Collegiality Philosophy

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Collegiality Statement

I believe that collegiality is often an unnoticed paradigm where its absence can cause chaos not just for the individual faculty, but for the entire department, college, and the institution as a whole. I regard collegiality as a foundational element within the academic infrastructure. It is paramount for faculty members, reinforcing their allegiance to an institution. Collegiality, in my perspective, deserves to be acknowledged as the fourth pillar in academia, standing alongside teaching, research, and service due to its extensive advantages.

Throughout the past decade, I have diligently fostered interdisciplinary research collaborations with notable researchers, administrators, and students, both within WKU and across broader horizons in the United States and Europe. These collaborations with eminent individuals have significantly informed and enriched my scholarly trajectory.

During my tenure at GFCB, I've had the privilege of collaborating with 17 undergraduate students through FUSE grants and have facilitated seven graduate assistantships via funded grants, culminating in a student support sum of $102,500. Throughout my academic career, a significant focus has been on mentoring students, graduate scholars inclined towards scholarly research, and emerging faculty. I am deeply dedicated to guiding them through the intricate processes of securing distinguished scholarships for both national and international educational pursuits. It is my aspiration to have a tangible impact on student learning and success.

My mentorship isn't limited to just master's level students; I actively encourage graduate students to consider Ph.D. programs after their time at WKU. As an outcome of this mentorship, students like Khoa Nguyen, Scarlett Marklin, Tuyen Pham, and Ashley Spiller have advanced to doctoral programs. Scarlett Marklin completed her Ph.D. in 2020. Tuyen Pham completed her doctoral journey in 2021 and is now a visiting professor at Ohio State University. Furthermore, during the 2022-2023 academic year, I collaborated with a graduate student, Ashley Spiller, on a grant project titled "The Impact of AmeriCorps Members in Invasive Species and Wildfire Fuels Mitigation." Through this, Ms. Spiller secured a full scholarship at Georgia Tech for her Ph.D. studies in Environmental Engineering.

I have had the privilege of supporting my students through graduate assistantships. Our collaborative brainstorming often culminated in projects in which we both took pride, celebrating their successful completion. Beyond the financial assistance these projects offered students, they served as tangible evidence of their potential and capacity for achievement. Through these endeavors, our impact extended beyond our immediate region.

We collaborated on a variety of projects, which span across diverse disciplines and topics. These projects not only enhanced their academic portfolios but also fostered critical thinking, problem-solving skills, and hands-on experience in their respective fields. Below, I've highlighted some of these collaborative efforts to showcase the depth and breadth of our academic pursuits together.

Collaboration with Graduate Student

2022 – 2023:

Maria Wells was awarded a $5,000 graduate assistantship funded by an external grant titled “The Impact of AmeriCorps Members in Invasive Species and Wildfire Fuels Mitigation.” Even after her graduation in May 2023, our professional relationship persisted.

While she took a personal break for her honeymoon in Disneyland in June, our collaboration continued. As a gesture of support and mentorship, I had the privilege to contribute to the publication of her inaugural journal article, with a Q1 ranking, an H-index of 268, an impact factor of 11, and an 'A' rating on the ABDC list (link).

Zhuhadar L, McCreary A, Lytras MD, Wells M. The influence of AmeriCorps members on ecosystem management. Journal of Cleaner Production. 2023:138309. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2023.138309 

2014 – 2021:

Scarlett Marklin was awarded a graduate assistantship, funded by a research grant titled “The Role States Play in Population Health.” Although she graduated in 2017, I have continued to mentor her remotely after her transition to Florida State University.

            Over the past six years, this mentorship has culminated in the co-authorship of three journal articles. Moreover, Scarlett expanded her initial project into a dissertation, and I am pleased to report that she earned her doctoral degree from Florida State University in 2021. Below is a list of our joint publications:

Zhuhadar L, Daday J, Marklin S, Kessler B, Helbig T. Using survival analysis to discovering pathways to success in mathematics. Computers in Human Behavior. 2019;92:487-495. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2017.12.016

Zhuhadar L, Thrasher E, Marklin S, de Pablos PO. The next wave of innovation—Review of smart cities intelligent operation systems. Computers in Human Behavior. 2017;66:273-281. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2016.09.030 

Zhuhadar L, Marklin S, Thrasher E, Lytras MD. Is there a gender difference in interacting with intelligent tutoring system? Can Bayesian Knowledge Tracing and Learning Curve Analysis Models answer this question? Computers in Human Behavior. 2016;61:198-204. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2016.02.073

2016 – 2018:

Ryan Boone was awarded a $5,000 graduate assistantship funded by WKU Office of Sponsored Programs titled ”Improving Ecosystem Quality Through Data Mining.”

2016 – 2017: 

Tuyen Pham was awarded a $6,000 graduate assistantship from my RCAP grant. She worked on research titled ”Using Survival Analysis to Discovering Pathways to Success in Biology.”

2015 – 2016:

Khoa Nguyen was awarded a $6,000 graduate assistantship from my RCAP grant. He worked on research titled ”Using Survival Analysis to Discovering Pathways to Success in Mathematics.”

2014 – 2015:

Chase Bolton was awarded a $6,000 graduate assistantship from my RCAP grant. He worked on research titled ”Using Survival Analysis to Discovering Pathways to Success in Business.”

2013 – 2014:

Stephen Guffey was awarded a $6,000 graduate assistantship from my RCAP grant. He worked on research titled ”Designing a Predictive Model for WKU Students in Mathematics.”

Collaboration with Undergraduate Students

My educational philosophy is anchored in the conviction that active engagement, both within and beyond the classroom, fosters enduring relationships between educators and students. This kind of engagement not only heightens educators' job satisfaction but also encourages an innovative mindset and amplifies the collective contributions of the faculty to the dynamic world of modern education.

In the following section, I outline my collaborative research endeavors with undergraduate students. Together, we have engaged in various projects, and as a result, several of these students have had the distinguished opportunity to present our joint findings at both national and international academic conferences. 

2023 – Present:

Jonathan Roberts was awarded $4,000 for a FUSE project titled “Optimizing Revenue Management Strategies in the Hospitality Industry,” plus a $500 bonus, after presenting this research at an international conference.

Lilly Shipley was awarded $3,000 for a FUSE project titled ”Assessing Risk Factors and Early Detection in Stroke Prediction,” plus a $500 bonus, after presenting this research at a conference.

Sarah Shirleywas awarded $3,000 for a FUSE project titled ”Developing a Predictive Model for Home Loan Approval Using Machine Learning Techniques,” plus a $500 bonus, after presenting this research at a conference.

Geoffrey Ross was awarded $3,000 for a FUSE project titled ”Developing and Evaluating a Prediction Model for Diabetes Diagnosis,” plus a $500 bonus, after presenting this research at a conference.

Abbigail Dalywas awarded $3,000 for a FUSE project titled ”Predicting Customer Spending Behavior,” plus a $500 bonus, after presenting this research at a conference.

Aaron Wallacewas awarded $3,000 for a FUSE project titled ”How Much Does It Cost to Have a Heart Attack in the US?” plus a $500 bonus, after presenting this research at a conference.

2022 – 2023:

Layla Daltonwas awarded $3,000 for a FUSE project titled ”Health inequity and the role of Artificial Intelligence?” plus a $500 bonus, for presenting this research at a conference.

Jonah Hathawaywas awarded $3,000 for a FUSE project titled “Think Pandemic-Related Fraud Is Going Away? Think Again!” plus a $500 bonus, for presenting this research at a conference.

2020 – 2021:

Morgan Lyonswas awarded $3,000 for a FUSE project titled ”Profiling -  Risk Analysis,” plus a $500 bonus, for presenting this research at a conference.

Abigail McGrawwas awarded $3,000 for a FUSE project titled ”Analytics to Predict Pregnant Customers,” plus a $500 bonus, for presenting this research at a conference.

2019 – 2020:

Ian Hamiltonwas awarded $3,000 for a FUSE project titled “Using ML to Detect Financial Fraud,” plus a $500 bonus, for presenting this research at a conference.

2018 – 2019:

Kyla Scanlonwas awarded $3,000 for a FUSE project titled “The True Economic Impact of Terrorism.” She presented her research at Teradata Universe Conference.

2017 – 2018:

Kyle Hart was awarded $3,000 for a FUSE project titled “Discovering Pathways to Success,” plus a $500 bonus, for presenting this research at a conference.

2016 – 2017:

Ryan Boonewas awarded $5,000 for a project titled “Improving Ecosystem Quality Through DM.” He presented his research at Teradata Universe Conference.

2016 – 2017:

Zach Rosswas awarded $3,000 for a FUSE project titled ‘Too Big to Fail? Too Blind to See?’ He presented his research at Informs Conference.

2016 – 2017:

Corey Travis was awarded $3,000 for a FUSE project titled “Lend Smarter: Using Analytics to Better Enhance Consumer Lending.” He presented his research at Informs Conference.

2014 – 2015:

Cody Kirk was awarded $3,000 for a FUSE project titled ”Affinity-Based Marketing.”’ He presented his research at Informs Conference.

Mentored Students on Capstone Projects

During my tenure, I was honored to mentor the following students through their capstone projects in a course I teach, "Predictive Modeling," previously known as "Data Mining."

2020–2021

1. Primary mentor, Paige Wells, “Customers' Segmentation”
2. Primary mentor, Lanse Milburn, “Direct Marketing Campaign”
3. Primary mentor, Christopher McClaskey, “Predicting the Best Player for the Club!”
4. Primary mentor, Mary Claire Redden, “Predicting the Best Sport for YOU!”
5. Primary mentor, Dhruvin Patel, “Automated App to Measure Heart Rate?”
6. Primary mentor, Benjamin Betts, “Direct Marketing Campaign”
7. Primary mentor, Mia Sword, “Factors Determine Whether a Patient Will Receive a Flu Shot?”
8. Primary mentor, Lanse Milburn, “Direct Marketing Campaign”
9. Primary mentor, Trib Singh, “Predicting Credit Card Default”
10. Primary mentor, Luke Hoover, “Which Factors Have a Relationship with Mortality?”
11. Primary mentor, Lexie Patton, “Modeling Customer Satisfaction to Improve Their Experience!”
12. Primary mentor, Ben Hardison, “Extract Sentiment of the Online Reviews”
13. Primary mentor, Adela Kuljancic, “Modeling Customer Satisfaction”
14. Primary mentor, Spencer Ford, “Predict Whether New Customer Will Accept a Loan Offe
15. Primary mentor, Ben Wassom, “Who Are the Influencers &Who Are the Followers in the Network?”
16. Primary mentor, Jonathan Jordan, “Maximize the Conversion Rate & Minimize the Bounce Rate?”

2019–2020     

17. Primary mentor, Kathryn Morrison, “Predicting Heart Attack”
18. Primary mentor, Brady Crawford, “Smarter Cities”
19. Primary mentor, Mackenzie Moore, “Predicting Churn Rates Based on Customer Experience”
20. Primary mentor, Cameron Aitken, “Predicting Median Home Prices.”
21. Primary mentor, Brent Lawson, “Identifying Churn Credit Card Holders”
22. Primary mentor, Kenna Carr, “Medical Fraud Can Affect Everyone Including YOU!”
23. Primary mentor, Kaylin Travis, “Target Marketing: Predicting Pregnant Customers”
24. Primary mentor, Jason Coultrap, “Artificial Intelligence to Predict Credit Risk”
25. Primary mentor, Sierra Valdez, “Leveraging Data Correlation to Predict Philanthropic Giving”
26. Primary mentor, Paul Sumner, “AI in Sport Analytics”
27. Primary mentor, Sarah Hogue, “Analytics Saves You Money!”
28. Primary mentor, Kayla Tyler, “Sentiment Analysis of Movie Reviews”
29. Primary mentor, Terra Ross, “Profiling Customers–Risk Analysis”
30. Primary mentor, Ameli Bosnjakovic, “Dateline NBC– Predicting User Locations through Segmentation”
31. Primary mentor, Daisy Ramirez, “Designing a Text Mining Model to Detect Customers’ Need!”
32. Primary mentor, Tamayi Vengesaya, “Predicting Machinery Maintenance”
33. Primary mentor, Robert Heiskel, “Why Are People Leaving Their Companies?”

2018–2019       

34. Primary mentor, Kyla Scanlon, “Comparing Economic Activity to Billboard #1 Singles”
35. Primary mentor, Brinton Sloughy, “What is Everyone Saying? Text Mining Hotel Reviews”
36. Primary mentor, Mallory Hurd, “Medical Fraud Detection”
37. Primary mentor, Josh Rickert, “Verizon Wireless Customer Retention”
38. Primary mentor, Hunter Wright, “Local Outliers at a Call Center”
39. Primary mentor, Evelyn Tichenor, “Profiling Customers: Risk Analysis”
40. Primary mentor, James Hill, “Charity Campaign—WKU Philanthropy Engagement”
41. Primary mentor, Logan Mitchell, “Which Factors Caused the Liquor Stores to Respond to our Offers?”
42. Primary mentor, German Escobar, Who Are at a High Risk of Developing Coronary Heart Disease”
43. Primary mentor, Austin Lange, “Who Would Subscribe to a New Cable Service?”
44. Primary mentor, Emily Clarkston, “Who Is Going to Buy the New Google Pixel 3 And when?”
45. Primary mentor, Gabrielle Saalfeld, “Unsupervised Modeling Techniques – Market Basket Analysis”
46. Primary mentor, Colton Brown, “Supervised Modeling Techniques –Forecasting Demands”
47. Primary mentor, Morgan Hayes, “Matchmaking Borrowers and Investors”
48. Primary mentor, Lejla Nuhanovic, “BB&T Credit Loan Risk: The Good, the Bad & the Too Risky”
49. Primary mentor, Angel Enriquez, “Predicting 2nd Heart Attack”
50. Primary mentor, Abigail McGraw, “Predicting Pregnant Customers – Target Case Study”
51. Primary mentor, Ian Hamilton, “What Do You Mean? Sentiment Analysis of Movie Reviews”
52. Primary mentor, Ryan Vajner, “Fraud Detection in Policy Claims”
53. Primary mentor, Austin Thicklin, “Picking the Best Player using Neural Networks”
54. Primary mentor, Charles Walker, “Picking the Best Sport for You!”
55. Primary mentor, Eyad Abduljawad, “Amazon’s Direct Marketing Campaign”
56. Primary mentor, Abdulaziz Alkhoudhair, “Applying Association Rules – Walmart Dataset”
57. Primary mentor, Haoran Liu, “The Impact of Trump’s Tweets”

2017–2018

58. Primary mentor, Everett Taylor, “Predicting Which Customers Will Churn!”
59. Primary mentor, Andrew Newton, “Predicting Which Customers Will Churn!”
60. Primary mentor, Joe Edwards, “Predicting Which Customers Will Default! Credit Risk Modeling!”
61. Primary mentor, Andrew Gibbs, “Predicting Which Customers Will Default! Credit Risk Modeling!”
62. Primary mentor, Brenden Lutz, “Customers Will Marketing Campaign”
63. Primary mentor, Aaron Dorris, “Predicting Which Customers Will Respond! Marketing Campaign”
64. Primary mentor, Dolton Holland, “Detect Medical Fraud!”
65. Primary mentor, Kyle Killebrew, “Detect Medical Fraud!”
66. Primary mentor, Parker McClean, “Predict the Stocks Market Bidding”
67. Primary mentor, Spencer Embry, “Predict the Stocks Market Bidding”
68. Primary mentor, Abigail Vazquez, “Predict Who Will Click, Buy, Lie, or Die! Web Analytics”
69. Primary mentor, Cierra Snyder, “Predict Who Will Click, Buy, Lie, or Die! Web Analytics
70. Primary mentor, Abdulaziz Aldehaim, “Predict iPhone X Buyers!”
71. Primary mentor, Faisal Chowdhur, “Predict iPhone X Buyers!”
72. Primary mentor, Eric Spiller, “Predict Credit Card Default!”
73. Primary mentor, Kate Mukderink, “Predict Credit Card Default!”
74. Primary mentor, Graham Goins, “Predict Boston Housing Market!”
75. Primary mentor, Ryan Weddle, “Predict Boston Housing Market!”
76. Primary mentor, Gus Madsen, “Telecom Segmentations”
77. Primary mentor, Kyle Hart, “Telecom Segmentations”
78. Primary mentor, Jordan Myers, “Churn Propensity Modeling”
79. Primary mentor, Sarah Smith, “Predicting the Best Sport for YOU!”
80. Primary mentor, Jacob Wood, “Predicting the Best Sport for YOU!”
81. Primary mentor, Nicolas Coffle, “Phishing or Legit Advertisement?”
82. Primary mentor, James Roark, “Phishing or Legit Advertisement?”
83. Primary mentor, Nihad Hasanovic, “Cross-selling in Retail”
84. Primary mentor, Sergio Ortega, “Cross-selling in Retail”

2016–2017

85. Primary mentor, Corey Travis, “Identifying Loyal Customers”
86. Primary mentor, Zach Ross, “Using Predictive Analytics to Better Enhance Consumer Lending”
87. Primary mentor, Yousef Mutari, “Are Southeast Airline Customers Satisfied Compared to Other Airlines?”
88. Primary mentor, Nassar Alanazi, “Can IBM Watson Answer these Questions?”
89. Primary mentor, Kurt Yokley, “Can We Predict Customers’ Behavior?”
90. Primary mentor, Brandon Roberson, “Can We Predict Customers’ Behavior?”
91. Primary mentor, Forrest Lamp, “Predicting Which Position an NFL Player”
92. Primary mentor, Matt Nord, “Predicting Which Position an NFL Player”
93. Primary mentor, Xin Zhao, “Predicting Freshmen Enrollment”
94. Primary mentor, Randy Johnson, “Bank Segmentation for Marketing”
95. Primary mentor, Roland Shabani, “Bank Segmentation for Marketing”
96. Primary mentor, Kaley Stone, “American Red Cross Disaster Preparedness”
97. Primary mentor, Andy Hasanovic, “Growing Diversity at WKU”

Collaborative Engagements with Fellow Academics

Examples of Successful Collaborative Efforts from 2013 to 2018:

Between 2013 and 2018, in collaboration with Dr. Tuesdi Helbig and Dr. Jerry Daday, we embarked on a comprehensive project aimed at enhancing student retention strategies in STEM education and delving into the impact of course sequencing on student success.

Funded by a $36,000 grant from the WKU Office of Research and the University of Louisville, the team, with key inputs from Dr. Olfa Nasraoui, employed survival analysis techniques to deeply analyze the influence of course sequencing on STEM degree progression and completion. My gratitude is extended to Dr. David Lee, Dr. Tuesdi Helbig, Dr. Bruce Kessler, Dr. Jerry Daday, and Dr. Olfa Nasraoui for their unwavering support and for granting access to essential institutional data, ensuring the project's success.