Alumna Susan Shifrin (PhD 1998) was featured in the news for bringing art education to those living with Alzheimer’s. According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, Shifrin has started a branch of ARTZ: Artists for Alzheimer’s, a national organization that aims to use art to enrich and improve the lives of those suffering from dementia. Shifrin insists that those with dimentia are able to have cogent and lively conversations in front of works of art. Shifrin has caught the attention of local medical doctors who plan to study the effects of such art therapy.