Grant News

Rou-Jia Sung, Assistant Professor of Biology, is the recipient of an American Association of University Women Research Publication Grant in Engineering, Medicine and Science. During the 2022-23 award year, Prof. Sung’s project “Insights into ly6 protein function: identifying novel interacting partners of odr-2” will identify and study new regulators of cell signaling. Not only will this work represent a significant contribution to our understanding of ly6 function in C. elegans, but insights drawn from this model system will be applicable towards more complex systems across species.

Cecilia Cornejo, Lecturer in cinema and media studies, has been awarded an Artist Residency at the Ragdale Foundation in Lake Forest, IL. While in residence, Cecilia will work on Sonic Landscapes of Southern Minnesota, a sound-mapping website and interactive web archive developed in collaboration with London-based Hüseyin Kuşcu of Kakare Interactive. Facilitated by the Artist Communities Alliance and the McKnight Artist Fellowship Program, this award recognizes exceptional achievement while aiming to support important new works.

Rika Anderson, Associate Professor of Biology, has received a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF #2205254) for “Collaborative Research: RUI: Microbes need frenemies: unveiling microbial relationships with protist and viruses that support deep-sea hydrothermal vent food webs.” This project, involving undergraduate researchers, aims to characterize microbial food web interactions across different hydrothermal vent habitats, and improve our understanding of how climate change and other human activities impact the ecosystem.

Dan Maxbauer, Assistant Professor of Geology, has been awarded a National Science Foundation grant (#2208133) for his project “RUI: CAS-Climate: Carbon sequestration through enhanced weathering in agricultural soils with co-benefits to soil quality and crop yield.” Prof. Maxbauer’s three-year field trial tests carbon removal efficiency and co-benefits to crops and soils of annual applications of crushed silicate minerals. This collaboration with local farmers, and involving undergraduate researchers, will provide real-world constraints on enhanced weathering – an exciting carbon dioxide removal technology – and will be shared broadly with scientific and agricultural communities.

Helen Minsky, Assistant Professor of Physics, is the recipient of an American Chemical Society Undergraduate New Investigator (UNI) award for her project, “Flaw tolerance in adhesive elastomers.” Prof. Minsky’s systematic study, conducted with undergraduate researchers, aims to predict adhesive strength of flawed samples to better understand the limits of certain models and form a basis upon which more complex systems can be studied.

Meredith McCoy, Assistant Professor of American Studies and History, has received support to research Indigenous experiences from four separate funders.

• An Institute for Citizen’s & Scholars (ICS) Career Enhancement Fellowship for Junior Faculty supports her project “Recovering Indigenous Children’s Experiences under Relocation.”
• As a participant in the Curriculum Inquiry Writing Fellowship and Writers’ Retreat in Toronto, Prof. McCoy will explore Native feminist teaching commitments, arguing that a pedagogical focus on contemplation and contribution in the college-level classroom can help students connect and reflect as they learn histories of genocide.
• A Whiting Foundation Public Engagement Fellowship funds collaboration with the Newberry Library, Chicago American Indian Community Collaborative, and other members of the Chicago Native community to investigate the long history of Indigenous Chicago and create an exhibit, curricular and digital materials, an oral history project, and public programming.
• The Phillips Fund for Native American Research of the American Philosophical Society supports Prof. McCoy’s research costs including compensating community partners who will form a local advisory board, while examining the formative period of the 1940s and 1950s when the number of Native families in cities rose significantly.

Amna Khalid, Associate Professor of History, and Jeff Snyder, Associate Professor of Educational Studies have been named to the 2022-2023 Class of Fellows of the University of California National Center for Free Speech and Civic Engagement. Their project “Anti-CRT Bills Come to Campus: Documenting and Analyzing Emerging Threats to Free Expression and Academic Freedom from State Legislatures” will examine anti-CRT bills targeting higher education and track how they are being implemented and challenged on campuses in different states. Prof. Khalid and Prof. Snyder will create a resource guide for campus stakeholders to better understand the impact of these bills on free expression and academic freedom, and produce a set of podcast episodes to explain the significance of these bills to a broader audience.

Dan Maxbauer, Assistant Professor of Geology, has been awarded a grant from the Engeseth-Rinde Restoration Fund of Northfield SHARES for his project “Evaluating potential of enhanced weathering for carbon dioxide removal in the Prairie Creek Wildlife Management Area.” During 2022, this project will include soil sampling, analysis, and monitoring of CO₂ flux in hopes of developing carbon offset markets that may benefit land-owners transitioning agricultural land back to more native environments. This work builds on a recent soil survey conducted at the site as part of a Geology Comps project and will add another dataset for the site to be available for future class and Comps projects.

Seth Peabody, Assistant Professor of German, has been selected as a Mellon Periclean Faculty Leader (PFL) in the Humanities. The program will provide support for developing a community-based project within a new A&I seminar entitled “Seeking Shelter in a Dangerous World.” In partnership with Greater Northfield Sustainability Collaborative (GNSC), first-year students will gather input on environmental issues, learn about a sense of “home” from diverse stakeholders in the community, and hone humanistic skills while tackling real-world problems.

Vasilii Vaganov, Class of 2024 and student researcher with Rou-Jia Sung (Assistant Professor of Biology), has been awarded the 2022 ASBMB (American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology) Undergraduate Research Award to purchase supplies for research during summer 2022.