Prior Awards

September 2023 – NIH (AIM-AHEAD) – Dr. Abhinandan Chowdhury
Dr. Abhinandan Chowdhury, Associate Professor, Mathematics, has received a $14,210 one-year subaward from the University of Houston for the pilot-project AIM-AHEAD Resource Center of Excellence for Data Curation, Linkages, and Harmonization of Datasets. The project is funded by the National Institutes of Health’s Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning Consortium to Advance Health Equity and Researcher Diversity (AIM-AHEAD) program. Through this project a group of faculty/postdocs from the University of Houston and SSU will receive year-long training from industry experts on Data Harmonization, Data Curation and linkages of health data. Dr. Chowdhury and Dr. Antonio Velazquez, Assistant Professor, Civil Engineering Technology, will take part in this training from SSU. Successful completion of the pilot project will make the team qualified for submitting a funding proposal for a multi-year project to NIH to create AIM-AHEAD Resource Center of Excellence for Data Curation, Linkages, and Harmonization of Datasets.

August 2022 – NIH (AIM-AHEAD) – Dr. Abhinandan Chowdhury
Dr. Abhinandan Chowdhury, Associate Professor, Mathematics, has received a $41,413 one-year subaward from the University of North Texas (UNT) for the pilot-project Evaluating Bias in Predictive and Explainable ML Algorithms Among Older Adults with Cancer. The project is funded by the National Institutes of Health’s Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning Consortium to Advance Health Equity and Researcher Diversity (AIM-AHEAD) program. In this project, a consortium which includes Penn State health science center, Alabama State University, SSU, UNT and UNT health Science Center will study the feasibility of evaluating the potential AI/ML bias in cancer care and outcomes using real-world data (RWD) created with distributed data decisions at various data generation and curation points. RWD from cancer registry linked with multiple data sources may be susceptible to various forms of bias. Three major objectives of this pilot study: 1) To prepare a multisource RWD data for AI/ML training by harmonizing and creating common data elements (CDE) and define repeatable and reusable steps for data processing across multiple RWDs using the FAIR (Findability, Accessibility, Interoperability, and Reuse) principles, 2) to assess the feasibility of implementing various ML algorithms within a federated data ecosystem and 3) to develop pre-trained models to demonstrate proof of concept in evaluating bias in data and algorithms.

February 2022 – NSF/GA Tech – Dr. Philip Omunga
Dr. Philip Omunga, Assistant Professor, Political Science and Public Affairs, was awarded a one-year grant in the amount of $89,955 from NSF/GA Tech for the project “Visualizing Resilience: Mapmaking as BIPOC Youth Advocacy in Response to Intersecting Savannah Disasters.” The project will engage SSU graduate and undergraduate students along with Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) youth in a West Savannah neighborhood in employing a mapmaking tool, Map Spot, to collect data and promote dialogue on how to create more resilient neighborhoods.

January 2022 – US Army AEOP UNITE – Dr. Asad Yousuf
Dr. Asad Yousuf, Professor and Interim Chair, Engineering Technology, received $17,180 for a one-year grant from the US Army Educational Outreach Office (AEOP) for the UNITE program.   AEOP has funded this program at SSU for many years with the goal to provide summer training for 9th through rising 12th grade students from groups historically underserved and underrepresented in STEM and thus to encourage and help prepare them to pursue college-level studies and, ultimately, careers in engineering and related STEM fields.   To fulfill this objective, under the current award, SSU will provide a summer 2022 training program for  15 rising 10 graders from area high schools; program activities will include  STEM guest speakers, field trips to engineering sites, group projects, and hands on activities including in  engineering design and modeling, robotics, etc.

December 2021 – US Department of Education – Dr. Asad Yousuf
Dr. Asad Yousuf, Professor and Interim Chair, Engineering Technology, has received a $830,765 three-year award from the US Department of Education for his program Creating Access to Modeling and Simulation Education for Minorities and Women.   The goal of this grant program is to  design and implement a modeling and simulation degree track in the Computer Science Technology degree program for students who wish to concentrate and develop strong skills in modeling and

simulation.  The project will also provide modeling and simulation courses for non-STEM majors

who wish to apply modeling and simulation knowledge in their respective fields. Minority and women students majoring in engineering, economics, management, living systems, biomedical engineering, ecology, environment, and other STEM students will have the opportunity to obtain a certificate, or minor in Modeling and Simulation.

December 2021 – US DOT Eisenhower Fellowships – Dr. Maziar Moaveni
Dr. Maziar Moaveni, Assistant Professor, Engineering Technology, has been awarded $25,500 from the US Department of Transportation Dwight D. Eisenhower Fellowship Program.  The funds will support 3 students in transportation research with stipends and tuition support and support them to travel to present at the US Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting.

December 2021 – USG HIPS-F – Dr. Sametria McFall
Dr. Sametria McFall, Interim Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, has received a $7,409 grant for the FY22 USG HIPS Faculty Implementation (HIP-F) Project.   The project will fund 4 SSU faculty – Del Bharath, Darkus Jenkins, Shiniaz Jindani, and Andrea Moore – to develop and implement high quality HIPS in their curriculum areas  that can serve as new models for in-person, blended, and/or online learning.

December 2021 –  NOAA Consortium for Ocean Leadership – National Ocean Sciences Bowl – Dr. Victoria Young
Dr. Victoria Young, Visiting Assistant Professor, Marine and Environmental Science, received a $9000 award to host the NOAA/Consortium for Ocean Leadership’s FY22 National Ocean Sciences Bowl.   SSU has received Consortiuim funding and hosted this event every year since 2010.  SSU expects the FY22 event to achieve the same level of participation as the FY21 virtual Southern Stingray Bowl which had approximately 80 participating high school students from Georgia and South Carolina, and approximately 60 volunteers from about 15 universities and non-profit organizations in the region.

December 2021 – DHHS/CDC/Morehouse School of Medicine –  Dr. Philip Omunga
Dr. Philip Omunga, Assistant Professor, Political Science and Public Affairs, received a $5,000 subaward from DHHS/CDC/Morehouse School of Medicine for the project Advancing Health Equity – Georgia Peers for Equity against Covid-19 and for Health (Georgia PEACH)  Dr. Omunga will work as a Community Champion and will work with student Peer Champions to develop and implement a health communication intervention to inform and educate about the Covid-19 vaccine.

November 2021, OSRA FY22 Mini-Grants
Congratulations to the following 5 faculty who were awarded FY2022 Office of Sponsored Research Administration mini-grants. Each faculty/team received an award of $3,333 for a project term of November 2021 – May 2022.    The mini-grants are funding student stipends to engage students in research, travel support for faculty and students, and faculty course release, supplies, etc..

• Md. Rakibul Karim Akanda, Assistant Professor, Engineering Technology, Identification of Low Dimensional Magnetic Materials and Implementation in Memory Applications
• Roenia Deloach, Associate Professor, Social Work, and Dr. Melanie Smith, Study Abroad Coordinator, International Education, Creating and Testing A Mixed Methods Approach for Assessing the Personal, Attitudinal, Academic, Development and Cultural Competency of College Students who Participate in a Cultural Immersion-Based Service Learning Program
• Kimberly Frame, Assistant Professor and Dr. Sherry Serdikoff, Associate Professor, Social and Behavioral Sciences, Building Capacity for Student Directed Learning
• Zhaoqiong Qin, Associate Professor of Logistics and Supply Chain Management, College of Business Administration, Analysis of the Choice of Distribution Channels with Processing Costs
• Antonio Velazquez Hernandez, Assistant Professor – Civil Engineering Technology, Rapid-to-Deploy Reconfigurable Structural Health Monitoring System using Wireless Networked Data Sensors

November 2021 –  VIP GA Research Alliance, $25,000 – Dr. Christopher Hintz
Dr. Christopher Hintz, Professor, Marine and Environmental Science, received a $25,000 grant from the VIP Georgia Research Alliance to fund laboratory research experience for up to six full-time undergraduate students. Dr. Hintz plans to develop course offerings to provide VIP scholarship students institutional credit. He also intends to recruit at two laboratories to each support 3 semester and 1 summer undergraduate research opportunities.

November 2021 – AEOP REAP – Dr. Asad Yousuf
Dr. Asad Yousuf,  Interim Chair/Coordinator of Electronics Engineering Technology, received a $2,000 grant from the Department of Defense Army Educational Outreach Program (AEOP) for the REAP (Research & Engineering Apprenticeship program).

October 2021 – Marine Mammal Commission  – Dr. Tara Cox
Dr. Tara Cox, Professor, Marine & Environmental Science, received $22,000 in grant funding from the Marine Mammal Commission  for a 2 year project,  Internship Program for Diversity and Inclusion in Marine Mammal Sciences.

October 2021 – USG Chancellor Learning Scholars FY22 – Dr. Sametria McFall
Dr. Sametria McFall, Interim Provost and Vice President, received a $7,200 grant from the University System of Georgia for SSU’s Chancellor Learning Scholars (CLS) program for FY22.  The SSU CLS for this period are:  Dr. Takayuki Nitta, Biology; Dr. Shetia Lamar-Butler, College of Business Administration; Mr. Frank Mendelson, College of Business Administration; and Dr. Lisa Yount, Fine Arts, Humanities, and Wellness.

September 2021  – USG Faculty University Platform Short Course – Dr. Nancy Linden
Dr. Nancy Linden, Program Director, Center for Teaching and Faculty Development,  received $2,300 in grant funds towards development of a faculty university platform short course.

September 2021 – Department of Commerce/Minority Business Development Agency – Dr. Shalonda Mullgrav
Dr. Shalonda Mullgrav, Interim Vice President, Advancement has received a 3 year (October 2021 – September 2024) $902,136 award from the US Department of Commerce/Minority Business Development Agency for the project,  Immersive Delivery & Experiential Entrepreneurship Alternative,  to expand and strengthen entrepreneurial education at SSU both through its existing COBA degree programs and also through new free non-degree offerings to be provided to SSU students and community partners through COBA’s new Center of Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE), located at the downtown Coastal Georgia Center.  The CIE is already achieving program objectives including hosting virtual entrepreneurship workshops and its first annual alumni business pitch competition.

September 2021 – NSA GenCyber Grant – Mr. Alberto de la Cruz
Mr. Alberto de la Cruz, Coordinator, Computer Science Technology received a $118,079 grant from the National Security Agency for a Summer 2022 GenCyber Summer Camp.  This 4^th summer camp to be held in Summer 2022 builds on the successes of three previous NSA GenCyber Summer Camps for area middle school students (2018, 2019, and 2021).   The goal is to expand cybersecurity awareness and training for middle school students with a focus on recruiting female and minority students with the hope that many will pursue STEM and cybersecurity in future education and career efforts. For the June 2022 program, SSU will recruit 50 middle school students from grades 6-8, particularly underrepresented minority and female students.  The one-week, nonresidential summer camp will focus on the fundamentals of cybersecurity concepts including programming, robotics, networking, ethics, and safe online practices.  Summer 2022 camp information.

August 2021 – Georgia DNR Coastal Incentive Grant – Dr. Dionne Hoskins-Brown
Dr. Dionne Hoskins-Brown, Director, NOAA Sponsored Programs and Dr. Matt Kenworthy, Postdoctoral Fellow,  received $40,413 from the Georgia DNR Coastal Incentive Grant (Cycle 24) for their project “Evaluating Use of Biodeg. Hardscape for Oyster Reef Habitat.”

August 2021 – CDC/Morehouse School of Medicine – Dr. Philip Omunga
August 2021: Dr. Philip Omunga, Title, received $4100 from CDC/Morehouse School of Medicine for the project, “Advancing Health Equity through Community-Led Applied Public Health Prevention Research and Translation.”  The project will build a community engagement platform focused on building capacity and community support networks in collaboration with Harambee House (a local community-based environmental justice organization) that will help potential urban farmers to pursue entrepreneurial agricultural opportunities.  The grant will fund 2 graduate students.

January  –  August 2021 – Department of Education – Supplemental CARES/HEERF/American Rescue Act Funding – Ms. Megan Davidson
Ms. Megan Davidson, Vice President, Business and Finance, received supplemental CARES/HEERF funding to provide emergency relief and help meet student and University needs affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.

• HBCU portion – $37,827,575
• Emergency financial aid for students – $11,980,886
• Institutional portion – $15,504,807

For more information, see SSU CARES Quarterly Reporting.

August 2021 –  US Department of Education Talent Search – Dr. Zenobie Purnell
Dr. Zenobie Purnell, Director of Educational Talent Search, received a 5-year grant  in the amount of $2,081,250 from the U.S. Department of Education for a new 5-year Talent Search program (2021-2026).

The ETS program will serve 750 students/year in targeted SCCPSS middle and  high schools, to give them academic support to persist to higher education and job opportunities.

August 2021 – US Department of Education – Dr. Sametria McFall
Dr. Sametria McFall received a two-year $2,968,774 IREPO grant from the US Dept. of Education for the project: START: Savannah Tigers Aspire – Resiliency & Technology.  The project aims to strengthen student success by increasing student access (both undergraduate and dual enrollees) to high-quality online teaching and course offerings, providing faculty professional development in best-practices course design and online delivery, and strengthening SSU technology and broadband internet access.

August  2021  – USG Mental Health Initiative  – Ms. Bonita Bradley
Ms. Bonita Bradley, Assistant Vice President and Dean of Student Affairs, received $23,589 in grant funding from the University System of Georgia for the one year Mental Health Initiative, Train the Trainer QPR.

June 2021 – Office of Naval Research – FY21 Long Term BAA for Navy and Marine Corps Science and Technology – Dr. Tara Cox
Dr. Tara Cox, Professor, Marine Science,  has received a 2 year award from the Office of Naval Research for $244,775 for her project “Internships for Diversity and Inclusion in Marine Mammal Research.”  This project, which is a collaboration with other Minority-Serving Institutions (Hampton University, San Diego State University) will engage undergraduates (8 at SSU) in academic year and summer mentoring, internships, professional development, and research training with the goal to build their competencies and skills for professional STEM careers and thus increase the diversity of the workforce.

June 2021 – US Department of State/World Learning Inc. –  Capacity Building for US Study Abroad Program – Ms. Melanie Smith
Ms. Melanie Smith, Study Abroad Coordinator, International Education, received a one-year $35,000 subaward grant from the US Department of State/World Learning Inc.  The program goals are to strengthen SSU’s study abroad programs by funding 8 SSU faculty (working in teams across disciplines) to travel abroad and create new  interdisciplinary STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) curriculum that will imbed study abroad opportunities within each while examining international issues.

June 2021 – Institute for International Education  – Ms. Melanie Smith
Ms. Melanie Smith, Study Abroad Coordinator, International Education, received a $3,625 grant from the Institute for International Education’s American Passport Program to assist SSU students attain their passports to travel abroad.

May 2021 – Department of Energy/University of Texas San Antonio – Dr. Jonathan Lambright
Dr. Jonathan Lambright, Interim AVP Institutional Research and Professor, Engineering Technology, received a 5 year $843,522 subaward from Department of Energy/University of Texas San Antonio for the project, “Application of Artificial Intelligence to Cybersecurity for Protecting Critical National Infrastructure.”  The project will support 9 undergraduates each academic year in DOE-relevant cybersecurity research and will support up to 3 students each summer to train at participating National Labs; in summer 2021 2 SSU students interned remotely with Idaho National Labs.

May 2021 – USG High Impact Practices (HIPs) Faculty Implementation Program – Dr. Sametria McFall
Dr. Sametria McFall, Interim Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, received a $9,261 USG HIPs grant.  The grant will support a team of SSU faculty — Dr. Andrea Moore, Dr. Chevanese Sams-Brown, Dr. Dale Cake, Dr. Margaret Cox, and Professor Del Bharath – to promote innovation and change in HIPs practices and data reporting in support of the USG Momentum Approach.  SSU faculty will plan high quality HIPs that can serve as new models for in-person, blended, and/or online learning, and will work with USG to report course sections that possess HIPs attributes in the Banner Student Information System.

May 2021 –  USG  Affordable Learning Georgia Affordable Materials Grant – Dr. Margaret Cox
Dr. Margaret Cox, Assistant Professor of English received a $12,231 Affordable Materials Grant to develop an affordable (no-cost) eBook OER resource for ENGL2140, African American Literature, as an affordable alternative to the current textbook.  Dr. Cox will be supported in this grant by Dr. Patricia West, Instructor, English.

March 2021 – National Science Foundation (NSF) HBCU-UP Research Initiation Award (RIA) – Dr. Maziar Moaveni
Dr. Maziar Moaveni,  Assistant Professor, Engineering Technology, received a $299,817 award from the NSF HBCU-UP RIA program for his project, “Investigation of Petrographic and Mineralogical Properties of Aggregates Influencing Pavement Performance.”  The research project aims to improve pavement design and construction through development of a nationwide database on aggregate parameters,  predictive models using machine learning algorithms, and data-driven aggregate quality classification systems.  Two undergraduates will be engaged in the research, and the PI will also collaborate with faculty from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

March 2021 – USG  Healthy Minds Survey – Ms. Bonita Bradley
Ms. Bonita Bradley, Assistant Vice President  for Student Affairs and Dean of Students,  received a $4000 USG Mental Health initiative grant to conduct a Healthy Minds survey.

March 2021 –  Henry David Thoreau Foundation – Dr. Sue Ebanks

Dr. Sue Ebanks, Associate Professor, Marine and Environmental Science, received a $39,500 grant from the Henry David Thoreau Foundation for her project “Grow Green Tigers:  Growing Interest in Earth-Centered Learning through Collaborative Experiences.”  The project will develop new curricula and create a new Outdoor Learning Laboratory, with a focus on aquaponics, growing with and without soil, and growing honeybees and developing apiary sourced products such as honey.

March 2021 –  Gilead/Howard University HIV/HCV Prevention Project – Ms. Jacqueline Awe

Ms. Jaqueline Awe, Director, Student Development, received a $8500 subaward for the Gilead Corporation/Howard University HIV/HCV Prevention Project (FY21).  The project will conduct surveys and conduct outreach to support HIV/HCV prevention for SSU student populations.

March 2021 –  Thurgood Marshall College Fund Grow with Google Grant – Mr. Shed Dawson
Mr. Shed Dawson, Director, Career Services and Leadership Development Center, received a $40,000 Thurgood Marshall College Fund Grow with Google Capacity Grant for the project “HBCU Career Readiness Program”.  The project will establish a Career Development Academy open to all students beginning in freshman year, which will help students identify career goals, and support their continued career preparation through professional development workshops, internships, service learning, Grow with Google certification training, etc.

January 2021 –  NOAA/Prescott Marine Mammal Stranding Response Grant/GA DNR – Dr. Tara Cox
Dr. Tara Cox, Professor, Marine Science, received a $4999 grant from NOAA/Prescott Marine Mammal Stranding Response Grant/Georgia DNR for the project, “Assisting the Georgia Marine Mammal Stranding Network.” Through the grant, SSU will assist with marine mammal stranding response in the Savannah/Tybee Island area, and engage SSU graduate and undergraduate students in marine mammal science and conservation.

December 2020 – AEOP REAP – Dr. Asad Yousuf
Dr. Asad Yousuf,  Interim Chair/Coordinator of Electronics Engineering Technology, received a $1,000 grant from the Department of Defense Army Educational Outreach Program (AEOP) for the REAP (Research & Engineering Apprenticeship program).

December 2020 – State of Georgia Title IV-E Grant – Dr. Catherine Gayle
Dr. Catherine Gayle, Chair, Social Work, received a $95,333 award for the Georgia Dept. of Human Services/Georgia State University’s Title IV-E Welfare Education and Training Program, FY21.  The purpose of this long-standing program, funded annually to SSU, is to develop the workforce of well trained child welfare workers in the State of Georgia. The FY21 grant supports 3 MSW and 3 BSW students who plan to enter the child welfare workforce with stipends and tuition support.

December 2020 –  NOAA Consortium for Ocean Leadership – National Ocean Sciences Bowl – Dr. Dionne Hoskins-Brown
Dr. Dionne Hoskins-Brown, Director, NOAA Sponsored Programs, received a $9000 award to host the NOAA/Consortium for Ocean Leadership’s FY21 National Ocean Sciences Bowl.  With this funding, SSU held its virtual Southern Stingray Bowl in February 2021 with approximately 80 participating high school students from Georgia and South Carolina, and approximately 60 volunteers from about 15 universities and non-profit organizations in the region.  SSU has hosted this event every year since 2010. For more information, see Marine Science webpage.

December  2020 – USG Affordable Adaptive Learning Grant – Dr. Sherry Serdikoff
Dr. Sherry Serdikoff, Associate Professor, Behavior Analysis, received a $2000 grant from the USG Affordable Adaptive Learning Grant program. For this project, Dr. Serdikoff will do course redesign for the Introduction to General Psychology course, PSYC 1101, by implementing Lumen Learning’s Waymaker Introduction to Psychology within the course.

November 2020: NASA/Georgia Tech Space Grant Scholars Program
Jonathan Lambright, Interim Assistant Vice President of Institutional Research and Planning & Assessment and Engineering Technology Professor, received a $10,000 subaward from the NASA/Georgia Tech Space Grant Scholars Program for FY21 (6/6/20 – 6/5/21). Project Co-PIs are Dr. Mir Haydir and Dr. Tilahun Muche. The program, which is part of the Georgia Space Grant Consortium, provides scholarships and learning sessions (webinars, face to face lunches, mentored guided learning) to SSU STEM majors in disciplines that are consistent with the areas of importance at NASA with the goal to support the scholars to devote more time to their studies, be introduced to programs within NASA, and consider the possibility of employment with NASA after graduation.

November 2020: USG Chancellor Learning Scholars (CLS) Program
Dr. Sametria McFall, Interim Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, received SSU’s AY21 USG Chancellor Learning Scholars (CLS) grant award of $9,000 (project term 8/1/20 – 4/30/21). The purpose of the Chancellor Learning Scholars (“CLS”) Program is to create and support a team of Faculty Learning Community (“FLC”) facilitators on campuses across the USG. The CLS will facilitate FLC facilitators that lead to innovation and change in the classroom in support of the Momentum Year. SSU’s CLS are Dr. Takayuki Nitta, Dr. Shetia Butler, Prof. Frank Mendelson, Dr. Lisa Yount, and Dr. Kisha Aites.

September 2020: NSF/University of Georgia LTER Grant
Dr. Christopher Hintz received supplemental funding of $23,652 for his previously funded NSF/University of Georgia LTER: Georgia Coastal Ecosystem grant, bringing total funding to $43,483. In this grant, Dr. Hintz is conducting field measurements of carbonate chemistry influenced by estuarine tidal dynamics within the Georgia Coastal Ecosystems Long-term Ecological research site.

September 2020: U.S. Department of Transportation FHA Eisenhower Transportation Fellowship Program
Dr. Maziar Moaveni, Assistant Professor of Engineering Technology, received the 2020 U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration Dwight David Eisenhower Transportation Fellowship Program Award. This program will fund 3 SSU merit scholars to conduct transportation research and present at the Virtual Eisenhower conference in Washington DC in February 2021. Total financial support (stipends and conference registration) for the 3 students is $25,500.

NOAA/University of Maryland Eastern Shore, Living Marine Resources Cooperative Sciences Center
During 2020, Dr. Dionne Hoskins-Brown  received continuation funding of $762,511 from the NOAA/University of Maryland Eastern Shore, Living Marine Resources Cooperative Science Center Program. This subaward funds SSU Marine Science research and education infrastructure, staffing, and student support (graduate and undergraduate student stipends, scholarships, and tuition support). This brings total funding for the current 5-year program (2016-2021) to $1.55M.

August 2020: Georgia Department of Natural Resources Coastal Incentive Grant Program
Dr. Dionne Hoskins-Brown, Fishery Biologist, NOAA Fisheries, and Director, NOAA Sponsored Programs, SSU and Dr. Matt Kenworthy, Postdoctoral Fellow received a $55,161 grant from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources Coastal Incentive Grant Program for their project “Evaluating the Use of Biodegradable Hardscape for Oyster Reef Habitat, Oct. 1 2020 to Sep 30, 2021.

August 2020: NIH NIGMS Diversity Program Consortium Dissemination and Translation Award
Dr. Chellu Chetty, Associate Vice President of Research and Sponsored Programs, received a 3 year (9/1/20 – 8/31/23) $940,035 U01 grant from the NIH NIGMS for a biomedical faculty training grant program: “Enhancing Career Development of HBCU Biomedical Researchers: Extended Training in Grantsmanship and Mentoring.” This project, which is a collaboration between SSU, Albany State University, and Alabama State University, will conduct a research project (Data Analyst Dr. Abhinandan Chowdhury) on the efficacy of high touch vs. low touch training approaches as measured by faculty outcomes for grantsmanship and mentoring.

August 2020: US Department of Education Student Support Services Program
Dr. Gary Guillory, Director, Student Support Services, received a $1,740,010 grant for the US Department of Education Student Support Services program. This is a 5 year program ( 9/1/20 – 8/31/25). Each academic year, the program will identify, select, and serve one hundred eighty-two (182) low-income, first-generation, and disabled college students who have academic support need with the goal to enable them to succeed academically and to persist to degree attainment.

August 2020: USG African American Male Initiative Grant
Mr. Shed Dawson, Greek Life Advisor, Student Affairs, received a $5000 grant award for the USG African American Male Initiative program for AY2021. The project will build on Momentum Year initiatives to improve student success by supporting a targeted cohort of 30 freshman who are all residents of Richard Wright, Sr. residence hall, an all-male residence hall. The cohort will receive targeted support including monitored study halls, enhanced academic advising, professional development seminars, motivational speakers, support for goal-setting, empowerment sessions, all with the goal to support their retention and graduation at SSU.

July 2020: NSF Georgia Southern Major Research Instrumentation Grant
Dr. Kai Shen, Associate Professor of Chemistry received notification of funding as Co-PI for a $383,398 Georgia Southern NSF Major Research Instrumentation MRI award, “Project Title: MRI: Acquisition of a High-Resolution Mass Spectrometer (HRMS) for Interdisciplinary Research and Teaching in the Southeast Region of Georgia (GSU PI Nathaniel Shank).

June 2020: NSF HBCU-UP Implementation Project Grant
Dr. Chellu Chetty received a $2,248,857 NSF HBCU-UP Implementation Project Grant for the 5 year (6/15/20 – 5/31/25) project: “Early Interdisciplinary Applied Strategies to Strengthen STEM Education and Research (iApply)”. Project Co-PIs are Dr. Karla-Sue Marriott, Dr. Manoj Prasad, and Dr. Teresa Shakespeare. This new iApply project builds on the successes of SSU’s previous NSF HBCU-UP Implementation Grants (MAGEC-STEM and MAGEC-STEM-Plus, 2006-2017) and will use the SSU Forensic Science BS degree program as a model for Virtual Reality (VR) teaching and learning. The new iApply project aims to strengthen STEM teaching, learning, and research training; thereby improving STEM retention and graduation through a) reforming 9 STEM gateway course labs (broad impact early engagement of STEM majors) with VR and applied learning enhancements, b) providing faculty training for these new VR teaching/learning methods, and c) engaging 3 teams of STEM merit scholars (5/team) in applied interdisciplinary research training. A research study will examine efficacy and impacts on student learning.

June 2020: USG Affordable Learning Georgia Textbook Transformation Grant
Dr. Jenni Halpin, Associate Professor of English, Languages, and Culture, received a $4000 USG Affordable Learning Georgia Textbook Transformation Grant. Dr. Halpin, with team member Dr. Jon Elmore, will create new learning materials for ENGL 2121, British Literature I, by collecting African and Afro-Diasporic texts of British and Commonwealth Literature to ensure student access to quality primary texts, to identify appropriate open source supplemental materials, and to improve student learning by providing these materials at no cost. The project goal is to have the new materials ready for Fall 2021 offering.

May 2020: US Army AEOP Research and Engineering Apprenticeship (REAP) Grant
Dr. Asad Yousuf received a $1000 award from the AEOP Research and Engineering Apprenticeship Program (REAP) for FY20. In addition, two scholarships were paid directly to local high school students. The objective of the REAP program is to provide high school students from underserved and underrepresented populations a summer apprenticeship opportunity. As a REAP site and Army partner, SSU provides summer hands-on research experience and mentorship to these high school students with the goal to develop their laboratory skills (i.e. technical skills, scientific or engineering skills) and support them in the design of a future project, participation in high school STEM competitions and scholarship opportunities, and support their pathway to STEM careers.

May 2020: USG Affordable Learning Georgia Textbook Transformation Grant
Dr. Antonio Velazquez, Assistant Professor of Civil Engineering Technology received a $4,800 grant from the USG Affordable Learning Georgia (ALG) Textbook Transformation Grant Program. ALG Textbook Transformation Grants are intended to explore and expand new and affordable approaches to textbook transformation, including the adoption, adaptation and creation of Open Educational Resources (OER), the adoption of materials available through GALILEO and USG libraries, and the use of other no-cost and low-cost digital materials; provide support and time to faculty, librarians, instructional designers, and their institutions to meet, plan, review, and implement these approaches; and lower the cost of course materials for students and contribute to their retention, progression, and graduation.

For their award, Dr. Velazquez and team member Dr. Maziar Moaveni aim to provide a cost-effective learning text for students enrolled in ENGT 4903, Special Topics in Civil Engineering, by developing a new textbook in Wood and Masonry Design, with complementary software and a mobile app utility, and aim to improve theoretical learning through high-impact interactive tools and hands-on experiences and thus increase student preparation for professional engineering examinations.

May 2020: US Department of Education CARES Act Funding

Mr. Justin Janney, Interim Vice President of Business and Finance, received three awards from the US Department of Education Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act (CARES) Program. The CARES awards provide financial resources to colleges and universities through the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (“HEERF”). The SSU awards totaling $15.4M are being used to distribute grants to students in need and to reimburse SSU to cover expenses related to the disruption of campus operations due to COVID-19.

May 2020: State of Georgia Title IV-E  Program
Dr. Catherine Gayle, Social Work Chair, received $107,262 from the State of Georgia Title IV-E program for AY20. This award provides academic, field training, and financial support for 2 MSW and 2 BSW students. The objectives of this program are to increase the number of public child welfare employees who obtain their BSW and MSW degrees from schools of social work in Georgia; to prepare BSW and MSW graduates with the skills, knowledge, and abilities for employment in the public child welfare system; and to increase the number of BSW and MSW job ready graduates who seek and obtain employment in public child welfare positions.

May 2020: NOAA/University of Georgia Sea Grant
Dr. Christopher Hintz, Professor of Marine & Environmental Science received a $148,679 award from NOAA/University of Georgia under the Georgia Sea Grant Omnibus program for his research project: Expanded Head of Tide Determination for the period 2/1/20 – 1/31/22.

March 2020: National Security Agency GenCyber Summer Program
Mr. Alberto de la Cruz, Coordinator, Computer Science Technology, has been awarded a $89,670 grant from the National Security Agency for a Summer 2021 GenCyber Summer Camp Program (rescheduled from 2020 due to Covid-19).  The camp introduces middle school students to cybersecurity training. This is SSU’s 3^rd GenCyber grant award; the University also conducted summer camps in 2018 and 2019. Camp registration information

March 2020: DHHS/Georgia Department of Human Services/University of Georgia
Dr. Jaqueline Awe, Director, Student Development, received a $25,000 grant from DHHS/Georgia Department of Human Services/University of Georgia for the FY20 ETV Project: Care-Through-College (CTC) Pilot Program (10/1/19 – 6/30/20). The goal of the CTC program is to offer programming to currently enrolled former foster youth at SSU, in order to promote degree completion, enhance leadership and advocacy skills and support post-graduation readiness. This will be done through a combination of career and leadership activities, financial resources, professional and mentoring support and community building.

March 2020: NSF Georgia Gwinnett College
Dr. Andrea Moore, Associate Professor, Biology., received a $9,821, NSF Georgia Gwinnett College 2020 CURE Mini-Grant, “DNA Isolation, Transformation, and Disk Diffusion Test (BIOL 1107). In this project, PI Moore and team members Dr. Takayuki Nitta, Dr. Xiaorong Zhang, and Dr. Andrew Methven, aim to enhance 3 biology courses BIOL 1107, BIOL 3301 and BIOL 3321 with unique research experiences, aimed to enhance student STEM learning along with analytical and critical thinking and augment technical skills of Biology majors. The module also introduces statistical analysis in Biology labs. Enhanced Improved student proficiency should allow instructors to provide advanced module/activities in upper division courses.to be piloted in AY21.

March 2020: USG Affordable Learning Georgia Textbook Transformation Grant

Dr. Sherry Serdikoff, Associate Professor, Behavior Analysis, received a $2800 USG Affordable Learning Georgia Textbook Transformation Grant. This project is developing OER resources to use as the primary text for BEHV 2106 and 2107, Research Design and Data Analysis I and II, and thereby improve student outcomes in statistics and research methods courses and provide more affordable textbook options for the students.

February 2020: USG Affordable Learning Georgia Textbook Transformation Grant
Dr. Lisa Yount, Associate Professor, Philosophy, received a $4800 USG Affordable Learning Georgia Textbook Transformation Grant to develop new curriculum resources for HUMN 1201, Critical Thinking and Communication, an Area B core curriculum requirement for all SSU students. Dr. Yount along with team member Dr. Isadora Mosch will build on the USG Gateways to Completion (G2C) curriculum redesign for HUMN 1201 which reinforced alignment of high impact practices across all sections, by locating and creating new OER and ancillary materials to support the new G2C redesign and establish HUMN 1201 as a no-cost course for SSU students.

February 2020: NOAA/Consortium for Ocean Leadership
Dr. Dionne Hoskins-Brown was awarded a $9,000 subaward from the NOAA/Consortium for Ocean Leadership for the National Ocean Sciences Bowl, “Southern Stingray Bowl” held in February 2020. At the bowl, 14 teams from Georgia and South Carolina competed, with 4 students per team for a total of 56 high school students competing. Since the 1^st competition in 2010, this represents the 10^th year that SSU has hosted the Bowl with support from Ocean Leadership.

January 2020: US Army Educational Outreach Program (AEOP) UNITE Program
Dr. Asad Yousuf, Interim Chair, Engineering Technology, received a $34,360 award from the Army Educational Outreach Program UNITE Program. The project aims to spark interest in STEM careers for underrepresented high school students in the Savannah Chatham County Public School System by engaging them in summer camps (15 high school students/summer in both summer 2020 and summer 2021). Program activities will be integrated with existing STEM training activities in the SSU Upward Bound Program. Activities will include guest speakers, field trips to local engineering employers, SAT preparation, and hands-on activities (robotics technology, energy/environment, design and modeling, etc.)

January 2020: NSF REU Program

Dr. Tara Cox, Professor, Marine and Environmental Science received $340,057 for a new NSF Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program: “REU Site: Bridge to Research in Marine Sciences: A Summer REU Program in Savannah, Georgia.”  This new award follows Dr. Cox’s previously awarded NSF REU Site: Bridge to Research in Marine Sciences, which trained 10 undergraduates/year recruited nationwide (2015-2020). The new 3-year program will run March 1, 2020 – Feb. 28, 2023.  Dr. Christopher Hintz, Professor, Marine & Environmental Science is Co-PI. The REU will conduct an 8-week, 10-student summer REU in marine sciences at SSU. Unique components are early undergraduate participation (recruiting freshmen/sophomores) and a 2-day research cruise opportunity.   Since the initial award in January 2020, in August 2020, Dr. Cox received supplemental NSF funding for the REU project of $44,235 for additional personnel costs and participant (trainee) costs to adjust to Covid-19 impacts. This brings total REU funding to $474,292 for the current 3 year project.

Dr. Tara Cox received supplemental funding of $28,370 from NOAA/Abt Associates to perform work for the period June 19 – Aug 31, 2020 for the project, “Natural Resource Damage Assessment:  Bottlenose Dolphin Injury Quantification and Restoration Planning,” (term: January – October 2019). This is in addition to original funding of $60,075 (term Jan-Oct 2019), which brings total funding to date to $88,445.

December 2019: University System of Georgia (USG) African-American Male Initiative (AAMI) Program
Mr. Shed Dawson, Greek Life Advisor, Student Affairs, received a $5,000 grant from the USG AAMI program. This project will support retention/graduation for 30 residents of Richard R. Wright Hall through targeted mentorship, academic support, monthly workshops, and leadership training.

December 2019: USG STEM IV Initiative Grant
Dr. Teresa Shakespeare, Associate Professor, biology, received a $50,000 grant for a one-year project which aims to improve STEM retention/graduation through targeted direct academic support, including implementing undergraduate learning assistants and integrating research as high-impact practices in STEM gateway courses, and by conducting STEM community engagement activities. If successful, Dr. Shakespeare may be funded for two more years for an additional $100K.  Dr. Maziar Moaveni, Assistant Professor, Engineering Technology, is co-PI.

November 2019: Gates Foundation/USG 2020 Chancellor’s Learning Scholars (CLS) Program
Dr. Reginald Leseane, Interim Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, received a $9,000 grant for the CLS program. This will support five CLS scholars and create and support a team of Faculty Learning Community Facilitators at SSU to lead to innovation and change in the classroom in support of Momentum Year.   A separate $600 CLS award was made to further fund facilitator training.

November 2019: Gilead Corp./Howard University
Ms. Jacqueline Awe, Director, Student Development, received a $1,800 subaward for the HIV/HCV Prevention Program.

October 2019: US Department of Education Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program (MSEIP)
Dr. Asad Yousuf, Interim Chair, Engineering Technology, received a  $741,422 award from the MSEIP program for the SSU project, “Creating Access to Cybersecurity Education for Minorities and Women.”  This three-year project will develop and implement a cybersecurity track within SSU’s Computer Science Technology B.S. degree program.

October 2019: USG Affordable Learning Georgia Textbook Transformation Grant
Dr. Samuel Dolo, Professor, Mathematics, received a $8,600 grant.  This project aims to benefit 900 SSU students taking College Algebra during AY20, by identifying and implementing no-cost online textbook options and other study materials to replace current high-cost textbooks.

October 2019: NSF/Georgia Gwinnett College
Dr. Lina Merchan Alvarez, Assistant Professor, Engineering Technology, received a $5,002 subaward for a STEM CURE mini-grant project, “Enhancing Quantitative Reasoning and Data Science Skills, by Using Life Science Data, in Introductory Physics I Classes” in AY20. Dr. Merchan will conduct research on how enhancing courses by integrating quantitative analysis of real-world data sets will improve students’ data science/quantitative skills and academic outcomes.

October 2019: NIH/Alabama State University
Dr. Chellu Chetty, Associate Vice President for Research and Sponsored Programs, received a $362,140 subaward to participate in a multi-HBCU collaborative STEM education research project — “Intersection of Social Capital, Mentorship, and Networking on Persistence, Engagement, and Science Identity” — led by Alabama State to test the efficacy of mentoring and other social connections on STEM retention/graduation.

September 2019: Community Catalyst/Step UP Savannah
Ms. Jacqueline Awe, Director, Student Development, received a $5,500 grant to support the project, “Partnering for Community Health: Collaborating Across Medicaid and Social Services” to work with community partners to identify service gaps and to collect testimonials from young consumers on their experiences accessing behavioral health services.

August 2019: USDA-NIDA/UGA
Dr. Philip Omunga, Assistant Professor, Urban Studies and Planning, received a $50,000 award for a Southern SARE project, “A Working Group to Address the  Challenge of Food Deserts through Urban Agriculture.” The project team will work with Gadsden Elementary, local growers, and community leaders to conduct seminars and conduct an urban aquaponics demonstration project to build capacity and community networks to support future entrepreneurial urban agricultural projects. Dr. Sue Ebanks is Co-PI.

August 2019: NSF S-STEM – Dr. Agegnehu Atena
NSF has awarded a NSF S-STEM grant to Dr. Agegnehu Atena, Associate Professor, Mathematics (PI) and Dr. Carol Pride, Chair, Marine/Environmental Sciences (Co-PI).  The five-year award of $999,997 will support 30 financially needy, academically talented STEM majors to attain degrees.  Major program components include early interventions starting in the freshman year through a learning community approach.   For more information about this scholarship opportunity, please contact Dr. Atena at [email protected]

July 2019: DHHS/GA Department of Human Services/UGA Fanning Institute
Ms. Jacqueline Awe, Director, Student Development, received a $30,000 subaward for the “Expose Young People to the College Experience” project, with the goal to increase college access, retention and graduation for students who have experienced foster care, by conducting a summer camp for 25 qualifying students in summer 2019.

July 2019: Army Research Office – Equipment Grant – Dr. Pascal Binda
The DOD Army Research Office has awarded Dr. Pascal Binda, Associate Professor, Chemistry, a $60,761 grant for the purchase of a Seahorse XFe Analyzer.  This equipment will be used for polymer testing with live cells, and will support faculty and student research in the College of Sciences and Technology.  For more information about the new equipment, please contact Dr. Binda at [email protected].

July 2019: NSF HBCU-UP TIP Data Analytics – Dr. Suman Niranjan
Dr. Suman Niranjan, College of Business Administration, was awarded a $78,921 supplement for the  NSF HBCU-UP TIP Data Analytics grant. This supplement will be used for faculty professional development and for acquisition of state-of-the-art industry standard software to be used in the Data Analytics courses that were developed/enhanced by this grant (data visualization, business intelligence, biostatistics, data analytics in transportation/logistics, GIS, etc.)  Student training using this software will significantly increase their job readiness and development of data science skills needed by the workforce.  For more information about the Data Analytics certificate program, please contact Dr. Chowdhury at [email protected].

June 2019: USG Georgia FinTech Academy Project
Dr. Sudesh Mujumdar, Dean, College of Business Administration, received a $39,150 grant for the USG FinTech project. This grant will support implementation and delivery of USG FinTech curriculum at SSU, which are online courses available to all students regardless of major.

April 2019: SSU 2019 Annual Research Conference
SSU’s 2019 ARC was held April 2, 2019. More than 170 SSU faculty, graduate students and undergraduate students presented, along with local high school students.

April 2019: NSF UGA LTER – Georgia Coastal Ecosystems IV – Dr. Chris Hintz
UGA has awarded Dr. Chris Hintz, Associate Professor, Marine Sciences, a $19,831 subaward through its NSF award: Georgia Coastal Ecosystems Long-Term Ecological Research (GCE LTER) project. Under this project, Dr. Hintz will conduct field measurements of carbonate chemistry influenced by complex estuarine tidal dynamics within the LTER site. The project will provide field experiences for a local K-12 science teacher along with a SSU undergraduate student.

April 2019:  NSA GenCyber Summer Camp – Dr. Bryan Knakiewicz
The National Security Agency has awarded a $87,955 award to Dr. Bryan Knakiewicz, Assistant Professor, Engineering Technology, to conduct a Summer 2019 GenCyber Camp.  This is the 2nd year in a row that NSA has funded the Summer Camp, following the successful 2018 camp.  The 2019 camp will be held June 3-7, 2019 and will serve 50 middle school students in grades 6-8 from local schools.  The camp will provide an introduction to cybersecurity, online ethics, safe online practices, programming, and network fundamentals.   For more information or to apply, please contact Dr. Knakiewicz at [email protected].

January 2019: NOAA Abt Associates:  Dr. Tara Cox
Abt Assoc, Inc. has awarded a $61,075 subcontract to Dr. Tara Cox, Professor, Marine Sciences, to provide technical support for its NOAA-funded  LCP Chemicals Georgia Natural Resource Damage Assessment project.  Dr. Cox’s role will be to assess and quantify bottlenose dolphin injury in the targeted area.

January 2019: EPA/Augusta – Dr. Shawn Rosenquist
The City of Augusta has awarded Dr. Shawn Rosenquist, Marine Sciences, a $46,000 subcontract for its EPA/GA DNR funded project “Biota Improvement in an Urban Stream through Aquatic Habitat Restoration.”

October 2018: DOD Research and Education HBCU/MI Program – Dr. Takayuki Nitta
The DOD REP program has awarded Dr. Nitta, Assistant Professor, Biology,  a $557,152 award for his research project, “Role of Lipids Reorganized by Viral Proteins and Restriction Factors in Viral Life Cycle.”Dr. Nitta’s project aims to identify the interaction of lipids, viral accessory proteins, and host restriction factors, to provide new insights and knowledge on the fundamental aspects of innate immunity and host-virus coevolution. The project supports the DOD mission by contributing to the development of medical countermeasures to protect military/civilian personnel from virus based weapons and diseases. Dr. Nitta is supported by Dr. Karla-Sue Marriott, Co-PI. Dr. Manoj Prasad, Chemistry, is also supporting the project in summers 1-2.  The project will also engage 3 students/year in this research.The award is $557,172 and has a 3 year term (October 1, 2018 to Sep 30, 2021).

October 2018: DOD Research and Education HBCU/MI Program – Dr. Amanda Kaltenberg
The DOD REP program has awarded Dr. Amanda Kaltenberg, Marine Science for her project “Marine Mammal Associations with Environmental and Prey Variability of Cape Hatteras.” The award is $487,000 with a 3 year term (Sep 30, 2018 to Sep 29, 2021). The project will determine the variability in environmental and prey field conditions in the area off Cape Hatteras (a bio-diversity hotspot with the greatest number of marine mammal species found across the US East Coast) in response to Gulf Stream influences. The project will also enhance teaching in bioacoustics and big data analysis. The project will support 2 Masters in Marine Science students; their thesis research topics will center on the project.

September 2018: US Department of Education GEAR UP – Ms. Tamara Waterman
The US Department of Education has awarded SSU a new seven year award for its GEAR UP Partnership Grant program.  Funding is $560,000/year for the period October 1, 2018 – September 30, 2025 for a total award of $3,920,000.  The program will provide specialized education support services for 700 students per year with the goal to increase high school graduation and entry into college.  The program is a partnership with the Savannah Chatham County Public School System. It will support 700 6th and 7th grade students from Derenne and Hubert Middle Schools as a cohort and will support and track them through entry into Beach and Savannah High Schools and into the 1st year of college.

July 2018: NSF IUSE GEOPATHS – Dr. Sue Ebanks
NSF awarded a $177,512 award for year 1 funding for Dr. Sue Ebanks’ IUSE GEOPATHS proposal:  GP-IMPACT: Expanding HBCU Pathways for Geoscience Education.   It is expected that the project will receive 3 year funding totaling $531,879.  The project is a collaboration between SSU, Tennessee State, and Florida A&M University. The project aims to increase the diversity of the geosciences workforce through a theory-driven process of intervention design and evaluation for HBCU teacher preparation programs.  For more information, contact the PI Dr. Sue Ebanks at [email protected].

June 2018: Army Educational Outreach Office Battelle eCYBERMISSION – Dr. Asad Yousuf – Engineering Technology
The AEOP/Battelle eCYBERMISSION program aims to engage more students in STEM training and careers, including to serve the mission of DOD.  The SSU grant of $39,800 (term of May 1, 2018 to April 30, 2019) will recruit ~250 students, grades 6-9, from local SCCPSS schools to participate in STEM workshops and e-competitions.  For more information, contact the program PI Dr. Asad Yousuf at [email protected] or go to SSU eCYBERMISSION website.

June 2018:  NSF/Georgia Gwinnett College – Dr. Andrea Moore – Biology
Drs. Andrea Moore (PI), Andrew Methven, Takayuki Nitta, and Xiaorong Zhang are promoting undergraduate research through a 3 year mini-grant through Georgia Gwinnett College’s NSF-Improving Undergraduate STEM Education Grant. Funding of $30,000 is expected over 3 years, with initial funding of $7,707 for the period ending September 30, 2018.  The faculty will be developing and assessing Course Embedded Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs) in introductory biology courses that will improve student learning. For more information, contact Dr. Moore at [email protected].

May 2018: NIH – $168,480 – Dr. Karla-Sue Marriott
NIH awarded a $168,480 award for year 1 funding of the new NIH NIBIB ESTEEMED Achieving Diversity through Integrative Scientific Research Experience (ADISRE) program.  The purpose of this program is to prepare highly talented freshmen/sophomore students for entry into PhD programs and biomedical research careers.  Over the 5 year term (total expected funding of $1.3M), the program will serve 5 cohorts of scholars (7 new scholars/year).   ADISRE Website

April 2018:  NIH  – $113,969 – Dr. Cecil Jones, Chemistry
NIH awarded a $113,969 award for year 1 funding of the renewed MARC U-STAR program.  This is a PhD preparation program for minority underrepresented undergraduate students, to prepare them for research careers as biomedical/behavioral scientists. Over the 5 year renewal term (2018 – 2023), the program aims to serve 13 merit scholars, providing financial and academic support and research training and mentoring, to prepare them to enter competitive PhD programs. For more information or to apply for a scholarship, contact the PI Dr. Cecil Jones at [email protected].

April 2018: National Science Foundation – $175,079 – Dr. Abhinandan Chowdhury, Mathematics
The NSF awarded a $175,079 Catalyst Award to Dr. Chowdhury, Assistant Professor, Mathematics, for his research project, “Catalyst Project:  Identification of Effective Heat Conductivity Coefficient of Particulate Two-Phase Materials.”  This two year award will fund Dr. Chowdhury’s research and also train 2 undergraduate math majors in high level math research to prepare them for graduate programs.  For more information, contact Dr. Chowdhury at [email protected].

March 2018: National Security Agency – $92,723 – Dr. Bryan Knakiewicz, Engineering Technology
The NSA awarded a $92,723 GenCyber grant award to Dr. Bryan Knakiewicz, Engineering Technology, to conduct a one week GenCyber summer camp in Summer 2018.  The goal is to engage 50 middle school students (grades 6-8) in hands on instruction in cybersecurity first principles.  Mr. Alberto de la Cruz, SSU Engineering Technology, will also support the summer camp.  For more information about the camp, please contact Dr. Knakiewicz at [email protected]  or go to:  GenCyber Summer Camp Website

March 2018: NSF HBCU-UP RIA – $299,961 – Dr. Takayuki Nitta, Biology
NSF awarded a $299,961 HBCU-UP Research Initiation Award (RIA) to Dr. Takayuki Nitta, Assistant Professor, Biology, for his research project “Mechanisms of Glyco-gag with Restriction Factors.”   Over the 3 year project term, the award will fund Dr. Nitta’s virology research and engage 3 undergraduate students in mentored research training.   For more information, contact Dr. Nitta at [email protected].

January 2018: Department of Energy – $750,000 – Dr. Kenneth Sajwan, Environmental Science
The US Department of Energy awarded SSU a $750,000 grant for Dr. Kenneth Sajwan’s program, “Waste Management Education and Enhancing Environmental Science Program.” Under this 5 year program (2018-2023), Dr. Sajwan will train 10 students each year in environmental science, radiation, and waste management, and will conduct an annual workshop for K-12 teachers and community leaders on teaching radiation, energy, and technology topics.  For more information, contact Dr. Sawjan at [email protected]

September 2017: US Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) – $671,465 – Dr. Kai Shen, Chemistry and Forensic Science
The AFOSR awarded SSU a $671,465 award for Dr. Kai Shen’s research project “Sigma-1 Receptor Agonists as a Novel Therapeutic for Circadian Rhythm Disruption-Induced Fatigue.” This is a 3 year grant with a term of September 30, 2017 to September 29, 2020.  For more information contact the PI Dr. Shen, Chemistry Department at [email protected].

September 2017: US Department of Education HBCU Masters Degree Program – Marine Science and Mathematics – $2,500,000 – Dr. Carol Pride, Marine Science
The US Department of Education awarded SSU a $2.5M institutional award through the Title VII HBCU Masters Degree Program.  The purpose of this program is to build the capacity of HBCU STEM masters’ programs thereby increasing the diversity of the STEM research/professional workforce. The SSU Masters in Mathematics and Marine Science (SSUMMS) Program will be a 6 year program (October 1, 2017 to September 30, 2023). Each year, it will support 10 academically meritorious scholars from the mathematics and marine science masters’ programs, providing stipends and tuition, research, and travel support. For more information, contact the Program Director, Dr. Carol Pride at [email protected].

August 2017: US Army HBCU Research and Education Program (REP) – $360,438 – Dr. Takayuki Nitta, Biology
The US Army awarded SSU a $360,438 award for Dr. Takayuki Nitta’s REP equipment project “Acquisition of a Laser Confocal Microscope to Advance Research and Education at Savannah State University.” This is a one year grant with a term of September 8, 2017 to September 7, 2018. For more information, contact Dr. Nitta, Biology Department, at [email protected].

August 2017: US Army Gulf War Illness Research Program – $672,888 – Dr. Kai Shen, Chemistry and Forensic Science
The US Army awarded SSU a $672,888 award through the Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity, Gulf War Illness Research program for Dr. Kai Shen’s project “Sigma-1 Receptor Agonists as a Novel Therapeutic for Brain Mitochondrial Dysfunction in Gulf War Syndrome.” This is a 3 year grant with a term of September 1, 2017 to August 31, 2020. For more information, contact the PI, Dr. Shen, at [email protected].

July 2017: NSF/Carleton College:  STEP Center:  InTeGrate:  Interdisciplinary Teaching of GeoScience for a Sustainable Future – $39,323 – PI Dr. Sue Ebanks, Marine and Environmental Sciences
Carleton College awarded Dr. Sue Ebanks a $39,323 subaward through its NSF STEP Center: InTeGrate: Interdisciplinary Teaching of GeoScience for a Sustainable Future” grant program. The objective of the subaward to SSU is to build environmental literacy skills in SSU students (STEM and non-STEM), by enriching SSU curriculum with adapted InTeGrate syllabi, fostering instruction, supporting first use of modules, and combining service learning with informal education for the local community. SSU curriculum to be enhanced will include Introduction to Marine Biology, Environmental Ethics, and Introduction to Africana Studies. For more information, contact the project PI at [email protected].

July 2017: US Department of Education, Fulbright-Hays Group Project Abroad:  Understanding Ghana   – $100,000 –  PI Dr. Emmanuel Naniuzeyi, International Education
The US Department of Education granted Dr. Emmanuel Naniuzeyi a $100,000 Fulbright-Hays award, “Understanding Ghana’s History, Culture, and Geography through the North-South Divides:  An Expansion of the 2015 Ghana Group Project Abroad.”  The project, in partnership with the Savannah Chatham County Public School System, will support 13 faculty/teacher participants (7 SSU, 6 SCCPSS) to travel to Ghana for four weeks in May/June 2018, for the purpose of building on the knowledge and partnerships gained in the 2015 project, enriching and enhancing the foreign language and social science curriculum of SSU and the SCCPSS, and conducting outreach and workshops for local Savannah community groups.  For more information including on the 2015 Ghana Abroad project, please contact the Project PI Dr. Emmanuel Naniuzeyi, Associate Vice President for International Education at:

June 2017: U.S. Department of Education Upward Bound Award – PI Mr. Bobby Roberts
The US Department of Education approved a new five-year grant award for SSU’s Upward Bound Program (PI Mr. Bobby Roberts).  The current program has been funded for the period June 2013 to May 2018 with total funding of $2,925,962.  The new five year award of more than $3.7M  will continue the program services from 2018 to 2023.  The new program will support 139 high school students each year, with a targeted focus on low income and potential 1st generation college students, with the goal to increase the number who complete high school and who enter and complete college. Targeted schools to be served by the new program are A.E. Beach High School, R. W. Groves High School, Hershel V. Jenkins High School, Sol C. Johnson High School, and the School of Liberal Arts at Savannah High School.  For more information, contact Mr. Bobby Roberts, Upward Bound Program Director, at 912-358-3477

May 2017:  Stacy Cobb, SSU BS graduate and NSF PSLSAMP scholar, is 1st African American to earn  PhD in statistics at UGA
Read more here.

April 2017:  Dr. Karla-Sue Marriott, Chair, Department of Chemistry/Forensic Science, awarded patent for chemical compound to combat neurological diseases.
Read more here.

April 2017: NSF Targeted Infusion Project – $399,972 – PI Dr. Agegnehu Atena, Mathematics
This project will develop a new Minor in Applied Math at SSU, enhance upper level math courses with interdisciplinary real world applications, and support 5 students per year in applied math research.

April 2017: NSF Targeted Infusion Project – $399,974 – PI Dr. Suman Niranjan, College of Business Administration
This project is developing an undergraduate certificate program in Data Analytics. The certificate program will be composed of new and enhanced existing courses (Foundations of Data Analytics, Applied Statistics, Big Data in Health Care, etc.) which will be integrated in/offered by the various collaborating departments:  Computer Information Systems, Computer Science Engineering Technology, Mathematics, Civil Engineering Technology, Marine Sciences, Urban Planning, etc. For more information, contact the PI, Dr. Suman Niranjan at [email protected]