Research Awards
May 2021
Dr. Maryam Salehi Esfandarani, assistant professor in the Department of Civil Engineering, was awarded $453,144 from the National Science Foundation for her project “CAREER: An Investigation of Microplastics Fate and Contaminant Transport in Storm Runoff, The Nexus of Environmental.”
Dr. Aaryani Sajja, assistant professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, was awarded $298,619 from the National Institutes of Health for her project “Modeling MRI=based tissue relaxation in the presence of iron overload and steatosis.”
Dr. Helen Sable, associate chair of Educational Initiatives and associate professor in the Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, was awarded $285,908 from the National Science Foundation for her project “REU Site: Memphis Neuroscience Techniques and Research Training (NeuroSTART) Program.
Dr. Latrice Pichon, associate professor in the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, was awarded $50,000 from the National Institutes of Health, $349,813 from the Centers for Disease Control and $35,700 from the State of Tennessee with the Center For Disease Control for her projects “Collaborating with Faith Leaders of the Deep South to End the Epidemic of HIV Stigma,” “Ending the HIV and Stigma Syndemic: Re-framing Health Education Content for Southern Black Churches,” and “National HIV Behavioral Surveillance 2021.”
Dr. Brian Waldron, associate professor in the Department of Civil Engineering, and director of the Center for Applied Earth Science and Engineering, was awarded $33,000 from the City of Memphis and $7,996 from the City of Piperton for his projects “BCS 2.0” and “City of Piperton WHP.”
Dr. Robin Poston, dean of the Graduate School and professor in the Department of Business Information and Technology, was awarded $29,111 from Alion Science and Technology with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for her project “Test and Evaluation (T&E) Course Instruction in Support of Information Technology Systems for T&E Managers on behalf of DHS S&T Test and Evaluation Division.”
Dr. Matthew Smeltzer, associate professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, was awarded $20,000 from the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer for his project “Global Survey on COVID-19 and Clinical Trials.”
Dr. Maxime Paquette, associate professor in the Department of Health Sciences, was awarded $5,134 from Lever Running for his project “Effects of a Body Weight Unloading System on Biomechanics and Metabolic Cost during Treadmill Running.”
Dr. Jeffrey Marchetta, associate professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, was awarded $4,615 from Vanderbilt University with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration for his project “University of Memphis Space Grant Program.”
Dr. Andrea Pirkey, post-doctoral fellow in the Department of Social Work, was awarded $9,250 from Compass Community Schools for her project “HERO Training Program: Compass/UCI Pilot.”
* Data reported the 18th of each month. Awards finalized after the 18th will be reported the following month.
