At Miami University, learning doesn’t end when you graduate – we’d like to think it’s just beginning. For more than 15 years, Winter College has provided the opportunity to relive the Miami Experience by returning to the classroom for thought-provoking lectures from Miami’s top faculty and experts. This year, we’re featuring old favorites with new material.
Dr. Amanda McVety
Professor of History and Naus Family Faculty Scholar
Professor of history and Naus Family Faculty Scholar Amanda McVety has been at Miami since 2006. Her interests lie at the intersection of international relations, science and the environment. Her first book, “Enlightened Aid” (Oxford University Press, 2012), examined the history of U.S. foreign to Ethiopia. Her second book, “The Rinderpest Campaigns: A Virus, Its Vaccines, and Global Development in the Twentieth Century” (Cambridge University Press, 2018), is a history of the ultimately successful international effort to eradicate rinderpest (cattle plague). Her new book project explores the history of James Bruce's “Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile, in the Years 1768, 1769, 1770, 1771 and 1772.” Dr. McVety teaches courses on international relations and the history of medicine at Miami.
Sandy Steiger MS '04
Director, Center for Analytics and Data Science
As director of Miami University’s Center for Analytics and Data Science, Sandy Steiger M.S. ’04 is responsible for providing co-curricular experiences that allow students to embrace the application of analytics and data science. Prior to joining Miami, Steiger spent 15 years at 84.51° and dunnhumbyUSA. Her most recent role was vice president, data science and analytics, where she was responsible for developing a strategic road map that would bring transformational, innovative thinking to 84.51°, focused on driving data science at scale across the enterprise. Steiger holds a Master of Science in statistics from Miami University and a Bachelor of Arts in mathematics and business from Mount St. Joseph University.
Dr. Megan Gerhardt
Professor and William Isaac & Michael Oxley Center for Business Leadership Co-Director & Director of Leadership Development
Dr. Megan W. Gerhardt, Ph.D. is a professor of management, director of leadership development and Robert D. Johnson Co-Director of the Isaac and Oxley Center for Business Leadership at the Farmer School of Business. Her upcoming book, “Gentelligence: The Revolutionary Approach to Leading an Intergenerational Workforce” is co-authored by Miami alumni Josephine Nachemson-Ekwall ’18 and Brandon Fogel ’18, and will be released by Rowman Littlefield in June. Megan’s academic research has been published widely on individual differences, motivation, leadership and generational differences in the workplace, and her work on Gentelligence has also been featured on NBCNews.com, The Washington Post, The Chicago Tribune, Inc. Magazine, The San Francisco Chronicle, MarketWatch, Business Insider and The Houston Chronicle among others. In 2017, her TEDx talk “Why I Love Millennials ... and You Should, Too” was released, kicking off the Gentelligence movement.
Dr. Dhananjai (DJ) Rao
Associate Professor, Computer Science and Software Engineering
Dr. Dhananjai (DJ) Rao is an associate professor in the Computer Science & Software Engineering department of Miami’s College of Engineering and Computing. He teaches operating systems and high performance computing courses in the department and leads the Grand Challenges Scholars Program. His current research areas include parallel and cloud computing with applications to epidemiology, bioinformatics, and social sciences. Dr. Rao received his B.E. in Computer Science & Engineering from the University of Madra, India and his M.S. and PhD. in Computer Science & Engineering from the University of Cincinnati.
Dr. David Prytherch
Professor of Geography
Dr. David Prytherch is Professor in the Department of Geography, where he advises and teaches in Miami's Urban and Regional Planning major. He has a BS in Geography from Penn State and MA and PhD from the University of Arizona. He is an urban geographer interested in planning and sustainability with recent books including Law, Engineering, and the American Right-of-Way: Imagining a More Just Street (2018, Palgrave). He serves on Oxford City Council and Miami's Climate Action Steering Committee, and enjoys the carbon freedom of living in a walkable and bikeable community like Oxford.
Dr. Annie Dell’Aria
Assistant Professor of Art History
Dr. Annie Dell’Aria is an assistant professor of art history where she teaches courses on modern and contemporary art and film and media studies. Her research interests concern contemporary art, screen media, and public space. Her book “The Moving Image as Public Art: Sidewalk Spectators and Modes of Enchantment,” is forthcoming from Palgrave. She has published previously in Moving Image Review and Art Journal, Public Art Dialogue, Millennium Film Journal, Afterimage and other venues and edited collections. Dr. Dell’Aria has presented at the Society for Cinema and Media Studies, and College Art Association conferences. She has also given invited lectures in Cincinnati and Stockholm. She holds a bachelor's degree in history of art and architecture from Harvard University and a Ph.D. in art history from The Graduate Center of the City University of New York.
Dr. Tammy Schwartz
Director, Miami University’s Urban Cohort
Dr. Tammy Schwartz is the Director of Miami University’s Urban Cohort, a community-based approach to teacher education where faculty and students collaborate with high-need schools and community-based organizations to prepare teachers who are grounded in the life of the community. She received her Ed.D., M.A. and B.S. from the University of Cincinnati.