New Faculty Members

The MAES is pleased to welcome six new faculty members.

Adrian BlowAdrian Blow, assistant professor of marriage and family therapy, became affiliated with the MAES in August. His research focus is families and health and includes military families, women living with breast cancer and persons living in South Africa with HIV/AIDS. Blow is particularly interested in interventions that ameliorate the effects of these health concerns. He is also the principal investigator for a study of postdeployment adjustment of Michigan National Guard (MING) couples, a study that includes a close collaboration with MING around issues of data collection, service delivery and reporting to policymakers about issues related to reintegration.

Before coming to MSU in 2005, Blow was a faculty member in the Department of Counseling and Family Therapy at Saint Louis University from 1999 to 2005. Blow received his doctorate in marriage and family therapy from Purdue University in 1999, his master?s degree in marriage and family therapy from Abilene Christian University in 1995 and his bachelor?s degree in psychology and biblical studies from the University of South Africa in 1992.

Holly Brophy-HerbHolly Brophy-Herb, associate professor of child development, became affiliated with the MAES in August. Her research focuses on early social-emotional development in infants, toddlers and young children, particularly at-risk children. Most of Brophy-Herb's research looks at development in low-income populations. She is especially interested in emotion-related parenting and caregiving contexts that promote social-emotional competencies in infants, toddlers and young children, as well as the development of self-regulatory skills.

Brophy-Herb came to MSU in 1996 as an assistant professor of child development and was named associate professor in 2002. She also served as assistant professor and program supervisor for the MSU Child Development Laboratories from 1999 to 2001. Brophy-Herb received her doctorate in child development and her master?s degree in child development and family studies from Syracuse University in 1996 and 1992, respectively, and her bachelor?s degree in elementary/early childhood education from Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, Texas in 1990.

Daniel McCole, assistant professor of commercial recreation, became affiliated with the MAES in August. His research focuses on human resource issues in the commercial recreation and tourism industries. McCole's recent research has focused on the retention of seasonal employees.

Before joining MSU, McCole served as assistant professor of resort management at Western State College of Colorado. Before joining academia, he worked in human resources for General Mills in Minneapolis. McCole received his doctorate in commercial recreation from the University of Minnesota in 2005, his master?s degree in human resources management from Michigan State University in 1998 and his bachelor's degree in German literature from the University of Massachusetts in 1994.

Susanne Mohr, associate professor of physiology, became affiliated with the MAES in August. Her research focus is on identifying the mechanisms underlying the development of diabetic retinopathy, a common complication of diabetes leading to blindness. Mohr is especially interested in the role of inflammation and cell death in the initiation and progression of the disease, for which no drug therapies currently are available. A primary goal of her research is to understand how elevated glucose levels lead to the production of the pro-inflammatory cytokine known as IL-1ß (a small secreted protein which mediates and regulates immunity and inflammation), how its actions promote disease development and progression, and how new therapeutic strategies can be used to intervene with the actions of IL-1ß in an effort to find drugs with potential to prevent the development and/or progression of diabetic retinopathy.

Before joining MSU, Mohr was an assistant professor of medicine, ophthalmology, physiology and biophysics at Case Western Reserve University from 2000 to 2009, where she was promoted to associate professor in July. Mohr received her doctorate in biological chemistry and her master's and bachelor's degrees in chemistry from the University of Konstanz, Germany, in 1996, 1992 and 1989, respectively.

Chi-Ok Oh, assistant professor of tourism and recreation economics, became affiliated with the MAES in August. His research focuses on estimating the economic benefits of tourism activities and related natural resources. Oh?s future research will examine the interrelationships between environmental problems and tourism and leisure demands to better understand the social and economic consequences in modern society.

Before coming to MSU, Oh was an assistant professor in the Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism Management at Clemson University from 2005 to 2009. He received his doctorate in recreation, park and tourism sciences from Texas A&M University in 2005, his master?s degree in hospitality and tourism management from the University of Massachusetts in 2001, and his bachelor?s degree in economics at Chungnam National University, South Korea, in 1999.

Santiago UtsumiSantiago Utsumi, assistant professor of animal science, became affiliated with the MAES in July. His research focuses on animal-plant interactions, the grazing behavior of livestock, mechanisms of diet selection and forage intake, grazing systems and ruminant nutrition. Utsumi's major goal is to develop an integrative research, extension and education program in grazing ecology and management specifically tailored to pasture-based dairy systems in Michigan. His research will primarily focus on gathering management and ecological information on major plant-, animal- and environment-related factors likely to influence the use of pastures by cows and the overall efficiency of pasture-based dairy systems. Outcomes from research efforts will be used to support the development of novel cost-effective and environmentally sound grazing and farm management strategies directed at a more efficient use of natural resources and improved animal performance.

Before coming to MSU, Utsumi served as a postdoctoral research fellow in the Animal and Range Science Department at New Mexico State University. He received his doctorate in range science from New Mexico State University in 2009, his master's degree in animal science from the Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata, Argentina, in 2003, and his bachelor's degree in agriculture from the Universidad Católica Argentina, Argentina, in 1998.

Did you find this article useful?