Autumn Kujawa, assistant professor of psychology and human development at Vanderbilt Peabody College of education and human development, has received a five-year, $3.7 million grant from the National Institute of Mental Health for a study to identify objective predictors of future suicidal behavior in high-risk adolescents. The study could improve understanding of the pathways to suicidal behavior in young people, help to identify those at greatest risk for suicide attempts, and lead to personalized interventions to prevent suicidal behavior and suicide deaths. According to Kujawa, this study is the first to examine neural predictors of future suicidal behavior in a large, high-risk sample of youth and will build on another study of hers—supported by the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation (BBRF)—that was the among the first to examine the use of neural markers of suicidal behavior in adolescents. MORE

Around the world, educational problems are both highly universal and highly particular. Opportunities to collaborate internationally allow education researchers to see these problems through new perspectives and possibly discover solutions they otherwise may not have found. That is why Yeliz Günal Aggül, a Turkish doctoral student at Boğaziçi University in Istanbul, Turkey, contacted Ilana Horn, professor of mathematics education at Vanderbilt Peabody College of education and human development, to join Horn’s Teacher Learning Lab as a Fulbright Dissertation Research Fellow [funded by the Department of Education]. Both scholars use methods from Participatory Design Research (PDR), an equity-oriented research approach, to collaborate with teachers in the design of professional development. Horn believes international collaborations between researchers like her and Aggül are important for discovering commonalities and cultural differences in educational problems, lending new insights to their solutions. MORE

Nicole Moehring, a fifth-year graduate student in interdisciplinary materials science, has been selected for an extended residency to continue her doctoral research at the Savannah River National Laboratory. She is one of just 87 awardees selected by the Department of Energy Office of Science Graduate Student Research program this year. At Vanderbilt, Moehring conducts her research in the lab of Piran Kidambi, assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering. Her Ph.D. project focuses on transport of subatomic species through atomically thin 2D materials for isotope separations as well as energy storage and conversion. SRNL research topics include environmental remediation, technologies for the hydrogen economy, handling of hazardous materials and technologies for prevention of nuclear proliferation. The award will provide a monthly stipend and support for travel to and from Savannah River National Laboratory in Jackson, South Carolina. MORE

In its semiannual statewide survey, the Vanderbilt Poll measured significant bipartisan support for various gun regulations, basic protections for abortion access as well as health care access for the LGBTQ community. The survey was conducted April 19–23 among 1,003 registered Tennessee voters. “It’s hopeful that while 58 percent of respondents view Tennesseans as divided, there is a fairly strong agreement on basic next steps in our most politically divisive issues,” said John Geer, co-director of the Vanderbilt Poll and Ginny and Conner Searcy Dean of the College of Arts and Science and professor of political science at Vanderbilt University. “At the same time, 74 percent of registered voters say they’d prefer their elected leaders compromise across the aisle rather than strictly pursue their own values and priorities.” MORE

Padma Raghavan, vice provost for research and innovation, has been named by the American Association of Universities to a task force that will explore university partnerships between the U.S. and India. The AAU task force was established in concert with the Biden administration’s U.S.-India initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology, which seeks to grow technological and industrial collaboration between the two nations, according to a release. The task force will determine key focus areas for bilateral research and education, identify existing programs that could be models for future partnerships, and form strategies on how best to move forward. MORE

Former chair of the Vanderbilt Board of Trust and Vanderbilt Law School alumnus Mark F. Dalton, JD’75, has established a faculty director position to bolster innovative hands-on learning in aerospace design. The inaugural Mark Dalton Faculty Director of Experiential Learning in Aerospace Engineering is Amrutur “A.V.” Anilkumar, professor of the practice of aerospace engineering and director of the Vanderbilt Aerospace Design Lab. Anilkumar has served as the faculty adviser to Vanderbilt teams that have won numerous national and international aerospace engineering awards over the past two decades. Dalton—a longtime Vanderbilt supporter who has served in a variety of leadership roles for the university—established the Dalton Vanderbilt Aerospace Design Laboratory Fund in 2022 to support the rocket team and its work. This latest gift extends those efforts. Since its inception, more than 100 alumni have participated in VADL activities. Many of them are now pursuing advanced studies in the field or working in the space industry. MORE

In a high-stakes, he-said, she-said dispute, who is to be believed? Whose testimony is most accurate? A recent study led by Sarah Brown-Schmidt, professor of psychology and human development at Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College of education and human development, may shed light on these questions. The study found that written memoranda of conversations, or memcons, may provide more details and be more accurate than the delayed recall of mutual conversation participants. They also aid the notetaker in retaining more—though not necessarily more accurate—information than the notetaker’s conversational partner. This study has important implications for the role and evaluation of testimony in professional, political, and legal situations. It also reinforces intuitive knowledge about the need for notetaking immediately following meetings, as notes provide the most informed and accurate portrayal of a conversation in the absence of an audio recording or transcript. MORE

Vanderbilt has convened a task force to help the university react to the possible impact of two anticipated U.S. Supreme Court decisions in cases that challenge the use of race as a factor in college admissions. The university-wide panel will work to gauge the effects on recruitment and admission practices, and on Vanderbilt’s ability ensure equal opportunity in carrying out its imperative to educate diverse minds. The task force, formed by the Office of the Provost in coordination with the chancellor’s office, is charged with helping the Vanderbilt campus and community understand the implications of the High Court’s decisions and guide the university’s responses. It will play a key role in helping communicate Vanderbilt’s unwavering commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion—and in bringing to light any impacts the Supreme Court’s decisions have on students, faculty and staff in regard to the admissions and recruitment processes and beyond. MORE

The Vanderbilt University jazz program has been awarded three DownBeat Student Music Awards in an announcement released on May 4, 2023. The honors are for Undergraduate Large Ensemble and two individual awards going to Blair senior Kevin Shinskie, for Undergraduate Outstanding Composition (“Endeavors”) and Outstanding Soloist in a Jazz Combo. Founded in 1976 by the music industry’s preeminent jazz publication, the Student Music Awards are considered among the most prestigious honors in jazz. Winners were officially shared in the publication of DownBeat’s June jazz education issue. The latest recognition caps a groundbreaking year for the Blair Big Band, directed by Ryan Middagh, and the school’s Jazz Studies program. MORE

The complicated nature of social media is that while it provides space for visibility and community, it can also contain triggers for the brain that are related to where addiction activity is housed. How is social media creating needed conversations about addiction and recovery? How is it building broader community? And how is it a complex space to engage with as someone in recovery? Join Erin Calipari, associate professor of pharmacology and member of the Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research, as she delves into these questions and more during the next Lab-to-Table Conversation from the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine Basic Sciences. The event will be at 11 a.m. on May 9. The event is free, virtual and open to the public. MORE