Hokies at Housing Education and Research Association Conference

Hokies at Award Banquet

This year’s HERA conference was a celebration of Hokies.  Three housing faculty members, Drs. Julia Beamish, Kathy Parrott, and JoAnn Emmel (emeritus), were honored with  the organizations’ Housing Impact Award, for their development of the Center for Real Life Design and their research and publications in the kitchen and bath design field.  Dr. Hyun-Jeong Lee, Ph.D. Housing Alumni and Associate Professor at Chungbuk National University in South Korea, was a recipient of Early Career Award. The conference was co-hosted by Dr. Jorge Atiles, a Ph.D. Housing alumni, and Associate Dean of Extension and Engagement in the College of Human Sciences at Oklahoma State University.

Housing faculty, students and alumni presented 14 papers and posters at the three day conference in Tulsa Oklahoma. 



Drs. Beamish and Parrott with their recent books
HERA Housing Impact Awardees of 2013

Ahn, M., Lee, S., & Parrott, K. Demographic and housing characteristics of Hispanic renters in the United States.

Al-Daily, W., & Parrott, K. Informal housing in Sana’a, Yemen: Access to land and land management crises.

Peek, G., Atiles, J., Royer, T., Taylor, L., & Blocker, M. Sleep tight: Bed bugs Extension education in a rural state.  

Ballard de Ruiz, A. S. & Machara, M. Teaching environmental sustainability in housing.

Ballard de Ruiz, A. S. & Machara, M. Sustainable living education for low-income homeowners.

Beamish, J., & Semeah, L. Housing satisfaction and the rental housing search process of veterans with disabilities.

Davis, C. & Hwang, E. The built environment and walkability for seniors.

Goss, R. Creation of an interdisciplinary real estate major: Challenges and opportunities.

Hwang, E., Kwon, H., Koh, S., & Beamish, J. Retirees moving to Jeju, Korea

Kwon, H., Hwang, E., & Beamish, J. A demographic profile of older adults’ disabilities and housing accessibilities: The 2011 American Housing Survey.

Lee, H. Young professionals’ housing cost burden and financial dependence on parents to afford housing costs in Korea.

Lee, S., Ahn, M., & Parrott, K. Resources and constraints for U.S. baby boomer’s housing affordability: Application of housing adjustment theory.

Parrott, K. R. and Adell, R. How Housing Matters: Expanding the audience.

Parrott, K., Emmel, J., Beamish, J., & Peterson, J. Focus on sustainability issues in the education of kitchen and bath design professionals.  

Hokie Dinner at HERA 2013

By:  Eunju Hwang, Assistant Professor of Housing, AHRM, VT



Taaluma Totes Design Began in AHRM

“Of course I was interested and willing to help Jack DuFour, (Co-Founder, Taaluma Totes) on their backpack project.” says Dr. LuAnn Gaskill, Professor in the Apparel Program.  She had first learned of the Engineering students working on the backpack project from Dr. Doris Kincade, Professor in the Apparel Program, who had met with Jack in his quest for marketing and manufacturing insights.  Dr. Kincade met with the student team and discussed the specifications they needed - fabric requirements, stitching, dimensions, standards, etc.  She also shared information on costing - how to cost and what to consider when costing.  Together with Peggy Quesenberry (Trainer/Instructor in the Apparel Program), Dr. Kincade discussed manufacturing information pertaining to how and where they could have the bags produced and the type of skills needed to construct the backpacks.  Dr. Gaskill became involved given her experiences in international small business management and marketing.

The students approached Dr. Gaskill with their backpack project concept, fabrics, and design ideas.  “Working with the students, I created the prototype backpacks including the patterns and design specifics.”  A first sample prototype was made, feedback was collected, and a second set of prototypes were created and constructed by Dr. Gaskill.  Jack took it from there and thus began Taaluma Totes. 

Jack writes, “Dr. Gaskill spent countless hours with our team to develop prototypes and patterns to send to Uganda in order to ramp up local production efforts.”   Taaluma Totes offers handmade Uganda backpacks crafted by local artisans; proceeds from sales help fund scholarships for students in Uganda.   

Learn more about Taaluma Totes:
 http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/taaluma-totes-international-backpacks-that-carry-a-country

Taaluma Totes gives back to international fabric sellers; Collegiate Times, Oct. 14, 2013:

http://www.collegiatetimes.com/stories/22823/taaluma-totes-gives-back-to-international-fabric-sellers  

Alumna receives High Honor from Finland!

Dr. Leena Kirjavainen received one of the highest honors in her home country last year.  The Cross of Merit of the White Rose of Finland was awarded to Leena for her years of work in home economics and resource management across the globe.  The Association of Home Economics Teachers in Finland applied for the honor through the Ministry of Education during the last term of President Tarja Halonen, and presented to Leena on August 22, 2013.

Leena is a 1984 Ph.D. graduate of the resource management program at Virginia Tech.  She was on campus recently giving the inaugural presentation for the Globalization of Consumers: A year of Study program in AHRM for 2013-2014.  
 

Leena's talk, GlobalizationTrends and Families' Livelihoods: Issues in Africa, was presented to over 70 students and faculty in Fralin Auditorium on September 23, 2013.  She identified areas of globalization and environmental changes that impact consumers everywhere and highlighted examples from the Horn of Africa where she currently works as a consultant to the Intra-governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) in Djibouti.

Leena is known as an effective program coordinator, team leader and interactive manager as well as a mentor, multi-cultural communicator and a high-level negotiator in the international arena.  Her special interests have been in women's empowerment and capacity building through education and skills training, and in strengthening agricultural and home economics institutions.  Recently, she has refocused on gender roles in household food and nutrition security, livelihoods, climate change, emergencies and conflicts.  

She served the International Labor Organization in Trinidad and Tobago (1975-77), the Nordic Governments in Tanzania (1977-79), and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, where her appointments included Project Manager in Sudan (1984-89), Director of Women and Population Division at FAO Headquarters in Rome (1992-97), and FAO Representative to Laos (2003-06).

 

  

Dr. Kirjavainen's talk can be watched on YouTube at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SLD2okihCHM

Super Hokie Spotlight!

Samantha Skidmore, AHRM senior, is a huge Hokie Fan!   She made the first Super Hokie costume out of duct tape in Fall 2011 for the national Duct Tape School Spirit competition.  She didn’t win the competition that year, but that didn’t stop her.  She made a maroon duct tape dress and joined the Cassell Guard Generals (the official student section leaders for men's and women's basketball).  Then she made a black duct tape dress for the “Blackout” game in basketball.



“After wearing duct tape for that long, I was really sick of it. It's quite uncomfortable and the wig was too tight, so I set out this summer to make a new costume out of fabric. I ditched the wig and made a zip-up corset and skirt complete with accessories.”

Her new costume consists of an orange dress and signature maroon cape. The shoes are maroon with gold toes.  Of course, the gold “super hero” headband completes the ensemble.  Her studies in Apparel Product Development and Merchandising Management help guide her enthusiasm for design and after graduation she would like to design women’s collegiate apparel.

"I started wearing costumes to football games and let my persona grow from there.  I now have 500 likes on Facebook and 400 followers on Twitter."

Samantha has used the Super Hokie persona to promote Virginia Tech and the idea of girls being very passionate about sports.  Her favorite part of being the "Super Hokie" is interacting with fans in a whole new way, getting them pumped up on game day, and then getting to know them on Twitter and Facebook.

"It has really made the vast Hokie Nation feel like a tight knit community to me."

So, the next time you're at a sports event at Cassell Coliseum or Lane Stadium...look for Samantha and say, "Let's Go -- Hokies!"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Retirement Greetings for JoAnn

Dr. JoAnn Emmel will retire from Virginia Tech this year, having been a member of the Department of Apparel, Housing, and Resource Management faculty for sixteen years. JoAnn has been the coordinator of the Center for Real Life Kitchen Design and taught in the Housing and Property Management programs. The National Kitchen and Bath Association and Wiley publishers recently published the second editions of Kitchen Planning and Bath Planning, which JoAnn co-authored. She has also authored book chapters and journal publications on appliance use, housing behaviors, and household energy efficiency and standards.  She has received college awards for both research and outreach.  JoAnn has been a very active professional and held leadership positions in several state and national organizations.  Before coming to Virginia Tech, JoAnn was the Housing and Energy Specialist for Cooperative Extension at New Mexico State University.
 

JoAnn’s career has touched the lives of many students and colleagues, as well as, making contributions to the quality of housing and the lives of consumers.  Please share your reflections and good wishes for JoAnn as she retires from the university and joins her husband Rudy, her son Jason and his family Becca, and baby Waylon in fun family time.

 

We would like to invite you to celebrate her many contributions to teaching and research by leaving a comment on this blog recounting the work and fun moments you have shared with JoAnn.