Faculty News

Psychology Professor John Howie, Ph.D., joined the University of Pikeville in 1991 as a teaching assistant, and shortly after, “Howie” became a familiar name around campus. He was promoted to associate professor in 2001 and full professor in 2009. Howie was the coordinator of the psychology program from 1999 to 2019, when he was diagnosed with cancer. Recognizing him for his years of service, the university bestowed upon him the honor and title of Faculty Emeritus during its 2020 Virtual Commencement Ceremony.

Upon graduating from Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania with a bachelor’s degree in philosophy, he began his journey into psychology at the Goethe Institute in Staufen im Breisgau and Schwäbisch Hall, Germany, in 1977. He studied analytical psychology at the C.G. Jung Institute and Zurich Universität in Switzerland in 1978, before taking root at the University of Dallas where he earned his Master of Arts in psychology and his Ph.D. in archetypal and phenomenological psychology.

“It’s fascinating to learn about the power of dreams, to discover patterns and themes that appear in them and to speculate their purpose in our lives,” Howie stated. “My teacher, James Hillman, taught me archetypal psychology. James Hillman was taught by Carl Jung, who was taught by Sigmund Freud, therefore, I am three degrees of separation from Sigmund Freud.”

Howie has traveled the globe extensively, gaining experience in psychology and developing his skills. When asked why he elected to come to UPIKE, his response was simply, “UPIKE chose me.”

The uniquely talented professor has inspired many students in his time at the university.

"Psychology was the first major that really clicked for me and I was fortunate enough to have a wonderful professor named John Howie,” said UPIKE alum Sara Adkins ’11. “He’s basically the stereotypical eccentric professor. Watching him jump around and change the color of the chalk as he changed topics while he taught made me realize this is what I wanted to do. He inspired me to pursue a career in psychology and earn my Ph.D.”

At age 68, he is turning the page to the next chapter of his life’s journey – retirement. Howie intends to stay in Pikeville with his family and continue his passion of ecopsychology by planting trees surrounding a local pond.

“This is what I want to do with my retirement,” he exclaimed as he spread his arms and looked at the pond’s potential. “I want this to be my legacy.”

In January, the 20 th annual International Meeting on Simulation in Healthcare, the world’s largest medical simulation conference with more than 4,000 participants, was held in San Diego.

Conference attendees had the opportunity to witness UPIKE’s own Danny Driskill, J.D., MCCP, FP-C, Joe Kingery, D.O., CPE, FAAFP, and Sarah Crawford, D.O., co-present a 60-minute panel presentation entitled “Carnival Disaster: Interprofessional Education via Mass- Casualty Simulation.”

The trio designed an Interprofessional Education (IPE) event based on the real-life 2017 Fireball carnival ride disaster at the Ohio State Fair. The created scenario involved a similar, fictitious disaster with 100 casualties at Pikeville’s Hillbilly Days Festival, with the purpose of educating students about working together in a crisis “so that if they ever really had a mass casualty disaster they would have worked out some of the ways a bad outcome could happen so that the most lives are saved,” said Crawford.

“We used 100 teddy bears positioned throughout a scale model of the carnival area to teach groups of medical, nursing, pharmacy, optometry and social work students the basics of triaging, treating and transporting patients during a mass-casualty incident,” explained Driskill. “They also learned to value the contributions each profession contributes to healthcare.”

After their scheduled IPE poster presentation for the annual conference of the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine was conducted online, due to COVID-19 restrictions, they were invited to upload the poster for inclusion in a special online publication of the Journal of the American Osteopathic Association.

Phillip Jen, Ph.D., professor of biology at UPIKE; Fadi Al Akhrass, M.D., FACP, MBA ’20 medical director of Infectious Diseases and Infection Control at Pikeville Medical Center; and a group of UPIKE students collaborated on a research project that examines the function of specific neurons in the human gallbladder. Their study, entitled “Immunohistochemical Characteristics of Ganglionated Plexuses,” was published in the January 2020 (Vol. 24 Number 1) issue of European Journal of Anatomy. One of their photomicrographs was also used on the cover of the issue.

Jen and Al Akhrass teamed up soon after Jen began teaching at UPIKE. With a strong background in research, Jen developed a lab at the university to engage students in scientific learning experiences.

After Al Akhrass provided tissue samples for the study, undergraduate students, under Jen’s instruction, cut the tissue, stained and coded slides, and helped map nerve patterns to better understand gallbladder conditions. The student group included Nathan Pray, Cassie Day, Lais M. de Oliveira, Jaymie Collins and Daniel Bosse-Joseph.

Jen said the research may be helpful in the development of drugs and treatment of certain gallbladder disorders. Al Akhrass also noted that the methodology of the study is the first of its kind.

Dana C. Shaffer, D.O., FACOFP dist., FAOGME, dean of the Kentucky College of Osteopathic Medicine, presented at the 2019 United States Osteopathic Medical Regulatory Summit, which landed him a co-author credit in the January 2020 (Vol. 120) issue of the Journal of the American Osteopathic Association (JAOA).

The primary goal of the summit, which was held February 28 – March 1, 2019, in Naples, Fla., was to discuss professional self-regulation and what patients expect of the profession as it sets standards for the osteopathic medical practice.

Shaffer, who also served a two-year term as chair of the National Board of Osteopathic Medical Examiners, spoke about COMLEX-USA, which features an evidence-based design for the distinctive practice of osteopathic medicine.

The JAOA article, titled “2019 United States Osteopathic Medical Regulatory Summit: Consensus, Recommendations, and Next Steps in Defining Osteopathic Distinctiveness.”

“I was honored to be involved in the planning and execution of this extremely important summit,” said Shaffer. “These discussions are defining how and why patients deserve the right to receive distinctive osteopathic medical care in the United States.”

Kentucky College of Optometry (KYCO) Professor Renee Reeder, O.D., FAAO, FBCLA, FSLS, FIACLE, has been providing comprehensive, advanced cornea care for patients struggling with corneal problems such as difficulty seeing, dry eye and corneal scarring.

Reeder is the sole clinical diplomate of the American Academy of Optometry in cornea and contact lenses in Kentucky. She sees an incredible need in the Appalachian region for the treatment of ocular diseases and is grateful that the area has access to technology and treatments at KYCO.

Dry eyes can cause discomfort, visual disruption and can cause inflammation and damage to the ocular surface.

Dry eye syndrome can range from subtle, constant eye irritation to significant inflammation and even scarring of the front surface of the eye and vision problems. If left untreated, dry eyes can make it difficult to perform everyday activities.

“Several patients had given up hope,” said Reeder. “Most patients had not had access to the technology we have at KYCO, and we have been able to help them determine some of the underlying general health conditions that could be causing their dry eyes.”

KYCO has access to instruments used to scan the quality of tears and help determine what type of dry eye a patient could be suffering from that could be linked to other diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, hepatitis or lupus.

UPIKE recently celebrated Reeder for her recognition by the International Association of Contact Lens Educators (IACLE) as the 2020 Educator of the Year for the Americas.

IACLE raises the standard of contact lens education and promotes the safe use of contact lenses worldwide.

Contact lens educators from six countries were acknowledged for their success from India, Malaysia, South Africa, the U.S., United Kingdom and Venezuela during the 2020 IACLE Awards.

Reeder graciously accepted the award.

“This is such exciting news and such an incredible honor. I am so thankful to know that I have colleagues all over the world with the same struggles who are always willing to share and help,” said Reeder. “I hope that I can serve as a resource for them as well.”

KYCO Dean Michael Bacigalupi, O.D., M.S., FAAO, FNAP, is proud of Reeder’s accomplishments and believes her honor is well deserved.

“Dr. Reeder is such an outstanding educator,” said Bacigalupi. “She has brought together the latest technology for contact lens fitting and ocular surface disease management to benefit both KYCO students and patients.”

The KYCO mission of defining the standard for excellence in optometric education and providing better access to quality eye care for rural Kentucky residents is what led Reeder to UPIKE.

“I was called to be at UPIKE. The mission at KYCO is what brought me here and the support is here to make a difference,” said Reeder. “We have state-ofthe-art technology and it is very rewarding to help folks have access to care in Appalachia.”

The Presidential Leadership Scholars (PLS) program announced that Josephine Owoeye, O.D., MPH, FAAO, assistant dean for student and professional development and associate professor of optometry at the Kentucky College of Optometry, has been selected as one of the 60 scholars in the program’s sixth annual class. PLS catalyzes a diverse network of leaders brought together to collaborate and make a difference in the world as they learn about leadership through the lens of the presidential experiences of George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush and Lyndon B. Johnson.

In 2017, UPIKE’s College of Nursing and Human Services Elliott School of Nursing faculty member and nurse practitioner Tauna Gulley began coauthoring a book about her mentor, friend and community champion, Sister Bernadette (Bernie) Kenny. The book, now published, is aptly named “Better for Being with You.”

Sister Bernie moved to Southwest Virginia from Ireland 40 years ago to begin missionary work in healthcare. Making an impact, however possible, she made keeping the “care” in healthcare her life’s work.

Gulley and Sister Bernie met when Gulley was an ICU nurse, and Sister Bernie was operating the Health Wagon to bring needed medical care and health education to remote areas of Southwest Virginia.

Gulley’s idea to begin the book began during a trip to Ireland for a conference. It was during that trip that Gulley was able to visit the motherhouse of the Medical Missionaries of Mary (MMM), where Sister Bernie had trained. When Gulley returned from Ireland she convinced Sister Bernie that they needed to write a book about her life and mission to work in the area.

Throughout the writing process, Sister Bernie’s focus was on education and learning. Gulley said that those principles were the only reasons Sister Bernie agreed to coauthor the book. She wanted her words and memories to help future students. The pair would meet on Sundays after church to begin writing and talking.

In addition to continuing her Health Wagon, which now includes multiple mobile units, Sister Bernie still attends health fairs and partners with local schools.

The forward for the book was written by award-winning author Adriana Trigiani, author of “Big Stone Gap.”

With each chapter, there are reflection questions for the reader. Gulley said it’s these opportunities to connect and reflect that make the book a philosophy of life and care.

Davenport Distinguished Professor of History and Political Science Nancy Cade, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology LeAnne Epling, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Communication Rachel Little, M.A., and Associate Professor of Communication Chandra Massner, M.A., joined forces through their desire to collaborate in an interdisciplinary project that would combine psychology, communication and political science.

The colleagues examined political communication on social media. They conducted an online survey and the results showed that participants with higher levels of autonomy more frequently shared political content on social media.

“It was truly a group effort,” Cade said. “The four of us each provided very specific knowledge bases and skills.”

Their research study, “The Psychology of Political Communication in Social Media: Using Social Media to be Global and Autonomous,” was recently published in The International Journal of Interdisciplinary Civic and Political Studies.

“While social media creates a global community, most social media users share content relating to local, state, or national issues as opposed to global issues,” Massner explained. “An interesting gender result was that men were more interested in national issues, while women were more interested in state issues. Overall, higher levels of self-determination were associated with more interest in politics at all levels of engagement.”

The group is very proud of their team effort.

“Working with my colleagues to produce meaningful research is one of the joys of my professional career. We work well together to blend our knowledge, experiences, and expertise to address interesting research questions,” Massner said. “I think the way we collaborate demonstrates the strength of our institution and division. Investigating social phenomena with these women is enlightening academically, professionally and personally.”