FACULTY FOCUS Spotlighting JMU professors through the lenses of scholarship, awards and service Chelsey Bahlmann Bollinger EDUCATION
Ben Selznick
STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP STUDIES Dr. Bollinger, associate professor in the College of Education, and Dr. Selznick, associate professor in the School of Strategic Leadership Studies, recently published their article, Training Educators, Not Chatbots: Preparing AI-Responsible Teachers, in Forbes. The piece explores what higher education can and should be doing in the age of artificial intelligence, particularly how educators can integrate AI into communication and literacy instruction responsibly. Selznick and Bollinger emphasize that teacher-preparation programs should help future educators strike a balance — leveraging AI tools while preserving human connection, fostering relationships and exercising professional judgment.
Rachel Grimsby
MUSIC EDUCATION Dr. Grimsby, assistant professor of music education, coauthored chapters in two handbooks recently published by Oxford University Press. The first, Re-Emergence of PrePandemic Issues for Women in Academia: Music Teacher Educator Mothers’ Perspectives, was published in Motherhood in the Music Education Academy. The second, Music Education From the Child’s Perspective, was published in The Oxford Handbook of Special Music Education and Music Therapy.
Ray Enke
BIOLOGY Dr. Enke, professor of biology, has been leading the project BioDiversity and Informatics for Genomics Scholars (BioDIGS), which includes a team of 150 researchers from dozens of institutions, including many students who are working to map the soil microbiome of the entire United States. Their paper, Unearthing Soil Biodiversity Through Collaborative Genomic Research and Education, announced the group’s preliminary activities in the December 2025 edition of the journal Nature Genetics. The work includes co-authorship by five JMU students, five former Harrisonburg High School students and retired HHS biotechnology teacher Myron Blosser, all of whom participated in the project as part of an ongoing course-based research project, Enke’s BIO 480: Advanced Molecular Biology Lab.
Doug Hochstetler
KINESIOLOGY Dr. Hochstetler, associate dean in the College of Health and Behavioral Studies and professor of kinesiology, received the 2026 Distinguished Administrator Award from the National Association for Kinesiology in Higher Education. This honor goes to a higher-education kinesiology or physical education administrator who, through the application of administrative/managerial skills, has made significant contributions to the profession and/or related fields, within and beyond the higher-education community.
ENKE PHOTOGRAPH BY CODY TROYER; FINNEY BY RACHEL HOLDERMAN
“We’re already on the national stage. How do we take the national spotlight?” — DR. JAMES C. SCHMIDT, president
Sara Finney and Brian Leventhal
GRADUATE PSYCHOLOGY Elaine Kaye and Nicole Wilson LIBRARIES The journal Practical Assessment, Research, and Evaluation recently published Educational Measurement and Equity: The Evolution of Our Graduate Program, co-authored by four faculty members: two from Graduate Psychology — associate professor Dr. Leventhal and professor Dr. Finney — and two from JMU Libraries — associate professors Elaine Kaye and Nicole Wilson. The three-year project included the creation and evaluation of a faculty professional development course aimed at creating a culture within an educational measurement graduate program that acknowledges the history and current practices of the field, and supports faculty and students in using assessment and methods for good rather than harm.
Valerie Linsinbigler and Malia Willey
LIBRARIES Two recent books by JMU librarians demonstrate their expertise and leadership in information literacy. Linsinbigler, assistant professor and business librarian, co-authored Instructional Design for Teaching Information Literacy Online: A Student-Centered Approach. The book offers a learner-centered framework for designing online information-literacy instruction that supports students’ social and emotional needs. Published by the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) in 2025, Linsinbigler’s book reflects the Libraries’ integrated expertise in librarianship, educational technology and instructional design. Willey, professor and collection development librarian, co-edited Teaching Information Literacy by Discipline: Using and Creating Adaptations of the Framework, which explores how disciplinary contexts shape the teaching of information literacy. Building on a foundational tool of librarianship, the Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education, her book offers models for learning outcomes, research guides, assignments and curricula. Published by the ACRL in 2025, this book is a valuable resource for academic librarians and instructors across disciplines. S P R I N G /S U M M E R
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