Randa Jarrar (English) has won an American Book Award for her latest book, Him, Me, Muhammad Ali. The award, one of six presented this year by the nonprofit Before Columbus Foundation, recognizes outstanding contributions to diversity in American literature. Jarrar’s book of stories, published in 2016 by Sarabande Books, won the Story Prize Spotlight Award earlier this year. She teaches in the Master of Fine Arts Program in Creative Writing. See more.

Dr. Sam Lankford has been appointed interim associate dean for the College of Health and Human Services, effective August 7th. In 2014, he joined the faculty of Fresno State, where he served as chair and professor of the Department of Recreation Administration. He has over 27 years of experience in higher education, teaching in the area of parks and recreation, tourism, research methods, program evaluation and tourism policy and urban planning, and mentoring students at the undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral levels. See more.

Dr. Mitzi Lowe has been appointed the role of interim assistant vice president for Academic Advising within the Division of Student Affairs and Enrollment Management, effective August 3rd. She was appointed by Provost Lynnette Zelezny and Dr. Frank Lamas, vice president for Student Affairs and Enrollment Management. In her new role, Dr. Lowe will be responsible for providing vision and strategic leadership to campus-wide undergraduate advising programs and in matters related to graduation initiatives and collaborations designed to increase student retention and timely degree completion. She has over 25 years of experience in higher education, serving as an academic advisor, student affairs administrator, full professor, and most recently as the associate dean of the College of Health and Human Services, where she served as both interim associate dean and associate dean since 2013.