MICHAEL MICHAEL CHERTOFF MICHAEL ... - Kean University

Volume 1
Issue 7
K E A N
KEAN welcomes
U.S. SECRETARY
OF HOMELAND
SECURITY
MICHAEL
CHERTOFF
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 4
9 A.M. TO 11 A.M.
WILKINS THEATRE

U.S. SECRETARY
OF HOMELAND
SECURITY
MICHAEL
CHERTOFF
United States
Secretary of
Homeland Security
Michael
Chertoff will address the state of our
nation’s homeland security and the
challenges that lie ahead for President-elect
Barack Obama’s new administration
on Thursday, December
4, at 9 a.m. in Kean University’s
Wilkins Theatre.
Secretary Chertoff, an Elizabeth, N.J.
native, has served as the nation’s
chief security officer since 2005. He
has overseen a massive reorganization
of the department, which employs
more than 90,000 people. Secretary
Chertoff’s office has a broad range of
responsibilities, ranging from national
security to border patrol to disaster
response.
Secretary Chertoff’s distinguished
career in public service includes
serving as United States Circuit
Judge for the Third Circuit Court of
Appeals and Assistant Attorney
General for the Criminal Division at
the Department of Justice. Secretary
Chertoff also spent more than a
decade as a federal prosecutor, including
service as U.S. Attorney for
the District of New Jersey.
The Final
Installments of
Issues ’08
As the 2009 presidential election approached, Kean University’s Issues ’08 lecture
series reached its conclusion. While this historic election forever changed the political
landscape of the United States, the final installments of Issues ’08 have helped
shed light on what the election’s outcome means for New Jersey and our nation.
On October 6, Kean’s own Terry Golway, of the John Kean Center of American
History, moderated the panel discussion, Political Firsts in New Jersey, at
Liberty Hall Museum. Other panelists included Dr. Frank Argote-Freyre, assistant
professor of history at Kean, Barbara Salmore, an author and political scientist and
George Richardson, a pioneering African-American politician in New Jersey since
the 1960s.
Dr. James Hughes, dean of the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public
Policy at Rutgers University, delivered some sobering facts about the state of our
economy in his lecture, New Jersey’s Changing Demographics, on October 28. Dr. Hughes
examined specific challenges facing New Jersey during this economic crisis and discussed
how New Jersey’s changing population would influence voting patterns.
The series concluded with Dissecting the Results on November 12. Jim McQueeny,
host of News 12 New Jersey’s Power and Politics, engaged a distinguished panel in
an extensive conversation on the results of the election, the dramatic shift in power
and its impact on the American people. Panel members included Terry Golway, Paul
Mulshine, a columnist with The Star-Ledger, Max Pizzaro, of www.politickernj.com,
and Brigid Harrison, a professor of political science at Montclair State University.
Be convinced. Click here to learn how the economy and new media
influenced the election’s outcome.
KEANFOCUS • VOLUME 1, ISSUE 7
Page 2

C
elebrate this holiday season in historic fashion
with Liberty Hall Museum’s 50 Years of the 20th
Century holiday extravaganza. During the month of
December, Liberty Hall will transform the first floor of
the museum into a time machine where visitors will journey
through five rooms of the mansion to discover the
decorative styles of bygone eras.
INSIDE LIBERTY HALL’S
TREASURE CHEST
Begin your tour in the 1910s, where guests discover holiday
traditions of the Edwardian period. Proceed into the 1920s to
hear about prohibition and learn to dance the Charleston. In
the 1930s, radio was sweeping the nation. Step back in time and enjoy the nostalgia created
by classic radio programs and Christmas specials of the past. Enter the 1940s, as Liberty
Hall staff magically recreate life on the homefront during World War II. Finally, end
your tour in the 1950s, where visitors learn how the ever-popular television transformed the
holiday season for years to come.
Liberty Hall will host several additional activities throughout December.
GINGERBREAD HOUSE WORKSHOP
Saturdays, December 6 & 13, 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. or noon to 1:30 p.m.
$15 per child and includes all workshop materials.
CHRISTMAS TREE ORNAMENT WORKSHOP
Sunday, December 7, 10 a.m. to noon
$4 per child and includes all workshop materials.
Block Quilt
This lovely block quilt was handstitched
circa 1800 by Margaret Taylor
Van Nest, the grandmother to
Liberty Hall Museum’s last matriarch,
protector and visionary - Mary Alice
Barney Kean. The quilt features a
black satin border with interior blocks
composed of fabric pieces from 19th
century wedding gowns, baby clothes,
men’s ties and party dresses. The black
velvet patches give the quilt a threedimensional
appeal. Visit Liberty Hall
Museum to view this treasure and to
discover the many styles that shaped
our nation’s fashion industry.
CHRISTMAS OF YESTERYEAR: CANDLELIGHT TOURS
Saturdays, December 13 & 20, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Adults $10, seniors $8, students with valid ID $5, children 12 and up $4, and
museum members free.
WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON TEA
December 10 and 17, 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.
$30 per person. Set in the decorative Carriage House, guests enjoy a selection
of sandwiches, pastries, scones and clotted cream, jams and choice of two
teas. Following the tea, guests tour the museum and view a special exhibit, The
Pleasure of Your Company: The Power and Politics of Victorian Dining.
Reservations are required for all Liberty Hall events. Children must be accompanied
by an adult. For more information or to make reservations, call (908) 527-0400,
e-mail libertyhall@kean.edu or visit www.kean.edu/libertyhall.
KEANFOCUS • VOLUME 1, ISSUE 7 Page 3

ALUMNI
A S S O C I A T I O N
My School. My Life. My Kean.
GILDA ROGERS ’99:
ACTIVIST, AUTHOR,
EDUCATOR, MENTOR
Gilda Rogers’ biography
reads like an entry in
Who’s Who. As chief
executive officer of The Beyond
Group, LLC public relations firm
and program director for the
School-Based Youth Services Program
mental-health facility at Red
Bank (N.J.) Regional High
School, this Kean ’99 alumna has
also recently written a book, Arrested
Development: The State of
Black Achievement and Education in
Hip-Hop America.
While attending Kean, Rogers honed her writing skills as editor-inchief
of The Independent. After graduating, she continued on the
competitive path of journalism as a writer and editor for the Asbury
Park Press.
A defining moment for Rogers during her tenure at Kean was meeting
Kevin Powell, activist and senior writer at VIBE magazine, during
Unity Week. “He was the one who inspired my activist spirit. I
was the journalist who covered the Unity event, and it left an indelible
mark on me,” Rogers said. She also met the recognized author
and activist Tony Medina.
Among her heroes, Rogers counts Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel. “In
an English literature class, I first read the book Night,” Rogers said. “This
great humanitarian became a hero of mine and I had the good fortune
to meet him last summer.”
Today, Rogers finds great satisfaction in seeing the young people in her
youth program grow. “The best part of mentoring is when the light bulb
goes on,” Rogers said. “It brings me a lot of joy to see those who go off
to college keeping in touch with me over the years. I've mentored students
from all races and backgrounds. To see them experiencing life to
the fullest is a beautiful thing, especially when so many thought they
couldn’t overcome certain circumstances.”
KEANFOCUS • VOLUME 1, ISSUE 7 Page 4

Kean University welcomed a new cohort
of faculty members for the 2008-2009
academic year. Their experience and
expertise covers a broad range of disciplines
including interior design, history, occupational
therapy, sociology and public
administration. In the following pages,
learn about some of your newest colleagues.
And stay tuned to future issues
of Kean Focus for more introductions.
Dr. Les Abrams of Woodhaven, N.Y., teaches sociology at
Kean’s branch campus at Ocean County College. Abrams
joined Kean University after 13 years at Hofstra University,
where he served as an assistant professor of
sociology. He has conducted public opinion surveys in
Central Park collecting data on ways to improve park
facilities. His works in progress include articles
such as Brand Name Icons: Lure, Desire and Consumption
at Flea Markets, Malls and Specialty Stores; Capitalism
Constructive, Destructive, Civilizing/Organizing Paradigms
in Consumer Behavior; and The Cash Underground Economy: The
Informal Economy in NYC’s Metropolitan Area.
Lisa A. Szerekes of Union, N.J., joined the Department
of Physical Education, Recreation and
Health at Kean’s branch campus at Ocean County
College. For the past eight years, Szerekes
has served Kean University as a supervisor of
student interns, as well as an instructor of
physical education classes. In addition, she has
been a physical education and health instructor for
the Union Township (N.J.) Board of Education. Szerekes
is a Kean University alumna, having earned an
M.A. in educational leadership in 2007 and a B.A. in
physical education and health in 1991.
Manuel D. Divino Jr. of Edison, N.J., joined Kean’s interior
design program. He has served as an adjunct professor
at Kean University since 2004. A master’s graduate
in architecture from Michigan University, Divino has
worked for Nadaskay Kopelson Architects in Morristown,
N.J. He comes to Kean from Berkeley College in Paramus,
N.J. Divino completed architectural internships at Jerry
Hamden Architect in Chicago and at Arch Services Enhancement
in Hinsdale, Ill. Kendall/Hunt published Divine’s research, 18
Commandments: Auto CAD, earlier this year.
NEW FACULTY PROFILES
KEANFOCUS • VOLUME 1, ISSUE 7
Page 5

NEW FACULTY PROFILES
Dr. Dov Fischer of Brooklyn, N.Y., joined Kean as an assistant
professor of accounting. Prior to his appointment
at Kean, Fischer was an instructor of accounting
at Bar-Ilan University in Israel and at Berkeley College
in New York. He earned his Ph.D. at University
of Colorado at Boulder in 2003, and has earned several
awards, including a Best Paper by a New Faculty
Member Award from the Northeast Region of
American Accounting Association in 2006.
Dilrukshie Ramanathan of Kendall Park, N.J.,
joins the Department of Chemistry and Physics. She
received her D.Sci. from the University of
Florida in 1994, and was an adjunct professor of
graduate courses in chemistry at Kean University
for one year. Prior to arriving at Kean,
Ramanathan was a visiting assistant professor at
St. John’s University and at Rider University. From
1997 to 2002, she was an assistant professor at Central
Michigan University. Ramanathan has been the coauthor
on articles published in Journal of Mass
Spectrometry, Microchemical Journal, and Journal of Physical
Chemistry. A manuscript on the Evolving Door of Mass
Spectrometry in Drug Discovery and Development has been submitted
to Mass Spectrometry in Drug Metabolism and Pharmacokinetics.
Fernando Linhares, Esq., of Toms River, N.J., joined
the Department of Criminal Justice as an instructor
for the fall 2008 semester. Linhares has served as
an adjunct professor at Kean and Seton Hall University
since 2005. In 1993, he received his J.D.
from Rutgers University and an L.L.M. in environmental
law from Pace University in 2003. In
addition, Linhares obtained an M.A. in Latin
American Studies from the University of Texas in
2006.
KEANFOCUS VOLUME 1, ISSUE 7 Page 6

Dr. Jing-Chiou Liou of Marlboro, N.J., joined the Department
of Computer Science as an assistant professor.
Liou obtained both his Ph.D. and M.S. in electrical engineering
from New Jersey Institute of Technology, and
has practiced within that field at Comsys IT Service,
Inc. in Somerset, N.J.; L3 Communications in Eatontown,
N.J.; and Collabera Inc. in Morristown, N.J.
Liou has presented research, titled How Human Factors
Impact on Software Process Maturity, at the Nation Taiwan
University of Science and Technology and Rule-based
Software Development at the Telecommunication Laboratories
Chughwa Telecom Co. Ltd., Taiwan. In addition, Liou has published
research in software development and information technology
management.
Dr. Rogatus L. Mpeka of Yardville, N.J., joined the Department
of Accounting. He began his career in general accounting
in education in 1995 when he was a visiting
assistant professor at Manhattan College.He also served
as an assistant professor at State University of New
York (SUNY) at Oneonta. He presented An Auditor’s Report
and the Firm’s Viability in the Marketplace at
the annual conference of the Association of Marketing
Educators in Oneonta, and An Investigation of
Work Motivation Needs of Tanzanian Public Accountants
as part of a SUNY faculty seminar series.
Dr. Nora Pallard of Freehold, N.J., joined the Department of
Special Education as an assistant professor. Previously,
Pallard was director of special services at Keyport,
N.J., public schools and an assistant professor of education
at Georgian Court College and New Jersey City
University. In addition, she worked for New Jersey’s
Department of Education as supervisor of the
child study team of Atlantic/Cape May counties.
Pallard has submitted two manuscripts for publication,
Making Inclusion Work for All Children
and Preparing Adult Learners to be Teachers. An
article has been published in the journal Child and
Family Behavior Therapy.
NEW FACULTY PROFILES
KEANFOCUS • VOLUME 1, ISSUE 7 Page 7

Nearly 1,000 parents, health care professionals
and educators representing more than 50
school districts from New Jersey, New York,
Delaware and Pennsylvania, filled Wilkins Theatre
on Friday, November 21, for Kean University’s Putting
the Pieces Together: An Interdisciplinary Conference for Teachers,
Parents and Professionals. New Jersey ranks among the nation’s
highest in cases of autism, with as many as 1 in 94 children diagnosed
with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The conference was designed to
provide information and much-needed resources on autism and featured
a day-long series of lectures and panel discussions led by leading research
and medical experts from across the country.
Jake Greenspan, co-director of DIR
Support Services in Bethesda,
Md., provided the keynote address
in the morning. He discussed
evaluation and
intervention programs based
on the DIR (Developmental, Individual
Differences, Relationshipbased)
model. Greenspan’s message
expanded on his collaborative work
with co-director Tim Blecker and
Jake’s father, Dr. Stanley Greenspan.
Kean Puts the Pieces
Together During
Autism Conference
From the perspective of a father of a
child with autism, Jim Watkins, co-anchor of
the CW 11 News at 10, provided a poignant
keynote address in the afternoon. “What I
am able to do here today is provide some
good snapshots in what I call the autism
world,” he said. In addition to displaying images
of his son, Liam, Watkins also showed a clip
from the documentary directed by his wife, Lauren
Thierry, called Autism Every Day. True to
form, Watkins continued the discussion on his
popular blog.
Putting the Pieces Together represents the first in a planned series
of initiatives to promote awareness and encourage action
related to autism. The conference concluded with a networking
luncheon and exhibitors’ display.
Be encouraged. Click here to visit Jim Watkins’ blog.
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