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President’s Excellence Award

March 8, 2013

Heather Cochran, administrative professional staff and academic coordinator for the Department of Psychology will receive the President’s Employee Excellence Award at the 2013 Celebrating Excellence Recognition Banquet on March 29.

Her broad experience and thorough knowledge of resources available to help students succeed at WSU and beyond contribute to her expertise as an outstanding advisor. She insists that advisees learn to “navigate the system” on their own to enhance their professional development and personal growth. She helps students construct multi-year plans to get the most from their time at WSU – a remarkable undertaking, considering that she advises upwards of 450 students.

Cochran cares about students and the challenge to help them figure out the “right fit” so they can make the most of their talents and interests. She is energetic, good-natured, receptive to feedback and collaborative with co-workers.

Cochran will be honored alongside four other outstanding WSU employees at the banquet, part of the Washington State University Showcase annual celebration of faculty, staff and student achievement.

Psychology Senior Wins MLK Service Award

January 24, 2013

As a freshman, Nick Montanari spent part of his spring break in Morton, Wash., helping people he had never met clean up and rebuild after severe flooding damaged their community earlier in the year. The five-day “Spring to Action, Break for Change” program, organized by the WSU Center for Civic Engagement, was a turning point for Montanari.

CAS faculty named AAAS fellows

November 29, 2012

Eight WSU faculty members have been named fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, including six in the College of Arts and Sciences:

Sue Clark, regents professor of chemistry
Daryll DeWald, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences
Herbert Hill Jr., regents professor of chemistry
Ursula Mazur, professor of chemistry and materials science
Kenneth Nash, professor of chemistry
Michael Skinner, professor of biological sciences

Also named a fellow this year is psychology alumnus John Roll, professor of nursing and associate dean for faculty affairs in the WSU College of Nursing.

You may read more details at the WSU News Center.

Prospective Alzheimer’s drug builds new brain cell connections

October 11, 2012

By Eric Sorensen, WSU science writer

Washington State University researchers have developed a new drug candidate that dramatically improves the cognitive function of rats with Alzheimer’s-like mental impairment.

Their compound, which is intended to repair brain damage that has already occurred, is a significant departure from current Alzheimer’s treatments, which either slow the process of cell death or inhibit cholinesterase, an enzyme believed to break down a key neurotransmitter involved in learning and memory development.

Such drugs, says Joe Harding, a professor in WSU’s College of Veterinary Medicine, are not designed to restore lost brain function, which can be done by rebuilding connections between nerve cells.

“This is about recovering function,” he says. “That’s what makes these things totally unique. They’re not designed necessarily to stop anything. They’re designed to fix what’s broken. As far as we can see, they work.”

Harding, Jay Wright (regents professor, psychology), and other WSU colleagues report their findings in the online “Fast Forward” section of the Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics. Continue story →

Presidential award goes to neuroscience researcher

July 23, 2012

Washington State University Department of Psychology neuroscience researcher Brendan Walker has been selected to receive the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE), which is the highest honor the federal government awards scientists and engineers who have recently initiated independent research careers.

Walker was selected for his work in developing new therapies for alcohol addiction. The Presidential Awards are intended to recognize and nurture some of the finest scientists and engineers who, while early in their research careers, show exceptional potential for leadership at the frontiers of scientific knowledge during the twenty-first century.

“This is a tremendous honor,” said Walker. “It is wonderful to see this area of research recognized for its importance at the highest levels.” » More …