FIU welcomes new faculty members

On Aug. 19, Academic Affairs and Human Resources rolled out the welcome mat for more than 50 new faculty members at New Faculty Orientation Day. Interim Provost and Executive Vice President Douglas Wartzok greeted his new colleagues and kicked off a series of events designed to help them adjust to their new academic environment, network with other FIU faculty and access programs and services at the university.

“We not only welcome, but are excited about this new group of faculty who have joined the FIU community,” said Dr.Wartzok. “Their new knowledge and experience will enrich the university and sustain our excellence in scholarship, teaching and service. These new members will also serve as models for our students who aspire to achieve their educational ambitions.”

Meet three of FIU’s distinguished new faculty members below:

Paula Gillespie, associate professor of English and director of the FIU Writing Center, taught at Marquette University for 29 years, first as an adjunct, than as a visiting associate professor, and later as a tenured associate professor.

She became director of the Writing Center at Marquette in 1987, and has participated in and led writing-across-the-curriculum projects of various kinds since 1985. In 1993, she completed her doctorate, and since that time has been active in publishing and conferences.

Gillespie has published two books on writing center research and pedagogy as well as a book about James Joyce’s “Ulysses.” She has written 17 book chapters and articles.

Barry P. Rosen, professor and associate dean for Basic Research and Graduate Studies, joined the Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine from Wayne State University School of Medicine, where he is was Distinguished Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and chair of the Department. Dr. Rosen received his B.S. from Trinity College, Hartford, CT and his M.S. and Ph.D. from the University of Connecticut.

After an NIH postdoctoral fellow at Cornell University, he joined the faculty at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, where he rose to professor. In 1987 he became chair at Wayne State, and under his stewardship the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology took the lead in structural biology at Wayne State University.

Professor Rosen is an internationally recognized expert in the field of heavy metal transport and detoxification, specializing in the molecular mechanisms of arsenic detoxification. He has published more than 300 papers, reviews and books and is the holder of two grants from the National Institute of Health. He is recipient of numerous awards, including Basil O’Connor Award from the March of Dimes, Maryland Distinguished Young Scientist Award, Josiah Macy, Jr. Faculty Scholar Award, Gershenson Distinguished Faculty Fellow Award (WSU), Outstanding Graduate Mentor Award (WSU), Lawrence Weiner Award (WSU).

He has been on many national and international panels at NIH, NSF, and American Heart Association, and on multiple editorial boards. Dr. Rosen was recently selected to be a Distinguished University Professor, the highest honor awarded to a Wayne State University faculty member. He was president of the Wayne State University Academy of Scholars and president of the American Association of Medical and Graduate Departments of Biochemistry until prior to his move to FIU.

Thomas Spiegelhalter, an assistant professor in the School of Architecture + The Arts, is involved in numerous environmental-driven projects throughout Europe and the U.S. such as contextual solar, zero-fossil energy, passive and low-energy building projects; large-scale sustainability master planning and consultancies; redevelopment projects for abandoned post-industrial architectures and landscapes; suspension bridges; and preservation and revitalization projects.

He has received 52 prizes, awards and honors in European and U.S. sustainability competitions. Prior to joining FIU, Professor Spiegelhalter held academic appointments at the University of Southern California (USC) School of Architecture, the University of Minnesota Center for Sustainable Building Research, and at the Center for Building Performance and Diagnostics at Carnegie-Mellon University. He is the principal of Studio Thomas Spiegelhalter.

Learn more about all of FIU’s new faculty members on the Academic Affairs Web site.