Marcia Gragg

sign reading "Happy Retirement"A June 30 reception will celebrate the retirements of psychology professors Jerome Cohen, Marcia Gragg, Cheryl Thomas, and Shelagh Towson.

Psychology department to note faculty retirements

Friends and colleagues of professors Jerome Cohen, Marcia Gragg, Cheryl Thomas, and Shelagh Towson will join them in celebrating their retirements from the Department of Psychology on Thursday, June 30.

An open house reception promises fellowship and refreshments from 1 to 4 p.m. in the student centre’s Alumni Auditorium. RSVP by June 21, indicating any dietary restrictions.

Community experience proves educational for psychology students

People respond to incentives, but sometimes the trick is finding the right incentives, says fourth-year psychology student Ashley Cooper.

She worked with a four-year-old boy with autism, trying to get him to pierce a lump of play dough with a fork as a prelude to mastering table manners. His skills improved as she offered inducements like small toys, but he jumped to perfect mastery when offered a chance to play with an iPad as a reward.

“I had waited three weeks before trying the iPad and I was like: Really? All he wanted was the iPad?” says Cooper.

Drama professor Tedfred Myers remembered for impact on students’ lives

Drama professor Tedfred Myers, who died Friday, Feburary 3, at the age of 56, is remembered for the difference he made in the lives of his students, says Lionel Walsh, director of the School of Dramatic Art.

“What characterized Ted was in every case, the students came first with him,” Walsh said. “He cared so deeply about the young people he taught — that was the centre of his approach.”