“Publication” Class Notes

Don Jenkins (Col ’71) published a book, The Lost Civil War Diary of John Rigdon King (Arcadia Publishing/The History Press) on Oct. 29, 2018. Jenkins wrote the book, a biography of a 17-year-old civilian from Hagerstown, Maryland, alongside the transcription of the civilian’s diary, after retiring from a lengthy career in public service.

David G. Rojohn (Engr ’74) contributed to a book by his sister, The Piggyback Flight Pilot’s Journey, which is about their father’s landing of two B17s simultaneously after a mid-air collision over the North Sea in World War II. The book, which chronicles Glenn Rojohn’s journey as a pilot, life as POW and the aftermath, was the result of several years of work and research and comes out a year before the event’s 75th anniversary.

Michael N. Widener (Col ’72 L/M) is adjunct professor of business law and ethics in the School of Business at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Prescott, Arizona. His paper, “Populist Placemaking: Grounds for Open Government-Citizen Spatial Regulation Discourse,” will be published in Vol. 119 of the West Virginia Law Review in early 2019.

Mark Scharf (Grad ’84 L/M) had three of his new plays recently published: The Quickening, his adaptation of H.G. Wells’ The Time Machine and his play Fortune’s Child. Visit his website for more information. 

Mike Ross (Col ’70, Law ’77 L/M) published two more collections of quotations. Ross’s Thoughtful Discoveries was published in Dec. 2017 and Ross’s Personal Discoveries in Nov. 2018, both by Rare Bird Press. The books are available on Amazon.

Betty Roberts (Nurs ’53) published Midnight Chronicles, which tells the story of a strong man’s journey as he deals with Alzheimer’s day after day. Told through the eyes of his nurse/caregiver/wife, it relates the effect on his life and on the lives of his family from the early, undiagnosed stage one to the disability of stage seven. A member of the Apollo Team who helped put the man on the moon, he now forgets how to live like a man on earth. 

Lisa Wechsler Childress (Col ’96) published the second edition of her book, The Twenty-First Century University: Developing Faculty Engagement in Internationalization (Peter Lang Publishers). The book identifies what successful universities have done to overcome endogenous challenges and successfully engage faculty in the internationalization process. Lisa’s husband, Trey Childress (Col ’97), is on sabbatical from Pepperdine University School of Law, where he has served as dean of faculty and professor of law, to serve as counselor on international law at the U.S. Department of State. Trey recently argued before the International Court of Justice in the Hague.

Lloyd Stamy (Col ’73 CM) has published a novel, Reunion of Strangers. The tale chronicles the lifelong relationship of an investment manager (and occasional CIA operative), and his former high school classmate, a world renowned psychologist, after they reconnect in surprising, rewarding and frightening ways. The story is one of unbridled, abiding passion for love and life itself. Stamy, an English major who lives in Pittsburgh, began writing full-time after retiring in 2013 following a decades-long career in the institutional investment business. Visit his author page for more information: www.amazon.com/author/lloyd.stamy

Cheryl Fuller-Bragg (Col ’78) co-authored a book, Maine Colonist, Nathaniel Fuller and Descendants: Including the Russ Family of Oxford County (GreenKids Press).

Cassie Premo Steele (Col ’89) published a new novel, The ReSisters (All Things That Matter Press) on Sept. 24, 2018. The book is based on current events in the news such as detention centers, the rise of nationalism in the public sphere, and violence against targeted groups spurred on by political rhetoric. But it was written before any of these events took place. In the month since its release, the book became No. 1 on Amazon’s bestseller list for new releases of children’s books about prejudice and racism. The ReSisters is available on Amazon.

Justin Humphreys (Col ’01) is publishing a new book, The Dr. Phibes Companion (Bearmanor Media) this fall. 

David Williams (Engr ’76) self-published two e-books. Philly Math: A Teacher’s Daily Stress provides a glimpse at the field of education through the lens of one day in which Williams commuted from the suburbs to teach high school math to inner city kids in Philadelphia. A Liberal’s Search for Truth, Justice and the American Way details his political consciousness through book reviews, analysis and letters to the editor.

Rich Tarbell (Col ’89) published Regarding Charlottesville Music (Richie Heart Publishing). The 300-plus page book of portrait photography covers more than 100 Charlottesville musicians alongside a supplemental oral history compiled from interviews. The timeline begins with The Casuals and Skip Castro and goes through 2018 with chapters on venues such as The Mineshaft and Trax as well as unexpected musical centers of influence like the Corner parking lot. Find out more here.

Robert C. Hauhart (Grad ’81), a professor in the department of society and social justice at Saint Martin’s University, has published his fifth book, a co-edited volume of literary essays titled European Writers in Exile (Lexington Books/Rowman and Littlefield). His monograph, The Lonely Quest, an analysis of the relation of self and society in the twenty-first century United States, will appear later this year from Routledge/Taylor and Francis.

Gregory Ashe (Col ’88, Law ’95 L/M) published his first collection of poetry, a chapbook titled Explorations (Finishing Line). The poems are reflections and observations on nature and life. Bookended by the poems Rotunda Dreams and Appalachian Dawn, the poem Western Explorations is a series of poemettes in which the author’s journey through several National Parks in the American West parallels a spiritual journey of the soul.

David D. Schein (Darden ’75, Educ ’05 L/M) published The Decline of America: 100 Years of Leadership Failures. 

Jason Zeitler (Col ’96) will publish his novella Like Flesh to the Scalpel (Running Wild Press) in November 2018. It will be sold as part of an anthology through Amazon and Powell’s. His short stories and narrative essays have previously appeared in Midwestern Gothic and other print and online magazines.

John Attanasio (Col ’76 L/M) published Politics and Capital: Auctioning the American Dream (Oxford) in May 2018. The book explores five ideas the author considers to be critical to addressing problems besetting the American political and economic systems.

Fritz R. Franke (Com ’83 L/M) published his second novel from The Savior Project series, Terlokya. The novel charts the covertly trained existence of Chris Gates from his planned birth in 1966 to childhood to baseball star to U.S. senator, his life unfolds on Earth, guided, shaped, and rescued by “those who have watched over us” — before he is extracted by our protectors to be trained to lead Earth.

Scott Horton (Col ’02, Law ’05) published his first book, New York Management Law:The Practical Guide to Employment Law for Business Owners and Managers (Modern Legal Media). He also recently celebrated the first anniversary of his law firm, Horton Law. 

Don Zillman (Law ’73) published two books. He co-wrote Living the World War, Vol. Two (Vandeplas Publishers), which is a week by week study of America’s participation in World War I using sources like The New York Times and the Congressional Record. He was also an editor of Innovation in Energy Law and Technology (Oxford University Press), in which 37 legal scholars examine the technological and legal changes that are driving the world economy.

Heather D. Curtis (Col ’91 L/M) published Holy Humanitarians: American Evangelicals & Global Aid (Harvard University Press, 2018). The book examines the crucial role popular religious media played in the extension of US philanthropy at home and abroad from the late nineteenth to the early twentieth century. Curtis is an Associate Professor of Religion at Tufts University. She is also the director of the American Studies Program and an affiliated faculty in history, international religions and the Tisch College of Civic Life.

Neva Bryan (Col ’89 L/M) is among the poets, essayists and fiction writers published in the 2018 volume of the Anthology of Appalachian Writers, for which New York Times bestselling author Wiley Cash served as editorial adviser. This year’s volume includes the work of two state poet laureates. Bryan is the author of three novels and a collection of short stories and poems. 

Caitlin L. Ryan (Col ’01) has published Reading the Rainbow: LGBTQ-Inclusive Literacy Instruction in the Elementary Classroom. Drawing on several years of research by Ryan and her co-author, Jill Hermann-Wilmarth, the book uses examples of teaching from a wide range of elementary classrooms to explain why and how LGBTQ-inclusive literacy instruction is possible, relevant and necessary in grades K–5. Ryan is currently an associate professor of reading education in the College of Education at East Carolina University in Greenville, North Carolina.

Ashley Ellington Brown (Col ’90) published her first book, A Beautiful Morning: How a Morning Ritual Can Feed Your Soul and Transform Your Life (Leo Press), on Feb. 22, 2018. Brown interviewed more than 20 successful women, including New York Times best-selling author and life coach Martha Beck. The women discuss how their morning routines enable them to steer their lives with purpose and experience more joy, and provide suggestions for the reader on how to create a personally meaningful morning ritual.

Christina Dalcher (Col ’89) will publish her first novel, published by Berkley Books (Penguin Random House), on Aug. 21, 2018. While VOX imagines a world where women are only allowed to speak 100 words a day, it also examines language as the basis of our humanity, and freedom of speech as a right to be treasured.

Frank B. Connolly (Arch ’72) has published a second book, Hidden Agendas Inside Town Hall. The novel follows the fighting and political shenanigans that take place in an imaginary Connecticut community as it struggles with a proposed land development. Mr. Connolly’s first book, Local Government in Connecticut, 3rd Edition, was published in 2013 by Wesleyan University Press and won the press’s 2013 Driftless Award for an outstanding book on a Connecticut topic or written by a Connecticut author.

Susan Perng Pan (Engr ’91 L/M) and Michael Tobin (Col ’11), authored a case law reference, The Essential Case Law Guide to PTAB Trials. Ms. Pan is a partner with Sughrue Mion, where Mr. Tobin is an associate. The book, co-authored with their Sughrue colleagues, is the first comprehensive text on decisions of the U.S. Patent Office regarding the newest form of administrative law practice before that agency. Through analysis and summary of the Patent Trial and Appeal Board’s decisions, the text identifies boundaries of the organization’s rules, providing guidance for handling these highly specialized matters before the U.S. Patent Office. The book, available here, will be published by the American Bar Association’s section on intellectual property law.

Tony Covington (Col ’90) self-published a memoir, I Am Underdog: A Journey of Adversity & Blessings on May 18, 2017.

Paula HIll Jasinski (Col ’89 L/M) and her husband published the Chesapeake Bay Ecosystem Atlas, a digital environmental text focused on the Chesapeake Bay region. Produced with funding from and in collaboration with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the text uses the organization’s science and research from around the Chesapeake Bay to explain how the ecosystem works, including chapters on the bay’s formation, connections between water quality and precipitation, food web interactions, climate change, and more. The atlas is being used by schools throughout the Chesapeake Bay region and is available to download for free on iTunes.

Jodie Rundle Berndt (Col ’84 L/M) published Praying the Scriptures for Your Adult Children in December 2017 (HarperCollins/Zondervan). A follow-up to the bestselling Praying the Scriptures for Your Children and Praying the Scriptures for Your Teens, the new book became an Amazon Bestseller in its first week—probably because of Chapter 17 (which talks about UVA) and Chapter 10 (which is where parents can pray that their kids will get a job)! Ms. Berndt and her husband, Robert (Col ’85 L/M), have four adult children—all Wahoos!—and two sons-in-law who (sigh) graduated from Virginia Tech.

Linsey Davis (Col ’99), an Emmy award-winning journalist and ABC News correspondent, has published The World is Awake: A Celebration of Everyday Blessings (Zonderkidz), an inspirational picture book that encourages children to celebrate and be thankful for the everyday blessings of life.The lyrical, rhyming story, intended to make young children feel joyful and safe, is paired with bright and engaging illustrations to inspire children to see the extraordinary in an ordinary day. The book is available for preorder now and will be in bookstores February 6th. For more information visit the Ms. Davis’ website.