Long Island University researchers have encouraging news about Long Island’s scallop population in the Peconic Bay fishery. Dr. Stephen Tettelbach, professor of biology and head of Cornell Cooperative Extension’s Peconic Bay Scallop Restoration Program, identified no signs of scallop die-offs this summer after significant declines the previous two years. His team investigates possible die-off causes, including high water temperatures, low dissolved oxygen levels, and a newly discovered bay scallop parasite.

Michael Petroutsas ’97, vice president of the US Oncology Business Unit of GSK, one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical manufacturers, joined the Washington Post’s “Chasing Cancer” speaker series to discuss the impacts of COVID-19 on cancer care. Petroutsas is delivering transformational medicines and programs that provide enduring impact and hope for cancer patients.

Cynthia Turnquest-Jones, a renowned librarian and student of the Palmer School of Library and Information Science at LIU, gave a presentation on “Civic Engagement in the Community From the Classroom and Beyond” at a School Library Journal leadership summit titled Build a Racially Equitable Collection. The seminar preceded the 11th National Conference of African American Librarians and encourages students to be actively engaged in their communities.

Professor Philip Wong, director of the Clinical Psychology Ph.D. program, spoke in front of more than 100 White House and government staff members about the psychology of equity. His presentation was organized by the Office of Management and Budget after President Joe Biden’s January 2021 executive order to advance racial equity and support for under-served communities.

Kayleigh Ferguson ’20 received the Hume Scholarship at Maynooth University in Ireland, where she will research to promote improved access and preservation of cultural heritage sources. Ferguson’s fully funded PhD work will enhance the metadata, then catalog and digitize a collection of music in the university’s Russell Library. She gained valuable digital archiving experience as a Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation grant recipient at the Palmer School of Library and Information Science.

The Honorable Robert S. Bowers ’80 will be the new presiding judge for Solano County Superior Court in California. Appointed in 2003 by Governor Gray Davis, Judge Bowers has served as the court’s supervising judge for criminal matters, supervising judge of the Vallejo branch court, and assistant presiding judge. He will oversee the executive management of the court serving more than 450,000 county residents.

Long Island University student-athletes once again earned recognition for their dedication to academics. The American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) announced that LIU volleyball received a Team Academic Award and Team Academic Honor Roll award for landing in the top 20% nationally in team GPA. The LIU bowling team earned the National Tenpin Coaches Association’s All-Academic Team Award, and 12 Sharks received an individual All-Academic Award.

Suzanne Wollman, CPA, ’91 joined Common Energy – one of the country’s leading community solar providers – as its senior controller to oversee corporate finance and accounting for the business. Wollman brings over 25 years of finance and accounting experience, most recently serving as the vice president of finance at Innovative Technology Electronics.

Brendon Rodney, one of the most decorated track and field athletes in LIU’s history, returns to the Olympics for the Canadian National Team in Tokyo. Rodney won bronze medals with Canada in the 4×100-meter relay at the 2015 World Championships and at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. The Ontario native won multiple Northeast Conference Championships while at LIU, and competed in the NCAA Division I Championships.

Emeritus professor of biology and accomplished author Bill Schutt ’78 explores the fascinating history of the human body’s most vital organ in his upcoming book, Pump: A Natural History of the Heart, available in September. Schutt’s previous works include the widely acclaimed New York Times Editor’s Choice, Cannibalism: A Perfectly Natural History. He taught biology at LIU Post for 22 years and is a research associate at the American Museum of Natural History, where his research on bats has been featured in Natural History magazine as well as in the New York Times, Newsday, the Economist, and Discover.