Albany State University research supports community, region

Research impacts public policy, economic development and quality of life

By Pearlie Bowser

ALBANY -- Albany State University (ASU) faculty and staff members have been awarded more than $3.5 million from May to September 2017 to fund research.

Areas of research receiving funding include transportation, aeronautics and space, early childhood education, health care, natural resources, and agriculture and forestry.

The ASU Office of Research and Sponsored Programs facilitates and supports faculty and staff in their pursuit of external funding for research, training and other scholarly activities.

“The funds received from external sponsors are vital to an institution being able to engage in research and scholarly activities and to implement programs that promote student success,” said Louise Wrensford, graduate dean and executive director of the ASU Office of Research and Sponsored Programs. “Faculty and staff are to be commended for the time and effort they put forth in securing these awards.”

Joyce Johnson, professor and graduate faculty member in the department of nursing received funding for a Reality-based Enhanced and Applied Learning (REAL) grant.

“We are delighted to receive this grant award and look forward to using the grant funds to enhance and expand select ASU master’s degree programs,” said Johnson.  “Through these program enhancements, student and faculty scholarship will be promoted, and access to graduate education at ASU will be expanded.”

REAL grant activities will include increasing the reality-based experiences in ASU’s master’s degree programs and the development of a Master of Science degree with varied tracks. The award is funded for over $416,000 this year with the potential for renewal for five additional years, resulting in almost $2.5 million over six years.

Seyed Roosta, interim dean of the ASU College of Sciences and Technology, Kwaichow Chan, professor in the ASU Department of Chemistry and Forensic Science, and Scott Pierce, program manager, received continued funding in the amount of $471,438 from the National Science Foundation for the Historically Black College and University Undergraduate Program (HBCU-UP). The project is designed to encourage and empower students to pursue careers in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) disciplines.

“The HBCU-UP Implementation Project seeks to improve passing, retention and four-year graduation rates among STEM majors to address the nationwide deficit of qualified employees and graduate students in technical fields,” said Roosta.

Mark Masters, director of the Georgia Water Planning & Policy Center, received $131,368 from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture for the first year of a five-year project focused on sustainable use of the Floridan Aquifer.

"The Floridan aquifer is, in many ways, the lifeblood of Southwest Georgia,” said Masters. “We are excited to play an important role in this valuable research and look forward to working with our other university partners.”

Additional ASU faculty and staff who have secured funding to engage in a variety of research projects for the May 2017- September 2017 time frame are:

• Charles O. Ochie, chairman of the ASU Department of Criminal Justice. Ochie received supplemental funding totaling $1,500 from Walmart for the Albany State University Summer Transportation Institute summer program.  The overall goal of this project is to contribute to the development of a diverse, well-qualified workforce for the transportation industry by encouraging high school students to pursue transportation careers.
• Angelyn Lincey director of the ASU Early Learning Center received continued funding in the amount of $71,039 from the Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning for the Bright from the Start program plus an additional $1,000. The program coordinates and provides child care and early education services for four-year-old children and their families served by Georgia’s Pre-K Program.
• Taiquanda Winbush, coordinator and clinical lab instructor in the ASU Department of Allied Health, received $2,500 in new funding from the American Society for Clinical Pathology. The project promotes the field of Histotechnology and the Histologic Technician program offered at Albany State University to high school students in a five county area located in Southwest Georgia
• Patricia Jenkins, interim chair of the ASU Department of Teacher Education received $50,000 in new funding from Sanford Inspire for the ASU Sanford Inspire Curriculum Integration Project. The overall goal of the Sanford Education Program is to provide innovative and inspirational programs to leaders in the education and nonprofit sectors.
• Yixuan Wang, professor in the ASU Department of Chemistry and Forensic Science, received $105,160 in continued funding from the National Institutes of Health. Wang’s project “Understanding Non-covalent Interaction in Carbon Nanotube Bioconjugates” uses molecular modeling and simulation to investigate the interactions between anticancer drugs and carbon nanomaterials.
• Amir Saheb, associate professor in the ASU Department of Chemistry and Forensic Science, received continued funding in the amount of $83,836 from the National Institutes of Health through Hampton University for the Minority Men's Health Initiative pilot project “DNA Specific Sensor for Prostate Cancer Biomarkers Bridge”.
• Arun Saha associate professor, ASU Department of Chemistry and Forensic Science, received new funding in the amount of $10,000 from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Space Grant Consortium. This project exposes pre-engineering students to a new research in exploring extraordinary functionality form material by tuning its property artificially to meet the present days’ technological demand.
• Liqiu Zheng is an associate professor in the ASU Department of Chemistry and Forensic Science. Zheng received $5,246 in supplemental funding from the National Science Foundation for a Historical Black Colleges and Universities-Up Research Initiation Award.   The research focuses on the energy crisis and mitigates climate change by developing renewable, sustainable and affordable “green” alternative energy.
• Olabisi Ojo, associate professor in the ASU Department of Biological Sciences, received new funding in the amount of $5,000 from the American Society for Cell Biology for the Albany State University Linkage Fellows Program. The program increases faculty participation from Minority Serving Institutions to serve as a link between the institution, its students, faculty and administration, and the American Society for Cell Biology Minorities Affairs Committee.
• Deborah Bembry, chair of the ASU Department of Counseling and Educational Leadership and Janis Carthon, assistant professor in the Department of Counseling and Educational Leadership received continued funding in the amount of $1.7 million from the Wallace Foundation for the Wallace’s University Principal Preparation Initiative. The initiative will continue to examine state policy for efforts to strengthen quality training statewide along with a redesign of Albany State University’s Educational Leadership program to produce a model of principal preparation that can be used across the state and even the nation.
• Rowena Daniels, ASU chief legal affairs officer, received new funding in the amount of $299,972 from the Office of Violence Against Women for the Albany State University E5 Initiative: Engage, Educate, and Empower all stakeholders, and Enhance the student experience through a culture of Excellence. The goal of the E-5 Initiative is to address through a systematic approach incidents of dating violence, domestic violence, stalking and sexual assault among members of the campus community, and to develop a robust curriculum focused on prevention, intervention and advocacy.

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