Graduate School News

Dr. Sean Powers, professor and director of the School of Marine and Environmental Sciences, walks the halls of the school's renovated 20,000-square-foot facility. “We have an international reputation. We want to bring new students to South,” he said.

School of Marine and Environmental Sciences Dedicated
December 2, 2021

New academic and research programs are expected to follow as South increases opportunities for students and faculty. ...

Dr. Brandi Kiel Reese has been named an early-career fellow by the Gulf Research Program of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine. The fellowship comes with a $76,000 award that Kiel Reese plans to use to support graduate students and provide paid internships for undergraduates.

USA Associate Professor Named Gulf Research Program Fellow
November 17, 2021

Dr. Brandi Kiel Reese becomes the second South faculty member honored by the Gulf Research Program in as many years. ...

Barton Academy Principal Amanda Jones, a University of South Alabama graduate, stands in front of the new magnet school.

Old School, New Start
November 17, 2021

South graduates, including Principal Amanda Jones, are remaking history this fall at Barton Academy. The first public school in Alabama has reopened as a magnet school with a focus on world studies. ...

Abritty Abdullah has been named a Phi Kappa Phi Love of Learning award winner. The Honor Society is the nation’s oldest and most selective for all academic disciplines and the Love of Learning Award is one of the most prestigious awards for post-baccalaureate study given by the society.

USA Doctoral Student Recognized with Prestigious National Award
November 11, 2021

Phi Kappa Phi awards Abritty Abdullah, a doctoral student in the College of Education and Professional Studies, its Love of Learning award. ...

Stacy Wellborn, a PhD student in the Mitchell College of Business, hosts "Mitchell Moments," a weekly podcast featuring faculty and students about how to best navigate a PhD program.

Podcasting About MCOB's PhD Program
November 2, 2021

"Mitchell Moments" podcast help potential PhD students by offering advice and tips on how to choose and thrive in a Ph.D. program. ...

University of South Alabama Professor Dr. Joseph Currier, seated at Covenant Presbyterian Church in Mobile, where is is a member, said he has felt drawn by his belief in God to psychology, theology and mental health counseling. He is leading a national project that seeks to integrate religious and spiritual competencies in training mental healthcare providers.

Faith in Counseling
October 28, 2021

Dr. Joseph Currier, a psychology professor at South, is leading a national project to integrate religious and spiritual competencies into mental healthcare training. ...

Alabama Governor Kay Ivey announces at an October 15, 2021 press conference that $41 million dollars from Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act of 2006 will fund 17 separate projects around the State. South’s project, the Healthy Ocean Initiative, will receive $2,018,880 of that total.

School of Marine and Environmental Sciences Receives $2 Million Grant
October 25, 2021

Governor Kay Ivey's office and the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources distributes the federal funding. ...

From L-R, Paul Sledge and Delmas McCryndle are interviewed by Dr. Kern Jackson and USA student Ruby Staten about growing up on the Five Rivers delta. A $453,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities will help make interviews like this one available to the general public. At the same time, create a structure for courses and internships through which students and faculty can continue to build relationships with the community through oral history.

Huge Boost for the Humanities
October 4, 2021

$453,000 NEH grant is the largest South has ever received for the humanities and will support multiple programs on campus. ...

Current Master of Fine Arts in Creative Technology and Practice graduate student Micah Mermilliod’s work will be on display at the upcoming art show. Mermilliod works as a curatorial assistant at the Alabama Contemporary Art Center.

Master of Fine Arts in Creative Technology Art Show
September 28, 2021

Department of Art and Art History will exhibit works of current and former Master of Fine Arts in Creative Technology and Practice graduate students. ...

Dr. Haidee Custodio, an infectious disease pediatrician and associate professor of pediatrics at USA Health, is enrolled in the University of South Alabama Spanish for Healthcare Professionals Graduate Certificate Program, hoping to become proficient in Spanish to better serve her non-English speaking patients.

Breaking Through the Language Barrier
September 15, 2021

A new graduate certificate program prepares current and future healthcare professionals to serve Spanish-speaking patients. ...

The Colleges of Nursing, Arts and Sciences, and Education and Professional Studies at the University of South Alabama, have joined forces to better serve at-risk youth and teens who are dealing with mental health issues in Mobile and surrounding areas. From left are interprofessional team members Dr.Candice Selwyn, research assistant professor in Nursing; Dr. Kimberly Williams, associate professor in Nursing and project director for the grant; Dr. Shanda Scott, assistant professor in Nursing and director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion; and Dr. Kimberly Zlomke,co-project director and professor in Arts and Sciences. Not pictured are Dr. Yvette Qualls Getch, co-project director and associate professor in Education and Professional Studies; Dr. Kirsten E. Pancione, project coordinator and assistant professor in Nursing; Dr. Bettina Riley, associate professor in Nursing, and Dr. Brian David Johnson, assistant professor in Nursing.

South Receives Grant to Expand Behavioral Health Services and Workforce
September 10, 2021

$1.8 million will help expand and improve mental health services for at-risk youth and teens in Mobile and the Gulf Coast region. ...

Dr. John Lehrter, associate professor of marine science, pilots a boat through Mobile Bay, where he and graduate Chris Mikolaitis took water samples to measure the health of its marine ecosystem.

Bay Watch
July 29, 2021

South marine scientists monitor environmental trends throughout Mobile Bay in a multi-year program that seeks to prevent decline of oysters, blue crabs and spotted sea trout. ...

Merritt McCall's duties with the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources include building, seeding and monitoring oyster beds in state waters. she recently earned her master's degree in marine science from the University of South Alabama.

The World Is Her Oyster
July 1, 2021

Marine scientist Merritt McCall turns her experience at South and the Dauphin Island Sea Lab into a fisheries job with the state of Mississippi. #MyFirstJob ...

Broderick Morrissette was a graduate assistant in the University of South Alabama Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, where he has started as its first Campus to Career coordinator.

'We Have Expectations for You'
June 14, 2021

Broderick Morrissette was inspired by his grandmother. Two degrees later, he's helping others achieve their goals as South's Campus to Career coordinator. #MyFirstJob ...

South looks to remain on the cutting edge as it becomes one of only a handful of academic institutions to offer a true business analytics concentration in its Ph.D. program.

New Concentration Offered in Business Analytics
June 9, 2021

South's Mitchell College of Business adds a business analytics concentration to its Business Administration Ph.D. program. ...

Dr. Natalie Gassman, an assistant professor of physiology and cell biology at the University of South Alabama, and graduate student Arlet Hernandez left, are conducting experiments and continuing research on the harmful effects of dihydroxyacetone, a molecule produced by electronic cigarettes, at the USA Health Mitchell Cancer Institute.

'A Flamethrower of Chemicals'
April 26, 2021

Vaping remains popular among those seeking to quit tobacco smoking and young people enticed by flavors from watermelon to creme brulee. Dr. Natalie Gassman's research suggests dangers that are decidedly less sweet. ...

South will have a new interdisciplinary PhD program in chemical and biomolecular engineering beginning this fall. The program is a result of a group of interdisciplinary faculty building the necessary research and funding capacity to support it.

New Interdisciplinary Ph. D. Program Begins in the Fall
April 26, 2021

Chemical and biomolecular engineering program is expected to be mostly self-supporting through research grants and contracts. ...

The research of Dr. Mohamed Shaban, assistant professor of electrical engineering at the University of South Alabama, focuses on using brain waves — shown here in this photo illustration — to reveal cognitive impairment as a result of Parkinson's Disease.

Deep Learning Opens New Possibilities in Parkinson's Treatment
March 26, 2021

Computer-assisted analysis focusing on brain waves could help physicians detect and manage cognitive impairment in the early stages of the disease. ...

Researchers from the William B. Burnsed Jr. Mechanical, Aerospace, and Biomedical Engineering Department. From L-R; Michael Johnson, MS student and Graduate Research Assistant, Nazim Uddin, MS student and Graduate Research Assistant, Prof. Kuang-Ting Hsiao display a unidirectional ZT-CFRP Prepreg sample produced in Hsiao’s lab and a ZT-CFRP Composite Panel manufactured from stacks of ZT-CFRP prepregs.

Developing Next Generation Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymers
February 22, 2021

USA lands a large grant and partners with private industry to develop improved carbon fiber reinforced polymers for commercialization. ...

With Mardi Gras canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic, South alumnae Suzanne Sarver, left, and Courtney Harris, right, joined with Mitchell College of Business Ph.D. student Stacy Wellborn to begin the Mobile Porch Parade. Wellborn's home features monsters from the children’s book, “Where the Wild Things Are.”

South Graduates Lead Mobile Porch Parade
February 13, 2021

With Mardi Gras parades canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic, two alumnae and a Ph.D. candidate find a new way to celebrate the Carnival season. ...

Terrance Smith stands in front of a house on Virginia Street that's being renovated through the work of the Mobile Innovation Team, a project funded by Bloomberg Philanthropies. The home at one point was used by Mobile's Pollman family as a kitchen for their bakery before they opened the nearby Pollman's Bake Shop, said Smith, the innovation team director and a University of South Alabama graduate.

South Graduate Leads Mobile Innovation Team
February 1, 2021

Growing up in public housing, Terrance Smith now sits in the mayor's suite on the 10th floor of Government Plaza. There, he is earning a reputation as a skilled problem solver. ...

From L-R; Jennifer Henderson, Amanda Ledet, Emory Serviss combined to win Best Paper in the Business-to-Business track as well as the Steven J. Shaw & Joe Hair Overall Conference Best Paper awards in November.

Business Doctoral Students Excel at Marketing Conference
December 9, 2020

A trio of USA doctoral students collaborate to win multiple awards at the Society for Marketing Advances annual conference. ...

Dr. Ronald Baker, assistant professor in the department of marine sciences co-authored a paper on salt marshes that was published in Science magazine's November 6, 2020 issue.

DISL Researcher's Work Published in Science Magazine
November 24, 2020

A November 2019 meeting at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab led to a report on salt marshes published in esteemed scientific journal. ...

USA Grad Student Wins Master's Thesis Award
September 8, 2020

South's Valeria King beats out candidates from 200 institutions to earn top life sciences master's thesis for 2020. ...

Ph.D. student, Jennifer Henderson's paper exploring the topic of electronic waste and its implications for both producers and consumers was named Best in Track by the Association of Marketing Theory and Practice.

Ph.D. Student Honored for Study of E-Waste
August 4, 2020

USA Business Administration PhD student, Jennifer Henderson earned "Best In Track" for her paper on recycling electronic waste. ...

Graduate School News Archive

School of Marine and Environmental Sciences Dedicated December 2, 2021

USA Associate Professor Named Gulf Research Program Fellow November 17, 2021

Old School, New Start November 17, 2021

USA Doctoral Student Recognized with Prestigious National Award November 11, 2021

Podcasting About MCOB's PhD Program November 2, 2021

Faith in Counseling October 28, 2021

School of Marine and Environmental Sciences Receives $2 Million Grant October 25, 2021

Huge Boost for the Humanities October 4, 2021

Master of Fine Arts in Creative Technology Art Show September 28, 2021

Breaking Through the Language Barrier September 15, 2021

South Receives Grant to Expand Behavioral Health Services and Workforce September 10, 2021

Bay Watch July 29, 2021

The World Is Her Oyster July 1, 2021

'We Have Expectations for You' June 14, 2021

New Concentration Offered in Business Analytics June 9, 2021

'A Flamethrower of Chemicals' April 26, 2021

New Interdisciplinary Ph. D. Program Begins in the Fall April 26, 2021

Deep Learning Opens New Possibilities in Parkinson's Treatment March 26, 2021

Developing Next Generation Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymers February 22, 2021

South Graduates Lead Mobile Porch Parade February 13, 2021

South Graduate Leads Mobile Innovation Team February 1, 2021

Business Doctoral Students Excel at Marketing Conference December 9, 2020

DISL Researcher's Work Published in Science Magazine November 24, 2020

USA Grad Student Wins Master's Thesis Award September 8, 2020

Ph.D. Student Honored for Study of E-Waste August 4, 2020