Zingher, Chaichian Named Recipients of
Mount Mercy College Feld Endowed Chair Awards
CEDAR
RAPIDS, Iowa (February 13, 2008) – Mount Mercy College Professor
of Social Work Dr. Richard A. Zingher has been named the recipient
of the 2008-2010 Dr. Thomas R. Feld Endowed Chair I for Teaching
Excellence, and Professor of Sociology Dr. Mohammad A. Chaichian
has been named the recipient of the 2008-2010 Dr. Thomas R. Feld
Endowed Chair II for Teaching Excellence in the Core Curriculum.
“The
Feld Endowed Chair awards, named after former Mount Mercy President
Dr. Thomas R. Feld, are a wonderful opportunity for Mount Mercy
to honor the dedication to teaching of its distinguished faculty,”
says Mount Mercy President Christopher Blake. “Our community
of scholars is truly the heart of our institution, and we are
delighted that the Feld Endowed Chair awards provide the College
an opportunity to honor those who are expert at facilitating the
learning process.”
Award recipients
receive an annual one-course reduction in teaching, an annual
stipend, and a support fund for research. Responsibilities include
being available to colleagues seeking assistance with their teaching,
as well as facilitating at least one annual workshop of their
choice focusing on an aspect of classroom pedagogy. Each term
length is two years.
Zingher began
teaching social work at Mount Mercy in 1990 after earning his
Master’s degree in Social Work from the Rutgers University.
Before coming to Mount Mercy, Zingher spent 13 years as a clinical
social worker and family therapist. Zingher’s community
service presentation, How Dads Make a Difference, examines how
fathers affect different areas of child development, focuses on
four areas particularly critical for fatherhood, and looks at
the benefits men derive from fatherhood.
Chaichian
has been a professor of sociology at Mount Mercy since 1994. He
earned his Ph.D. from Michigan State University. He has been named
a Research Fellow and grant recipient several times, including
serving as a Research Fellow and Grant Recipient for the National
Endowment for the Humanities Summer Institute 2007. Chaichian
has also received a grant from the National Collegiate Honors
Council, Portz Fund in 2003-2004. Chaichian has published numerous
articles and books on contemporary Iran, immigration issues, urban
political economy, and race relations, and has conducted workshops
and given talks about the Middle East, particularly the Palestinian-Israeli
conflict. His book, Town and Country in the Middle East before
the Age of Globalization: Dependent Urbanization in Iran and Egypt,
will be published by Lexington Books in 2008.
Located
in Cedar Rapids, Iowa Mount Mercy College is a Catholic College
providing student-focused baccalaureate education in the spirit
of the Sisters of Mercy.
Contacts:
Stacey Jones, Assistant Director of Marketing
(319) 368-6475, sjones@mtmercy.edu
Molly Altorfer, Director of Communications and Marketing
(319) 368-6475, maltorfer@mtmercy.edu
