College of Arts and Sciences ‘strategic research initiatives’ help foster faculty success
A dozen faculty members in the College of Arts and Sciences are receiving funds this year from the college’s Strategic Research Initiative programs -- SRIs -- designed to foster research productivity and achievement throughout the college.
SRI awards include funds up to $10,000 per award and are provided in two categories this year: Faculty Seed Funds and the Race and Racism Research programs. The Faculty Seed Funds (FSF) program, now in its fifth year, includes a COVID impact statement to help faculty whose research has been negatively impacted by COVID-19. The Race and Racism Research (RRR) program provides funding for projects that highlight research-based solutions for addressing racial inequalities.
“Our intention for investing in these SRI programs is to increase arts and sciences capacity and facilitate faculty research success in obtaining external competitive funding, expanding peer-reviewed publications and increasing Ph.D. production. We are extremely proud of the quality of proposals we receive. Even more, we are proud of the impact our faculty and their efforts have in the disciplines as well as on society—a truly significant multifaceted return on investment,” said Giselle Thibaudeau, College of Arts and Sciences associate dean for research.
Faculty receiving SRI Faculty Seed Funding include:
-- Christopher Brooks, associate professor in the Department of Biological Sciences: “The Role of the Prickly Pear Microbiome in the Infestation Success of the Southern American Cactus Moth.”
-- Matthew Brown, associate professor in the Department of Biological Sciences: “Soil Protists: Probing the Function of the Forgotten Predators in Agricultural Productivity.”
-- Kristin Boyce, associate professor in the Department of Philosophy and Religion: “Seeing Agon.”
-- Lourdes Cardozo Gaibisso, assistant professor in the Department of English: “SMILE (Scientific & Multilingual Inquiry Learning in Engineering.”
-- Amy Dapper, assistant professor in the Department of Biological Sciences: “Population Genetics of Alligator Mississippiensis in the Southeastern United States.”
-- Mahesh Gangishetty, assistant professor in the Department of Chemistry: “Co-doping in Lead Halide Perovskite for White Light Emitting Diodes.”
-- Anna Osterholtz, assistant professor in the Department of Anthropology and Middle Eastern Cultures: “Bioarchaeological Research in Croatia: New Projects, New Possibilities.”
-- Jeff Winger, professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy: “Measuring the Neutrino Mass: An International Effort.”
Faculty receiving Race and Racism Research funding include:
-- Jesse Goliath, assistant professor in the Department of Anthropology and Middle Eastern Cultures: “Contextualizing Medico-legal Investigation and Health Disparities among BIPOC women in the Southeast Unite States.”
-- Margaret Hagerman, associate professor in the Department of Sociology: “’My Parents are Racist’: White Families’ Fights about Politics and Racism in America.”
-- Stacy Haynes, professor in the Department of Sociology: “Debt Peonage and the New Jim Crow: Experience of Justice System-Involved Fathers with Child Support and Criminal Justice.”
-- Brian Williams, assistant professor in the Department of Geosciences: “Foraging, Foodways, and Race in Mississippi.”
MSU’s College of Arts and Sciences includes more than 5,000 students, 323 full-time faculty members, nine doctoral programs, 15 master’s programs, and 27 undergraduate academic majors offered in 14 departments. MSU is classified by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education as an R-1 “Very High Research Activity” doctoral university, the highest level of research activity in the country. MSU is one of only 146 schools to hold the designation. For more details about the College of Arts and Sciences, visit www.cas.msstate.edu.
MSU is Mississippi’s leading university, available online at www.msstate.edu.
Sam Kealhofer | College of Arts and Sciences
