Former U.S. Rep. Susan Brooks to join IU McKinney School of Law

Former U.S. Rep. Susan Brooks will join the Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law at IUPUI, Chancellor Nasser H. Paydar recently announced.
Brooks, an alumna of the school, will be appointed as distinguished scholar and ambassador at large. Among her various roles, Brooks will co-teach a course on law and leadership with former dean and Paul E. Beam Professor of Law Andrew R. Klein.
Herron’s summer exhibit spotlights faculty creativity
The Galleries at Herron School of Art and Design offers a glimpse into the diverse work of 35 faculty members who contribute to IUPUI’s intellectual culture and the Indianapolis arts community.
The exhibition, which opened June 22 and will be on display until Sept. 1, fills all of the school’s galleries in Eskenazi Hall.
The Biennial Faculty Exhibition, a four-decade tradition, showcases the outstanding work of the school’s nationally and internationally recognized art and design faculty. This year’s exhibition, which was postponed from 2020 due to the pandemic, includes more than 50 works from the studio practices and research projects of full-time, adjunct and visiting professors. The works includes animation, book arts, ceramics, fiber art, intermedia, painting, photography, printmaking, sculpture and written material.
Bantz-Petronio TRIP Award supports projects that alleviate health disparities
The 2021 Bantz-Petronio Translating Research into Practice Faculty Award recipient is Gerardo Maupome, an IUPUI TRIP Scholar with extensive expertise in public health and community-based translational research.
Maupome is the associate dean of research in the Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health. He has also conducted high-impact interdisciplinary and cross-disciplinary research that has generated new knowledge and positively influenced the health of residents in Indiana and beyond.
Future health care workers helping kids transform
IUPUI students and faculty members are spending time at Camp Mariposa-Aaron’s Place. It’s a year-round addiction prevention and mentoring program for youth affected by the substance use disorder of a family member.
“Listening to some of the students read their letters was such a poignant moment,” said Alan Alvarez, a fourth-year medical student at the Indiana University School of Medicine. “Despite their young age, it was clear that many of them knew how addiction changes a person, which sort of shocked me, to be honest, and they were able to vocalize how much they don’t like addiction and what it does to people around them.”
Seed library returns
The IUPUI University Library’s Seed Library is back for its third season, now offering basil, birdhouse gourd, catnip, cucumber, jalapeño, lavender and thyme seeds.
All are welcome to check out seeds at no cost by in-person pick-up at the University Library’s second-floor Service & Information Desk or by mail-in service.
The Seed Library is supported by IUPUI Sustainability’s Greening IUPUI Grant.
3 bike repair stations installed on campus
IUPUI now features three new bike repair stations to help mend any unforeseen issues. They are located on the east side of the Campus Center, southwest corner of North Hall and south patio of the Informatics and Communications Technology Complex.
Repair stations are equipped with Phillips and standard screwdrivers, steel core tire levers, headset/pedal wrench, 8/10mm cone wrench, 9/11mm cone wrench, torn t-25, hex key set and air pump.
Center for Research on Inclusion and Social Policy names interim director
Wanda Thruston, a clinical assistant professor and special assistant to the dean for diversity, equity and inclusion at the IU School of Nursing in Indianapolis, has been named the interim director of the Center for Research on Inclusion and Social Policy at the Indiana University Public Policy Institute.
Thruston is a doctor of nursing practice, pediatric nurse practitioner and registered nurse who worked in child, adolescent and family health for 40 years as a clinician, administrator, educator and advocate. She also served as a school board member for the Metropolitan School District of Washington Township from 2008 to 2020.
IU Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center launches monthly webinar
To better connect IU’s 250 cancer experts with the community, the Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center has launched “Simon Says Expert Series,” a monthly virtual event where the public can hear from cancer center experts about various topics and ask questions.
This month’s Simon Says Expert Series, “Waiting for the Other Shoe to Drop: Coping Effectively with Fear of Cancer Recurrence,” will take place at noon July 27 on Zoom.
IU Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center researcher Shelley Johns studies fear of recurrence. In this Simon Says session, she will discuss how her research seeks to support survivors in coping effectively when struggling with anxiety related to “waiting for the other shoe to drop.”
Register now and submit questions.
To view past webinars, submit a suggestion for a future topic, or learn more about the monthly series, visit the Simon Says website.
IUPUI Staff Council executive committee election results
The 63 elected members of the IUPUI Staff Council, who represent the interests of over 4,400 staff constituents, concluded executive elections in early June.
Filling the IUPUI Staff Council Executive Committee seats are:
- Second vice president: Beth Chaisson.
- Corresponding secretary: Leslie Albers.
- Members-at-large: Tricia Edwards, Aaron Fields and Julie Garringer.
David Hanson will remain as a member-at-large, and president Lindsey Mosier appointed Alicia Gahlmer as parliamentarian.
To find out more information or how to get involved, visit the IUPUI Staff Council website.
Newest webinar from TRIP Center
Professor Becky Liu-Lastres is the featured speaker for this month’s Scholar of the Month Community Dialogue Speaker Series presented by the IUPUI TRIP Center. The webinar is scheduled from noon to 1 p.m. July 23.
Liu-Lastres’ presentation is called “Are We Always Prepared? Examining Risk and Crisis Management in Tourism and Hospitality.”
Registration is required for the event.
Faculty member’s documentary chosen for Indy Shorts film festival
School of Informatics and Computing senior lecturer C. Thomas Lewis recently had his short documentary “The Long Run: Wes Doty’s New Life” chosen by the Heartland Film Festival for inclusion in the Indy Shorts International Film Festival this year.
An IUPUI Arts and Humanities Institute grant enabled Lewis and Kyle Minor, associate chair and associate professor of English at IUPUI, to document stories tied to the HIV outbreak and opioid epidemic in Indiana.
IUPUI Staff Council teaming with Versiti Blood Centers for blood drive
IUPUI isn’t hosting blood drives on campus during the summer and is encouraging the campus community to participate in its drive.
Visit the Versiti Blood Centers online portal to schedule an appointment, making sure to type “IUPUI” in the note section.
Jagstart announces its 2 winners
JagStart, an annual workshop series and pitch competition that helps IUPUI students bring their innovations to life, recently announced its two grand prize winners.
Anna Dorris, a finance major, won the grand prize for Everewear, which brings a curated shopping experience to the secondhand clothing marketplace.
The team of Gabriela Jones, Carter Mettler, Benjamin Wolfe and Nicholas Wright was named the grand prize and audience choice winner for their idea, Buzz Buddy, which is described as Gas Buddy for alcohol.
IU School of Medicine looking for volunteers
Those who experience abdominal pain with diarrhea or constipation, or who have been diagnosed with irritable bowel syndrome, may be eligible for a research study on IBS being conducted by faculty at the Division of GI and Hepatology in the IU School of Medicine.
Those who qualify will receive compensation for their time and participation. Call the GI Study Team at 317-278-9296 or email gisurvey@iupui.edu for more information.
July photo caption contest

Belly up to the food bar and enter your captions for a vintage IUPUI photo in the Photo Caption Contest for July. This month’s photo is from 2003 and pictures people who look amazingly like Chancellor Nasser Paydar and Dean Oner Yurtseven. What are they saying to each other in the photo? You decide!
Post your captions to the photo, and you could win Special Collections and Archives’ Fabulous Prize. Check out more IUPUI photos in the IUPUI Image Collection.
We congratulate Jim Oppold for his winning caption for June’s photo: “It’s amazing how all the Johnsons resembled their mother.”