Northeastern Illinois University’s Board of Trustees approved the award of tenure to seven members of the faculty during the April 16 meeting. The newly tenured faculty members are:
Elyse Bolterstein, Biology
Bolterstein earned a Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biology. Her research interest is in using Drosophila to better understand relationships between DNA damage, development and aging. Bolterstein has published two scientific manuscripts and presented at 15 local and national and conferences, has served as a peer reviewer for manuscripts submitted to three scientific journals, and served on a grant proposal review panel. Bolterstein has developed and implemented new experimental and analysis methods and has been awarded more than $125,000 in research and travel funding.
Andrew Brake, Social Work
Brake earned a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago. He is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Social Work. His current research agenda is focused on how trust and collaboration shape teacher-student relationships and teaching and social work practice to improve policies, practices and partnerships in urban public schools. He has published six peer-reviewed articles or chapters on subjects including immigrant youth development, educator professional learning communities, teacher-student relationships, first-year experiences of school mental health professionals, and oppression in schools. Brake has presented at 12 local and national organizations and research associations.
Nadja Insel, Earth Science
Insel earned a Ph.D. from the University of Michigan. She is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Earth Science. Insel’s research is organized around the themes of orogen-scale climate-tectonic coupling and climate (and tectonic) controls on ecosystem change. She has presented at 10 national and international conferences and attended Feedbacks and coupling Among Climate, Erosion and Tectonics workshops in Oregon and Taipei, Taiwan. Insel has reviewed 13 journal manuscripts and nine proposals submitted for consideration.
Ting Liu, Geography and Environmental Studies
Liu earned a Ph.D. from Florida State University. She is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies. Her research focuses on urban remote sensing and the applications of geographic information system and related geospatial technologies in urban environments. She has presented papers at 14 local, national and international conferences. Liu has authored and co-authored eight publications in refereed journals, and has been invited to review 10 journal articles.
Michelle Oh, Library
Oh earned a Master of Arts in Literature from Northwestern University. She is an Assistant Professor in the Ronald Williams Library. Her research agenda has focused on libraries’ engagement with inclusion, diversity and student success. Oh is in her seventh year as a field bibliographer for the Modern Language Association’s International Bibliography database. She has given eight presentations in local and national forums and has co-authored two manuscripts under review.
Isidore Udoh, Health Sciences and Physical Education
Udoh earned a Ph.D. from North Dakota State University. He is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Health Sciences and Physical Education. Udoh’s research interests focus on oil pollution and investigating strategies for developing effective interventions, including environmental health monitoring, advocacy, and remediation. He has authored two articles and has presented at six local, national and international conferences. Udoh received Institutional Review Board approval to conduct an empirical study titled “Exploring the Determinants of Renewed Armed Conflicts in Nigeria’s Niger Delta.”
Julia Valley, Health Sciences and Physical Education
Valley earned a Ph.D. from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Health Sciences and Physical Education. Valley has given nine presentations at local and national conferences, and has co-authored two journal articles. Her research interests include gender-biased communication in physical education, building outdoor education programs to meet student needs, integrating adventure-based learning across the curriculum, and physical education teachers and self-determination theory, among others.
