Faculty Research – Page 15

Fountain Discusses Networked Governance with Gov Officials in Spain

Jane Fountain, Professor of Political Science and Public Policy and Director of the National Center for Digital Government (NCDG), traveled to Madrid and Alicante, Spain in February as part of her research on the European Union’s “paperless” Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market (OHIM).

With Raquel Galindo, Associate Professor of Business Administration at the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, and Jeffrey Rothschild, NCDG Research Fellow and UMass political science senior, Fountain is writing a case study on the institutional challenges and opportunities OHIM faced in its transition to a paperless office. While in Spain, Fountain met with OHIM’s president, managers and other agency leaders to discuss her research and tour OHIM facilities.

While in Spain, Fountain also met with leaders of the Escuola de Organization Industriel in Madrid and gave an invited lecture “Government 2.0: Opportunities and Challenges.” Video from Fountain’s presentation is available here.

The OHIM case study will be published in late March 2010 and will be posted to the NCDG website.

Hanson Receives Teaching Award

One of this year’s College of Social and Behavioral Sciences’ Outstanding Teaching Award has been presented to one of our own, Jarice Hanson.

Hanson is a faculty associate at the Center for Public Policy and Administration and director of graduate education in the Department of Communication. Her research and teaching involve the relationship of media and digital technology with society; international telecommunications policies, and social and behavioral aspects of interacting with technology. Current research involves the social and behavioral aspects of cell phones and the Internet; the emerging field of nanotechnology; and the impact of media coverage of the war in Iraq on rhetorical dimensions of dealing with democratic practices.

On campus since 1985, Hanson has, since 2004, concurrently held the position of Verizon Chair in Telecommunications at the School of Communications and Theater at Temple University. From 2001-03, while on leave from UMass Amherst, she served as the founding dean of the Quinnipiac University School of Communications.

Hanson is a dynamic teacher, as evidenced by her students. “She breathes exuberance into every single one of her classes and demands attention with her quirky anecdotes that always help me place lessons into a personal context,” says one. Another adds, “Professor Hanson has the wonderful ability of being able to explain complicated concepts in a straightforward, accessible and thought-provoking manner… Most admirable is Professor Hanson’s obvious passion for helping students learn.”

Inspiring to undergraduate and graduate students alike, Hanson has a reputation for providing “great intellectual and moral support for graduate students’ academic development.” A five-time nominee for the SBS teaching award, Hanson was also a finalist for the University’s Distinguished Teaching Award in 1993, 2000 and 2007.

Congratulations, Jarice!

See the SBS newsletter for the complete article