UM News

CORAL GABLES, Fla. (December 19, 2015)— Brian Blake, vice provost for academic affairs and dean of the Graduate School, has been named editor in chief of IEEE Internet Computing, effective January 1. Blake currently serves as associate editor in chief of the magazine, a top-ranked publication that provides peer-reviewed, journal-quality evaluations and reviews of emerging and maturing Internet technologies and applications.

A computer scientist and software engineer, Blake, joined the University from Notre Dame in 2012.  

Published bi-monthly by the IEEE Computer Society, Internet Computing consistently ranks among the top 10, and often in the top 5, for influence and impact of all the computer science/software engineering journals listed in the Thomson Reuters Journal Citation Reports. At the crossroads between academic researchers and software professionals, the magazine presents novel content from academic and industry experts on a wide range of topics, including applications, architectures, information management, middleware, policies, security, and standards.

The IEEE Computer Society is the world’s leading computing membership organization and information and career-development source for a global workforce of technology leaders, including: professors, researchers, software engineers, IT professionals, employers, and students.

 

Please be advised that a portion of Dickinson Drive, indicated by the two red bars on the map below, will be closed to through traffic from 7 a.m. on Saturday, December 20, through Saturday, December 27. Motorists may bypass the closure by taking the detour through lot 446, as indicated by the blue arrows.

Please proceed with caution and remember the speed limit on all internal campus roadways is 15 mph. Feel free to contact Parking and Transportation at 305-284-3096, option 2, if you have any questions.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.

By Annette Gallagher
UM News

CORAL GABLES, Fla. (December 19, 2014) — Albert Rodney “Rod” Wellens, professor and longtime chair of the Department of Psychology who left an indelible mark on the University, the community, and the people he mentored, passed away at home and surrounded by his family on December 17 after an illness. He was 68.

Wellens, who joined the University in 1972, became a full professor in 1988 and chair of the psychology department in 1992—a post he held with distinction until 2013. Read the full story

Julie Kornfeld is so inspired by the graduate students she guides in the master’s in public health (M.P.H.) and the combined M.D./M.P.H programs at the Miller School of Medicine that she is compelled to help them succeed. “They are passionate about transforming the health of our communities,” says the assistant dean for public health in the Department of Public Health Sciences. “But graduate education is expensive, and I want to help remove the financial barriers for our students.”

Kornfeld has been contributing to the University for more than 20 years through the United Way and Momentum2 campaigns. “My donations have primarily been focused on providing scholarships for our public health students,” she says. “My dream is for every qualified student to be able to afford the training they need to address our nation’s public health problems.”

Kornfeld grew up in Philadelphia and worked in television and the nonprofit sector before joining the University 21 years ago. A double UM alumna, she earned a master’s degree in public health in 1997 and a doctoral degree in 2009. Her husband, Fred Silverman, a TV producer and communications consultant who also has taught at UM, is now enrolled at the University as a graduate film student. They have three children, Dylan, Morgan, and Ely.

“We all volunteer our time and raise funds for nonprofit organizations,” she says. “There are so many needs in our community, and we believe it’s important to give something back.”

At the University, Kornfeld plays a critical role in the development and implementation of the Miller School’s public health curriculum. Since 2010, she has served as the co-principal investigator on an educational development grant to accelerate the M.D./M.P.H. program so students can obtain both degrees in four years rather than five. She is also an active instructor for a wide variety of public health courses, including special seminars for dual degree programs at the law and medical schools.

Reflecting on the importance of donations, Kornfeld says, “I believe that all faculty and staff members should support UM. It’s important for our University’s future and it demonstrates to our students and co-workers that we truly believe in what we do every day.”

By Robert C. Jones Jr.
UM News

CORAL GABLES, Fla. (December 18, 2014) – With final exams now over, the last research papers written, and master’s and doctoral theses already vigorously defended, graduates at the University of Miami’s 2014 fall commencement were issued a daunting challenge Thursday before their college degrees were even conferred: “Help us build and grow a society that is willing to tackle big problems,” Chuck Todd, political director of NBC News and the moderator of the network’s flagship Meet the Press Sunday morning public affairs program, told them.

“You’ve lived through two decades of political paralysis, so this is your challenge—lead us out of this mess,” said Todd.

A self-described political junkie who has earned a reputation as one of the most passionate journalists and sharpest analysts in American media, Todd told graduates that Gen Xers and Baby Boomers had failed them, noting the two wars, financial crisis, and rapid polarization they have witnessed in their lifetime.

“We have left a mess, a real leadership void,” he said. “The greatest strides we’ve made have been in the world of technology. Then again, what have we done with this technology? We didn’t cure cancer.” Social media, which was supposed to bring people closer together, he said, has been used “to help segregate us as a society. … These new social networks, while prolific, have become monolithic. And it’s really had a negative impact on society, especially on our politics. Somehow, despite the access we have to everyone around the world, we’ve allowed ourselves to become more isolated.”

Todd, who was named an Honorary Alumnus at the ceremony, urged UM’s newest ’Canes to realize how much the country needs “you to get us past this division and selfish behavior,” referring to the well-publicized rifts between Democrats and Republicans.

His sage advice to the students: love what you do for a living, always remember that the little things matter, find a way to say “yes,” take risks early in life, and never take family for granted.

A Miami native who turned down a music scholarship to attend UM because his mother wanted him to experience life outside his hometown, Todd reminded students that he still has passion and love for the U. He noted that some of his life’s most memorable moments occurred on the UM campus—from his first French horn solo at Gusman Concert Hall to his first Little League base hit at Mark Light Stadium.

UM, he said, is just as important to his upbringing as his education at George Washington University, where he attended college. “I always say when you go to the University of Miami, it looks like America in the 21st century,” he said.

Two honorary degrees were conferred at the ceremony. Husband and wife economists Alice Rivlin, a senior fellow in the Economic Studies Program at Brookings and the founding director of the Congressional Budget Office, and Sidney G. Winter, professor emeritus of management at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and one of the leading figures in the revival of evolutionary economics, both received honorary doctoral degrees of humane letters.

More than 1,000 undergraduate, graduate, and law students received their newly minted degrees at the ceremony, held at the BankUnited Center. Read profiles of some of UM’s stellar graduates, including the School of Communication’s Iris Barrios and Miami Law’s Vanessa Joseph and Brendan Corrigan.