New Awards Received
Please direct press and media inquiries about any of the awards listed on this page to Jim Mortenson, Office of the Vice Provost for Research and Dean of Graduate Studies, UMass Boston, at 617.287.5614 or james.mortenson@umb.edu.
April 2012
Wei Ding (Assistant Professor of Computer Science) was awarded a $26,000 grant by the National Science Foundation for "Supporting U.S.-based Students to Attend the 2012 IEEE International Conference on Data Mining."
Sonnya Espinal (Institute for Learning and Teaching, College of Education and Human Development) was awarded a $30,000 grant by the Amelia Peabody Foundation in support of "Project ALERTA Summer and Afterschool Academic Enrichment Activities for the Boston Public Schools."
Sonnya Espinal (Institute for Learning and Teaching, College of Education and Human Development) was awarded $3,000 by MathWorks in support of "Project ALERTA Summer and Afterschool Academic Enrichment Activities for the Boston Public Schools."
Andrew Grosovsky (Dean, College of Science and Mathematics) and Marshall Milner (Executive Director, Science Education Training Programs for Undergraduate Students) were awared a $50,000 grant by the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center to conduct the "Urban Mass MLSC Summer Workshop."
Wanli Hu (Director, China Program Center, University College) was awarded nearly $200,000 in grants by the National Security Agency to conduct "UMass Boston Summer Institutes for Teachers of Chinese."
Judith Kurland (Director, Center for Community Democracy and Democratic Literacy) was awarded a $50,000 grant by United Way in support of the project "Creating a Community of Practice Among Place-Based Community Change."
Anne Douglass (Assistant Professor of Curriculum and Instruction) was awarded a $61,000 grant by the Massachusetts Department of Education to design and provide a "Professional Development System Study."
Ed Tronick (Distinguished University Professor of Psychology) was awarded a nearly $420,000 grant by the National Institutes of Health in support of his project, "Hair Cortisol as a Biomarker of Chronic Stress in Mother-Infant Dyads."
March 2012
Alan Christian (Associate Professor of Biology) and Robyn Hannigan (Professor of Environmental, Earth and Ocean Sciences) were awarded a $50,000 grant by the National Science Foundation for their project, “2012 Biology Research Experiences for Undergraduates Workshop: Evaluating and Strengthening the REU Experience.”
Wei Ding (Assistant Professor of Computer Science) was awarded a $59,752 grant by George Mason University for her project, “A Prototypical Ontology-Supported Intelligent Geospatial Discovery System for [Nuclear] Proliferation Detection.” The prime sponsor is the U.S. Department of Energy.
Robyn Hannigan (Professor of Environmental, Earth and Ocean Sciences) and Alan Christian (Associate Professor of Biology) were awarded a $109,000 grant by the National Science Foundation for their project, “Research Experiences for Undergraduates Site: Coastal Research in Environmental Science and Technology at UMass Boston.”
Anthony Roman (Senior Research Fellow, Center for Survey Research) was awarded a $203,000 by the U.S. Census Bureau for the project “Affordable Care Act Pretesting,” $18,000 by ARGUS, A Boston-based agency specializing in advertising and multicultural marketing, for the project “Measuring Behavior Change,” and $7,000 by the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute for the project “Cancer Survivor Study.”
Russell Schutt (Professor of Sociology) was awarded a $24,000 grant by the John E. Fetzer Institute, Inc. for his project, “Teen Empowerment: Forgiveness and Reconciliation Project for Inner-City Youth and Police.” The Fetzer Institute is a private foundation that supports research on poverty.
Peter Spiegler (Assistant Professor of Economics) was awarded a $59,000 grant by the Institute of New Economic Thinking for his project, “A Constructive Critique of Economic Modeling.”
Ed Tronick (University Distinguished Professor of Psychology) was awarded a $44,000 grant by the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center for his project, “Treatment of Maternal Depressions in Home Visitation: Mother and Child.” The National Institutes of Health is the prime sponsor.
Jack Wiggin (Director, Urban Harbors Institute) was awarded a $60,000 grant by the Marine Environmental and Education Alliance, Inc. to conduct a feasibility study to measure the likely success of a higher education facility, or an Ocean Campus Center, dedicated to courses in marine and environmental sciences and technologies for the purposes of creating more skilled job opportunities and also to maintain the vitality of working ports along the Massachusetts coast.
February 2012
Jonathan Celli (Assistant Professor of Physics) was awarded a $237,000 grant by the National Cancer Institute for his project, “Mechanism-based Therapies for Pancreatic Cancer Informed by Stromal Microrheology.”
January 2012
Lilia Bartolome (Professor of Applied Linguistics, College of Liberal Arts) was awarded a $45,000 grant by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to support her project, "Rethinking Equity and Teaching for English Language Learners."
Mary Ellen Colten (Director, Center for Survey Research) was awarded a $49,067 grant by Case Western Reserve University to support her project, "Disease Advocacy Organizations and Clinical Researchers: A Survey to Examine Clinical Researchers' Experiences." The National Institutes of Health is the prime sponsor.
Kurt Jacobs (Associate Professor of Physics, College of Science and Mathematics) was awarded a $210,635 grant by the University of Southern California to support his project, "Control of Quantum Open System: Theory and Experiment." The United States Department of Defense is the prime sponsor.
Lakshmi Srinivas (Assistant Professor of Sociology, College of Liberal Arts) was awarded a $37,800 grant by the National Endowment for the Humanities for her project, "Indian Cinema and the Active Audience: An Ethnographic Study.
J. Cedric Woods (Director, Institute for New England Native American Studies) was awarded a $36,675 grant by the North American Indian Center of Boston to support his project, "Strengthening Families Initiative: Supporting Caregiver Grandparents."
December 2011
Lisa Kennedy Sheldon (Assistant Clinical Professor of Nursing, College of Nursing and Health Sciences) received a $20,000 grant award from the Oncology Nursing Society Foundation for her project "Predictors of Discussion and Treatment of Psychosocial Concerns."
Zhongpin Lee (Professor of Environmental, Earth and Ocean Sciences, College of Science and Mathematics) received an $11,875 grant award from Mississippi State University for his project "Modeling and Ocean Color Remote Sensing in Oceanic and Coastal Waters." The prime sponsor is the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
November 2011
Joan Becker (Vice Provost for Academic Support Services and Undergraduate Studies) received a $25,000 grant award from the State Street Foundation, and a $10,000 grant award from the Deborah Munroe Noonan Memorial. These two new awards will provide instructional support for the Urban Scholars Program. This after-school program for committed middle- and high-school students from the Boston Public Schools helps them build the skills, muster the drive, and live the experiences that will ensure their success in college.
Keith Bentele (Assistant Professor of Sociology, College of Liberal Arts) received $17,051 grant award from the Russell Sage Foundation for his project "Evaluating the Performance of State Social Safety Nets."
Sheila Fesko (Senior Research Fellow, Institute for Community Inclusion) received a $310,000 grant award from Rutgers University as support in FY 2012 for the National Technical Assistance and Research Center to Promote Leadership for Employment for Adults with Disabilities. The prime sponsor is the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Gabriel Ghinita (Assistant Professor of Computer Science, College of Science and Mathematics) received a $36,500 grant award from Purdue University for her project "Privacy Enhanced Secure Data Provenance." The prime sponsor is the National Science Foundation.
Donaldo Macedo (Professor of Applied Linguistics, College of Liberal Arts) received a $1,836,000 four-year grant award from the U.S. Department of Education for his instructional and training program "Math Sheltered English Teacher Training Project."
Robbin Peach (Executive Director, Collaborative Institute for Oceans, Climate, and Security) received a $518,000 grant award from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation for the project "Addressing the Human and National Security Threats Emerging from Climate-Induced Changes in Marine Environments."
Marc Pomplun (Associate Professor of Computer Science, College of Science and Mathematics) received a $668,000 three-year grant award from the National Science Foundation to support his project “Semantic Guidance of Visual Attention.”
Wichian Rojanawon (Professor of Gerontology, John W. McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies) received a $50,000 grant award from the Bernard Osher Foundation as operational support for the UMass Boston Osher Life Long Learning Institute.
Anthony Roman (Senior Research Fellow, Center for Survey Research) received a $203,000 grant award from the U.S. Census Bureau for the project "Affordable Care Act Pretesting."
Crystal Schaaf (Professor of Environmental, Earth and Ocean Sciences, College of Science and Mathematics) received a $62,000 grant award from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in support of her project "NOAA's Preparatory Project Program for Albedo Environmental Data Record Validation."
Ilyitch Tabora and Sonnya Espinal (Professional Staff, Institute for Learning and Teaching, College of Education and Human Development) received a $460,000 grant award from the Boston Public Schools (BPS) to administer the BPS Talented and Gifted Program. The U.S. Department of Education is the prime sponsor.
October 2011
Joan Becker (Vice Provost for Academic Support Services and Undergraduate Studies) received a $25,000 grant award from the Amelia Peabody Foundation and a $10,000 grant award from the Bank of America Merrill Lynch Foundation. These two new awards will provide instructional support for the Urban Scholars Program. This after-school program for committed middle- and high-school students from the Boston Public Schools helps them build the skills, muster the drive, and live the experiences that will ensure their success in college.
Arthur Eisenkraft (Research Professor of Science Education, Center of Science and Math in Context) received a $630,000 four-year grant award from Black Hills State University in support of his project “An Examination of Science and Technology Teachers' Conceptual Learning through Concept-Based Engineering.” The National Science Foundation is the prime sponsor.
Winston Langley (Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs) and Joan Becker (Vice Provost for Academic Support Services and Undergraduate Studies) received a $155,000 grant award from the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education for their initiative "Increasing Graduation Rates and Learning Assessments."
Benyamin Lichtenstein (Associate Professor of Marketing and Management, College of Management) received an $11,875 grant award from the Massachusetts Committee for Public Counsel Services to carry out the project “Managing Rapid Growth with New Systems: The Case of the Committee for Public Counsel Services.”
Edward Tronick (University Distinguished Professor of Psychology, College of Liberal Arts) has received a $419,000 two-year grant award from the National Institutes of Health to support his project “The Electrophysiological Indices of Infants Memory for a Social Stressor.”
Emily Wiemers (Assistant Professor of Economics, College of Liberal Arts) received a $62,000 grant award from the University of California, Los Angeles to support her project “Aging, Work, and Intergenerational Obligations.” The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation is the prime sponsor.
Jack Wiggin (Director, Urban Harbors Institute) received a $61,000 grant award from the nonprofit Third Sector New England in support of the “2011 Ecosystem Health Indicators Conference and Development of Additional Recreational Boating and GIS Maps.”
September 2011
Joan Becker (Vice Provost for Academic Support Services and Undergraduate Studies) received a $50,000 grant award from the Mabel Louise Riley Foundation and a $30,000 grant by the Liberty Mutual Foundation to support the UMass Boston Urban Scholars Program.
Bianca Bersani (Assistant Professor of Sociology, College of Liberal Arts) received a W.E.B. Du Bois Fellowship award from the U.S. Department of Justice for her project "An Examination of the '"Marriage Effect'" on Desistance from Crime Among U.S. Immigrants."
Deborah Boisvert (Executive Director, Boston Area for Advanced Technological Educational Connections, or BATEC) received a $5,100,000 grant award from the National Science Foundation to increase the scale of BATEC from a regional to a national initiative through the establishment of a "National Center for Advanced Technological Education."
Ron Etter (Professor of Biology, College of Science and Mathematics) received a $300,000 grant award from the National Science Foundation to support Phase 2 of his project "Evolution of Deep-Sea Molluscs."
John Butterworth (Senior Fellow, Institute for Community Inclusion) and Frank Smith (Research Associate, Institute for Community Inclusion) received a $1,250,000 grant award from the U.S. Department of Education to operate the Center for Assistive Technology Act Data Assistance. The Assistive Technology Act of 2004, administered by the Rehabilitation Services Administration, is intended to improve access to assistive technology for individuals with disabilities through comprehensive statewide programs of technology-related assistance. This center will assist the Statewide Assistive Technology Programs to collect and report data on their activities and build programs' capacity to use data for program improvement.
Debra Hart (Staff Associate, Institute for Community Inclusion) received $1,250,000 grant award from the U.S. Department of Education to design and provide "Personnel Development for Improving Service to Children with Disabilities."
Sarah Hayes (Assistant Professor of Psychology, College of Liberal Arts) received a $730,000 grant award from the National Institute of Mental Health in support of her project "Change Mechanisms in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Social Anxiety Disorder."
Angela Stone-MacDonald (Assistant Professor of Curriculum and Instruction, College of Education and Human Development) received a $1,186,000 grant award from the U.S. Department of Education to design and provide "Personnel Development for Improving Service to Children with Disabilities."
J. Cedric Woods (Director, Institute for New England Native American Studies) received a $2,000 grant from the Mashantucket Pequot Museum to facilitate the panel discussion "Indivisible: African-Native American Lives in the Americas."
August 2011
Randy Albelda (Professor of Economics, College of Liberal Arts) received a $10,000 grant award from the Annie E. Casey Foundation in support of her project "Linking Youth Development with Parents' Low-Wage Work."
Lilia Bartolome (Professor of Applied Linguistics, College of Liberal Arts) received a $7,000 grant award from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education in support of her work in "Professional Development for Teachers of English Language Learners."
Joan Becker (Vice Provost for Academic Support Services and Undergraduate Studies) received a $1,468,544 grant award from the U.S. Department of Education in support of the "TRIO Talent Search Program." The program identifies and assists individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds who have the potential to succeed in higher education.
Joan Becker (Vice Provost for Academic Support Services and Undergraduate Studies) received a $1,713,500 grant award from the U.S. Department of Education in support of the "TRIO Student Support Services Program." The program provides opportunities for academic development, assists students with basic college requirements, and motivates students toward the successful completion of their postsecondary education.
John Butterworth (Senior Research Fellow, Institute for Community Inclusion) received a $100,000 grant award from the Health Resources and Services Administration in support of his project "Services and Outcomes for Transition-Age Young Adults with Autism."
Lisa Cosgrove (Assistant Professor of Counseling and School Psychology, College of Education and Human Development) received a $23,700 grant award from the Harvard University Safra Foundation Center for Ethics in support of her project "An Ethnographic Approach to Understanding the History and Ethics of the American Psychiatric Association."
Steve Crosby (Dean, McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies) received a $400,000 grant award from the National Endowment for the Humanities to develop and present "A National Forum on Civility and American Democracy."
Ellen Douglas (Assistant Professor of Environmental, Earth and Ocean Sciences, College of Science and Mathematics) received a $68,539 grant award from the Massachusetts Environmental Trust in support of her project "Monitoring Dam Removal in Massachusetts: Towards a Regional River Restoration Strategy."
Donna Haig-Friedman (Director, Center for Social Policy, McCormack Graduate School of Public and Global Studies) received a $10,000 grant award from the Vinfen Corporation in support of her project "Strategies for Community-Based Services for Persons with Disabilities."
Katherine Gibson (Assistant Professor of Biology, College of Science and Mathematics) received a $305,000 grant award from the National Institutes of Health in support of her project "Cell Cycle Regulation in the Symbiont Sinorhizobium Melilot."
Katherine Gibson (Assistant Professor of Biology, College of Science and Mathematics) received a $300,000 grant award from the National Science Foundation in support of her project "Cell Cycle Regulation in the Symbiont Sinorhizobium Melilot."
Andrew Grosovsky (Dean, College of Science and Mathematics) received a $20,000 grant award from Pfizer Pharmaceuticals in support of the conference "Advancing in the Life Science and Uniting Universities, Corporate, and Government Partners" to be held at UMass Boston on October 27-29, 2011.
Kurt Jacobs (Associate Professor of Physics, College of Science and Mathematics) received a $460,000 grant award from Telecordia to support the development of a "Quantum Computer Science Program."
Michael Rex and Solange Brault (Professor and Associate Professor of Biology, College of Science and Mathematics) received a $145,637 grant award from the National Science Foundation in support of their project "Reproductive and Geographic Evidence for Source-Sink Dynamics in Deep-Sea Benthic Communities."
Crystal Schaaf (Professor of Environmental, Earth and Ocean Sciences, College of Science and Mathematics) received a $140,775 grant award from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in support of her project "Land-to-Sea Carbon Export from the Northeast Watersheds of North America."
Crystal Schaaf (Professor of Environmental, Earth and Ocean Sciences, College of Science and Mathematics) received a $153,616 grant award from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in support of her project "Albedo Trends Related to Land Cover Change and Disturbance: A Multi-Sensor Approach."
Gary Siperstein (Director, Center for Social Development and Education) received a $115,000 grant award from the Special Olympics, Inc. for the project "Get Into It 2." The prime sponsor is the U.S. Department of Education.
Eileen Stuart-Shor (Assistant Professor of Nursing, College of Nursing and Health Sciences) received a $5,000 grant award from the American Nurses Association in support of her project "Global Cardiovascular Risk Assessment: Kenya Heart and Sole Program."
Heather Trigg (Research Scientist, Department of Anthropology, College of Liberal Arts) received a $10,500 grant award from the University of Tennessee in support of her project "Analysis of Microbotanicals from Wingos Indian Camp, Poplar Forest Virginia."
Alexey Veraksa (Assistant Professor of Biology, College of Science and Mathematics) received a $290,379 grant award from the National Institutes of Health in support of his project "Regulation of Developmental Signaling by Beta-arrestin."
Kristan Wendall (Center of Science and Mathematics in Context) received a $20,526 grant award from Tufts University in support of the project "Integrating Engineering and Literacy." The prime sponsor is the National Science Foundation.
Wenfan Yan (Professor of Leadership in Education, College of Education and Human Development) received a $90,000 grant award from the Beijing No. 2 Experimental Primary School as part of the "Collaborative Agreement for the Institute for International and Comparative Education and the Center for U.S.-China Educational Leadership."
July 2011
Randy Albelda (Professor of Economics, College of Liberal Arts) received a $50,000 grant award from The Ford Foundation in support of her project "Linking Youth Development with Parents' Low-Wage Work."
Lilia Bartolome (Professor of Applied Linguistics, College of Liberal Arts) received a $39,200 grant award from the Massachusetts Department of Education to support her work in the "Professional Development for Teachers of English Language Learners."
Joan Becker (Vice Provost for Academic Support Services and Undergraduate Studies) received a $7,000 grant award from the Massachusetts Executive Office of Health and Human Services in support of the "Massachusetts Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Transition to Work Program," which will be administered by the Ross Center for Disability Services.
Susan Foley (Senior Research Fellow, Institute for Community Inclusion) received an $116,000 grant award from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to provide a "Comprehensive Assessment of All Massachusetts Focus Academy Grant Activities."
Judith Kirland (Executive Director, Center for Community Democracy and Democratic Literacy, McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies) received a $47,000 grant award from the United Way of Massachusetts Bay in support of her project "Creating a Community of Practice Among Place-Based Community Change."
Crystal Schaaf (Professor of Environmental, Earth and Ocean Sciences, College of Science and Mathematics) received a $34,100 grant award from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration for work on "Mapping Change in Arctic Shrub Abundance and Woody Biomass."
Angela Stone-MacDonald (Assistant Professor of Curriculum and Instruction, College of Education and Human Development) received an $8,700 grant award from the Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care to participate in "Developing Early Education and Care On-line Courses."
Jack Wiggin (Director, Urban Harbors Institute) received a $179,585 grant award from the Town of Southampton, New York to "Develop a Waterfront Revitalization Plan" for that town.
J. Cedric Woods (Director, Institute for New England Native American Studies) received a $15,000 "Leadership and Entrepreneurship Feasibility Grant" award from the Mashantucket Pequot Tribe. The prime sponsor is the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Wei Zhang (Associate Professor of Chemistry, College of Science and Mathematics) received a $25,000 grant award from the American Chemical Society to host the "2011 American Chemical Society Pharmaceutical Roundtable" at UMass Boston.
June 2011
John Butterworth (Senior Research Fellow, Institute for Community Inclusion) received a $40,625 grant award from the Association of Assistive Technology Act Programs for the project “Developing Data Reports and Accessible Web Data Display Tools for ATAP.”
Steve Crosby (Dean, McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies) received a $809,000 grant award from the Massachusetts Executive Office of Administration and Finance “To Begin Implementation of a Comprehensive Performance Management System Across All of State Government.” The grant will be administered by the Collins Center for Public Management.
Patricia Gallagher (Study Director, Center for Survey Research) received a $96,456 grant award from the Health Dialog Services Corporation for the project “Evaluation of Approaches to Decision Support.”
Greer Glazer (Dean, College of Nursing and Health Sciences) received a $277,871 grant award from Partners HealthCare for the project “Clinical Leadership Collaborative for Diversity in Nursing, Cohort IV.”
Robyn Hannigan (Professor of Environmental, Earth and Ocean Sciences, College of Science and Mathematics) received a $326,321 grant award from the National Science Foundation for the project “Research Experience for Undergraduates: Coastal Research in Environmental Science and Technology (CREST) at UMass Boston.”
Kurt Jacobs (Assistant Professor of Physics, College of Science and Mathematics) received a $144,506 grant award from Williams College for the project "Control and Measurement of Coupled Mesoscopic Quantum Systems.” The National Science Foundation is the prime sponsor.
Suzanne Leveille (Assistant Professor of Nursing, College of Nursing and Health Sciences) received a $3,185,481 grant award from the National Institutes of Health for the project “Attentional Demand of Chronic Pain and Risk for Falls in Older Adults.”
Anthony Roman (Senior Fellow, Center for Survey Research) received a $155,933 grant award from the Massachusetts Division of Health Care Finance and Policy for the project “Massachusetts Employer Health Insurance Survey 2011.”
Heather Trigg (Senior Research Scientist, Department of Anthropology, College of Liberal Arts) received a $61,475 grant award from the National Science Foundation for the project “The Human Impact Pollen Database: Development of a Searchable Internet Database of Pollen Taxa.”
Jean Wiecha (Associate Professor of Exercise and Health Sciences, College of Nursing and Health Sciences) received a $15,00 grant award from the New Balance Foundation for the project “Therapeutic Exercise to Enhance Obesity Treatment.”
