July 28, 2005

16 receive Faculty Development Incentive Grants

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – The Purdue Alumni Association recently awarded 16 Purdue University faculty members with Faculty Development Incentive Grants to provide start-up funds for initiation of research or professional development projects.

Todd Coleman, Purdue Alumni Association executive director, said the grants, offered in collaboration with the Office of the Provost, provide a chance for the association to recognize and reward the efforts of faculty who show great promise as educators and researchers.

"These grants give the Purdue Alumni Association an opportunity to continue to support the academic mission of the university," he said. "We wanted to reward faculty members who are making outstanding contributions inside the classroom, as well as in their research."

The following faculty members received grants for $1,000 or less:

• Sandra L. Barnes, assistant professor of sociology and anthropology, for "The effects of casino boat entertainment and church-based partnerships on economic and social conditions in Gary, Ind.: A Study of Urban Renewal";

• Haiying Huang, assistant professor of mechanical engineering technology, for a feasibility study for machine vision inspection of Bayer dry dispense products;

• Tatjana Jevremovic, assistant professor of nuclear engineering, for computational model development for the ultra-cold neuron cellular microdosimetry;

• Erina L. MacGeorge, assistant professor of communication, for "Cultural influences on advice interactions: Comparing Chinese-Americans";

• Hugo G. Ochoa-Acuña, assistant professor of environmental epidemiology, for modeling ecological indirect effects caused by exposure to contaminant;

• Ryan Schneider, assistant professor of English, for "Forms of the word: Teaching written texts of oral traditions in African-American culture";

• Maria S. Sepulveda, assistant professor of fisheries and aquatic sciences, for the establishment of a captive population of fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas) for evaluating the effects of endocrine-disrupting chemicals on aquatic ecosystems;

• Joseph V. Balagtas, assistant professor of agricultural economics, to study market effects of an industry-funded animal identification system for U.S. beef cattle;

• Yiwei Jiang, assistant professor of agronomy, to study root characteristics of creeping bentgrass in response to waterlogging;

• Daisuke Kihara, assistant professor of biological sciences and computer sciences, to study structure basis for protein-protein interactions;

• Chang Lu, assistant professor of agricultural and biological engineering, to study the design and fabrication of a microfluidic pump for single-cell and single-molecule analysis on biochips;

• Elizabeth K. Menon, assistant professor of visual and performing arts, to study Cyborg art history;

• Kimberly S. Plake, assistant professor of pharmacy practice, to study pharmacists and physicians’ perceptions of pharmaceutical care;

• Jean-Christophe Rochet, assistant professor of medicinal chemistry and molecular pharmacology, to study oxidative stress and protein aggregation in Parkinson’s disease;

• Heather L. Servaty-Seib, assistant professor of educational studies, for the BRIDGe to service learning;

• Lynne S. Taylor, assistant professor of industrial and physical pharmacy, to study the spontaneous amorphization of drugs in polymer matrices in the presence of water.

The Faculty Incentive Grant Research Program was created last year to assist faculty in their research by awarding $15,000 per academic year, or $7,500 for each of two cycles, to researchers for professional development, scholarship or teaching, or research enhancement. Individual grants do not exceed $1,000.

The first grants were awarded in February. Deadline for the next submission is Oct. 31.

For information, visit the Purdue University Alumni Association Faculty Development Incentive Grant Program web site or call (765) 494-5175.

Writer: Kim Medaris, (765) 494-6998, kmedaris@purdue.edu

Source: Todd Coleman, (765) 494-5179, toddcoleman@purdue.edu

Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu

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