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Articles by Tabitha Groh
Delaware’s climate plan has strong UD connections
Delaware is a small state with big ideas for tackling climate issues. Nearly 80% of Delawareans view climate change as a serious threat, according to the 2025 Delaware Climate Change Perceptions Survey. It’s a concern rooted in geography as much as public opinion. Delaware is the lowest-lying state in the nation, with 381 miles of tidal shoreline vulnerable to rising seas, stronger storms and persistent flooding.
Conserving culture
Elizabeth Glander, a Winterthur/University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation Fellow, inpainting on a Dutch style oil on canvas painting “Portrait of a Dutch Girl with a Parrot and Basket of Fruit,” 1646, by an unknown artist.
Strengthening maternal care
Sixty-seven percent of pregnant women in Kent County and nearly half of pregnant women in Sussex County who experienced a stillbirth or infant death have late or no access to prenatal care, according to the Maternal and Child Death Review Commission (MCDRC).
In Memoriam: Donald Allan Waterfield Jr.
Donald Allan Waterfield Jr., professor and former dean at the University of Delaware, passed away April 29, 2026. He was 84. Dr. Waterfield joined the University as dean of the College of Physical Education, Athletics and Recreation (now the College of Health Sciences) in 1990. He served as dean until 1997, and then as a professor of health nutrition and exercise sciences (now health behavior and nutrition sciences) until his retirement in 2007.
Opening the rails to future engineers
Most aspiring rail engineers learn in classrooms, far removed from the massive machines they will one day help design, inspect and operate. “Until you see a 14,000-ton freight train in person, you have no idea how powerful, dangerous and demanding it is,” said Allan Zarembski, professor of practice and director of the University of Delaware’s Railroad Engineering and Safety Program.
Top honor for UD Emergency Care Unit
UDECU has been serving the UD and Newark communities by responding to 911 calls and providing emergency medical care since 1976. Today, UDECU operates with roughly 50 volunteer members — all University of Delaware students. The ambulance service is staffed during the academic year to ensure the quickest response times.
Women's History Month | UDaily
The University of Delaware will celebrate Women’s History Month in March with a host of events and activities that honor the accomplishments of women. International Women’s Day — which is celebrated on March 8 — also offers an opportunity to reflect on progress made, raise awareness for women’s equality, and celebrate women’s achievements.
Demystifying microelectronics
“For many, a computer chip is just a black box,” said Associate Professor Nektarios Tsoutsos, CCAP associate director and co-director of UD’s FinTech Innovation Hub.
For the Record, Feb. 20, 2026
For the Record provides information about recent professional activities and honors of University of Delaware faculty, staff, students and alumni. Recent presentations, publications and honors include the following: On Feb, 12, 2026, Sheng Lu, professor and graduate director of Fashion and Apparel Studies, spoke at the on Due Diligence in the Garment and Footwear Sector, held in Paris, France.
Excellence in teacher learning scholarship
Desimone also frequently partners with school districts throughout the region, helping them improve teacher and student learning through school or district-wide reforms. For example, she worked with the School District of Philadelphia through Shared Solutions, a research-to-practice partnership between the School District of Philadelphia and the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education.
All Politics Is Local
There’s learning that happens in class, and the kind that can only occur beyond its four walls. Just ask current students Ray Kalmanowitz, Sasha Altman or any of the other 23 City Management Fellows, who have each spent 10 weeks each summer entrenched in local communities to translate their passion for public service into much-needed support for Delaware cities and municipalities.
UD recognized for sustainability efforts
The University of Delaware earned a STARS Silver rating from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) in recognition of continuous improvements in academics, engagement, innovation, leadership and operational efficiencies. AASHE’s Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System (STARS) program is the world’s most widely recognized framework for sustainability reporting in higher education.
For the Record, Jan. 16, 2026
For the Record provides information about recent professional activities and honors of University of Delaware faculty, staff, students and alumni.
Helping gardens and interns grow
Adams enjoys discovering ways to connect students’ academic pursuits with the garden and offers projects that add value, such as the effect of climate change on plants, writing engagement plans for public gardens, and cataloging and inventorying plants, much like one would for an art museum. The museum atmosphere is what attracted Roxi Guarriello to apply.
Recognizing UD's impact on the world
The University of Delaware has been recognized by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching for its commitment to and excellence in collaborative, community-based partnerships that create positive change. UD is one of more than 230 institutions recognized this year by the Carnegie Elective Classification for Community Engagement, the leading framework for assessing community engagement in U.S. higher education.
Changing the stories of substance use
Dan Sweeney has watched family members struggle with substance use and addiction, and is in recovery himself, so he knows that these waters are choppy. Now Sweeney is using his experience to support others in charting their own paths to recovery by sharing the right messages and resources that are critical to successful outcomes.
For the Record, Oct. 10, 2025
Gene Koshinski and Tim Broscious, UD Faculty Artists in Residence with their group Quey Percussion Duo, recently returned from a two-week tour in Europe from Sept. 8-19, 2025. The tour included five prestigious arts universities in Essen, Germany (Folkwang University of the Arts), Dortmund, Germany (Orchesterzentrum NRW), Amsterdam, the Netherlands (Conservatorium van Amsterdam), Ingesund, Sweden (Karlstad University), and Oslo, Norway (Norwegian Academy of Music).
Supporting Delaware's LGBT+ Youth
National Coming Out Day continues to be a reminder that LGBTQ+ individuals make a brave decision to disclose their identities to family, friends and community members. Many LGBTQ+ people experience mental health symptoms due to ongoing discrimination, and Delaware adolescents are especially at risk.
Growing new partnerships
The vision for the garden’s revival began with James Bretzger, a sophomore landscape architecture major in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources (CANR). Last year, Bretzger was looking for a space to garden on campus when he discovered the ELI’s plot. After getting permission, he turned the project into an independent study under his advisor, Ana Wik, associate professor of landscape architecture. Although the garden was overgrown with brambles and weeds, Bretzger saw its potential.
Clothing chronic conditions
Indeed, about 40% of American women have more than one chronic condition. “There's even a gap within adaptive fashion,” Delaye said. “Women with chronic illness have fluctuating symptoms, so they need a wardrobe that adapts to their everyday life.” As an undergraduate, Delaye was inspired by another UD entrepreneurship major, Sierra RyanWallick, who has been a vocal advocate for those managing chronic illness. RyanWallick was eager to participate in Delaye’s study.
In Memoriam: Anna Servidio
In her youth, Ms. Servidio participated in the “Run/Walk for the Penguins” every October to support conservation efforts, and her passion for animals continued throughout her life. Kyle McCarthy, professor of wildlife ecology, shared a vivid memory of Ms. Servidio during a UD study abroad program in Costa Rica. “Perhaps one of my favorite memories is from a day on the Osa peninsula.
Community outreach in Milford
Amamio’s journey from Millville High School in New Jersey to UD included an associate degree from a community college and being deployed to South America, the Middle East and the Pacific during his time in the U.S. Marine Corps. “While I was in service with the Marine Corps there was a lot of community outreach with my fellow Marines,” Amamio said.
Care beyond borders
He also participated in grand rounds in internal medicine, spending hours discussing differentials and pharmacological interventions — even presenting an entire round on a patient. “I advocated for myself and actively participated in rounds and patient care and learned how to take vitals in a meaningful way and how to take an enhanced patient history,” Homsey said.
Curiosity and creativity around the globe
University of Delaware Plastino Scholars are taking their curiosity and creativity around the globe. In the 18 years since the program’s inception, Plastino Scholars have studied energy access in Tanzania, investigated the resilience of Amazon’s stingless bees, bicycled across the U.S. and launched a school lunch program for students in need. And that’s just for starters.
Human geography in Bangladesh
Driven from their homes, many move to Chittagong, a port city with a thriving garment industry.
Swimming with Sharks
Elementary students test their aquatic robots in the creek behind University of Delaware’s The College School.
UD Alum Taking on FinTech Needs at JPMC
After earning her University of Delaware degree in political science, Morgan Dean quickly pivoted to the banking industry where she has built an impressive career that led to her giving a Distinguished Alumni Lecture and meeting with UD Financial Services Analytics (FSAN) faculty and students during her daylong visit to the FinTech Innovation Hub on May 2.
For the Record, Friday, June 27, 2025
For the Record provides information about recent professional activities and honors of University of Delaware faculty, staff, students and alumni. Recent publications, presentations, service and honors include the following: Tarang Parekh and Daniel Harris, assistant professors of epidemiology, recently published a cross-sectional analysis of data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Health Interview Survey.
Partners in healthy aging
“The common denominator,” O’Hanlon said, “is the importance of supporting healthy aging in this state.” Jillian Orellano, a 2025 graduate of the Health Behavior Science program, spent hours interviewing program participants like Dyer. “In talking to people, it’s surprising how much the senior center means to them in terms of the friends and connections they've made,” said Orellano.
Ag in the family
Stephanie began working with the MDA in 1998, a few months after graduating from UD. She works with farmers and landowners to identify objectives, identify soil issues, and inventory resources, like water sources, on their property. “Our projects can range from building a waste storage structure to stabilizing a ditch bank with either rock or grass buffers,” Stephanie said. She also assists landowners interested in increasing wildlife habitat on their farms.
For the Record, Friday, May2, 2025
For the Record provides information about recent professional activities and honors of University of Delaware faculty, staff, students and alumni. Recent publications, honors and presentations include the following: The latest issue of Neo-Victorian Studies, a scholarly journal published at Swansea University (Wales, U.K.), contains an essay-review by Margaret Stetz, Mae and Robert Carter Professor of Women's Studies and professor of humanities.
Representing rural America
“The first nine years of my career, serving in small county offices throughout Delaware and Maryland, was the formative period of my career,” Glendenning said. “It’s probably the part of my career I look back at most fondly.” Spending time on the front lines gave Glendenning a real sense of the importance of the USDA’s Rural Development mission. “Our agency, Rural Development, helps rural communities prosper in a comprehensive way,” Glendenning said.
Closet with a cause
Tucked inside the Center for Intercultural Engagement (CIE) at the University of Delaware, the Clothing Coop is transforming the way UD supports student success and personal expression. More than a closet of free clothes, the Clothing Coop is a campus resource that offers practical assistance, inclusive support and a model for sustainability in action.
Food connects us
Ivanna Kaburia, a junior honors nutrition and medical sciences major, also loved the course. Her project focused on Kenya, where she’s from. “It made my heart happy to learn more about my background and share my culture with others in the class,” she said. Adewoye, who’s pursuing her master’s in human nutrition, hopes students learn that food is more than sustenance. “Food is a language of connection and a tool for unity,” Adewoye said.
In Memoriam: Francis Tannian
Dr. Tannian came to Delaware in 1966 as an economist and assistant professor of economics in what was then the Division of Urban Affairs. Over the years and through the work of Dr. Tannian and others, the division eventually became the School of Urban Affairs and Public Policy and is now the Joseph R. Biden, Jr. School of Public Policy and Administration.
For the Record, Friday, March 21, 2025
William Shafarman, professor of materials science and engineering and director of the Institute of Energy Conversion (IEC), was named an honorary doctor of the faculty of science and technology at Uppsala University in Sweden on Jan. 31, 2025, during that university’s Winter Conferment Ceremony.
The STEM Queen gets a new crown
UD student Jackie Means won Miss Caribbean US 2025 and was voted Miss Congeniality by her fellow contestants. UD student and founder of Girls Empowerment STEM Initiative wins Miss Caribbean US When people ask Jackie Means why she competes in beauty pageants, the University of Delaware sophomore and six-time winner has a simple answer: “It’s a great way to be a positive role model.” Means is a marketing and management information systems double major who also minors in neuroscience.
Making waves in health
All people in Delaware will enjoy healthy lives and healthy communities. That is the ambitious vision for a team of University of Delaware faculty, staff and students who have been working with the state and the public since 2017 to develop a plan to address the most pressing health concerns facing Delawareans. The result is the Delaware State Health Improvement Plan (SHIP), a five-year strategic plan to be released later this month.
Nursing takes flight
Cadets with the University of Delaware’s AFROTC participate in an aeromedical evacuation mission to learn about careers in military healthcare. From classroom to cockpit: Nursing students train for military healthcare careers For the first time, School of Nursing (SON) students in the University of Delaware’s Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps (AFROTC) Detachment 128 stepped onto a C-130 aircraft to get a glimpse into a career as a military flight nurse.
Recognizing excellence
Faculty Senate celebrates four for their scholarship and engagement Three University of Delaware faculty members and one graduate student were honored for their scholarly contributions at the Faculty Senate meeting on Feb. 3. The Excellence in Scholarly Engagement awards recognize faculty members or graduate students who have distinguished themselves in teaching, research, creative activities and/or service that engages the community in a reciprocal relationship.
Hands-on experience in financial planning
In the world of business, change is the only constant. To prepare students to excel in this dynamic environment, the University of Delaware’s Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics is partnering with the Schwab Advisor Services and the Charles Schwab Foundation to establish a new, state-of-the-art Financial Planning Center.
Delayed opening on Jan. 7
Due to the lingering impacts of Monday’s winter storm, the University of Delaware’s Newark campus, and other UD locations in New Castle County, will open at 10 a.m. Tuesday, Jan. 7. Essential personnel should report to work as scheduled. UD Facilities staff will work during the morning to clear campus parking lots and treat sidewalks for snow-covered, wet and/or icy conditions.
Faculty Senate November 2024 meeting
UD’s budget and Senate-Trustee interactions discussed In continuing with his commitment to enhance budget transparency and communication, President Dennis Assanis presented an overview of the University of Delaware’s FY2025 budget to the Faculty Senate in November, focusing on the primary sources of revenues and expenses and explaining the largest financial pressures facing UD.
Paradise restored
Doug Tallamy, the TA Baker Professor of Agriculture and Natural Resources at the University of Delaware, is trying to encourage people to rid their property of invasive plants and replace them with native plants. In October, he set out with students from the course Introduction to Insect and Wildlife Field Studies to curtail some pesky invasive plants from the UD Wetlands.
2024 UD holiday gift guide
Options abound for finding just the right gift for Blue Hens Looking for the perfect gift for the Blue Hens in your life? Here is a special guide filled with options for every kind of Blue Hen. Browse by category or explore the entire collection to find something that captures that special Blue Hen spirit. A percentage of your Spirit Shop purchases support student and alumni programs and scholarships through the UD Alumni Association.
Saving the Rodney Reservoir
Sakhi Phang, a senior in the University of Delaware’s Landscape Architecture program, has spent the past two summers working with the residents of the West Side of Wilmington, Delaware, to develop their vision for a public park and community garden on the grounds of the defunct Rodney Reservoir. Local residents formed the grassroots organization Green for the Greater Good with the goal of keeping the site safe, public and green.
Coast Day 2024 | UDaily
The University of Delaware will hold its annual Coast Day event from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 6, at the Hugh R. Sharp Campus in Lewes. The event will highlight cutting-edge research, community outreach and student engagement at UD’s College of Earth, Ocean and Environment.
Behind the research
There is a deep connection between a scholar and their research subject or materials. This association can be a result of childhood influences, individual culture or even serendipitous happenstance.
Caring for the Blue Hen Community
Editor's Note: Vice President José-Luis Riera shared this message with University students on September 24, 2024. Dear UD students, On behalf of the UD community, I express my heartfelt condolences to the family and loved ones of a University of Delaware student who has died. The student, whose name is being withheld at this time out of respect for their privacy, lived in George Read Residence Hall.
Charting the Path Forward
UD President Dennis Assanis discusses budget challenges at semiannual meeting of the Board of Trustees At the semiannual meeting of the Board of Trustees, held Tuesday, May 14, University of Delaware President Dennis Assanis highlighted many of the achievements of students, faculty and staff and explained the ways in which the University is navigating its current financial challenges.
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