ORSP News & Events

October 2026 Sponsored Program Activity

Elizabeth Ellair — Tue, 10 Nov 2026 14:14:31 +0000

OCTOBER 2026 AWARDS AND PROPOSALS

Congratulations! The following UTC Faculty and Staff have attracted $536,900 in external grant and contract awards:

Sean O’Brien and Benjamin Chassen (Campus Law Enforcement), in collaboration with the Financial Commission for Appalachia HIDTA have received $19,000 from the US Executive Department for the project entitled, “Annual Drug Enforcement Administration State and Local Task Force Agreement.”
Dr. Donald Reising and Dr. Joshua Tyler (Electrical Engineering), in collaboration with SRI International, have received $216,810 from the US Office of the Director of National Intelligence for the project entitled, “2025 IARPA End-Gen-TA2.”
Dr. Kimberly Wingate and Dr. Stephanie Brennan (School of Education) have received $301,090 from the Tennessee Department of Education for the project entitled, “UTC Registered Teacher Apprenticeship Program (RTAP) Expansion Grant Application.”

Good Luck! The following UTC faculty and staff members submitted proposals for the potential to generate over $33,184,896 in external funding, if awarded:

Dr. Yukun Yuan (Computer Science and Engineering), in collaboration with Central State University, has requested $121,505 from the National Institute of Food and Agriculture for the project entitled, “A Low-cost Precision Weed Management System for Small-scale Farmers: AI-powered Approach to Video-based Drone Scouting & Targeted Spraying.”
Dr. Yukun Yuan and Dr. Zihao Wang (Computer Science and Engineering), in collaboration with Central State University, have requested $187,085 from the National Institute of Food and Agriculture for the project entitled, “From Mites to Models: An AI-Powered Imaging Platform for Rapid Mite Detection and Data Science Training.”
Dr. Ryan Zwart, Dr. Andrew Bailey, and Dr. Eric Hungenberg (Health & Human Performance) have requested $5,310 from the City of Chattanooga for the project entitled, “2026-27 City of Chattanooga Department of Parks and Outdoors (Outdoor Chattanooga) Placer.Ai Visitation Reporting.”
Dr. Donald Reising (Electrical Engineering), in collaboration with Florida State University, has requested $60,000 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Collaborative Research: Sub-Shot-Noise Limited Distributed Quantum Sensing on a Commercial Metropolitan-Scale Quantum Network via Deep Learning Aided Noise Suppression.”
Dr. Samuel David (Chemistry) has requested $332,733 from the National Institutes of Health for the project entitled, “A New Kinase-Substrate Interaction at an Old Node.”
Dr. Shaogang Ren, Dr. Yu Liang (Computer Science and Engineering), Dr. Gregory Heath (Health and Human Performance), and Dr. Jin Wang (Mathematics) have requested $513,599 from the National Institutes of Health for the project entitled, “Causal Learning for Epidemiological Modeling and Intervention Optimization under Uncertainty.”
Dr. Zihao Wang (Computer Science and Engineering), in collaboration with Massachusetts General Hospital, has requested $107,050 from the National Institutes of Health for the project entitled, “CT-Centered Missingness-Aware Multimodal AI for Dynamic Risk Assessment of Severe Cerebral Edema and Neurologic Recovery After Cardiac Arrest.”
Dr. Shahnewaz Karim Sakib (Computer Science and Engineering) has requested $7,000 from the OpenMined Foundation for the project entitled, “Attention Head Compression for Efficient Answer Verification and Model Routing.”
Dr. Jason Miller (Psychology) has requested $49,711 from the Russell Sage Foundation for the project entitled, “Muslim Immigration and Symbolic Threat: A Cyclical Relationship with Christian Nationalism.”
Latisha Hubbard (Student Conduct & SOS) has requested $6,600 from the Swipe Out Hunger for the project entitled, “Scrappy’s Cupboard Food Pantry.”
Dr. Mina Sartipi and Dr. Rick Mukherjee (Quantum Center), in collaboration with the Electric Power Board of Chattanooga, have requested $29,018,214 from the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development for the project entitled, “Quantum Infrastructure for Commercialization and Knowledge (QUICK) – Equipping Researchers and Industry with Shared Access to Next-Generation Capabilities.”
Dr. Venkateswara Kode (Civil and Chemical Engineering) has requested $20,000 from the University of Tennessee Research Foundation for the project entitled, “Humidity-Regulated Sorbent Wheel for Direct Air Capture.”
Dr. Weidong Wu and Dr. Ignatius Fomunung (Civil and Chemical Engineering) have requested $20,000 from the University of Tennessee Research Foundation for the project entitled, “Affordable Pavement Intelligence: From Real-Time Distress Detection to Maintenance Planning.”
Dr. Huu Hoang Nguyen and Dr. Mina Sartipi (CUIP), in collaboration with UrbisIQ LLC, have requested $70,000 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “SBIR Phase I: iCityGuardian – Language-Guided Cross-Camera Monitoring for Real-Time Incident Reconstruction.”
Dr. Abdul Ofoli and Dr. Moses Acquah (Electrical Engineering) have requested $195,802 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “ERI: Cell-Resolved Health Assessment with Robust, Generalizable, Calibrated Estimation for Lithium-Ion Batteries (CHARGE).”
Austin Harris (CUIP) has requested $736,127 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “AI-Infrastructure-Hubs: AI Tennessee-Scaling Statewide Compute Access for AI-Enabled Discovery.”
Dr. Gokhan Erdemir (Engineering Management and Technology) has requested $199,099 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “ERI: Detecting and Predicting Strategic Manipulation in Collaborative AI-Driven Robotic Systems.”
Dr. Lakmali Weerasena (Mathematics), Dr. Joey Shaw (Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science), and Nyssa Hunt (CAGDS) have requested $497,084 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Predicting Invasive Plant Dynamics Through Integrated Ecological Learning and Spatial Modeling.”
Dr. Mohandas Pillai (Mathematics) has requested $83,117 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Analysis: Soliton Dynamics in Nonlinear Partial Differential Equations Inspired by Physics.”
Dr. Rahul Jayan (Mechanical Engineering) has requested $199,833 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “ERI: From Single Atoms to Clusters: Nuclearity Dependent Ensemble Requirements for Discharge and Charge in Na-gas batteries.”
Dr. Serkan Varol (Engineering Management and Technology) has requested $158,167 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “ERI: Cognitive Workload and Visual Attention During Digital-Twin Manufacturing Disruptions.”
Dr. Surya Ayalasomayajula (Mechanical Engineering) has requested $197,555 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “ERI: Network-Coupled Physics-Preserving Models for Predictive Battery Management and Second-Life Assessment.”
Dr. Vahid Rasouli Disfani (Computer Science and Engineering) and Dr. Moses Acquah (Electrical Engineering) have requested $199,937 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “ERI: Physics-Grounded, Calibrated Battery Health Inference from Field Operation: Condition-Invariant Features, Degradation-Mode Transfer, & Coverage-Guaranteed Lifecycle Decisions.”
Dr. Venkatesh Pulletikurthi (Mechanical Engineering) has requested $199,368 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “ERI: From Real-Time Data to Predictive Intelligence: Parametric Identification for Data-Integrated Low-Order Modeling of Urban Canopy.”

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September 2026 Sponsored Program Activity

Elizabeth Ellair — Thu, 08 Oct 2026 17:04:31 +0000

SEPTEMBER 2026 AWARDS AND PROPOSALS

Congratulations! The following UTC Faculty and Staff have attracted $8,191,932 in external grant and contract awards:

Sybil Baker (English) received $2,155 from ArtsBuild for the project entitled, “Paired Community Writing Workshops-Underground and Academic Writers (pilot).”
Julia Bursch (UTC Research Institute) and a multi-disciplinary team including Dr. Jejal Reddy Bathi (Civil and Chemical Engineering), Terry Ellis (Nursing), Dr. David Giles (Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science), Dr. Eric Hungenberg (Health and Human Performance), and Dr. Thomas Lyons (Marketing and Entrepreneurship) have received $3,000,000 from the National Institute of Standards and Technology for the project entitled, “UTC Innovation Commercialization Center for Translational Research and Market Acceleration.”
Dr. Mengjun Xie (National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense) has received $89,075 from the US Department of Defense for the project entitled, “2026 DOW CSA – Returning Scholar.”
Karen Vann, Floyd Mathis, KariAnn Evans, and Dr. Tara Mathis (Center for Community Career Education), have received $300,000 from the US Department of Labor for the project entitled, “UTC Talent Search.”
Dr. Keith Bridges (Center for Community Career Education) has received $336,000 from the US Department of Labor for the project entitled, “2026 Southern Appalachian Educational Opportunity Center (SAEOC).”
Dr. Keith Bridges (Center for Community Career Education) has received $241,332 from the US Department of Education for the project entitled, “Northwest Georgia Educational Opportunity Center NWGEOC.”
Dr. Lauren Ingraham (Academic Services), Dr. Andrew McCarthy (English), Dr. Kristin Pope (Career Connections), Dr. Allen Pratt (School of Education), and Dr. Jessica Taylor (Applied Leadership and Learning) have received $535,922 from the US Department of Labor for the project entitled, “Reduced Credit Degrees: Transforming College Curriculum to Prepare Graduates for the Next Age of American Prosperity.”
Dr. Hannah Barger, April Anderson, Dr. Kristen Singletary, Dr. Jenny Holcombe (Nursing), and Kenneth Scannapiego (Financial Aid) have received $649,999 from the Health Resources and Services Administration for the project entitled, “CARE Nursing Scholars: Cultivating Access and Readiness through Education.”
Dr. Brooke Epperson, Tessa Mullinax-Baker, Dr. Rosebelle Peters, Dr. Latisha Toney, Dr. Jenny Holcombe, and Maggie Duckworth (Nursing) have received $753,134 from the Health Resources and Services Administration for the project entitled, “BRIDGE-RN – Bridging Rural workforce gaps through Immersive, Deliberate, Guided Entry into practice.”
Dominique Tran (Center for Global Education) has received $10,000 from the Institute of International Education for the project entitled, “STEM Global Career Pathways: Helping UTC STEM Students Turn Study Abroad into Career Success.”
Dr. Louis (Dutch) Fayard (Accounting) requested and received $1,700 from the Institute of Management Accountants for the project entitled, “2026 IMA MEF Grant.”
Austin Harris and Dr. Mina Sartipi (CUIP), in collaboration with the Nashville Department of Transportation, received $250,000 from the US Department of Transportation for the project entitled, “Leveraging Advanced Data to Deliver Multimodal Safety.”
Dr. Azad Hossain (Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science) has received $299,740 from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration for the project entitled, “Remote Sensing of Water Quality in the Tennessee River.”
Charlie Mix, Nyssa Hunt, and Laura Lee (CAGDS) have received $40,549 from Skytec, LLC for the project entitled, “Riparian Buffer Assessment and Prioritization Model”
Charlie Mix and Nyssa Hunt (CAGDS) have received $19,823 from the US Department of Agriculture for the project entitled, “2026 Cherokee National Forest Road Digitization Project – Phase 3.”
Dr. Jason Miller (Psychology) has requested and received $2,000 from the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues for the project entitled, “Shift of Power and Religious Demographics: How the Increase of Non-Christian Political Power in the U.S. Leads to Christian Nationalist Beliefs and Support for Anti-Democratic Policies.”
Dr. Deborah McAllister, Dr. Jason Gordon, Dr. Jennifer Lynberg (School of Education) and Dr. Aniekan Ebiefung (Mathematics) have received $1,307,984 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Track 2: Graduate Yearlong Experience And Residency for Acquiring STEM Teaching Competencies (GradYEAR).”
Dr. Cheri Green, Maurice Green, and Michael Lewis (Student Support Services) have received $352,519 from the US Department of Education for the project entitled, “UTC Student Support Services Program 2025-2030.”

Good Luck! The following UTC faculty and staff members submitted proposals for the potential to generate over $5,737,983 in external funding, if awarded:

Austin Harris, Dr. Gazi Akgun, Dr. Mohamed Fadul, and Yasir Hassan (CUIP), in collaboration with ADASTEC Corp, requested $1,262,207 from the US Department of Transportation for the project entitled, “CO-DRIVE – Cooperative Driving Research, Integration, Verification, and Evaluation.”
Austin Harris, Dr. Gazi Akgun, Dr. Huu Hoang Nguyen, Dr. Mina Sartipi, and Yasir Hassan (CUIP), in collaboration with ONEBUS INC, requested $412,281 from the US Department of Transportation for the project entitled, “American Innovation: Inherent Safety and Accessibility Advancements Through New Bus Architecture.”
Dr. Gokhan Erdemir and Dr. Serkan Varol (Engineering Management and Technology) have requested $65,487 from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation for the project entitled, “The Robotics Scientist Pipeline: A Community College-to-University-to-Graduate School Roadmap.”
Dr. Gokhan Erdemir (Engineering Management and Technology) has requested $558,964 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “CPS-FR: Blockchain-Supported Trust and Data Integrity in Multi-Agent Cyber-Physical Systems.”
Dr. Rahul Jayan (Mechanical Engineering) has requested $125,000 from the American Chemical Society for the project entitled, “Interfacial charge-coverage coupling in the electrochemical reduction of nitrate to ammonia.”
Dr. Natalie Owsley, Meagan Oslund (Nursing), and Dr. Hemangi Mavadiya (Health and Human Performance) have requested $194,172 from the American Heart Association for the project entitled, “Nourishing Future Nurses: Advancing Plant-Forward Nutrition Education for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention.”
Dr. Joey Shaw (Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science) has requested $4,967 from the National Park Service for the project entitled, “Digitizing the Mammoth Cave National Park Herbarium Collection: A Proposal to the Cumberland Piedmont Network.”
Dr. Christina Policastro (Criminal Justice) has requested $38,440 from the Tennessee Coalition to End Domestic and Sexual Violence for the project entitled, “2027 Senator Tommy Burks Victim Assistance Academy.”
Dr. Yu Liang (Computer Science and Engineering), in collaboration with the University of North Georgia, requested $123,632 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “CPS: Medium: Collaborative Research: Real-time Subsurface Sensing with Cognitive Networked Robotic System.”
Andrew Van Slyke (Sociology, Anthropology, and Geography) has requested $139,860 from the National Endowment for the Humanities for the project entitled, “Trading America: Nelson, Collingwood, and Shipwrecks of the Jamaica Station (1778-1782).”
Dr. Khalid Tantawi (Engineering Management and Technology) has requested $230,000 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Collaborative Research: From Illinois to Tennessee Advancing Workforce Readiness in Energy Storage and Power Integration Systems.”
Dr. Imran Hossen (Computer Science and Engineering) has requested $395,024 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Collaborative Research: Trustworthy Retrieval-Augmented Generation: Diagnosing and Correcting Credibility Circularity across Source Selection and Verification.”
Dr. Imran Hossen and Dr. Shahnewaz Karim Sakib (Computer Science and Engineering) have requested $499,950 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “The Defensive Cost of Thinking Like an Attacker: Blind Spots from Offensive Experience and AI-Assisted Practice in Cybersecurity Learners.”
Dr. Serkan Varol and Dr. Gokhan Erdemir (Engineering Management and Technology) have requested $395,227 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “ECR: Core: How the Timing and Form of Generative AI Assistance Shape Productive Struggle and Learning in Undergraduate Engineering.”
Dr. Shahnewaz Karim Sakib (Computer Science and Engineering), in collaboration with the University of Akron, has requested $271,265 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Collaborative Research: SaTC 2.0: RES: Lifecycle-Aware Security for Stateful and Multi-Agent AI Systems.”
Dr. Shahnewaz Karim Sakib and Dr. Mengjun Xie (Computer Science and Engineering) have requested $349,315 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “III: Measurable and Deployable Privacy Guarantees for Black-Box, Tool-Augmented AI Assistants under Imperfect Adversary Knowledge.”
Dr. Shaogang Ren and Dr. Yu Liang (Computer Science and Engineering) have requested $282,076 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “RI: Trustworthy Forecasting for Natural-Disaster Resilience via Dynamic Mechanism Memory and Uncertainty Quantification.”
Dr. Zihao Wang and Dr. Yu Liang (Computer Science and Engineering) have requested $348,356 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “NSF Collaborative Research: Continuous Time Model Foundation for Next-Generation Point-of-Care Biomedical Systems.”
Dr. Bradley Harris, Christopher Frishcosy, and Dr. Mbakisya Onyango (Civil and Chemical Engineering) have requested $41,760 from the Tennessee Valley Authority for the project entitled, “Process determination of coal ash based synthetic aggregate production for hot mix asphalt (HMA) applications.”

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August 2026 Sponsored Program Activity

Elizabeth Ellair — Mon, 14 Sep 2026 16:49:42 +0000

AUGUST 2026 AWARDS AND PROPOSALS

Congratulations! The following UTC Faculty and Staff have attracted $2,054,283 in external grant and contract awards:

Dr. David Aborn (Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science) has received two awards from the National Park Service: $50,616 for the project entitled, “Inventory of Birds to Inform Management at Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Battlefields,” and $85,401 for the project entitled, “Inventory of Breeding and Wintering Birds to Inform Management Decisions at Carl Sandburg National Historic Home.”
Dr. Belinda Lee (Center for Community Career Education) has received $374,217 from the US Department of Education for the project entitled, “University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Upward Bound Program.”
Dr. Kara Hamilton and Dr. Joel Harden (Health & Human Performance) have received $15,000 from Fast Break Athletics for the project entitled, “2027 Fast Break Phase III.”
Dr. Morgan Smith (Sociology, Anthropology, and Geography), in collaboration with Florida State University, received $21,377 from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management for the project entitled, “Reevaluating BOEM’s Guidelines for Identifying Submerged Pre-Contact Archaeological Sites in the Gulf of Mexico: an Extensive Geoarchaeological Approach.”
Charlie Mix and Nyssa Hunt (CAGDS) have received $10,000 from the Mainspring Conservation Trust for the project entitled, “Mainspring Conservation Trust – Conservation Priority Model Update.”
Dr. Deborah McAllister and Dr. Jennifer Lynberg (School of Education), in collaboration with Middle Tennessee State University, received $17,741 from the Library of Congress for the project entitled, “Exploring Science and Mathematics with Library of Congress Resources.”
Dr. Donald Reising and Dr. Joshua Tyler (Electrical Engineering), in collaboration with SRI International, received $40,000 from the US Office of the Director of National Intelligence for the project entitled, “2025 IARPA End-Gen-TA2.”
Dr. Amanda Hardin (School Psychology), in collaboration with the Tennessee Department of Education, requested and received $450,000 from the US Department of Education for the project entitled, “Project INSPIRE: Increasing School Psychologists in Under-Resourced Environments.”
Dr. Kumar Yelamarthi and Michael Roeser (CECS – Dean’s Office) have received $500,000 from the Appalachian Regional Commission for the project entitled, “Enhancing Workforce Development in Appalachia through Advanced Engineering Lab Equipment.”
Dr. Deborah McAllister, Dr. Jason Gordon, Dr. Jennifer Lynberg (School of Education), and Dr. Aniekan Ebiefung (Mathematics) have received $300,000 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Track 2: Graduate Yearlong Experience And Residency for Acquiring STEM Teaching Competencies (GradYEAR).”
Dr. Ziwei Ma (Mathematics) has received $189,931 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Collaborative Research: SCH: Rehabilitation Evaluation of Neurologic Motor Disorders using Wearable Sensors.”

Good Luck! The following UTC faculty and staff members submitted proposals for the potential to generate over $2,168,565 in external funding, if awarded:

Dr. Jared Pienkos and Dr. Meredith Barbee (Chemistry) have requested $25,000 from the Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation for the project entitled, “2026 Dreyfus Lectureship at UTC.”
Dr. Rahul Jayan (Mechanical Engineering) has requested $490,283 from the Los Alamos National Laboratory for the project entitled, “Development of softFQEq machine-learned interatomic potentials.”
Brett Fuchs, Sean O’Brien, Walker Anderson, Austin Holland, Preston Marlin, Jason Patty, and Matthew Holzmacher (Campus Law Enforcement), have requested $188,988 from the US Department of Justice for the project entitled, “UAS for Public Safety.”
Dr. Joshua Ammons (Economics) has requested $18,648 from the Institute for Humane Studies for the project entitled, “Free Society Grant for Undergraduate Programming.”
Nyssa Hunt (CAGDS), in collaboration with the Limestone Valley Resource Conservation and Development Council, has requested $5,419 from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation for the project entitled, “LVRC&D/ARSN Stream Prioritization Screening Tool.”
Sybil Baker, Dr. Justin Wymer (English), and Rebecca Brantley (Art), have requested $2,000 from the South Arts for the project entitled, “Poetry in Conversation: A Meacham Writer’s Workshop Feature.”
Dr. Abdel Karrar and Dr. Kumar Yelamarthi (Electrical Engineering) have requested $37,750 from the Tennessee Board of Architectural and Engineering Examiners for the project entitled, “2027 TBAEE Annual Grant – Engineering.”
Catherine Kendall and Jessica Etheredge (Interior Design) have requested $10,584 from the Tennessee Board of Architectural and Engineering Examiners for the project entitled, “2027 TBAEE – Interior Design.”
Dr. Gokhan Erdemir, Dr. Serkan Varol, Dr. Gazi Akgun, Dr. Erkan Kaplanoglu, and Dr. Ahad Nasab (Engineering Management and Technology), have requested $372,035 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “REU Site: Human-Centered Urban Intelligence: Robotics and Data Analytics for Safe and Connected Mobility.”
Dr. Jejal Reddy Bathi, Dr. Venkateswara Kode (Civil and Chemical Engineering), Charlie Mix (CAGDS), and Dr. Lisa Piazza (Undergraduate Research and Creative Endeavor) have requested $99,200 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “REU Site: Research Experience for Field Sampling, Analyzing and Database Development of Microplastics.”
Dr. Rick Mukherjee (Quantum Center) has requested $41,756 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “QUantum Interconnect Link, Tennessee (QUILT X-Lab) A Foundry-Manufacturable Microwave-to-Optical Quantum Interconnect.”
Dr. Serkan Varol, Dr. Gokhan Erdemir, Dr. Gazi Akgun (Engineering Management and Technology), Dr. Navid Aghakhani (Data Analytics), and Dr. Vahid Rasouli Disfani (Electrical Engineering) have requested $371,902 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Research in Neurotechnology and Human-Centered Intelligent Systems.”
Dr. Yingfeng Wang (Computer Science and Engineering) has requested $505,000 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Collaborative Research: III: RUI: Video-Contextual Reliability Warning System for AI-Assisted Breast Ultrasound Diagnosis.”

The post August 2026 Sponsored Program Activity appeared first on ORSP News & Events.

July 2026 Sponsored Program Activity

Samantha Dean — Tue, 11 Aug 2026 15:59:59 +0000

JULY 2026 AWARDS AND PROPOSALS

Congratulations! The following UTC Faculty and Staff have attracted $1,924,108 in external grant and contract awards:

Dr. Amber Roache (Nursing) has received $632,091 from the Health Resources and Services Administration for the project entitled, “Clinical-Academic Partnerships: Breaking Down Barriers to Care 2023-27.”
Angela Dittmar (Arts-Based Collaborative) has received $11,100 from the Tennessee Arts Commission for the project entitled, “Arts Integration in Midtown: A Catalyst for Community Wellbeing.”
Charlie Mix and Laura Lee (CAGDS) have received $181,730 from the Tennessee Department of Transportation for the project entitled, “TDOT Collaboratory Proposal: A Shared Online Environment for Geospatial Data Collection and Analysis.”
Dr. Deborah McAllister and Dr. Jennifer Lynberg (School of Education), in collaboration with Vanderbilt University, have received $31,166 from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration for the project entitled, “STEM Topics for Pre-service Teachers.”
Dr. Deborah McAllister, Dr. Jason Gordon, and Dr. Jennifer Lynberg (School of Education) have received $49,984 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “NSF FF: Planning: Empowering Children to Thrive in the Digital Era through Collaborative Learning Experiences.”
Dr. Elizabeth O’Brien (School of Professional Studies), Dr. Kevin Doyle, Dr. Alexandra Frank (Counseling), Dr. Amanda Hardin (School Psychology), Dr. Amy Doolittle, and Dr. Bethany Womack (Social Work) have received $600,000 from the Health Resources and Services Administration for the project entitled, “Behavioral Healthcare through Interprofessional Training.”
Dr. Jennifer Lynberg (School of Education), in collaboration with the Tennessee Department of Education, has received $86,000 from the US Department of Education for the project entitled, “2027 TN Governor’s School for Prospective Teachers.”
Dr. Keenan Dungey (Chemistry) has received $4,800 from the American Chemical Society for the project entitled, “Project SEED site in Chattanooga for 2026.”
Dr. Linda Hill (Nursing) has received $17,732 from the Health Resources and Services Administration for the project entitled, “2020-27 HRSA Nurse Anesthetist Traineeships.” Twyler Boykin (Center for Community Career Education) has received $309,505 from the US Department of Education for the project entitled, “University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Upward Bound Math & Science.”

Good Luck! The following UTC faculty and staff members submitted proposals for the potential to generate over $31,046,592 in external funding, if awarded:

Dr. Brooke Epperson, Tessa Mullinax-Baker, Dr. Rosebelle Peters, Dr. Latisha Toney, Dr. Jenny Holcombe, and Maggie Duckworth (Nursing) have requested $2,965,960 from the Health Resources and Services Administration for the project entitled, “BRIDGE-RN – Bridging Rural workforce gaps through Immersive, Deliberate, Guided Entry into practice.”
Charlie Mix and Nyssa Hunt (CAGDS) have requested $10,000 from the Mainspring Conservation Trust for the project entitled, “Mainspring Conservation Trust – Conservation Priority Model Update.”
Charlie Mix, Nyssa Hunt, and Laura Lee (CAGDS) have requested $40,549 from Skytec LLC for the project entitled, “Riparian Buffer Assessment and Prioritization Model.”
Dominique Tran (Center for Global Education) has requested $10,000 from the Institute of International Education for the project entitled, “STEM Global Career Pathways: Helping UTC STEM Students Turn Study Abroad into Career Success.”
Dr. Hannah Barger, Dr. Kristen Singletary, April Anderson, Dr. Jenny Holcombe (Nursing), and Kenneth Scannapiego (Financial Aid) have requested $3,249,995 from the Health Resources and Services Administration for the project entitled, “CARE Nursing Scholars: Cultivating Access and Readiness through Education.”
Huu Hoang Nguyen and Dr. Mina Sartipi (CUIP) have requested $53,000 from UrbisIQ LLC for the project entitled, “EdgeGuard-V2X: Cloud-Edge AI for Congestion Prediction and Location-Specific Traffic Advisories.”
Dr. Jared Pienkos (Chemistry) has requested $75,000 from the Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation for the project entitled, “Changing the properties of transition metal compounds with N-O chemistry.”
Dr. Jennifer Lynberg (School of Education) has requested $1,005,963 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “CAREER: Professionally Responsive Instructional Support Model.”
Dr. Jessica Hackathorne, Dr. Taylor Kozell, Dr. Rebecca Littleton, Dr. Erin Melhorn (Occupational Therapy), and Kenneth Scannapiego (Financial Aid) have requested $3,249,990 from the Health Resources and Services Administration for the project entitled, “GATEWAY – Growing Access to Therapy through Education, Workforce development, Advocacy, and communitY.”
Dr. Kara Hamilton and Dr. Joel Harden (Health & Human Performance) have requested $15,000 from Fast Break Athletics for the project entitled, “2027 Fast Break Phase III.”
Dr. Kimberly Wingate and Dr. Stephanie Brennan (School of Education) have requested $350,000 from the Tennessee Department of Education for the project entitled, ” UTC Registered Teacher Apprenticeship Program (RTAP) Expansion Grant Application.”
Dr. Kristina Wick (Nursing) has requested $218,273 from the Tennessee Department of Health for the project entitled, “Tennessee Memory Care Assessment Network.”
Dr. Kristina Wick and Dr. Meagan Oslund (Nursing) have requested $3,464,471 from the Tennessee Department of Health for the project entitled, “MobileMOC – Healthcare Resiliency Program.”
Dr. Kate McKinney, Farron Kilburn, Dr. Christopher Doneski, Dr. Jason Peter, and Bethany Weaver (Nursing) have requested $2,161,325 from the Health Resources and Services Administration for the project entitled, “Pathways to Practice: Advancing Nurse Practitioners from Disadvantaged Backgrounds in Southeast Tennessee.”
Matthew Holzmacher, Brett Fuchs, and Sean O’Brien (Campus Law Enforcement) have requested $125,000 from the US Department of Justice for the project entitled, “Enhancing Community-Oriented Policing Efforts at the UT Chattanooga Campus.”
Dr. Meagan Oslund and Dr. Kristina Wick (Nursing) have requested $1,500,000 from the Tennessee Department of Health for the project entitled, “Active Nutrition and Community Health Outreach for Rural Counties (ANCHOR): Community-Centered Chronic Disease Prevention in Rural Tennessee.”
Dr. Mina Sartipi, Dr. Mohamed Fadul, Austin Harris, Huu Hoang Nguyen, and Yasir Hassan (CUIP) have requested $5,029,401 from the US Department of Transportation for the project entitled, “COSMOS: Cooperative Sensing & Mitigation for Optimized Intersection Safety.”
Dr. Murat Barisik (Nanoengineering Center) has requested $100,000 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Collaborative Research: Continuous Airborne Viral Aptasensing in Built Environments.”
Dr. Nagwan Zahry (Communications) has requested $27,878 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Tennessee Coordination Hub: AI Tennessee: Driving Growth and Leadership in AI.”
Dr. Nancy Fell, Janine Boehme, Dr. Rebecca Littleton, Dr. Carolyn Padalino (Physical Therapy), and Kenneth Scannapiego (Financial Aid) have requested $3,250,000 from the Health Resources and Services Administration for the project entitled, “Strengthening The Rehabilitation Workforce through Investment in Disadvantaged Students and Education (STRIDE).”
Dr. Rahul Bhosale (Civil and Chemical Engineering), Dr. Abdel Karrar, Dr. Nurhidajat Sisworahardjo (Electrical Engineering), Dr. Reetesh Ranjan (Mechanical Engineering), and Dr. Kumar Yelamarthi (CECS Dean) have requested $409,376 from the Appalachian Regional Commission for the project entitled, “Bridging Nuclear and Manufacturing: An Interdisciplinary Workforce Development Initiative for Appalachia.”
Dr. Rahul Bhosale (Civil and Chemical Engineering) has requested $599,988 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “CAREER: Toward Low-Temperature Isothermal Solar Chemical Looping Reforming of Methane Coupled with H2O/CO2 Conversion through Compositionally Complex Cerium Oxides.”
Dr. Rick Dierenfeldt, Dr. Tammy Garland, and Dr. Laura Lutgen-Nieves (Criminal Justice), in collaboration with the Hamilton County Coalition, have requested $159,347 from the Health Resources and Services Administration for the project entitled, “Substance Use Disorders and Recovery in Rural Tennessee Counties.”
Sean O’Brien and Ben Chassen (Campus Law Enforcement) have requested $76,428 from the US Department of Justice for the project entitled, “Annual Drug Enforcement Administration State and Local Task Force Agreement.”
Dr. Venkateswara Kode (Civil and Chemical Engineering) has requested $632,219 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “CAREER: Humidity-Regulated Atmospheric Resource Recovery Using Functionally Paired Sorbents.”
Dr. Wolday Abrha (Engineering Management and Technology) has requested $461,440 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “CAREER: Enhancing Engineering Education Through Multidisciplinary Research Engagements.”
Dr. Xiunan Wang (Mathematics) has requested $476,603 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “CAREER: Mathematical Theory and Inference for Memory- and Perception-Driven Movement in Marine Megafauna.”
Dr. Yingfeng Wang (Computer Science and Engineering) has requested $100,000 from the Google Inc. for the project entitled, “TASK-EFT: Application-Aware Error Budgeting for Resource-Efficient Early Fault-Tolerant Quantum Simulation.”
Dr. Yukun Yuan (Computer Science and Engineering) has requested $596,796 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “CAREER: Toward Human-Aligned Service-Oriented Cyber-Physical Systems through Closed-Loop Sensing and Control Co-Design.”
Dr. Zihao Wang (Computer Science and Engineering) has requested $632,590 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “CAREER: Generative Integrity Learning for High-Value Translational Inverse Problems.”

The post July 2026 Sponsored Program Activity appeared first on ORSP News & Events.

June 2026 Sponsored Program Activity

Samantha Dean — Thu, 09 Jul 2026 14:26:03 +0000

JUNE 2026 AWARDS AND PROPOSALS

Congratulations! The following UTC Faculty and Staff have attracted $3,878,199 in external grant and contract awards:

Dr. Damitha Bandara (Data and Analytics), Dr. Jennifer Goodrich (Engineering Management and Technology), and Nyssa Hunt (CAGDS) have received $25,000 from the Journey Health Foundation for the project entitled, “Assessing Equity and Optimizing Emergency Response Services Using GIS: A Spatial and Socioeconomic Analysis of Hamilton County, Tennessee.”
Angela Dittmar (Arts-Based Collaborative) and Daniel Mailman (Computer Science and Engineering), in collaboration with the UC Foundation, have requested and received $10,000 from Chattanooga 2.0 for the project entitled, “Synthesizing Sounds & Stories in Digital Time and Space.”
John Freeze (Center for Professional Education) has received $44,422 from the Tennessee Office of Criminal Justice Programs for the project entitled, “SELA SouthEastern Leadership Academy 2026-2027.”
Farron Kilburn, Dr. Priscilla Simms-Roberson, Bethany Weaver, Dr. Amber Roache (Nursing), Dr. Elizabeth O’Brien, and Anna Miller (Counseling) have received $25,000 from the Journey Health Foundation for the project entitled, “Stylists as Community Care Connectors: A Regional Pilot to Bridge Clients to Mental Health, Healthcare, and SafetyResources.”
Dr. Heather Lee (Health & Human Performance) has received $25,000 from the Journey Health Foundation for the project entitled, “The Differential Effect of TN Together on County-level Opioid Overdose Mortality in Tennessee by Physician density and Uninsured rate.”
Dr. David Levine (Physical Therapy), Dr. Caitlin Crews-Stowe (Health & Human Performance), and Charlie Mix (CAGDS) have received $25,000 from the Journey Health Foundation for the project entitled, “Closing the Care Gap: Addressing Social Determinants to Improve Well-Child Visit Adherence.”
Dr. Marissa McElrone (Health & Human Performance) has received $25,000 from the Journey Health Foundation for the project entitled, “Food and nutrition security surveillance pilot across the Chattanooga Area Food Bank network.”
Dr. Erin Melhorn (Occupational Therapy) and Dr. Derek Liuzzo (Physical Therapy) have received $25,000 from the Journey Health Foundation for the project entitled, “BALANCE Hamilton – Building Analytics and Local Networks for Community Empowerment.”
Dr. Jason Peter, Dr. Farron Kilburn, Dr. Amber Roache, Bethany Weaver (Nursing), Harlee Milligan, and April Wilson (Social Work) have received $25,000 from the Journey Health Foundation for the project entitled, “Screenings, Health and Interprofessional Engagement through Library Delivery (SHIELD).”
Dr. Karissa Peyer (Health & Human Performance) has received $25,000 from the Journey Health Foundation for the project entitled, “Project IMPACT: Investigating Mobility Patterns for Access, Connections, and Treatment.”
Dr. Sean Richards, Dr. Dawn Ford (Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science), Nyssa Hunt, and Laura Lee (CAGDS) have requested and received $25,000 from the Journey Health Foundation for the project entitled, “Environmental Health Monitoring in Hamilton County, TN.”
Dr. Mina Sartipi (CUIP) has requested and received $3,400,000 from the Electric Power Board of Chattanooga for the project entitled, “UTC QISE Research and Innovation Hub.”
Dr. Jin Wang (Mathematics) has received $173,777 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Collaborative Research: Multiscale modeling of viral infections: Dynamics and applications.”
Dr. Guisen Xue and Dr. Monireh Rahmati (Data and Analytics) have received $25,000 from the Journey Health Foundation for the project entitled, “Data-Driven Investigation of Social Determinants of Public Health: Evidence from Key Diseases.”

Good Luck! The following UTC faculty and staff members submitted proposals for the potential to generate over $11,989,784 in external funding, if awarded:

Dr. Gazi Akgun (CUIP), Hannah Archer, and Claudi Colpo (Research Institute) have requested $50,000 from the Tennessee Department of Transportation for the project entitled, “Develop an AI-Powered Winter Road Condition Intelligence and Resilience Metric Framework Using TDOT Traffic Detectors.”
Sybil Baker (English) has requested $2,876 from the Tennessee Arts Commission for the project entitled, “Paired Community Writing Workshops-Underground and Academic Writers.”
Dr. Brooke Epperson, Maggie Duckworth, Savannah Kelley, Dr. Jason Peter, Dionne Gray, Dr. Jenny Holcombe (Nursing), Dr. Amir Alakaam (Health and Human Performance), and Dr. Cathy Scott (Social Work) have requested $6,197,622 from the Tennessee Department of Health for the project entitled, “MOCS REACH – Reproductive Equity & Access in Community Health.”
Dr. Mohamed Fadul (CUIP) has requested $23,680 from the Tennessee Department of Transportation for the project entitled, “AI-Driven Post-Disaster Infrastructure Impact Estimation and Recovery Prioritization for TDOT Assets.”
Austin Harris (CUIP) has requested $122,703 from the Tennessee Department of Transportation for the project entitled, “AI-Driven Post-Disaster Infrastructure Impact Estimation and Recovery Prioritization for TDOT Assets.”
Dr. Lauren Ingraham (Academic Affairs), Dr. Andrew McCarthy (English), Dr. Kristin Pope (Career Connections), Dr. Allen Pratt (School of Education), and Dr. Jessica Taylor (Learning and Leadership) have requested $2,927,172 from the US Department of Education for the project entitled, “Reduced Credit Degrees: Transforming College Curriculum to Prepare Graduates for the Next Age of American Prosperity.”
Dr. Seong Dae Kim, Dr. Wolday Abrha (Engineering Management and Technology), and Dr. Ignatius Fomunung (Civil and Chemical Engineering) have requested $219,444 from the Tennessee Department of Transportation for the project entitled, “Multi-Objective Asset Investment Optimization Framework for TDOT.”
Dr. Ziwei Ma (Mathematics) has requested $40,835 from the Tennessee Department of Transportation for the project entitled, “Diagnosing Traffic Detectors and Improving Data Reliability Through Septotemporal Cross-Validations.”
Dr. Deborah McAllister and Dr. Jennifer Lynberg (School of Education) have requested $17,430 from Middle Tennessee State University for the project entitled, “Exploring Science and Mathematics with Library of Congress Resources.”
Charlie Mix and Nyssa Hunt (CAGDS) have requested $19,823 from the US Department of Agriculture for the project entitled, “2026 Cherokee National Forest Road Digitization Project – Phase 3.”
Dr. Shaogang Ren, Dr. Yu Liang, and Dr. Zihao Wang (Computer Science and Engineering) have requested $484,076 from the National Institutes of Health for the project entitled, “Causal AI for Early Detection of Alzheimer’s Disease Using Multimodal Data’.”
Dr. Shaogang Ren and Dr. Zihao Wang (Computer Science and Engineering) have requested $236,995 from the Tennessee Department of Transportation for the project entitled, “AI-Enabled Standard Pavement Distress Library and Multimodal QA/QC System for Data-Driven Pavement Asset Management.”
Dr. Shaogang Ren (Computer Science and Engineering) has requested $213,877 from the Tennessee Department of Transportation for the project entitled, “A Diffusion-Guided GeoAI and Time-Series Forecasting Framework for Slope Movement Detection and Corridor Risk Prioritization in Tennessee.”
Dr. Shaogang Ren (Computer Science and Engineering) has requested $199,135 from the Tennessee Department of Transportation for the project entitled, “A Calibrated UAS-Hyperspectral Imaging Framework for Early Bridge Decay Detection and Forensic Condition Assessment.”
Dr. Shahnewaz Karim Sakib (Computer Science and Engineering) has requested $167,312 from the Tennessee Department of Transportation for the project entitled, “A Standardized Pavement Distress Library for Consistent Interpretation of 3D Pavement Condition Data.”
Dr. Zakia Tasnim and Dr. Mbakisya Onyango (Civil and Chemical Engineering) have requested $182,209 from the Tennessee Department of Transportation for the project entitled, “Quantifying Natural Disaster Impacts on Transportation Infrastructure for Asset Management.”
Dr. Serkan Varol, Dr. Edmund Baffoe-Twum (Engineering Management and Technology), and Dr. Ignatius Fomunung (Civil and Chemical Engineering) have requested $240,210 from the Tennessee Department of Transportation for the project entitled, “From Classroom to Career: Preparing Tennessee’s Transportation Workforce.”
Dr. Jin Wang (Mathematics) and Dr. Gregory Heath (Health and Human Performance) have requested $331,092 from the National Institutes of Health for the project entitled, “Medium-grained modeling and simulation for infectious diseases.”
Dr. Weidong Wu, Dr. Ignatius Fomunung, Dr. Mbakisya Onyango, and Dr. Joseph Owino (Civil and Chemical Engineering) have requested $233,052 from the Tennessee Department of Transportation for the project entitled, “TDOT-Specific Standard Pavement Distress Library for Data-Driven Asset Management.”
Dr. Yukun Yuan (Computer Science and Engineering) has requested $80,241 from the Tennessee Department of Transportation for the project entitled, “An AI-Enabled Open-Source Platform Integrating Pavement Distress Data Management with Real-Time Traffic Mobility and Risk Analytics.”

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May 2026 Sponsored Program Activity

Samantha Dean — Wed, 03 Jun 2026 15:54:27 +0000

MAY 2026 AWARDS AND PROPOSALS

Congratulations! The following UTC Faculty and Staff have attracted $1,561,482 in external grant and contract awards:

Dr. Venkateswara Kode (Civil and Chemical Engineering) has received $199,516 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “ERI: Renewable Water Harvesting Using Tunable Solid Bio-Desiccants for Low-Energy Regeneration.”
Charlie Mix, Nyssa Hunt, and Laura Lee (Center for Applied Geospatial Data Science) have received $65,000 from the Tennessee Department of Agriculture for the project entitled, “Spatial Analysis of TN Urban Community Forests.”
Dr. Donald Reising (Electrical Engineering), in collaboration with Purdue University, has requested and received $147,000 from the US Department of the Army for the project entitled, “Radiation-Hard Microelectronics Workforce Development Consortium.”
Dr. Joey Shaw, Dr. Stylianos Chatzimanolis, and Jessica Sanders (Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science) have received $35,892 from the Electric Power Board of Chattanooga for the project entitled, “2026 EPB Bio Survey.”
Dr. Kimberly Wingate and Dr. Stephanie Brennan (School of Education) have received $1,114,074 from the Tennessee Department of Education for the project entitled, “Grow Your Own Apprenticeship (FY2026-FY2027).”

Good Luck! The following UTC faculty and staff members submitted proposals for the potential to generate over $22,336,063 in external funding, if awarded:

Dr. Tatiana Allen (Physics and Astronomy) has requested $249,996 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “NQNI: SouthEastern Microscopy Cloud for Quantum Research.”
Dr. Damitha Bandara (Data and Analytics), Dr. Jennifer Goodrich (Engineering Management and Technology), and Nyssa Hunt (Center for Applied Geospatial Data Science) have requested $24,924 from the Journey Health Foundation for the project entitled, “Assessing Equity and Optimizing Emergency Response Services Using GIS: A Spatial and Socioeconomic Analysis of Hamilton County, Tennessee.”
Dr. Keith Bridges (Center for Community Career Education) has requested $1,773,610 from the US Department of Education for the project entitled, “2026 Southern Appalachian Educational Opportunity Center.”
Dr. Keith Bridges (Center for Community Career Education) has requested $1,482,653 from the US Department of Education for the project entitled, “2026 Northwest Georgia Educational Opportunity Center.”
Julia Bursch (UTC Research Institute), Dr. Jejal Reddy Bathi (Civil and Chemical Engineering), Terry Ellis (Nursing), Dr. David Giles (Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science), Dr. Eric Hungenberg (Health & Human Performance), and Dr. Thomas Lyons (Marketing and Entrepreneurship) have requested $3,000,000 from the National Institute of Standards and Technology for the project entitled, “UTC Innovation Commercialization Center for Translational Research and Market Acceleration.”
Dr. Gokhan Erdemir and Dr. Erkan Kaplanoglu (Engineering Management and Technology) have requested $50,000 from Amazon.com Inc for the project entitled, “Design and Control of a Multi-Finger Robot Gripper with Reconfigurable Fingertips.”
Dr. Gokhan Erdemir (Engineering Management and Technology) and Dr. Zihao Wang (Computer Science and Engineering) have requested $604,770 from the Schmidt Sciences for the project entitled, “Detecting and Predicting Strategic Manipulation in Collaborative AI-Driven Robotic Systems.”
John Freeze (Center for Professional Education) has requested $145,623 from the Tennessee Office of Criminal Justice Programs for the project entitled, “CPE Support Responsibilities for SELA Program.”
Dr. Joshua Hamblen (Physics and Astronomy) has requested $722,257 from the US Department of Energy for the project entitled, “Expediting and Optimizing Event Sorting and Analysis for Precision Subatomic Physics Measurements Using Physics-Informed Neural Networks.”
Austin Harris, Dr. Gazi Akgun, Dr. Mohamed Fadul, and Dr. Mina Sartipi (CUIP) have requested $1,175,047 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “AI-Powered Platform for Real-time Intelligence in Shared Mobility.”
Dr. Azad Hossain (Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science) has requested $299,740 from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration for the project entitled, “Remote Sensing of Water Quality in the Tennessee River.”
Dr. Abdel Karrar (Electrical Engineering) has requested $1,910,836 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Nuclear Power Plant Auxiliary Power System Monitoring: Towards Enhanced Safety & Reliability.”
Farron Kilburn, Beth Miller, Dr. Priscilla Simms-Roberson, Bethany Weaver, Dr. Amber Roache (Nursing), and Dr. Elizabeth O’Brien (School of Professional Studies) have requested $25,000 from the Journey Health Foundation for the project entitled, “Stylists as Community Care Connectors: A Regional Pilot to Bridge Clients to Mental Health, Healthcare, and Safety Resources.”
Dr. Heather Lee (Health & Human Performance) has requested $22,851 from the Journey Health Foundation for the project entitled, “The Differential Effect of TN Together on County-level Opioid Overdose Mortality in Tennessee by Physician density and Uninsured rate.”
Dr. David Levine (Physical Therapy), Dr. Caitlin Crews-Stowe (Health & Human Performance), and Charlie Mix (Center for Applied Geospatial Data Science) have requested $24,869 from the Journey Health Foundation for the project entitled, “Closing the Care Gap: Addressing Social Determinants to Improve Well-Child Visit Adherence.”
Dr. Jennifer Lynberg, Dr. Allen Pratt, Dr. Stephanie Brennan, Ashtyn Cornett, and Dr. Jason Gordon (School of Education) have requested $5,924,942 from the US Department of Education for the project entitled, “Tennessee Literacy Apprenticeship.”
Dr. Jennifer Lynberg (School of Education) has requested $86,000 from the Tennessee Department of Education for the project entitled, “2027 TN Governor’s School for Prospective Teachers.”
Dr. Deborah McAllister, Dr. Jason Gordon, and Dr. Jennifer Lynberg (School of Education) have requested $49,984 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Empowering Children to Thrive in the Digital Era through Collaborative Learning Experiences.”
Dr. Marissa McElrone (Health & Human Performance) has requested $25,000 from the Journey Health Foundation for the project entitled, “Food and nutrition security surveillance pilot across the Chattanooga Area Food Bank network.”
Dr. Erin Melhorn (Occupational Therapy) and Dr. Derek Liuzzo (Physical Therapy) have requested $24,654 from the Journey Health Foundation for the project entitled, “BALANCE Hamilton – Building Analytics and Local Networks for Community Empowerment.”
Dr. Hoang Huu Nguyen and Dr. Mina Sartipi (CUIP) have requested $1,200,000 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Human-in-the-Loop Multi-Camera Anomaly Detection and Monitoring.”
Dr. Jason Peter, Farron Kilburn, Dr. Amber Roache, Bethany Weaver (Nursing), Harlee Milligan, and April Wilson (Social Work) have requested $24,735 from the Journey Health Foundation for the project entitled, “Screenings, Health and Interprofessional Engagement through Library Delivery.”
Dr. Karissa Peyer (Health & Human Performance) has requested $24,513 from the Journey Health Foundation for the project entitled, “Project IMPACT: Investigating Mobility Patterns for Access, Connections, and Treatment.”
Dr. Reetesh Ranjan (Mechanical Engineering) has requested $416,709 from the US Department of Energy for the project entitled, “Accelerating Automotive CFD with Non-Intrusive Hierarchical ML-Enhanced Reduced Order Models.”
Dr. Shahnewaz Karim Sakib (Computer Science and Engineering) has requested $500,303 from Schmidt Sciences for the project entitled, “Enhancing Truthfulness in Human AI Teaming.”
Dr. Shahnewaz Karim Sakib (Computer Science and Engineering) has requested $500,307 from Schmidt Sciences for the project entitled, “Towards Reliable and Trustworthy Multi-agent Communications.”
Dr. Mina Sartipi, Dr. Gazi Akgun, Dr. Mohamed Fadul, and Austin Harris (CUIP), in collaboration with the City of Chattanooga, have requested $2,002,840 from the US Department of Transportation for the project entitled, “Detection, Protection, and Survivability: High-Injury to High-Safety Transformation in Chattanooga, Tennessee.”
Dr. Guisen Xue and Dr. Monireh Rahmati Bongisouei (Data and Analytics) have requested $24,999 from the Journey Health Foundation for the project entitled, “Data-Driven Investigation of Social Determinants of Public Health: Evidence from Key Diseases.”
Dr. Ryan Zwart, Dr. Andrew Bailey, Dr. Eric Hungenberg (Health & Human Performance), and Charlie Mix (Center for Applied Geospatial Data Science) have requested $18,901 from the Beacon Foundation Inc for the project entitled, “Beacon Park Annual Impact Report (2026-27) – Year 1.”

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April 2026 Sponsored Program Activity

Samantha Dean — Wed, 06 May 2026 15:00:51 +0000

APRIL 2026 AWARDS AND PROPOSALS

Congratulations! The following UTC Faculty and Staff have attracted $525,520 in external grant and contract awards:

Dr. Bento Lobo (Finance & Economics) has requested and received $25,000 from the Electric Power Board of Chattanooga for the project entitled, “2026 EPB Contract for CRER Scholars.”
Catherine Quinlan and Dr. Lucy Schultz (Environmental Studies) have received $14,450 from the Alliance of Women Philanthropists – Giving Circle for the project entitled, “Urban Farm at Alton Park with Wild Violet Permaculture.”
Dr. Deborah McAllister and Dr. Jennifer Lynberg (School of Education), in collaboration with Vanderbilt University, have received $10,350 from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration for the project entitled, “STEM Topics for Pre-service Teachers.”
Dr. Joey Shaw (Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science), in collaboration with the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, has requested and received $10,750 from the US Fish and Wildlife Service for the project entitled, “National Wetland Condition Assessment 2026, West Tennessee Region.”
Dr. Yingfeng Wang (Computer Science and Engineering) and Dr. Jannatul Ferdoush (Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science), in collaboration with a cross-disciplinary team of faculty mentors, have received $464,970 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “REU Site: Interdisciplinary Computational Biology (iCompBio).”

Good Luck! The following UTC faculty and staff members submitted proposals for the potential to generate over $7,276,675 in external funding, if awarded:

Charlie Mix, Nyssa Hunt, and Laura Lee (Center for Applied Geospatial Data Science-CAGDS) have requested $65,000 from the Tennessee Department of Agriculture for the project entitled, “2026-2027 Extension to US Division of Forestry project.”
Dr. Deborah McAllister, Dr. Jason Gordon, and Dr. Jennifer Lynberg (School of Education) have requested $863,935 from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration for the project entitled, “Science Simulations.”
Dr. Donald Reising (Electrical Engineering) has requested $125,000 from Purdue University for the project entitled, “SCALE: A Microelectronic Workforce Development Production Project.”
Dr. Erkan Kaplanoglu, Dr. Gazi Akgun (Engineering Management and Technology), and Dr. David Levine (Physical Therapy) have requested $99,759 from Hanger Prosthetics & Orthotics for the project entitled, “Adaptive Smart Interface Liner for Residual Limb Health Monitoring and Pressure Offloading.”
Dr. Imran Hossen and Dr. Mengjun Xie (Computer Science and Engineering) have requested $500,000 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “CyberAI Innovation: Closing the CyberAI Skills Gap Through Low-Barrier, Portable Laboratory Modules for AI-Augmented Security Operations and the Security of AI Systems.”
Dr. Joey Shaw, Dr. Stylianos Chatzimanolis, and Jessica Sanders (Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science) have requested $35,892 from the Electric Power Board of Chattanooga for the project entitled, “2026 EPB Bio Survey.”
Dr. Joshua Hamblen (Physics and Astronomy), in collaboration with Georgia Tech Research Institute, has requested $38,594 from the US Department of Energy for the project entitled, “Edge Intelligence for Enhanced Dataset Curation in Fundamental Neutron Physics.”
Dr. Joshua Hamblen (Physics and Astronomy), in collaboration with Eastern Kentucky University, has requested $76,513 from the US Department of Energy for the project entitled, “Expediting and Optimizing Precision Electromagnetic Field Mapping and Simulations for Precision Subatomic Physics Measurements Using Physics-Informed AI Models.”
Karen Vann (Center for Community Career Education) has requested $1,557,007 from the US Department of Education for the project entitled, “UTC Talent Search.”
Megan McKnight (Center for Wellbeing) and Steven Oberheim (Counseling) have requested $1,143,799 from the Tennessee Opioid Abatement Council for the project entitled, “Expanding Recovery Support on UT Campuses in Response to the Opioid Crisis.”
Dr. Mengjun Xie (National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense) has requested $150,000 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Collaborative Research: CyberAI Innovation: Agentic AI-driven Adaptive Refinement and Customization of Cybersecurity Learning Materials.”
Dr. Mengjun Xie (National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense) has requested $89,076 from the US Department of Defense for the project entitled, “2026 DOW CSA – Returning Scholar.”
Dr. Mina Sartipi and Dr. Huu Hoang Nguyen (CUIP) have requested $250,000 from DENSO International America, Inc for the project entitled, “LinkedEyes: AI-Powered Multi-Target Multi-Camera Tracking with Infrastructure Communication.”
Dr. Mina Sartipi, Dr. Mohamed Fadul, Austin Harris, Yasir Hassan, Dr. Huu Hoang Nguyen (CUIP), and Dr. Gazi Akgun (Engineering Management and Technology have requested $283,016 from the US Department of Transportation for the project entitled, “PRISM: AI-Powered Dynamic Real-Time Mapping System for Safer AV Operation.”
Dr. Rick Mukherjee (Quantum Center) has requested $506,729 from the US Department of Energy for the project entitled, “Efficient Approximate Ground-State Search of Glassy Spin Systems.”
Dr. Venkateswara Kode, Dr. Jejal Reddy Bathi (Civil and Chemical Engineering), and Dr. Shahnewaz Karim Sakib (Computer Science and Engineering) have requested $1,492,355 from Google Inc. for the project entitled, “AI-Driven Co-Capture of Atmospheric Carbon and Water for Climate Resilience.”

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March 2026 Sponsored Program Activity

Samantha Dean — Thu, 09 Apr 2026 15:52:03 +0000

MARCH 2026 AWARDS AND PROPOSALS

Congratulations! The following UTC Faculty and Staff have attracted $493,396 in external grant and contract awards:

Dr. Azad Hossain (Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science) has received $227,172 from the City of Chattanooga for the project entitled, “Evaluating the effects of Land Use and Land Cover Change on Friar Branch Creek Using Geospatial, Watershed, and Hydrodynamic Models with Emphasize on Channel Widening and Sediment Transport.”
Dr. Bret Eschman is serving as faculty advisor to student researcher Claire Beach (Psychology) who has received $1,321 from Psi Chi, International Honor Society in Psychology for the project entitled, “Developing Resilience: How Temperament Supports Attention after Early Adversity.”
Charles Mix and Laura Lee (Center for Applied Geospatial Data Science (CAGDS)) have received $18,270 from the Tennessee Department of Transportation for the project entitled, “TDOT Collaboratory Proposal: A Shared Online Environment for Geospatial Data Collection and Analysis.”
Dr. Christine Smith (Nursing) has received $150,000 from the Erlanger Health System for the project entitled, “Affiliated Agreement for the CRNA Program 2026-2031.”
Dr. Donald Reising (Electrical Engineering) and Dr. Tian Li (Physics and Astronomy), in collaboration with Tennessee Technological University, have received $19,796 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Beginnings: Creating & Sustaining a Diverse Community of EQUIS Across the Southeastern US.”
Dr. Fatma Ayca Cetinkaya (Mathematics), in collaboration with Brigham Young University, has requested and received $7,300 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Recovering Images from Blurred Data: A Linear Algebra and Machine Learning Approach to a Simple Inverse Problem.”
Dr. Jared Pienkos (Chemistry) has received $16,000 from Organic Syntheses, Inc. for the project entitled, “Synthesis of N-oxide containing bipyridine ligands for the development of transition metal imaging agents.”
Dr. Jill Shelton is serving as faculty advisor to student researcher Luke Hicks (Psychology) who has received $1,012 from Psi Chi, International Honor Society in Psychology for the project entitled, “Who Makes You Feel ‘You’: Stories of Authenticity Among Adults with Autism.”
Dr. Joey Shaw (Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science) has received $15,000 from the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation for the project entitled, “Vascular Flora of Scotts Gulf Wilderness State Park.”
Dr. Sungwoo Yang (Civil and Chemical Engineering) has received $29,525 from Volkswagen Group of America for the project entitled, “Characterization of Westwood Aerogel for Electric Vehicle Battery Insulation.”
Susan Lazenby (WUTC), in collaboration with ArtsBuild, has received $4,000 from the National Endowment for the Arts for the project entitled, “ArtsBuild Artists Work in Partnership – Chattanooga History Documentaries.”
Susan Lazenby, Ray Bassett (WUTC), and Dr. Margaret Douglas (Business Administration), in collaboration with ArtsBuild, have received $4,000 from the National Endowment for the Arts for the project entitled, “2026 ArtsBuild United We Create: America 250- Radio Plays.”

Good Luck! The following UTC faculty and staff members submitted proposals for the potential to generate over $7,060,369 in external funding, if awarded:

Dr. Dalei Wu and Dr. Yu Liang (Computer Science and Engineering) have requested $160,352 from the National Institute of Food and Agriculture for the project entitled, “AI/Data driven food systems: bridging workforce gaps.”
Dr. David Aborn (Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science) has requested $50,251 from the National Park Service for the project entitled, “Inventory of Birds to Inform Management at Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Battlefields.”
Dr. David Aborn (Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science) has requested $72,678 from the National Park Service for the project entitled, “Inventory of Breeding and Wintering Birds to Inform Management Decisions at Carl Sandburg National Historic Home.”
Dr. Ignatius Fomunung, Dr. Bradley Harris, Dr. Joseph Owino (Civil and Chemical Engineering), Dr. Seong Dae Kim (Engineering Management and Technology), Dr. Charles Margraves (Mechanical Engineering), Dr. Chang Phuong (Computer Science and Engineering), and Dr. Jessica Taylor (Learning and Leadership) have requested $3,450,000 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Building Effective Pathways to STEM Careers (BEPSC).”
Dr. Keenan Dungey (Chemistry) has requested $2,400 from the American Chemical Society for the project entitled, “Project SEED site in Chattanooga for 2026.”
Dr. Kumar Yelamarthi and Michael Roeser (CECS – Dean’s Office) have requested $500,000 from the Appalachian Regional Commission for the project entitled, “Enhancing Workforce Development in Appalachia through Advanced Engineering Lab Equipment.”
Dr. Mina Sartipi, Dr. Mohamed Fadul (CUIP), and Dr. Gazi Akgun (Engineering Management and Technology) have requested $1,272,894 from the Chattanooga Area Regional Transportation Authority for the project entitled, “CARTA COMPASS (Chattanooga Operations for Mobility, Protection, Access, Safety & Service).”
Dr. Morgan Smith and Dr. Andrew Van Slyke (Sociology, Anthropology, and Geography) have requested $75,417 from the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation for the project entitled, “2026 Historic Preservation Fund.”
Dr. Shahnewaz Karim Sakib and Dr. Aruna Ranhotige (Computer Science and Engineering) have requested $492,466 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “CyberAI Innovation: An Integrated Education Framework for End-to-End Security of AI-Driven Systems.”
Dr. Shaogang Ren, Dr. Yu Liang, and Dr. Zihao Wang (Computer Science and Engineering) have requested $483,935 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “CyberAI Innovation: Advancing CyberAI Workforce Development Through Stackable Curriculum, Applied Research, and Community Engagement.”
Dr. Yu Liang, Dr. Shaogang Ren, Dr. Shahnewaz Karim Sakib, Dr. Zihao Wang, and Dr. Dalei Wu (Computer Science and Engineering) have requested $499,976 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “CyberAI Innovation: A Modular Education and Research Ecosystem for Next-Generation AI and Cybersecurity Workforce.”

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February 2026 Sponsored Program Activity

Samantha Dean — Tue, 10 Mar 2026 13:47:10 +0000

FEBRUARY 2026 AWARDS AND PROPOSALS

Congratulations!  
The following UTC Faculty and Staff have attracted $288,577 in external grant and contract awards: 

Dr. Andrew Denney and Dr. Rick Dierenfeldt (Criminal Justice), in collaboration with the Hamilton County Government, have received $109,321 from the U.S. Department of Justice for the project entitled, “Recidivism Reduction Initiative.”
Dr. Dalei Wu, Dr. Yu Liang, Dr. Yingfeng Wang, Dr. Zihao Wang (Computer Science and Engineering), Katherine Elverd (Music), and Dr. Zibin Guo (Sociology, Anthropology, and Geography), in collaboration with the AI/Machine Learning Consortium to Advance Health Equity and Researcher Diversity, have received $100,000 from the National Institutes of Health for the project entitled, “Advancing Neurological Rehabilitation through AI-Driven Music Therapy.”
Dr. Donald Reising (Electrical Engineering), in collaboration with Tennessee Technological University, has received $10,146 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “TREN: Building Tennessee Research and Education Network.”
Nyssa Hunt and Charles Mix (Center for Applied Geospatial Data Science (CAGDS)) have received $44,243 from the Southeast Aquatic Resources Partnership for the project entitled, “National Aquatic Connectivity Mapping (phase 3).”
Dr. Reetesh Ranjan (Mechanical Engineering), in collaboration with the University of Alabama, Huntsville, has received $24,867 from TITOMIC for the project entitled, “Computational and Experimental Development of a High-Speed Cold Spray Gun Prototype.”

Good Luck! 
The following UTC faculty and staff members submitted proposals for the potential to generate over $3,836,648 in external funding, if awarded: 

Andrew Van Slyke and Dr. Morgan Smith (Sociology, Anthropology, and Geography) have requested $9,473 from the Nautical Archeology Society for the project entitled, “Columbus’ Last Caravels: Testing the Fisherman’s Beach Ballast Pile in St. Ann’s Bay, Jamaica.”
Angela Dittmar (Arts-Based Collaborative) has requested $24,972 from the Tennessee Arts Commission for the project entitled, “Arts Integration in Midtown: A Catalyst for Community Wellbeing.”
Dr. Bret Eschman (Psychology) has requested $1,321 from Psi Chi, International Honor Society in Psychology for the project entitled, “Developing Resilience: How Temperament Supports Attention after Early Adversity.”
Dr. Caitlin Crews-Stowe (Health & Human Performance) has requested $4,673 from the Alliance of Women Philanthropists – Giving Circle for the project entitled, “”Germs Don’t Stand a Chance!”: A School-Based Hand Hygiene and Cough Etiquette Intervention in Early Elementary.”
Catherine Quinlan (English) and Dr. Lucy Schultz (Philosophy and Religion) have requested $14,450 from the Alliance of Women Philanthropists – Giving Circle for the project entitled, “Urban Farm at Alton Park with Wild Violet Permaculture.”
Dr. Christine Smith (Nursing) has requested $150,000 from the Erlanger Health System for the project entitled, “Affiliated Agreement for the CRNA Program 2026-2031.”
Dr. Donald Reising (Electrical Engineering) has requested $299,374 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Collaborative Research: CPS-CIR: Symbiotic Trust and Identity Management (STIM) Framework for Community-Deployed Precision Agriculture Cyber-Physical Systems.”
Dr. Fatma Ayca Cetinkaya (Mathematics) has requested $35,000 from the UC Foundation for the project entitled, “Inverse Spectral Analysis of Differential Operators.”
Dr. Han J. Park (Chemistry) has requested $70,000 from the American Chemical Society for the project entitled, “Photoacoustic Characterization of Chattanooga Shale Thermal Diffusivity and Porosity.”
Jami Hargrove (Student Health) has requested $25,000 from the Alliance of Women Philanthropists – Giving Circle for the project entitled, “STI Testing and Peer Education Initiative.”
Dr. Jennifer Hogg (Health & Human Performance) has requested $3,000 from the Chattanooga Football Club for the project entitled, “Baseline and ad hoc isokinetic testing for Chattanooga Football Club.”
Dr. Jill Shelton (Psychology) has requested $1,012 from Psi Chi, International Honor Society in Psychology for the project entitled, “Who Makes You Feel ‘You’: Stories of Authenticity Among Adults with Autism.”
Dr. Jin Wang (Mathematics) and Dr. Murat Barisik (Mechanical Engineering) have requested $452,585 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Collaborative Research: eMB: Unraveling the Role of Fluid Dynamics in Plant Cell Growth through a Joint Mathematical and Experimental Investigation.”
Dr. Jisook Kim (Chemistry) has requested $5,971 from the Alliance of Women Philanthropists – Giving Circle for the project entitled, “Hands-on Chem Activities at the UTC STEAMAGINATION Festival.”
Dr. Luis Sanchez Diaz (Physics and Astronomy) has requested $11,350 from the Alliance of Women Philanthropists – Giving Circle for the project entitled, “Electrophysiology Kit to Study Lipid Bilayers, Brain Disease, and Neuromorphic Materials.”
Dr. Meagan Oslund (Nursing) and Dr. Erin Melhorn (Occupational Therapy) have requested $22,550 from The Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation for the project entitled, “Leading Collaborative Practice: An Interprofessional Education Badge and Micro-credential Program for Future Health Care Professionals.”
Melissa Laseter (Student Success) has requested $9,244 from FirstGen Forward for the project entitled, “2026 TIAA Innovation Award.”
Melissa Laseter (Student Success) has requested $10,000 from the Alliance of Women Philanthropists – Giving Circle for the project entitled, “2026 AWP Giving Circle – Transfer Mocs Proposal.”
Dr. Shahnewaz Karim Sakib (Computer Science and Engineering) has requested $199,955 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Collaborative Research: III: Trustworthy Human-Machine Teaming: Integration of Large Language Models.”
Dr. Sungwoo Yang (Civil and Chemical Engineering) has requested $29,525 from Volkswagen Group of America for the project entitled, “Characterization of Westwood Aerogel for Electric Vehicle Battery Insulation.”
Susan Lazenby (WUTC) has requested $5,000 from ArtsBuild for the project entitled, “ArtsBuild Artists Work in Partnership – Chattanooga History Documentaries.”
Susan Lazenby (WUTC) has requested $5,000 from ArtsBuild for the project entitled, “2026 ArtsBuild United We Create: America 250 – Chattanooga History Documentaries.”
Susan Lazenby, Ray Bassett (WUTC), and Dr. Peggy Douglas (Business Administration) have requested $5,000 from ArtsBuild for the project entitled, “2026 ArtsBuild United We Create: America 250- Oral History Radio Plays.”
Dr. Tian Li and Dr. Rick Mukherjee (Physics and Astronomy) have requested $1,494,520 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Collaborative Research: S-STEM: Building Quantum-Ready Workforce in Tennessee (QuRe-TN).”
Dr. Zihao Wang (Computer Science and Engineering) has requested $452,134 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Feature-Manifold Riemannian Flow Matching for Critical Imaging Tasks.”
Dr. Zihao Wang (Computer Science and Engineering) has requested $495,539 from the National Institutes of Health for the project entitled, “Enhancing Imaging and Surgical Guidance for Cochlear Implantation Using AI-Driven Techniques.”

The post February 2026 Sponsored Program Activity appeared first on ORSP News & Events.

January 2026 Sponsored Program Activity

Samantha Dean — Tue, 10 Mar 2026 13:43:32 +0000

JANUARY 2026 AWARDS AND PROPOSALS

Congratulations!  
The following UTC Faculty and Staff have attracted $715,210 in external grant and contract awards: 

Dr. Gazi Akgun (Engineering Management and Technology), Dr. Chandra Ward (Sociology, Anthropology, and Geography), and Dr. Seyedmehdi Khaleghian (CUIP) have received $50,000 from the Alliance for Automotive Innovation for the project entitled, “Consumer Acceptance of Automated Vehicles & Analysis and Comparison of State Laws.”
Dr. Mohammad Mahtabi (Mechanical Engineering) has received $7,780 from AMAERO Advanced Materials and Manufacturing, Inc. for the project entitled, “316L Sintered Buttons.”
Dr. Mina Sartipi, Austin Harris, Dr. Seyedmehdi Khaleghian (CUIP), and Dr. Vahid Rasouli Disfani (Computer Science and Engineering) have received $502,798 from the City of Chattanooga for the project entitled, “An End-to-End Decision Support System for Integrated Transportation System and Smart Grid Management.”
Susan Lazenby (WUTC) has received $22,300 from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting for the project entitled, “WUTC Radio Community Service Grant.”
Dr. Mina Sartipi, Austin Harris, Dr. Seyedmehdi Khaleghian, and Dr. Huu Hoang Nguyen (CUIP) have received $18,002 from the US Department of Transportation for the project entitled, “End-to-End Data Architecture and Analytics Pipeline for Safe and Adaptive Autonomous Vehicles.”
Dr. Erkan Kaplanoglu (Engineering Management and Technology) has received $13,155 from Sensory Bridges LLC for the project entitled, “Design and Development of the Brooks Band Wearable System.”
Dr. Abdel Karrar (CECS) has received $40,943 from the Tennessee Board of Architectural and Engineering Examiners for the project entitled, “2026 TBAEE Annual Grant – Engineering.”
Catherine Kendall and Jessica Etheredge (Interior Design) have received $5,232 from the Tennessee Board of Architectural and Engineering Examiners for the project entitled, “2026 TBAEE – Interior Design.”
Austin Harris, Dr. Mina Sartipi, Dr. Mohamed Fadul, and Yasir Hassan (CUIP) have received $10,000 from the University of Tennessee Research Foundation for the project entitled, “Network-V2X Enabled Cloud-Based Digital Twin.”
Dr. Stephan Davenport and Dr. Spencer Usrey (Accounting), in collaboration with the Urban League of Greater Chattanooga, Inc., have received $20,000 from the US Internal Revenue Service for the project entitled, “2025-26 IRS/Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Matching Grant Program.”
Dr. Deborah McAllister, Dr. Jason Gordon, Dr. Jennifer Lynberg (School of Education), and Dr. Aniekan Ebiefung (Mathematics) have received $25,000 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Track 2: Graduate Yearlong Experience and Residency for Acquiring STEM Teaching Competencies (GradYEAR).”

Good Luck! 
The following UTC faculty and staff members submitted proposals for the potential to generate over $2,448,486 in external funding, if awarded: 

Jami Hargrove (Student Health) has requested $3,500 from the American College Health Foundation for the project entitled, “Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) Navigation and Support Program.”
Dr. Khalid Tantawi (Electrical Engineering) has requested $7,999 from the American Society for Engineering Education for the project entitled, “Debunking Perpetual Motion Through A Sustainability-Integrated Motor-Generator Misconceptions Lab.”
Dr. Sarah Chehade (Quantum Center) has requested $43,745 from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory for the project entitled, “2026 ORNL JFA.”
Dr. Brian Choi (Mathematics) has requested $10,999 from the Korean-American Scientists and Engineers Association for the project entitled, “Rigorous numerics for complex systems: memory and uncertainty in nonlinear PDEs.”
Dr. Murat Barisik (Mechanical Engineering) has requested $700,000 from the North Carolina State University for the project entitled, “GCR: Converging Interfacial Water Physics and Thermal Transport to Enable Sustained Dropwise Condensation.”
Dr. Elizabeth Olson (Geosciences) has requested $5,000 from the Oak Ridge Associated Universities for the project entitled, “Partitioning Groundwater Recharge and Storage in the Obar Springs Karst Watershed Through Surface-Subsurface Monitoring and Modeling.”
Nyssa Hunt and Charles Mix (Center for Applied Geospatial Data Science (CAGDS)) have requested $44,243 from the Southeast Aquatic Resources Partnership for the project entitled, “National Aquatic Connectivity Mapping (Phase 3).”
Charles Mix and Laura Lee (Center for Applied Geospatial Data Science (CAGDS)) have requested $18,270 from the Tennessee Department of Transportation for the project entitled, “TDOT Collaboratory Proposal: A Shared Online Environment for Geospatial Data Collection and Analysis.”
Dr. Aruna Ranhotige (Computer Science and Engineering) has requested $350,000 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Collaborative Research: SaTC 2.0: RES: Cross-Layer Side-Channel Leakage Assessment of AI Accelerators.”
Dr. Mina Sartipi and Austin Harris (CUIP) have requested $551,831 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “ART Track 2: GROW: IMPACT (Innovation Maturation, Partnership Acceleration, and Cultivating Tech-Entrepreneurships).”
Dr. Serkan Varol, Dr. Gokhan Erdemir, Dr. Erkan Kaplanoglu (Engineering Management and Technology), and Dr. Dalei Wu (Computer Science and Engineering) have requested $399,805 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “Bridging No-Code Analytics and Python: A No-Code-Plus Track for Low-Computing Students.”
Dr. Shahnewaz Karim Sakib and Dr. Mengjun Xie (Computer Science and Engineering) have requested $313,094 from the National Science Foundation for the project entitled, “SaTC 2.0: RES: Measurable and Deployable Privacy Guarantees for Black-Box, Tool-Augmented AI Assistants under Imperfect Adversary Knowledge.”

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