Current Dissertation Defenses

September 2024

Candidate: Hassan Shirzadi
For the degree of: Doctor of Philosophy
Department: Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Title: Synthesis, Characterization and Testing of Graphene-Based Materials for Proton-Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell Catalysts
Committee: Dr. Muralidhar Ghantasala, Chair, Dr. Ramakrishna Guda, Dr. Bade Shrestha, 
Dr. Elena Rozhkova
Time/Place: Wednesday, September 11, 2024, 3 to 5 p.m., Virtual Meeting

Candidate: Sean F. Gaffney
For the degree of: Doctor of Philosophy
College: Education and Human Development
Title: From Pages to Pixels: Library Workers’ Perceptions of Power in the Digital Era
Committee: Dr. David Szabla, Chair, Dr. Beixi Li, Dr. Margaret Gorman
Time/Place: Friday, September 27, 2024, 1 to 3 p.m., Virtual Meeting

Candidate: Shelley L. Esman
For the degree of: Doctor of Philosophy
Department: English
Title: Picturing the Teaching of the Holocaust
Committee: Dr. Jonathan Bush, Chair, Dr. Cheryl Almeda, Dr. Meghann Meeusen
Time/Place: Friday, September 27, 2024, 2 to 4 p.m., Virtual Meeting

Candidate: Anezka Viskova-Robertson
For the degree of: Doctor of Philosophy
College: Education and Human Development 
Title: Exploring the Impacts of AI Integration on Workplace Well-being: An Exploratory 
Case Study
Committee: Dr. David Szabla, Chair, Dr. Beixi Li, Dr. Kuanchin Chen
Time/Place: Monday, September 30, 2024, 10 to noon, Virtual Meeting

October 2024

Candidate: Vanessa Hills
For the degree of: Doctor of Philosophy
College: Education and Human Development 
Title: The Unconscious at Work: A Psychosocial Study of Leaders’ Unconscious Processes Impacting Participatory Change Leadership
Committee: Dr. David Szabla, Chair, Dr. Beixi Li, Dr. Susan Long
Time/Place: Tuesday, October 1, 2024, 7 to 9 p.m., Virtual Meeting

Candidate: Cameron Hays
For the degree of: Doctor of Philosophy
Department: Interdisciplinary Health Sciences Ph.D. Program
Title: Public Health Implications of State-Level Public Health Organizational and System Structures
Committee: Dr. Rob Lyerla, Chair, Dr. Kieran Fogarty, Dr. Jessica Cataldo
Time/Place: Thursday, October 3, 2024, 10 a.m. to noon, Virtual Meeting

Candidate: Alyssa Jewell
For the degree of: Doctor of Philosophy
Department: English
Title: Creature Constellation
Committee: Alen Hamza, Ph.D., Chair, Thisbe Nissen, M.F.A., Jil Larson, Ph.D., 
Gina Franco, M.F.A.
Time/Place: Monday, October 14, 2024, 12:30 to 2:30 p.m., Virtual Meeting

Candidate: M. Muchson
For the degree of: Doctor of Philosophy
Department: Mallinson Institute for Science Education
Title: The Science Education Research Trends (SERT) in Indonesian Secondary Schools: A Series of Research Synthesis Studies
Committee: Dr. William Cobern, Chair, Dr. Betty Adams, Dr. Beixi Li
Time/Place: Monday, October 14, 2024, 6 to 8 p.m., 1408 Wood Hall

Candidate: Natalie Wagner
For the degree of: Doctor of Philosophy
Department:  Educational Leadership, Research and Technology
Title: Understanding the Experience of Being Food Insecure at an Independent 
College or University
Committee: Dr. Regina Garza Mitchell, Chair, Dr. Donna Talbot, Dr. Amy Radford-Popp
Time/Place: Tuesday, October 15, 2024, 10 a.m. to noon, Virtual Meeting

Candidate: Mark Omwansa
For the degree of: Doctor of Philosophy
Department: Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Title: Faulty Perception Correction of Autonomous Vehicles in Real-Life Driving Scenarios
Committee: Dr. Rick Meyer, Chair, Dr. Damon Miller, Dr. Lee Wells, Dr. Zachary Asher
Time/Place: Tuesday, October 15, 2024, 1 to 3 p.m., F 115 Floyd Hall

Candidate: Shahana Afsar
For the degree of: Doctor of Philosophy
Department: English
Title: Jagg Beeti
Committee: Thisbe Nissen, M.F.A., Chair, Todd Kuchta, Ph.D., Jil Larson, Ph.D, 
Hannah Lillith Asaadi, M.F.A.
Time/Place: Monday, October 21, 2024, noon to 2 p.m., 3025 Brown Hall

Candidate: Anwar V. Thomas
For the degree of: Doctor of Philosophy
College: Education and Human Development
Title: Navigating Accessibility in Distance Education: A Multi-Method Analysis of Online Discourse Among Postsecondary Disability Resource Professionals During the 
Covid-19 Pandemic
Committee: Dr. Brian Horvitz, Chair, Dr. Elyse Connors, Dr. Beixi Li
Time/Place: Monday, October 21, 2024, 2 to 4 p.m., Virtual

Candidate: Grace Boda
For the degree of: Doctor of Philosophy
College: Education and Human Development 
Title: Leadership Ways of the Three Fires Anishinaabek
Committee: Dr. Tova Sanders, Chair, Dr. Dee Sherwood, Dr. Linda Keway
Time/Place: Friday, October 25, 2024, 10 a.m. to noon, Virtual Meeting

Candidate: Ronnie McMillian
For the degree of: Doctor of Philosophy
Department:  Educational Leadership, Research and Technology
Title: An Exploration of the Experiences that Influenced Black Males to Become Information Technology Professionals
Committee: Dr. Louann Bierlein Palmer, Chair, Dr. Regina Garza Mitchell, Dr. Victor Henry
Time/Place: Monday, October 28, 2024, 10 a.m. to noon, Virtual Meeting

Candidate: Merrilyn Yeboah
For the degree of: Doctor of Philosophy
Department: Psychology
Title: The Effect of Performance-Contingent Monetary Rewards on Creativity, Intrinsic Interest and Autonomy
Committee: Dr. Heather McGee, Chair, Dr. Jonathan Baker, Dr. Ron Van Houten, Dr. Douglas Johnson, Dr. Janet Twyman
Time/Place: Wednesday, October 30, 2024, 1 to 3 p.m., Virtual Meeting

Candidate: Joanne Susan Roehm
For the degree of: Doctor of Philosophy
College: Education and Human Development 
Title: Mothering, Leadership and Career: A Narrative Analysis
Committee: Dr. Tova Sanders, Chair, Dr. Jennifer Bott, Dr. Leah Omillon-Hodges
Time/Place: Thursday, October 31, 2024, 2 to 4 p.m., Virtual Meeting

Candidate: Neha Sawant
For the degree of: Doctor of Philosophy
Department: Chemical and Paper Engineering
Title: Advanced Material Manufacturing Obtained from Natural Products for 
Wastewater Treatment
Committee: Dr. Mert Atilhan, Chair, Dr. James Springstead, Dr. Priyanka Sharma, Dr. Matt Reeves
Time/Place: Thursday, October 31, 2024, 2:30 to 4:30 p.m., D-132 Floyd Hall, Parkview Campus

November 2024

Candidate: Masoud Panahi
For the degree of: Doctor of Philosophy
Department: Electrical and Computer Engineering
Title: Intelligent Health Monitoring Systems via Flexible Hybrid Electronics 
and Machine Learning
Committee: Dr. Massood Atashbar, Chair, Dr. Bradly Bazuin, Dr. Daryl Lawson, Dr. Simin Masihi, Dr. Dinesh Maddipatla
Time/Place: Friday, November 1, 2024, noon to 2 p.m., B-211 Floyd Hall, Parkview Campus

Candidate: Sean Derrick
For the degree of: Doctor of Philosophy
College: Engineering and Applied Sciences
Title: Using Resin-Bonded Hollow Aluminosilicate Microspheres to Create Patternless Molds for Rapid Casting
Committee: Dr. Sam Ramrattan, Chair, Dr. Pavel Ikonomov, Dr. Lee Wells
Time/Place: Friday, November 1, 2024, 1 to 3 p.m., C-141 Floyd Hall

Candidate: Aya Hassouneh
For the degree of: Doctor of Philosophy
Department: Electrical and Computer Engineering
Title: Multimodal Feature Fusion and AI-Drive Framework for Early Detection of 
Alzheimer’s Disease
Committee: Dr. Ikhlas Abdel-Qader, Chair, Dr. Bradley Bazuin, Dr. Alessander Santos, Dr. Saad Shebrain, Dr. Ilgin Acar
Time/Place: Tuesday, November 12, 2024, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., B-211 Virtual Meeting

Candidate: Dale Brown
For the degree of: Doctor of Philosophy
Department: PhD in Interdisciplinary Studies
Title: DeadTime in the Vale of Soul-Making: Hermeneutics, Humanization, and Higher Education in Prison
Committee: Dr. Dini Metro-Roland, Chair, Dr. Paul Farber, Dr. Fritz Allhoff, Dr. June Gothberg
Time/Place: Friday, November 22, 2024, 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., 3205 Sangren Hall

Candidate: Ahmed Badawy
For the degree of: Doctor of Philosophy
Department: Geological and Environmental Sciences
Title: Integrated Studies for A Better Understanding of the Nature of Extreme Precipitation Events Over the Nile Basin and its Optimum Utilization in Egypt
Committee: Dr. Mohamed Sultan, Chair, Dr. Peter Voice, Dr. Adam Milewski
Time/Place: Tuesday, November 26, 2024, 9 to 11 a.m., 2911 Wood Hall

December 2024

Candidate: Nadia C. Brigham
For the degree of: Doctor of Philosophy
Department: Sociology
Title: Deconstructing the Myth of the “Happy Niggra”: Using Critical Discourse Analysis and Constructed Grounded Theory to Examine the Sociocultural Transmission of 
Internalized Anti-Blackness
Committee: Dr. Angie Moe, Chair, Dr. Jesse Smith, Dr. Charles Crawford, Dr. Regis Fox
Time/Place: Wednesday, December 11, 2024, 10 a.m. to noon, 3205 Sangren Hall
 

Previous dissertation defenses have been digitized and archived by the Western Michigan University Libraries ScholarWorks Dissertations page. Use the advance search located on the left side of the page to get dissertations sorted by author, subject, department, year published, and more.