News & Events

Merrimack Assistant Professor Dan Vlahos, a founding member of Design Museum Everywhere, has recently been selected to serve a three-year term on the Design Museum Council for the Design Museum Foundation.

The Business of Emotions in Modern History is a peer-reviewed book that features a range of essays that explore the intersection of business and emotions throughout history, which includes an original work authored by Dr. Debra Michals, assistant professor and director of women’s and gender studies.

Assistant professor of graphic design,Dan Vlahos, MFA, was elected for membership to the prestigiousSociety of Printersin Boston, Massachusetts. Established in 1905, the Society is dedicated to the study and advancement of the art of printing.

Dr. Melissa Zimdars, associate professor in the Department of Communication and media studies, recently published Medicalized Reality Weight-Loss Television and the Negotiation of Neoliberalism on My 600 Pound Life. Within the article, Zimdars considers how one of these shows, My 600 Pound Life (2012), negotiates and de-centers discourses of neoliberalism through medicalization and spectacle.

Sociology Associate Professor Daniel Herda presented his research on interpersonal contact between immigrants and citizens at the American Sociological Association virtual conference.

Mish Zimdars, associate professor of communication and media, has recently published a chapter in The Social Media Debate: Unpacking the Social, Psychological, and Cultural Effects of Social Media that focuses on how political disinformation masquerades as local news online and across social media.

Kirstie Dobbs, assistant professor of practice in political science and public policy, was invited to the Youth Without Representation Workshop hosted by the University of Ottawa to present her research on youth involvement in political parties worldwide. In addition, Dobbs also attended the American Political Science Association Conference in Montreal to present her research on a youth civic engagement summer program called Youth Voice – a collaboration between Merrimack professors, the Merrimack Valley YMCA in Lawrence, and numerous local stakeholders.

Michael Mascolo, professor of psychology and academic directorof the Compass program, gave a talk, “A Primer on Personal Construct Psychology,” and presented a paper, “The Failure of Objectivity: The Intersubjective Origins of Psychological Knowledge,” at the 45th International Congress of Personal Construct Psychology July 6-9, 2017, at Concordia University in Montréal. He also published several papers in 2017. They include “A Person Is Not an Object: Rethinking the Psychological Analysis of Persons” and “Understanding Personhood: Can We Get There From Here?”and “How Objectivity Undermines the Study of Personhood: Toward an Intersubjective Epistemology for Psychological Science,” all in New Ideas in Psychology.

Ana Silva, associate professor of finance and chair of the accounting and finance department, was quoted in a WalletHub.com “Ask the Experts” column about secured credit cards. Asked how the issuer of a secured credit card with no annual fee makes money, Silva responded, “Issuers charge high APRs on the unpaid balances each month. Late fees are also charged when a customer misses a payment. Some issuers charge a fee for setting-up an account. Issuers also charge the interchange fee on every credit card transaction. In addition, some banks cross-sell other products such as insurances.”

Debra Michals,assistant professor and director of women’s and gender studies, was quoted in a Feb. 2, 2018, Boston Heraldstory about inspiring places to visit during Black History Month, which is celebrated nationally in February. Michals suggested Harriet Tubman Historical Park, a national park in Upstate New York,which celebrates the famed leader of the Underground Railroad. “What makes her so incredibly striking is that she went back several times after her own escape to freedom to help others,” Michals said. “I don’t think most people today could comprehend what kind of inner fortitude and dedication to the larger cause of freedom that that must have taken.”