Fisher Campus Community Making Headlines
March 20, 2026
Faculty, staff, and students at St. John Fisher University achieve, create, and motivate through their work every day. Here’s a round-up of recent accomplishments.
Research and Scholarship
Several faculty from Wegmans School of Nursing the Wegmans School of Nursing have contributed to the award-winning book, the 12th edition of “The Lippincott Manual of Nursing Practice.” Dr. Lori Dambaugh, associate dean for undergraduate affairs, served as the clinical editor for the book, writing and revising four chapters. Dr. Natalie Masco Dixon, associate professor and graduate program chair; Dr. Tara Sacco, chair of graduate affairs; Dr. Alison Simpson, associate professor and chair of the undergraduate nursing program; Dr. Pam Mapstone, associate professor; and Dr. Kylene Abraham, associate professor, also reviewed and revised chapters according to their expertise. The book was awarded second place in the 2025 AJN (American Journal of Nursing) with the Book of the Year Award in the Medical-Surgical Nursing category and selected as a Doody’s Core Title for 2025. A Doody’s Core title is a highly recommended book or software in the health sciences, selected by expert librarians and content specialists as essential for building a core collection for a medical library.
Dr. Anthony C. Siracusa presented at the African American Intellectual History Society (AAIHS) conference in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on March 20 with Fisher alumni and community partners. The presentation was part of the ongoing partnership between Siracusa and Memorial AME Zion church in Rochester, the city’s oldest African American congregation. Siracusa has worked with students in the 4990 Cardinal Experience for three semesters to write the history of Rochester’s oldest Black church.
A novel written by Associate Professor of English Dr. Melissa Bissonette has been shortlisted in a First Chapters contest from the Historical Novel Society. Titled “Goodfellowe,” this is Bissonette’s second novel.
Becky Leathersich, chair of the library media specialist program, presented “More than a checkbox: Evaluating Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) youth literature with the APALA Rubric” at the SUNY Geneseo Literacy Teachers’ Day in March. She was also invited to present at the upcoming New York State English Council Spring Conference in April to share “More than a checkbox: APALA’s Evaluation Rubric for Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) youth literature.” In addition, she has authored a manuscript that is in production called “Eyes turn to adoptees: A critical content analysis of Eyes That Weave the World’s Wonders. Research on Diversity in Youth Literature.”
Professor and Associate Dean of the Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. School of Education Dr. Whitney Rapp has presented at several conferences this semester. In January, she presented “Celebrating neurodiversity: Supporting social growth and sensory well-being” at Allendale Columbia School in Pittsford. In February, she was a presenter at the Antiracist Education Conference and delivered her talk “Executive function: A culturally responsive perspective.” Just last week, she presented “Celebrating neurodiversity: A deeper dive into supports and strategies for middle/high school students” and “Celebrating neurodiversity: A deeper dive into supports and strategies for elementary school students” for staff at Allendale Columbia School.
In February, Rapp and Dean of the School of Education Dr. Joellen Maples presented a session at the annual conference of the Association for Independent Liberal Arts Colleges for Teacher Education (AILACTE) titled, “Expanding a successful teacher pipeline program: Reflections and future plans.” The conference took place in New Orleans. Maples also co-presented a session at the conference titled “A Program Evaluation of a University/District Teacher Pipeline Obstacles and Success” at the conference.
Dr. Angela Clark-Taylor, associate professor in the School of Education, presented “From faculty-centric to institution-wide: Expanding mentorship in higher education for women staff” at the American Educational Research Association Conference in Los Angeles.
Awards and Appointments
Dr. Kermin Martínez-Hernández, associate professor of chemistry, has been appointed to the Graduate Students and Postdoctoral Scholars Advisory Board (GSPSAB), a specialized subgroup of the Society Committee on Education (SOCED) from the American Chemical Society (ACS). ACS is a non-profit scientific organization with more than 145 years of experience, a champion for chemistry, its practitioners, and the global community of members. The GSPSAB serves a critical role in the scientific community, focusing on the professional and academic development of the next generation of researchers. In this new role, Martínez-Hernández will provide strategic input on the development and execution of the subgroup goals.
In honor of Black History Month, an updated profile about Fisher’s Media Center Director Cecil Felton was published in “African American Who’s Who, Past & Present: Greater Rochester Area.” Felton’s original bio appeared in the 1998 edition when he was the executive director of Rochester Community TV, Inc., cable channel 15 in Rochester. He is approaching his 20-year anniversary at Fisher, and oversees the media technology infrastructure, supports faculty and student production, and ensures that the department facilities keep pace with industry standards. He also teaches three courses each semester, rotating among Cinematography and Editing, Studio Production, Production Essentials, and Television Practicum, and he occasionally steps in to teach additional courses such as Video Storytelling, Documentary Production, Independent Studies, and Honors.
Kate Torok, chief marketing and communications officer, was named a finalist in the 2026 Athena Awards presented by the Greater Rochester Chamber of Commerce. The event took place on Feb. 5 at the Rochester Riverside Convention Center. Torok was a finalist in the Young Professional Award category, which recognizes emerging female leaders who demonstrate excellence, creativity, and initiative in their business or profession and serve as role models for young women personally and professionally.
In Other News
During spring break, 12 library directors from across the country visited the renovated Facility Highlights for the annual seminar of the College Library Director Mentoring Program. Directed by Melissa Jadlos, director of Lavery Library, and Lisa Johnston, director of library services at Eckerd College, the program has been mentoring new directors for over 30 years. This year’s cohort included participants from Washington, California, Arkansas, and Illinois.
Do You Have Noteworthy News to Share?
Tell us all about it! Fill out the News and Events Submission Form, and we will gladly include your accomplishments in an upcoming issue of Fisher News Highlights.