviewers." With colleagues from the ACJS Academic Review Committee, she co-hosted a half-day training for ACJS Program Reviewers at the Annual Meeting in Philadelphia.
Christine Bennett, Professor, Visual and Performing Arts, taught a master class at the American College Dance Association New England Conference in Cambridge, Massachusetts, while in April, she co-facilitated an Artist Retreat in San Gimignano, Italy, alongside Michael Dowling and SPOKE. Bennett also led several movement workshops this spring at the Cambridge Public Library and the Old Colony Redevelopment in South Boston, culminating in a performance at the grand opening celebration for phases five and six of the redevelopment project in June. Later this summer, Bennett will present research at the renowned Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival in Becket, Massachusetts, as part of the Curriculum in Motion™ Institute.
Dr. Debra Bingham, Associate Professor, School of Nursing and Health Sciences recently had the research paper “Advancing Birth Equity Through Quality Improvement Education: The SPEAK UP Champion Course,” accepted for publication in Health Equity. In February, she also served as a speaker at the North Shore NAACP Summit, and additionally facilitated the North Shore NAACP’s May community book discussion centered on Ripples of Hope in the Mississippi Delta: Charting the Health Equity Policy Agenda, a book she co-edited. This summer, Bingham will receive a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN), recognizing her longstanding contributions to maternal and neonatal healthcare. In June, she will also serve as a co-presenter at the International Confederation of Midwives conference in Lisbon, Portugal.
Dr. Shavi Cooray, Professor, School of Business and Technology, published a solo research article, “Socio-Technical Machine Learning - Putting the User in Control” in the Journal of Computer Information Systems published by Taylor & Francis. This journal is considered highly selective within its field, with an acceptance rate of just 3%.
Dr. Tony Fabrizio, Professor, School of Business and Technology, was re-elected to a second three-year term on the Board of Commissioners for the International Accreditation Council for Business Education (IACBE), an organization dedicated to advancing excellence in business education accreditation worldwide.
Dr. Damla İlter Fakhouri, Associate Lecturer, Natural Sciences and Mathematics, will serve as an invited speaker at the 39th New England Statistics Symposium (NESS 2026), held May 27–29 at the University of Connecticut. Fakhouri will present her research, “Adaptive Statistical Strategies: Integrating Multi-Scale Learning Across Heterogeneous and Complex Data Structures,” during the session “Modeling Dependence, Dynamics, and Structure in Complex Data.”
Janet Ferone, Lecturer, Graduate School of Education, served as an international panelist commemorating the publication of Learning to Relearn: Supporting Identity in a Culturally Affirming Classroom by Kwame Sarfo-Mensah.She also delivered a keynote address at Front Range Community College in Denver, Colorado, titled “Inclusive by Design: Universal Design for Learning for Student Success,” and served as a professional mentor at SXSW EDU, where she guided discussions on navigating culturally responsive education amid ongoing challenges to diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. Ferone was additionally re-elected to serve as a Milton Town Meeting member and received two grants from the Milton Cultural Council to support public cultural workshops in the community.
Dr. Laurie Fox, Professor, Program for Advancement of Learning, is publishing a review in the spring 2026 journal The Educational Therapist, 47(1) of the book, Sincerely, Your Autistic Child: What People on the Autism Spectrum Wish their Parents Knew About Growing Up, Acceptance, and Identity.
Maryann Gallant, Professor, and Deanna Gordon, Professor, General Education, were awarded the Epsilon Pi Tau Laureate Citation, one of this international honor society's highest honors, recognizing individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the fields of technology, technological education, and related professions. Established to celebrate excellence, the award acknowledges leaders whose work has significantly advanced technological understanding, innovation, and the education of future professionals.
Dr. Joy Garmaise-Yee, Professor, and Dr. Gerta Mallei, Assistant Professor, School of Nursing and Health Sciences, will present their project, “What Happens When Students See the Data? Translating Belonging Research into Nursing Education Practice,” at the 2026 Access, Connection, Engagement (ACE) Symposium hosted by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN). The symposium will take place June 10–12 in North Carolina and will feature the pair’s work as a podium presentation.
Dr. Phil Hulbig, Senior Lecturer, Program for Advancement of Learning, published The neurological implications of metacognition in Frontiers of Cognitive Science and Teaching students to teach themselves in the Teaching Professor.
Dr. Rebecca Cudmore Kendall, Associate Professor, and Dr. Stephanie Cappadona, Associate Professor, Criminal Justice and Sociology, recently published a book titled, Criminal Profiling: Applied Theories. The text provides a comprehensive overview of profiling practices within criminal justice, examining major approaches including crime scene analysis, investigative psychology, and geographic profiling. In addition, Dr. Cudmore Kendall published research in the journal Race & Justice titled, “Examining the Role of Cultural Variables in the Victimization-Delinquency Overlap Among Latino Youth from a General Strain Theory Perspective.” The study examines how culturally relevant factors influence pathways between victimization and delinquency among Latino adolescents, contributing to a more nuanced understanding of general strain theory and highlighting the importance of culturally informed crime prevention strategies.
Meaghan Krazinski, Assistant Professor, Program for Advancement of Learning, presented two conference papers at the 2026 American Educational Research Association Annual Meeting this spring. The first presentation, “Neurocurious Research-Creation,” drew on qualitative research to explore how neurocuriosity as a conceptual framework can move educational research beyond binary understandings of neurodivergence. Krazinski also co-authored and presented “Neurodivergent Unknowing as Educational Research Methodology,” which examined how neurodivergent participants navigated the research process in ways that challenged traditional assumptions about researcher control and methodological certainty.
Dr. Tony Laing, Associate Lecturer in the Program for Advancement of Learning, was honored by his alma mater, Wheaton College (MA), with Trustee Emeritus status after 10 years of exemplary service. He also received the Sharon M. Howard ’87, P’09 Outstanding Wheaton Service Award, recognizing his 30 years of active alumni engagement. Dr. Laing delivered the keynote address at the MARE (Massachusetts Adoption Resource Exchange) Adoption & Foster Care Symposium, Answering the Call: Legacy, Leadership, & Action, at Clark University. He also served as a moderator at Massachusetts College of Art and Design on a panel featuring contributors to his edited book, Black Student Support Networks: Creating Community at HBCUs and PWIs. This summer, Dr. Laing will present “Beyond Access: Equity-Centered Engaged Learning for Neurodivergent Students of Color” at Elon University’s Conference on Engaged Learning. Additionally, his abstract, Finding the Helpers: A Letter to My Sons Elijah and Jeremiah, in the Baldwin Tradition, has been accepted for full manuscript consideration in the forthcoming book, Growing Up in Crisis: Caring for Youth in Violent Times.
Dr. Amy Leshinsky, Assistant Professor of Education and Director of Graduate Programs in Education, was named co-editor of The Dragon Lode Journal, a publication of the International Literacy Association focused on children’s and young adult literature, where she will serve a three-year term. She was also one of 25 speakers selected to present research at the “Hush! Practicing Silence in Literature and Culture” Conference at the University of Freiburg in Germany. Her recent scholarship includes the publication of “Book Banning in U.S. K-12 Classrooms: Teacher Perceptions on the Impact of Book Censorship on Students” in Policy Futures in Education, as well as a book review of Allison Tyra’s Uncredited: Women’s Overlooked, Misattributed, and Stolen Work in Women and Social Movements in the United States. She also led a roundtable session, “Political Rhetoric in the Classroom: (Re) Generating Civic Engagement,” at the Northeast Modern Language Association conference in collaboration with Camille Marie Fillioux of the University of Luxembourg. In addition to her research and publications, Dr. Leshinsky contributed to the profession through service and mentorship. She served as a peer reviewer for the National Council of Teachers of English conference, scheduled for November 2026, and spent the past year mentoring an alumna through the publication of her master’s thesis on heteronormativity in young adult literature (published in January 2026). She also hosted a full-day professional development workshop for teachers, administrators, and instructional coaches from Massachusetts school districts, focusing on writing instruction in elementary classrooms in collaboration with Dr. Rebekah Louis of Stonehill College, as part of their $190,600 grant through the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) supporting early literacy education.
Dr. Ann Marie Leonard-Zabel, Professor, Psychology, served as a committee member for the UNA-USA International Women’s Day initiative, and was unanimously elected and appointed as one of two Co-Chairs of the International Women’s Day Affinity Planning Committee. In this leadership role, she collaborated with colleagues to help plan and coordinate the 2026 programming. She was also invited to serve as both a speaker and panelist for the Public Health segment and as Lead Moderator for the Global Stability segment. Dr. Leonard-Zabel was also featured in the March 2026 International Edition of the School Neuropsychology Institute Newsletter, which highlighted her continued expansion of school neuropsychological expertise into interdisciplinary practice and international collaboration. In March 2026, Dr. Leonard-Zabel also served as a Keynote Speaker and Scientific Committee member at the 4th World Congress on Advances in Mental Health and Psychiatry in London, England. In addition to participating in the Scientific Committee, she facilitated sessions with international scholars and presenters in the fields of mental health and psychiatry. In recognition of her contributions, she received a Certificate of Appreciation for Outstanding Keynote Presentation and a Certificate of Appreciation for her Leadership and Collegial Service on the Scientific Committee. In April 2026, Dr. Leonard-Zabel was selected by the International Board of Credentialing and Continuing Education Standards as one of several authors and presenters for a global training webinar for medical professionals titled “Autism, the Brain, and Clinical Care: Implications for Anesthesia, Pain, and Medication Management.” The presentation highlighted neurobehavioral strategies designed to support individuals on the autism spectrum in emergency and pre-surgical medical settings. She also presented virtually at the Leeds Disability Studies Conference 2026 hosted by University of Leeds, Leeds, West Yorkshire, United Kingdom. Her presentation, “Neuropsychological Development and Substance Use Disorder in Youth: Inclusive Case Analysis and Collaborative Pathways,” explored interdisciplinary and inclusive approaches to youth mental health and substance use research. In May 2026, Dr. Leonard-Zabel was invited to participate in the UNA-USA Futures Forum, a master class examining how global decisions impact United States interests and how individuals can strengthen relationships between the United States and the United Nations. The forum focused on the Pact for the Future, including initiatives related to peace, technology, the environment, and the UN80 agenda.
Dr. Jen McNally, Professor, Natural Sciences and Mathematics, continues to advance research focused on improving the teaching and learning of statistical inference for a wide range of audiences, including children, K–12 educators, undergraduate statistics instructors, and faculty developers. This year, McNally published the children’s book That’s Weird!: Exploring Everyday Events through a Statistical Inquiry Lens, along with accompanying instructional materials designed for Grade 7 classrooms. Alongside Dr. Laura Callis and Ms. Tami Dashley Shah, Dr. McNally presented, “What Would You Do?: Addressing Student Thinking in Introductory Statistics” at the 2026 Joint Mathematics Meetings in Washington, D.C. In collaboration with faculty colleagues, the Faculty Center, and the Neurodiversity Center for Excellence, McNally also helped design and pilot the Peer Inquiry into Teaching project, a faculty development initiative centered on reflective teaching practices through classroom video analysis. With Dr. Giordana Basta, Dr. Laura Callis, and Dr. Nicole Parsons, she presented “Faculty Development through Small-Scale Practitioner Research: The Peer Inquiry into Teaching Program” at the AAC&U Conference on Learning and Student Success in Tucson, Arizona. This summer, McNally and Callis will coordinate a collaborative institute on the Curry College campus in partnership with the NSF-funded EAPOST Expanding the Art and Practice of Teaching Statistics project and the Preparing to Teach group. The two-day institute, “Teaching Statistical Thinking with GAISE: Exploring the Statistical Investigation Process through Simulation-Based Inference,” will focus on statistical thinking, Universal Design for Learning, and building communities of instructional support.
Dr. Shawn Scott, Assistant Professor, School of Business and Technology, was recently named the School of Business and Technology Quigley Professor, a title supported through a gift from the Katz Family Foundation. Scott also had two presentations accepted for upcoming academic conferences. At the 2026 Society for Food Marketing and Retailing Conference in Rhode Island, he will present research titled, “Great Expectations: Melodic Musical Tension and Resolution’s Influence on Consumer Advertising Likeability, Curiosity and Choice on Food Items.” He will also present “Fostering Hope in Extreme Contexts through an Ethic of Care” at the 20th OS Workshop: The Architecture of Hope in Distressing Times and Places: Construction, Action and Possibilities in Thessaloniki, Greece.