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ORAU awards 35 research grants, $175K to junior faculty

Posted at 4:25 pm June 7, 2021
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Part of the ORAU campus in central Oak Ridge is pictured above on May 29, 2017. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

ORAU has awarded competitive research grants totaling $175,000 to 35 junior faculty from its member institutions. The annual grants are made through the company’s Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Enhancement Awards program that provides funds to enrich the research and professional growth of young faculty, a press release said.

The recipients, each of whom is in the first two years of a tenure track position, will receive $5,000 in seed money for the 2021-2022 academic year to enhance their research during the early stages of their careers. Each recipient’s institution matches the ORAU award with an additional $5,000, making the total prize worth $10,000 for each winner, the press release said. Winners may use the grants to purchase equipment, continue research, or travel to professional meetings and conferences.

Since the program’s inception, ORAU has awarded 804 grants totaling about $4 million, the press release said. Including the matching funds from member institutions, ORAU has facilitated grants worth more than $8 million, the release said.

“As a research institution, ORAU is proud to recognize and support the research and professional development of the 35 emerging leaders who are receiving Powe Awards this year,” said Ken Tobin, ORAU vice president for research and university partnerships. “The Powe Award program benefits our member universities and is always extremely popular, because it provides an opportunity for young faculty members to further their research careers and pursue new funding avenues.”

The awards recognize faculty members for their work in any of five science and technology disciplines: engineering or applied science; life sciences; mathematics and computer science; physical sciences; and policy, management, or education.

The awards, now in their 31st year, are named for Ralph E. Powe, who served as the ORAU councilor from Mississippi State University for 16 years. Powe participated in numerous committees and special projects during his tenure and was elected chair of ORAU’s Council of Sponsoring Institutions. He died in 1996.

Recipients of the Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Enhancement Awards for the 2021-2022 academic year are listed below:

 Award RecipientMember Institution
Cynthia AlcantarUniversity of Nevada, Reno
Stephanie AndelIndiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis
Radhika BaruaVirginia Commonwealth University
Yana CenVirginia Commonwealth University
Christopher ClevelandUniversity of Georgia
Wim CosynFlorida International University
Robert FlemingArkansas State University
Sara FreemanUtah State University
Chiarra GhezziUniversity of Massachusetts Lowell
Ying HaoUniversity of Mississippi
Renita HortonUniversity of Houston
Hsien-Yuan HsuUniversity of Massachusetts Lowell
Po-Chun HsuDuke University
Md Mahbubul IslamWayne State University
Alexei KananenkaUniversity of Delaware
Jeeun KimTexas A&M University
Mi LiUniversity of Tennessee
Peng LiAuburn University
Kyle LuhUniversity of Colorado Boulder
Yi MazumdarGeorgia Institute of Technology
Brian MeckesUniversity of North Texas
Ramon Miranda QuintanaUniversity of Florida
Mulubrhan MogosVanderbilt University
Rebecca NapolitanoPenn State University
David NicholsUniversity of Virginia
Fatima RivasLouisiana State University
Prashant SinghMississippi State University
Lawrence SternUniversity of South Florida
James Shogren-HarrisUniversity of Alabama
Shuo SunUniversity of Colorado Boulder
Andy ThomasTexas A&M University
Xiaoxue WangOhio State University
Ryan WilliamsCity College of New York
Ning ZhangUniversity of Alabama
Xu ZhangOklahoma State University

For more information on fellowships, awards, and grants offered by ORAU, visit https://www.orau.org/university-partnerships/members-only/default.aspx.

More information will be added as it becomes available.

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Filed Under: College, Education, Front Page News, Oak Ridge Associated Universities, Top Stories Tagged With: junior faculty, Ken Tobin, ORAU, Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Enhancement Awards, research grants

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