Dr. Kwangkook (David) Jeong, associate professor of mechanical engineering, is leading a research group that is starting work on two projects under a $1.22 million contract with Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Co., Ltd. of South Korea. The group, including two post-doctoral researchers and eight graduate students, expect their data to help Doosan analyze combustion systems and develop management software for use by power plant engineers and operators.

An article by Dr. Brenda Randle, assistant professor in communication studies, has been published in Race, Gender & Class Journal. Her article "I Am Not My Hair: African American Women and Their Struggles with Embracing Natural Hair!"   discusses how the Eurocentric standard of beauty made its way into the homes of African American women and how some women have challenged and transformed this universal standard by the way they wear their hair.

Dr. Gary Edwards, associate professor of history, presented "Class Distinctions of Leisure and Labor in the 'Herrenvolk' Democracy of the Slaveholding Cotton Frontier" for the Arkansas Association of College History Teachers recent meeting in Little Rock. As part of the opening panel, his presentation questioned the long-held assumption that racial solidarity muted class distinctions among whites in the Old South, but specifically in western Tennessee.

Congratulations to David Rehr (left), head volleyball coach, along with assistants Tristan Johnson and Tori Mellinger. Under their leadership, the Red Wolves volleyball team secured the Sun Belt Conference championship Sunday with a come-from-behind win over Appalachian State. The team, 28-1 and undefeated in the Sun Belt this year, has the longest win streak in NCAA Division I. Rehr and the team will learn Sunday night who their first opponent will be in the NCAA tournament.

Amber Long Martin, student life counselor in the A-State Counseling Center, was a professional resource for KAIT-TV's report about students' excessive dependence on their smart phones and other digital devices. She touched on some of the psychological aspects and suggested steps for intervention. The video package also was pick up by Raycom stations in 20 states, including this broadcast in Biloxi, Miss.