Faculty/Staff Spotlights

  1. April 15, 2024 A photo of Irina Bondarenko
    “I was keen on exploring this idea of beauty emerging despite injury or destruction.”

    — Irina Bondarenko, a statistician lead for the biostatistics department in the School of Public Health who grew up in Ukraine and has been inspired to create ceramic artwork honoring her homeland

    Read more about Irina Bondarenko
  2. April 8, 2024 A photo of a man with a squirrel on his head
    “Campus is one of the few places where squirrels run toward you, not away, and that’s just kind of charming and delightful and is a great joy.”

    — Corey Seeman, director of Kresge Library Services for the Stephen M. Ross School of Business, who is a squirrel aficionado who serves that population as the eradicator of mange

    Read more about Corey Seeman
  3. April 1, 2024 A photo of a woman and a horse
    “I would argue that for anyone who enjoys being around horses, it’s therapeutic, and riding provides awesome benefits for your body.”

    — Jenny Jones, a supervisor in the Medical School Office of Research, who is involved with Therapeutic Riding Inc., where she helps people with disabilities gain life lessons and foster independence by learning to ride horses

    Read more about Jenny Jones
  4. March 25, 2024 A photo of Piotr Westwalewicz
    “We are relentless in following the best coaching practices from around the world and always focus on building positive life habits.”

    — Piotr Westwalewicz, lecturer IV in Slavic languages and literatures in LSA who in 2005 founded Ann Arbor CRUSH, a youth soccer club that has grown from 15 players to hundreds

    Read more about Piotr Westwalewicz
  5. March 18, 2024 A photo of Isabel Wakefield
    “There are so many elements that can go right but can also go wrong. There’s a lot of variability even though it’s such a short race.”

    — Isabel Wakefield, research area specialist associate in the School of Kinesiology who is attempting to qualify for the Great Britain Olympic track and field team in the 100-meter hurdles

    Read more about Isabel Wakefield
  6. March 11, 2024 A photo of Rafael Marques
    “It’s a fun opportunity for me to travel to places which I love, and on the way, you make friends. I have friends all over the world.”

    — Rafael Marques, a program coordinator in the Stephen M. Ross School of Business’ Sanger Leadership Institute, who referees handball matches and tournaments around the world

    Read more about Rafael Marques
  7. March 4, 2024 A photo of Paul Schaffner
    “You’re organizing things to make them useful to people and presenting them in a way that allows unhindered access.”

    — Paul Schaffner, who manages the creation of electronic texts as well as the revision and upkeep of the university’s 90-year-old Middle English Dictionary, and also maintains a dollhouse at the Saline District Library and serves as the hardware team leader for the Kiwanis Thrift Store

    Read more about Paul Schaffner
  8. February 19, 2024 A photo of Michaelanne Thomas
    “The emphasis on finding tiny mundane ways to find joy in the everyday and be able to share that with other people is really the big takeaway for me.”

    — Michaelanne Thomas, assistant professor of information in the School of Information, who has a lifelong obsession with tiny things and it’s manifested in a wondrous practice that she shares with her two young sons

    Read more about Michaelanne Thomas
  9. February 12, 2024 A photo of Dana Muir
    “I love how calm it is when you’re in the water and things are quiet. You can’t talk to anyone, you’re just floating.”

    — Dana Muir, an Arthur F. Thurnau Professor, Robert L. Dixon Collegiate Professor of Business and professor of business law in the Stephen M. Ross School of Business who is an avid scuba diver

    Read more about Dana Muir
  10. February 5, 2024 A photo of Nick Moroz
    “The many teams that we play at The Henry Ford travel from all over the nation, particularly because it’s such a fantastic venue.”

    — Nick Moroz, director of entrepreneurial practice at the College of Engineering’s Center for Entrepreneurship, plays vintage base ball with Greenfield Village’s team the Lah-De-Dahs

    Read more about Nick Moroz