The entire department is pleased to congratulate our two newest ABD's!

  Jorge Clavo Abbass successfully passing his Candidacy Exam on December 5th, 2023! Broadly speaking, Jorge’s dissertation focuses on the use of English by German language instructors in beginning German language classes and examines the various factors (e.g., identity, ideology, and learning objectives) that influence this choice of language. Jorge’s intriguing research has the potential to contribute valuable insights to the field of world language education and German language curriculum development. (Advisor: Taleghani-Nikazm; committee members: Birkhold, Byram, Troyan)

Caleb Davis successfully passed his candidacy exam on March 7th, 2024 and is now focused on writing his dissertation and becoming Dr. Davis!  His committee members Carmen Taleghani-Nikazm, John Davidson, Amy Shuman, and Katra Byram were excited about his dissertation project, which will examine Nazi-era picture books to analyze how they use images to communicate nationalist myths to children. Ultimately, Caleb aims to increase our understanding of visual semiotics to improve the teaching of visual literacy. (Advisor: Byram)

Congratulations, Caleb and Jorge on achieving ABD status!!