The Office of the Provost recognizes the following faculty members for tenure and promotion:
Julie Berrett-Abebe
School of Education and Human Development
Family Therapy and Social Work Department
Julie Berrett-Abebe, PhD, MSW is the director of the FCHC Scholars program (ÐÓ°ÉÔ°æ.edu/fchc-scholars), an interdisciplinary training program funded by a $1.6 million BHWET HRSA grant (2021-2025) and an inaugural faculty member in the Master of Social Work program. Dr. Berrett-Abebe received her master’s degrees at Boston College and her PhD at Simmons University. She has spent her career working on teams at the intersection of health and mental health practice, research, and education. As an oncology social worker at Mass General Hospital for 10 years, she witnessed the ways in which personalized, precision medicine offered hope for effective treatment of physical illness but did not address the often debilitating financial, psychological, and social issues facing individuals with cancer. She therefore strives to promote integration of behavioral health and physical health care through interprofessional education and research on collaborate care, social drivers of health, and evidence-based practice models. Dr. Berrett-Abebe is a consulting editor for the journals Social Work & Health and Social Work and is an active member of the Coalition for Social Work & Health and the Pioneer Valley Interprofessional Education Collaborative.
Mehmet Cansoy
College of Arts and Sciences
Sociology and Anthropology Department
Mehmet Cansoy, PhD, completed his Ph.D. in Sociology at Boston College. He specializes in economic sociology and research methodology. His scholarly work critically examines the dynamics of digital platforms and their socio-economic implications. He has co-authored influential studies on topics such as Airbnb hosting, digital food sharing, and labor precarity in the gig economy. His research has been published in esteemed journals like American Behavioral Scientist, Theory and Society, and Socio-Economic Review. Dr. Cansoy’s interdisciplinary approach bridges sociology, economics, and public policy and continues to shed light on the complexities of the digital economy, offering insights into how technological advancements intersect with social structures, organizations, and labor practices.
Jocelyn Novella
School of Education and Human Development
Counselor Education Department
Jocelyn Novella, PhD, received a doctoral degree in Counseling from Oregon State University in 2019, a master’s in Community Counseling from ÐÓ°ÉÔ°æ University in 1995, and her undergraduate in English from Johns Hopkins University in 1986. She is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in the state of Connecticut, Board Certified in Telemental Health (BC-TMH), and an Approved Clinical Supervisor (ACS). Her research interests include the efficacy of telemental health delivery of counseling, issues of emerging adulthood such as best practices in eating disorder treatment, and interprofessional collaboration in behavioral health. She has published in prestigious journals such as the Journal of American College Health, Journal of Technology in Behavioral Sciences, and the Journal of Counselor Preparation & Supervision. She worked at a college counseling center for 24 years before coming to ÐÓ°ÉÔ°æ University, the last four years as Director of Counseling. She received the Connecticut Counseling Association’s (CCA) Distinguished Professional Award in May 2022. Dr. Novella currently serves as the co-chair of the Public Policy & Legislation Committee of CCA and the co-chair of the Wellness Committee of the North Atlantic Regional Association of Counselor Education and Supervision (NARACES).
Sidike Paheding
School of Engineering and Computing
Computer Science and Engineering Department
Sidike Paheding, PhD, received his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Dayton. His research in machine learning, computer vision, and remote sensing has resulted in over 100 publications with more than 10,000 citations. He has received three Best Paper Awards and the Institute of Computing and Cybersystems (ICC) Achievement Award and was elevated to Senior Member of IEEE in 2022. Among his publications, one is currently the most cited article in the Electronics journal, with over 1,800 citations. He has secured competitive funding from agencies such as the NSF (DRRG, SaTC, FW-HTF, IUSE, MRI), NASA Space Grant Consortium, and USGS to support projects in cybersecurity, extended reality, environmental monitoring, and planetary science. He has introduced new courses in Deep Learning and Data Science and contributed to curriculum enhancements in computer science. Dr. Paheding actively mentors undergraduate and graduate students, many of whom have earned awards and co-authored publications. His external service includes roles as an Associate Editor, Guest Editor, and frequent reviewer for leading journals and conferences.
Thomas Schmidt
College of Arts and Sciences
Religious Studies Department
Tom C. Schmidt, PhD, received his PhD from Yale University and publishes on many matters related to early Christianity such as the historical Jesus, the formation of the New Testament, and the history of Christianity in Eastern contexts. Notably, Dr. Schmidt has produced peer-reviewed translations from Latin, Greek, Syriac, and Arabic texts. His books have been published with academic presses such as Cambridge, Oxford, Fordham, Catholic University, and Gorgias. Next academic year Dr. Schmidt will be a visiting fellow at Princeton University.
Dorothy Vittner
Marion Peckham Egan School of Nursing and Health Studies
Nursing Department
Dorothy Vittner, PhD, received a Master’s Degree in Nursing Education from the University of Hartford and a PhD from the University of Connecticut, School of Nursing. She also completed a fellowship in Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental & Related Disabilities at the University of Connecticut, School of Medicine. Dr. Vittner serves as the Post Masters DNP Program Director in Egan, she has published more than 12 book chapters, 35 manuscripts in peer-review journals and lectures around the world. Dr. Vittner is a highly sought after international expert with a focus on infant neurobehavioral assessment and functioning as well as training multidisciplinary healthcare professionals on infant behavior and neurodevelopment to improve outcomes for high-risk infants and families. Dorothy currently serves on the NIDCAP Federation International, Board of Directors with leadership capacities as the NFI Program Committee, Chair. In 2022, Dr. Vittner was inducted as a Fellow into the American Academy of Nursing, which is the highest honor bestowed upon those nurses who demonstrate leadership, clinical excellence, outstanding scholarship, and professional achievement through a rigorous peer-review process.
Carissa D’Aniello-Heyda
School of Education and Human Development
Family Therapy and Social Work Department
Carissa D’Aniello-Heyda, PhD, earned a doctoral degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from Virginia Tech, and her master’s degree from ÐÓ°ÉÔ°æ University. Prior to her appointment at ÐÓ°ÉÔ°æ University, she was a faculty member at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and Texas Tech University. She is a licensed LMFT, and Approved Supervisor. Her research focuses on behavioral health service engagement and utilization among relational therapy clients. An expansion of her research includes investigation of vulnerable populations, such as families in which one member experiences a substance use disorder (SUD) that have experienced unique and longstanding institutional barriers to accessing and benefitting from mental health services. She has published over 60 papers in prestigious journals, such as The Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, Contemporary Family Therapy, and International Journal of Mental Health, and Addiction. Dr. D’Aniello-Heyda has held prominent national service positions in the MFT field including and accreditation report reviewer for the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE), the Secretary of the Family Therapy section of the National Council on Family Relations (NCFR), and the virtual issues editor of The Journal of Marital and Family Therapy.
Michele Parker
School of Education and Human Development
Family Therapy and Social Work Department
Michele Parker, PhD, earned her PhD in the Department of Child and Family Development with an emphasis in Marriage and Family Therapy (MFT) from the University of Georgia. She is currently a licensed marriage and family therapist in Connecticut and Florida, specializing neurodiverse couples therapy. Dr. Parker's program of research focuses on the family effects of complex health conditions such as autism spectrum disorder. Her research has been funded by the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Dr. Parker’s research has been published in high-impact journals such as Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, Family Process, and The Journal of Family Therapy and she has a strong history of student-faculty research collaborations.
Mousumi Bose Godbole
Dolan School of Business
Marketing Department
Mousumi Bose Godbole, PhD, is the Director of ÐÓ°ÉÔ°æ Dolan’s MBA Program. She holds a Ph.D. from Louisiana State University. Her research interests are centered around consumer information processing and decision making, online reviews, creativity, situated learning, coping and resilience during service failures and consumer purchasing behavior. More recently, Dr. Bose Godbole as published several papers in prestigious journals such as Psychology & Marketing, European Journal of Marketing, Journal of Consumer Marketing, Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, among others. She serves on the Editorial Board of two journals: Journal of Consumer Marketing and Journal of Applied Marketing Theory.
Kathryn Phillips
Marion Peckham Egan School of Nursing and Health Studies
Nursing Department
Dr. Kathryn Phillips is a nurse, educator, and researcher whose work focuses on thriving, building resilience to help individuals live optimally. As Project Director for a $2.6 million Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA), Advanced Nursing Education Workforce (ANEW) grant entitled, Nursing Education on Wellness and Telehealth (NEWT), Dr. Phillips has overseen the creation and implementation of a series of wellness modules across the graduate nursing curriculum. Dr. Phillips passion for teaching was recognized during the pandemic when her innovative and creative approaches to instruction led her to be selected as the 2021 Alpha Sigma Nu Graduate Teacher of the Year and the Olson Excellence in Nursing Education award from the CT League for Nursing. Continuously striving for pedagogical excellence, Dr. Phillips is certified in Telebehavioral Health and as a Certified Healthcare Simulation Educator (CHSE). Her national leadership roles include serving as an Associate Editor for the journal, Archives of Psychiatric Nursing; Associate Chair for the APNA Research and Scholarship Council Steering Committee, and as an Editorial Board member for the Journal of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association. She also serves as President of Sigma Theta Tau, (the nursing honor society), Mu Chi chapter at ÐÓ°ÉÔ°æ University. In 2025, Dr. Phillips was selected for the APNA award for Excellence in Research in Scholarship. She is the author of over 30 journal articles and co-author of the book, Re-imagining Mothering and Career: Insights from a Time of Crisis. Five children call her mom.
Jessica Planas
Marion Peckham Egan School of Nursing and Health Studies
Nursing Department
Dr. Jessica Alicea Planas received her doctoral degree in Nursing from the University of Connecticut. She has over 25 years of experience as a bilingual community/ public health nurse working with families in low-resourced communities and is a certified health education specialist. Her research focus has been chronic disease management and health education for vulnerable populations through a health literacy and health equity lens. She has collaborated extensively with various community agencies on multiple health promotion initiatives in the Bridgeport, CT region. To encourage working with Spanish speaking populations, she also coordinated faculty-l ed community-engaged learning trips for nursing students in Nicaragua and Puerto Rico. Dr. Alicea Planas was a key member in a grant funded health literacy initiative working with diverse youth and community-based agencies to demonstrate how to find credible and reliable health information online. She was the recipient of ÐÓ°ÉÔ°æ University’s Faculty Award for Excellence in Community Engagement in 2019, AL DIA Top Nurse, Researcher/Educator Award in 2022, and the UCONN- Marlene Kramer Outstanding Alumni Award for Research in Nursing in 2023.She has multiple publications and presentations related to increasing diversity in the nursing profession and continues to be a strong advocate for diversity, equity and inclusion work.
Linda Roney
Marion Peckham Egan School of Nursing and Health Studies
Nursing Department
Dr. Roney is an internationally recognized nurse leader and expert in pediatric trauma nursing. A Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing, she has led initiatives that have advanced the care of injured children in the U.S., U.K., New Zealand, and Malawi. Her work spans education, research, and advocacy, encompassing national quality improvement initiatives and testimony informing child health legislation. Her innovative research has identified critical educational gaps in pediatric trauma care, leading to the development of impactful programs that have shaped nursing education nationally and internationally. She has received numerous honors for her contributions to the profession. She continues to provide compassionate care and leadership for some of the region’s most vulnerable children through her ongoing clinical practice at Yale New Haven Children's Hospital.
Sriharsha Srinivas Sundarram
School of Engineering and Computing
Mechanical Engineering Department
Sriharsha Sundarram, PhD, is the Brinkman Family Foundation Professor of Micro and Nano Manufacturing. He received his PhD in Mechanical Engineering from The University of Texas at Austin. His research focus is on micro/nano manufacturing, specifically large-scale processing of advanced micro/nano-structured materials with applications in energy, thermal management and biomedicine. His current work is on use of metal triply periodic minimal surface (TPMS) lattices for space applications. Sundarram’s work has been published in high impact journals such as Advanced Engineering Materials and Polymer Engineering and Science. His work has been funded by Connecticut NASA Space Grant Consortium and Brinkman Foundation. He is also a recipient of the ÐÓ°ÉÔ°æ University’s Robert E. Wall Award in 2020 for his project on fabricating tissue scaffolds via microwave foaming. In addition to his service contributions to university and profession, he serves as the technical advisor and faculty mentor for ÐÓ°ÉÔ°æ University’s Off-Road Racing Team.
