Dr. Tammy Harpel, associate professor and graduate program coordinator for family and child studies at Louisiana Tech University, has been recognized by the Center for Families at Purdue University and the Boston College Center for Work and Family for authoring one of the twenty best “work-family” research articles of 2009. As part of the Rosabeth Moss Kanter Award for Excellence in Work-Family Research competition, Harpel’s article was selected from a pool of over 2000 papers published in 75 of the world’s leading English-language scholarly journals. “Simply having a manuscript published is an honor in itself,” said Harpel.  “However, to receive recognition as one of the top twenty articles in a field of study is a highly significant professional achievement.” “This recognition is proof that the manuscript was not only read by others, but judged to be an important contribution to the work-family research.” The rigorous nomination process for award selection involves a committee of 35 accomplished reviewers from eleven countries. According to the Center for Families at Purdue University, there has been an explosion of research on the relationships between work and non-work life.  Researchers studying these issues come from many disciplines and professions. The award aims to raise awareness of excellent work-family research, foster debate about standards of excellence, and to identify studies deemed as the “best of the best” on which to base future research. “Dr. Harpel’s accomplishment further exemplifies the high quality of research being produced at Louisiana Tech,” said Amy Yates, director of Tech’s School of Human Ecology.  “To have a faculty member’s work recognized in the top one percent of scholarly family research speaks to the high caliber of faculty we have here in the School of Human Ecology as well as to the excellence of Family and Child Studies Program.” The Kanter Award is given to the authors of the best piece of work-family research published during a calendar year. No external nominations are accepted for the award. Instead, every article published in a selection of scientific journals is scrutinized by a committee of esteemed international scholars who generate a list of candidates for the award. Harpel says that her research activities inform and enhance her teaching and mentoring of undergraduate and graduate students. “I think students can ultimately benefit from my research collaborations with faculty from across the country.  Through these connections, students have access to faculty at other universities who may serve as an expert source for a paper they are writing, help them solicit more participants for a research project, or provide information about a particular graduate program.” Yates says Harpel’s work, evaluated in an international forum, contributes to Louisiana Tech’s international relevance in family and child studies and research. “What is particularly exciting about the research, teaching and service activities of Dr. Harpel, as well as other the faculty in the School of Human Ecology, is the diligent and purposeful efforts made to improve the lives of individuals and families in our community, state, and nation.” The School of Human Ecology at Louisiana Tech University was the first of its kind in the state and only the third in the south to offer programs in the human ecology disciplines.