Funded Proposals (1/1/2014 – 1/31/2014)
CONGRATULATIONS!
The following UTC faculty and staff recently attracted $330,652 in external grant and contract awards:
Dr. Susanne Burgess Director of Music Education, Mr. Joel Baxley, Director of Visual Art Education, Ms. Laurie Melnik,Director of Theatre Education and Interim Director at the Southeast Center for Education in the Arts, and Dr. Kay Cowan, Professor of Education, attracted $52,688 from the Tennessee Higher Education Commission to support a professional development program for 6 – 12th grade literacy and arts teachers. This project will allow 24 Hamilton County teachers to deepen their understanding of interdisciplinary instruction, strengthen content knowledge, and acquire effective teaching strategies in literacy and the arts.
Dr. Beth Crawford, Assistant Professor of Education, and Ms. Ginny Reese, Director of Continuing Education, secured $60,570 from the Tennessee Department of Education to continue the Governor’s School for Prospective Teachers in 2014. The Governor’s School is a four-week summer program for high school students who are interested in pursuing teaching as a profession.
Dr. Lucien Ellington, UC Foundation Professor of Education and Director of the UTC Asia Program, attracted $72,917 from the Association for Asian Studies to continue the publication of the Education About Asia Journal in 2014. This journal, founded in 1996, is published three times per year and features issues in Asian studies ranging from ancient cultures and literatures to current events.
Drs. Ralph Hood, Professor of Psychology, and Chris Silver, IT Specialist for IPCP-AGES Program in the School of Nursing, attracted $9,000 from the Society for Scientific Study of Religion to support Dr. Hood’s appointment as Program Chair for the 2014 Annual Convention and Dr. Silver’s appointment as Graduate Student Coordinator in Psychology for 2014.
Dr. Deborah McAllister, UC Foundation Professor of Education, attracted $12,750 from the Tennessee Space Grant Consortium to conduct workshops that will be an early professional development experience for elementary grades preservice teachers. The goals of the workshops are to improve participants’ skills in mathematics and science and encourage them to plan math and science experiences and activities in which their future students will actively participate.
Ms. Laurie Melnik, Director of Theatre Education and Interim Director at the Southeast Center for Education in the Arts, attracted $300 from the Hunter Museum of American Art to conduct a three-hour workshop to support the training of frontline museum staff. The workshop will focus on developing a training method that can lead to stronger guest relations and customer service.
Ms. Ginny Reese, Director of Continuing Education, and Dr. Vic Bumphus, Associate Professor of Criminal Justice, secured $111,834 to continue hosting the Southeastern Command and Leadership Academy (SECLA) at UTC in 2014. The SECLA is a dynamic seven-week law enforcement leadership and management program designed for progressive and innovative police managers.
The SimCenter Research Team attracted an additional $10,593 from SmartTruck Systems, LLC to perform flow simulations of drag reduction devices.
Submitted Proposals (1/1/2014 – 1/31/2014)
GOOD LUCK!
The following UTC faculty and staff members submitted proposals with the potential to generate over $4,608,092 in external funding, if awarded:
Dr. Drew Bailey (Health and Human Performance) requested $3,186 from Wild Trails to research the impact of adventure tourism on the local community. Findings will serve as a basis for city and county planning, as well as a foundation for future tourism research in the region.
Dr. Amy Brock-Hon (Physics, Geology, and Astronomy) requested $91,342 from the National Science Foundation via Claremont McKenna, Pitzer, and Scripps Colleges to investigate a new, untested method of numerically dating geologic materials. This project will enable undergraduate students to engage in meaningful research activities and will serve as their senior thesis or capstone.
Dr. Stylianos Chatzimanolis (Biology, Geology and Environmental Sciences) submitted a preliminary proposal to the National Science Foundation to expand the taxonomic classification of Xanthopygine rove beetles and investigate questions about their evolution, diversification, and distribution. This project will increase the pool of rove beetle experts and will include resources for one postdoctoral research, a graduate student, and three undergraduate students per year.
Drs. Bryan Ennis, Joseph Owino, (Civil and Chemical Engineering) and Amy Brock-Hon (Physics, Geology, and Astronomy) requested $434,473 from the National Science Foundation to acquire a state-of-the-art high speed particle imager. Acquisition of the instrument will foster research collaboration between UTC and regional partners, MTSU, Grainflow Dynamics, and Marshall Space Flight Center of NASA.
Dr. Preston Foerder (Psychology) submitted a preliminary proposal to the National Science Foundation in collaboration with Western Kentucky University to examine learning in captive African and Asian elephants. Dr. Foerder will examine the processes of habituation and insight learning using food cues as well as auditory (bee buzzing, banging on pots) and chemical (chili pepper extract, bee odors) stimuli.
Dr. Cuilan Gao (Mathematics) requested $5,000 from Oak Ridge Associated Universities to investigate a statistical approach to gene expression data analysis in cancer research. Funds will also support Dr. Gao’s presentation of her findings at the 2014 Joint Statistical Meeting in Boston, Massachusetts.
Dr. Linda Hill (School of Nursing) submitted a proposal to the Health Resources and Services Administration to continue the Nurse Anesthetist Traineeship program, which provides scholarships for full-time nurse anesthesia students. The goal is to increase the number and diversity of nurse anesthetists and to encourage graduates to practice in health professional shortage areas.
Dr. Yukie Kajita (Biology, Geology and Environmental Sciences) – $349,698 from the National Science Foundation to transfer her SEES Fellow grant from the University of Kentucky to UTC. Dr. Kajita will continue a bio-economic study relating to agricultural systems, design an undergraduate/graduate course on sustainability, and engage in outreach activities relating to sustainability education.
Dr. Hope Klug (Biology, Geology and Environmental Sciences) submitted a preliminary proposal to the National Science Foundation for research on sexual selection in the field of evolutionary biology. The collaborative study will broaden understanding of the operation of sexual selection.
Ms. Laurie Melnik, Mr. Joel Baxley, and Dr. Susanne Burgess (Southeast Center for Education in the Arts) were invited to submit a full proposal for $19,977 to the Community Foundation in support of a professional development program for teachers. The program will enable 10 elementary school teachers to participate in a week-long summer institute, three half-day workshops in the fall, and a book study, and develop electronic portfolios through which student work will be assessed.
Ms. Laurie Melnik, Mr. Joel Baxley, and Dr. Susanne Burgess (Southeast Center for Education in the Arts) requested $5,000 from the Tennessee Arts Commission to support the 7th annual National Arts & Education Forum in May 2015 centered on the theme of “A Context for Quality: What is Quality Arts Education?” Funding will be used for honorariums for nationally known experts in arts education, arts integration, and professional development who will serve as clinicians helping plan the Form, presenting keynotes, and serving as thought leaders to facilitate participants’ discussion.
Dr. Mina Sartipi (Computer Science and Engineering) requested $100,002 from the National Science Foundation to research recent advances in wireless communications, networks, and fast algorithms to fundamentally enhance the efficiency of wireless multicast networks. The proposed project will integrate research with education by developing a graduate/undergraduate course on multicast networks and mentoring high school and minority students.
The SimCenter Research Team requested $52,618 from Flow Modeling Simulation LLC to develop a comprehensive computational tool that can be used to simulate conditions in a turbine engine. The software tool will reduce the time and cost of developing new engine designs.
Dr. Christine Smith (School of Nursing) requested $677,376 from the Health Resources and Services Administration to support Advanced Education Nursing Traineeships during the 2014-15 academic year. Funds help offset the cost of tuition and fees for students enrolled in the Master of Science in Nursing program which prepares professional nurses for advanced practice as family nurse practitioners.
Drs. Christine Smith (School of Nursing) and Gary Liguori (Health and Human Performance) prepared a proposal requesting $1,107,962 from the Health Resources and Services Administration to support the Combating Obesity’s Multiple chronic conditions through Preparation Activities Shared among Students (COMPASS) program. The program will prepare nurses to work in collaborative, interprofessional teams to address the multiple chronic conditions associated with obesity. If funded, the project will involve numerous faculty from the School of Nursing, Health and Human Performance, and other departments.
Drs. Steven Symes, (Chemistry) Jennifer Boyd, Sean Richards (Biology, Geology and Environmental Sciences) and Amy Brock-Hon (Physics, Geology, and Astronomy) requested $256,825 from the National Science Foundation to acquire an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (ICP-MS), a scientific instrument used for quantitation and speciation of trace elements. The ICP-MS will serve as a collaborative tool for research in UTC’s Chemistry; Biology, Geology and Environmental Sciences; and Physics, Geology, and Astronomy departments.
Dr. Min Wang (Mathematics) requested $5,000 from Oak Ridge Associated Universities for research using stochastic differential equations to identify the key factors contributing to the spread of antibiotic resistant bacteria in a hospital setting. Funds will also support Dr. Wang’s presentation on his findings at the 34th Southeastern-Atlantic Regional Conference on Differential Equations in 2014.
Drs. Gary Wilkerson, Carrie Baker, and Marisa Colston (Health and Human Performance) requested $1,499,633 from the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute for research that will advance both the prevention of musculoskeletal injuries and the quality of orthopedic clinical care provided to patients with musculoskeletal injuries. Research from this study will assist in the development of athlete-centered injury prevention programs.