Fordham University’s faculty and staff remain leaders in their fields, innovating and making meaningful contributions across disciplines. Their dedication and expertise are regularly recognized with prestigious honors and awards. Take a look at the latest achievements from our community below.
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Evon Hekkala, PhD, ARTS AND SCIENCES, professor and chair of the biological sciences department, and Thomas Daniels, PhD, ARTS AND SCIENCES, Louis Calder Center academic director and associate research scientist, joined lead author Medha Pandey, PhD, on a paper titled “Changes in an exurban bird assemblage and the phenology of ticks (Acari: Ixodidae) on birds: a comparison of three sampling periods between 1984 and 2019,” published on March 19 in the Journal of Medical Entomology. The study analyzed 35 years of data from Fordham’s Louis Calder Center and demonstrated how birds play a critical and growing role in the long-distance spread of tick-borne diseases. Pandey, executive director of the Bedford Audubon Society in Westchester County, defended her PhD in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences in March.
Hekkala also co-authored a paper titled “DNA metabarcoding on roadkill stomach contents reveals the breadth of species present in bobcat diets,” published on March 13 in PLOS One by lead author Kim Hughes, a PhD student in GSAS. The study used DNA to understand bobcat diets in urbanized environments and to see if they were responsible for the decline in a protected species, the New England cottontail rabbit. It found no evidence of this species in their diet.
Christina Greer, PhD, ARTS AND SCIENCES, professor of political science, attended the 57th National Conference of Black Political Scientists on March 19 and 20 in Washington, D.C., where she presented the paper “Demography is Destiny?: The Challenges to Immigrant Solidarity in the Democratic Party.” Using the 2020 and 2024 Collaborative Multiracial Post-Election Survey, the paper argues that Black and Latino immigrants did not draw a connection between Trump’s rhetoric and their own circumstances.
Olivier Sylvain, FORDHAM SCHOOL OF LAW, professor of law and a senior policy research fellow at Columbia University’s Knight First Amendment Institute, published the book Reclaiming the Internet: How Big Tech Took Control—and How We Can Take It Back (Columbia Global Reports) on March 17. The book examines how tech companies have used claims of free speech and innovation to shield their harmful business practices from public scrutiny. It also suggests policy changes that can protect users.
