The following UCA faculty and staff have recently been awarded grant funding for various programs and projects:Drs. Mark Cooper, Kathleen Atkins and Patty Kohler Evans, College of Education, recently received two grants for the Mashburn Institute. A Strategic Instruction Model (SIM) content enhancement grant for $279,775 was provided by the Arkansas Department of Education Literacy Education Unit, while a SIM learning strategies grant for $259,535 was provided by the Arkansas Department of Education Special Education Unit. The grants will enable Arkansas to improve academic outcomes for at-risk students by ensuring access to high-quality, research-based instruction. This will be achieved by providing professional development to select educators.
Nancy Burris, Provost Office, received a $2,589 grant for the UCA Upward Bound Summer Food Service Program. The grant is funded by the Arkansas Department of Human Services, and will be used to provide meals for eligible youth who attend the Upward Bound summer program at UCA.
Drs. Alison Hall and Brian Campbell, Department of Sociology, received a $1,000 grant for a project titled, ?Human Origins.? The grant is funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities through the Arkansas Humanities Council. The grant is being used to initiate a proposed anthropology program at UCA.
Dr. Stephen Addison and Belinda Robertson, College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, received a $48,055 grant for an elementary science specialist position at the Arkansas Center for Mathematics and Science Education. The grant is funded by the Arkansas Department of Higher Education. The specialist will conduct workshops and provide professional support for elementary educators throughout the state.
Dr. William Slaton, Department of Physics and Astronomy, received a $3,839 grant for a project titled, ?Aero/Thermo Excitation of an Acoustic Resonator.? The grant is being funded by NASA through the Arkansas Space Grant Consortium. According to Slaton, ?Space hardware must meet strict noise requirements so that astronaut crews can live, work and communicate in a safe environment. This project acts to experimentally identify and explore sources of resonance noise caused by thermal instabilities (thermoacoustics) and gas flow (aeroacoustics).
Drs. Rebecca Gatlin-Watts and Mike Rubach, College of Business Administration, received a $48,384 grant for a program titled, ?Alliance to Promote Fair Trade and Sustainable Development.? The grant is funded by the U.S. Department of Education. The program includes partnering with several universities abroad to establish student and faculty exchange programs to allow individuals to become bilingual and bicultural, providing them an advantage in today?s competitive job market.
Dr. Debra Burris, Department of Physics and Astronomy, received a $5,475 grant for a project titled, ?Revisiting Zirconium: A New Look at Elemental Abundances with Improved Oscillator Strengths.? The grant is funded by NASA through the Arkansas Space Grant Consortium and will provide fellowships for faculty and student researchers.
Drs. Joan Simon and Art Gillaspy, Department of Psychology and Counseling, received a $15,350 grant for an evaluation of prevention programming. The grant is funded by Community Services Inc., and provides systematic evaluation of school and community-based tobacco prevention programs.
