Professors Making Headlines

Did you know that armored catfish are driving manatees out of their warm-water refuges, putting their health at risk. That’s because the catfish — an invasive species introduced to Florida waterways by the aquarium trade and irresponsible owners — latch onto manatees to feed off of the algae that grow on their backs, ultimately putting their lives in danger.

In the January 2025 article “These invasive pests are tormenting Florida’s manatees,” Stetson and Melissa Gibbs, PhD, professor of Biology, were featured in National Geographic (paywall protected). Also, in May Gibbs again was recognized in “Scientists raise red flag over distressed behavior exhibited by manatees off Florida coast: ‘It really annoys them.’”

Since early 2025, several other Stetson professors appeared in local, national and international media.

In February, Wendy Anderson, PhD, professor of Environmental Science, was cited in “Proposed Volusia County development standards are too easy on developers, opponents say,” among other related articles. Then in April, Anderson shared a more personal side in “Stetson University professor joins millions of Americans as she embraces caregiver role for her aging parents.” And in May, Anderson was part of the article “Who are the developers of New Smyrna Beach’s Deering Park Innovation Center?”

In January, Rajni Shankar-Brown, PhD, professor and Jessie Ball duPont Endowed Chair of Social Justice Education, was featured in several articles, such as “Volusia County Schools uses bikes to combat chronic absenteeism” and “Schools look to ‘attractor programs’ in traditional elementary schools to win back students.” Also, Shankar-Brown was cited multiple times in May, including “Mobile Museums of Tolerance teach Civil Rights, Holocaust history” and “In Florida, Mobile Museums of Tolerance teach Civil Rights, Holocaust history.”

In a February Gene Huskey, PhD, professor emeritus of Political Science, wrote a first-person article to share his viewpoint in “It’d been 10 years since Brown v. Board of Education and Eustis High was about to integrate.”

Throughout the spring, Christopher Ferguson, PhD, professor of Psychology, continued to be a media mainstay, including March’s “Teen Reconnects With Father Only To Fall Out Again Over His Wife’s Attempt To Censor His Reading” and “The Curious Case of Manufactured Outrage: How Rockstar Games Played the Media.” In May, he was featured in “Sorry, Wrong Numbers: Early Stats Don’t Support School Cellphone Bans” and “Parents who give smartphones to children could be driving a frighteningly common illness, scientists discover.” In June it was “Addictive Screen Use, Not Total Time, Linked to Poor Mental Health in Teens.” Finally, in July Ferguson appeared in “Expert reaction to study on age of smartphone ownership and mental health outcomes.”

In June Jason Evans, PhD, professor of Environmental Science and Studies and an ecologist by training who leads Stetson’s Institute for Water and Environmental Resilience, was featured in “Shorebirds in Florida are losing habitat. Living shorelines are part of the solution.” The article was republished on multiple other news sites.

Staff Recognition

In June, Lynn Bria, head coach of the women’s basketball team, received star treatment in the article “Legends of the Kanawha Valley: Bria’s roots still strong in West Virginia” (paywall protected).

In July, Ariel Chivers, coordinator of the Brain Fitness Academy and the Center for Optimal Health Across the Lifespan on campus, was featured in “National institute honors Stetson University researcher.”

Alumni Attention

As 2025 began — and continuing regularly _— Stetson alumni connections to the Trump administration and Florida politics made headlines.

By mid-January, Pam Bondi, who earned her juris doctor from Stetson University College of Law in 1990, began to receive frequent coverage, as in “Who is Pam Bondi? Everything we know about Donald Trump’s pick for Attorney General,” along with numerous other articles.

Similarly, in January then-Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody LLM ’10 gained widespread attention, such as in “Who is Ashley Moody? What you need to know about DeSantis’ pick to replace Marco Rubio in the Senate.”

In April, Bruce Dahlgren ’83, MBA’85, a member of the Stetson Board of Trustees, authored the Forbes article “Building A New Era In Education Through Tradition And Technology.”

In May People article “John Walsh’s Children: All About the America’s Most Wanted Host’s Family (Including His Late Son Adam),” included Callahan Walsh ’08, one of the sons.

In July, Vanity Fair shined a stage light on alumnus Junior Nyong’o ’17 and his Academy Award-winning sister in “Lupita Nyong’o, Peter Dinklage, Sandra Oh, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, and More Present Twelfth Night.”

In July, Patrick Zalupski ’03 was featured in the articles “Stetson Grad, Developer Close to Buying Tampa Bay Rays” and “Patrick Zalupski, the man buying the Tampa Bay Rays, has a Stetson University connection.” (More news likely to come about Zalupski and the Rays.)

Beautiful DeLand

DeLand, home of the Stetson campus, was a hit with editors throughout winter and spring 2025 in articles such as “15 Movie-Inspired Towns In Florida That Will Make You Feel Like A Star”; “50 Most Affordable Places to Live in Florida: Budget-Friendly Destinations”; “13 Best Places To Live In Florida In 2025”; “Situated Between Orlando And Daytona Beach Is One Of Florida’s Most Underrated And Walkable Cities”; and “8 Most Beautiful College Towns In Florida.” There were numerous others.