Hawthorne Allen, Alice
Title: Dean, College of Science Mathematics and Health; Professor of Physics; Director for the Center of Teaching and Learning
College: College of Science, Mathematics, and Health
Department: Department of Physical and Environmental Sciences, Safe Zone
Phone: 304-384-6273
Discipline: Physics
Room: Science 302
Box: F-19
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Hawthorne Allen, Alice
Biography
Alice M. Hawthorne Allen is a Professor of Physics, Dean of the College of Science, Mathematics, and Health, and Director of the Center for Teaching and Learning. She has been teaching courses related to physics and astronomy regularly at Concord University since 2005. Prior to joining the faculty at Concord, she tutored topics in physics and mathematics for over a decade, taught at three other institutions at the university level, and was a research scientist in nuclear physics and high-energy astrophysics.
She has taught more than ten thousand students in Introductory Astronomy; Introductory Physics, both algebra and calculus-based versions; upper-level physics and astrophysics; Lab Research Methods; an Honors course related to giftedness; and has mentored students in independent research projects. Many of her Concord course components are Montessori-inspired and are often based on the comments, experiences, and requests of prior students.
She believes it is important to follow, model, and encourage others to utilize the science-based practices recommended for living a healthy, high-level, meaningful life, and follows her own “Eat, Sleep, Exercise, and Play” wellness advice. When not on campus or working on matters related to physics or academics, she enjoys spending time with her family, baking bread, practicing creative arts at home, flower gardening, exercising, and reading current scientific journals.
Education
Postdoctoral Research Associate, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1999-2001
Ph. D. Physics, Indiana University-Bloomington, 1997
M. S. Physics, Indiana University-Bloomington, 1991
B.S. Mathematics and Physics, Wake Forest University, 1990
Research
Dr. Hawthorne Allen’s diverse research interests include neutrino astrophysics, high energy particle physics, and nuclear physics – primarily in the neutrino sector of the Standard Model of Particle Physics. She also studies improving Pre-K to Adult education through outreach; developing pedagogical techniques in physics, astronomy, and laboratory methods; identifying and addressing sticky misconceptions in physics and astronomy; and creating and utilizing effective inclusive teaching practices.
She has been a member of several research collaborations, including G0, SAMPLE, and MACRO. These involved work onsite at Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso in Assergi, L’Aquila, Italy; MIT-Bates Research Center, MA; and Jefferson Lab in Newport News, VA; as well as work at the affiliated university. In these projects, she monitored daily operation and data collection of the experiments for quality control, performed detector maintenance and calibration procedures, contributed to the data analysis by the collaborations, and studied sources of background in scintillator and tracking systems via computer simulation, from modeling, prediction, and data analysis perspectives.
Her current interests include studying the impacts of gifted and twice-exceptional characteristics on student learning, mentoring of faculty and students for success and wellness, and developing curriculum based on the utilization of high impact teaching practices which support all students, including those from underrepresented groups. Her most recent physics-related project is writing context-rich physics scenarios related to disciplines which she has documented to be underrepresented in the top introductory physics textbooks.
Misconceptions in Physics and Astronomy,
K-12 Science Education,
Montessori Education for ages 2-12,
Neutrino Astrophysics,
Nuclear Physics,
High Energy Particle Physics
Gifted and Twice Exceptional Students in Science
PUBLICATIONS (EXCLUSIVE OF ABSTRACTS)
1. W. C. Kerr, A. M. Hawthorne, R. J. Gooding, A. R. Bishop, J. A. Krumhansl, “First-order displacive structural phase transitions studied by computer simulation,” Physical Review B 45, 7036-7053 (1992).
2. Publications in refereed journals as a member of the MACRO Collaboration include:
MACRO Collaboration, M. Ambrosio et al., ” Performance of the MACRO Streamer Tube System in the Search for Magnetic Monopoles,” Astroparticle Physics, No. 4, 33-43, (1995).
MACRO Collaboration, M. Ambrosio et al., “Vertical Muon Intensity Measured with MACRO at the Gran Sasso Laboratory,” Physical Review D, 52, 3793-3801, (1995).
MACRO Collaboration, M. Ambrosio et al., “Atmospheric Neutrino Flux Measurements Using Upgoing Muons,” Physical Review Letters B 357, 481-486 (1995).
MACRO Collaboration, M. Ambrosio et al., “High Energy Cosmic Ray Physics with the MACRO Detector at Gran Sasso: Part 1. Analysis Methods and Experimental Results,” Physical Review D 56, 1407, (1997).
MACRO Collaboration, M. Ambrosio et al., “High Energy Cosmic Ray Physics with the MACRO Detector at Gran Sasso: Part 2. Primary Spectra and Composition,” Physical Review D 56, 1418 (1997).
MACRO Collaboration, M. Ambrosio et al., “Seasonal Variations in the Underground Muon Intensity as Seen by MACRO,” Astroparticle Physics No. 7, 109-124, (1997).
MACRO Collaboration, M. Ambrosio et al., “Measurement of the Atmospheric Neutrino-Induced Upgoing Muon Flux Using MACRO,” Physical Review Letters B 434, 451-457, (1998).
3. Publications in refereed journals as a member of the SAMPLE Collaboration include:
SAMPLE Collaboration, R. Hasty, A. M. Hawthorne-Allen, et al., “Strange Magnetism and the Anapole Structure of the Proton,” Science, 290, 2117-2119, (15 Dec. 2000).
SAMPLE Collaboration, T. M. Ito, et al., “Parity-Violating Electron Deuteron Scattering and the Proton’s Neutral Weak Axial Vector Form Factor,” Physical Review Letters, 92, 102003, (2004).
4. Publications in refereed journals as a member of the G0 Collaboration include:
G0 Collaboration, Armstrong, D., et al., “Strange-Quark Contributions to Parity-Violating Asymmetries in the Forward G0 Electron-Proton Scattering Experiment,” Physical Review Letters, 95, 092001, (2005).
G0 Collaboration, Armstrong, D., et al., “Transverse Beam Spin Asymmetries in Forward-Angle Elastic Electron-Proton Scattering,” Physical Review Letters, v. 99, 092301, doi:10.1103/PhysRevLett.99.092301, [ article at http://link.aps.org/abstract/PRL/v99/e092301(link is external) ] (2007).
G0 Collaboration, Androic, D., et al., “Apparatus for the G0 Experiment”, Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment, Vol. 646, Issue 1, (1 August 2011).
