FY 2019 Grants Awarded
Every month, UTRGV research faculty and staff go through the external funding process to fund their research, community outreach efforts, and student opportunities. We recognize the individuals and teams who are successfully awarded below.
In FY 2019 (Sept. 2018 - August 2019), UTRGV has been awarded 236 grants totaling $50,256,749.
Below, see a breakdown of each month's successfully awarded principal investigators, the projects, award amounts, and sponsors.
In January 2019, UTRGV received $2,718,344 in research awards. Congratulations to all!
Awards |
Count of Awards |
Sum of Total |
College of Education & P-16 Integration | 1 | $374,998 |
College of Engineering and Computer Science | 2 | $33,157 |
College of Liberal Arts | 1 | $18,428 |
College of Sciences | 5 | $668,316 |
Robert C. Vackar College of Business & Entrepreneurship | 1 | $2,100 |
Division of Government & Community Relations | 1 | $35,119 |
College of Health Professions | 1 | $250,000 |
School of Medicine | 8 | $1,336,226 |
Grand Total | 20 | $2,718,344 |
College of Business & Entrepreneurship
- Dr. Akindayomi Akinloye (School of Accountancy) was awarded $2,100 by The National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) to identify and track the de-motivational factors hindering a university’s Hispanic students from pursuing a CPA license. This research is titled “An Examination of the De-Motivational Factors Inhibiting Hispanic Students' Participation in the CPA Exam.”
College of Education & P16 Integration
- Dr. Alma Rodriguez (Dean’s office) was the PI on a BranchEd grant that has awarded $374,998 over three years to the UTRGV College of Education and P-16 Integration, making it one of four minority-serving institutions selected by the Branch Alliance for Educator Diversity (BranchEd) to join its national Teacher Preparation Transformation Center, supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
College of Engineering & Computer Science
- Dr. Mahmoud Quweider (computer science) was awarded $23,157 by the UTSA / Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) for the project “FY 2018 Intelligence Community Centers for Academic Excellence (IC CAE) Critical Technology Studies Program.”
- Dr. Noe Vargas Hernandez (mechanical engineering) was awarded $10,000 by VentureWell for the project “A Curricular Exoskeleton to Develop Innovation Skills.” Funding will provide workshops, mentoring, and access to a makerspace for prototyping where students will develop the necessary skills to participate in the VentureWell E-Team Grant program, a series of innovation competitions for engineering and computer science students to solve real-life challenges relevant to the region, and apply recently acquired knowledge.
College of Health Professions
- Dr. Michael Lehker’s “Cultivating Medical Professionals for Underserved Border Communities” proposal was awarded $250,000 by the Moody Foundation.
College of Liberal Arts
- Using a $18,428 grant from the Institute for New Economic Thinking, Dr. Paul Jorgensen is improving campaign finance data in order to create new and more accurate measures of campaign fundraising and spending in the United States.
College of Sciences
- Dr. Alex Racelis (biology) was PI on two grants: A $57,633 award from Texas A&M University - Corpus will continue to fund “Experiential Training in Use of Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) Technology for Agricultural Applications” and $16,500 from University of Georgia/USDA-NIFA will go towards a Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) Program.
- Dr. Jude Benavides from the School of Earth, Environmental, and Marine Sciences was awarded $70,000 from Texas A&M Agrilife / U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to study “Reintroduction as a Population Restoration Technique and Micro-habitat Assessment of Translocated Northern Bobwhites.”
- Dr. David Hicks’s proposal was awarded $ 521,383 by Florida A&M University/NOAA to continue research with the “NOAA Center for Coastal and Marine Ecosystems.”
- Dr. Cristina Villalobos (School of Mathematical & Statistical Sciences) was awarded $2,800 by PSJA for work on a “C-STEM Mobile Lab.”
Division of Governmental & Community Relations
- Christina Trejo, Assistant Vice President for Community Engagement and Economic Development , was PI on a grant that was awarded $35,119 by the Annie E. Casey Foundation to “Support the expansion of community engagement infrastructure at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley.”
School of Medicine
- Linda Nelson, DNP (Clinical Affairs) was awarded two grants by the Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas: $150,000 for a “Interprofessional Community-Based Practice and Education Project” and $250,000 towards an “Integrated Care Collaborative Unit (ICCU).”
- Dr. Joanne Curran (Human Genetics) continues to receive $107,309 from the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston for “Telomere Length Dynamics in Relation to Changes in Adiposity and Metabolic Risk” research.
- Dr. Gabriel De Erausquin, Chair of Psychiatry and Neurology (Institute of Neuroscience) was awarded $ 467,102 from the Texas Department of Health and Human Services for “Training of Promotoras to Reduce Untreated Psychosis (TOP-UP).”
- Supplemental funding ($180,600) was awarded to Dr. John Ronnau (Interprofessional Education) by the Health Resources and Services Administration to continue the “Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) Program.”
- Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso awarded $ 15,000 to Dr. Michelle Zeager for the “Pediatric Environmental Health Speciality Unit (PEHSU) Program.”
- The South Texas Diabetes and Obesity Institute (STDOI) at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine received a new Subaward of $50,332 from the University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio / NIH. Dr. John Blangero was the PI.
- The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board awarded $115,883 to Dr. Sunand Kallumadanda (Family Medicine) for the Family Medicine Residency Program.
In February 2019, UTRGV received $462,011 in research awards. Congratulations to all!
Feb 1, 2019 - Feb 28, 2019
Awards |
Count of Awards |
Sum of Total |
College of Engineering and Computer Science | 2 | $5,015 |
College of Sciences | 1 | $435,900 |
Strategic Enrollment | 1 | $11,096 |
College of Health Professions | 1 | $10,000 |
Grand Total | 5 | $462,011
|
College of Engineering & Computer Science
- Dr. Constantine Tarawneh from the University Transportation Center for Railway Safety was awarded two grants to put on Railway Safety Summer Camps this summer; $2,600 to serve La Feria ISD and $2,400 for Sharyland ISD.
College of Health Professions
- Dr. Jung-Il Oh from the department of Health & Human Performance was awarded $10,000 from the Korea Name Energy Society for his proposal "The Effect of Name Energy on Heart Rate, Heart Rate Variability, and Brainwave."
College of Sciences
- Dr. Megan Keniry, department of biology, was awarded $435,900 from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Her proposal was titled "Investigating the Roles and Regulation of FOXO Transcription Factors in GBM and basal breast cancer."
Strategic Enrollment
- Jael Perez, Associate Director of Financial Aid Operations, was awarded $11,096 from the One Star Foundation to go towards a UTRGV AmeriCorps Program.
Awards |
Count of Awards |
Sum of Total |
College of Education and P16 Integration | 1 | $113,565 |
College of Engineering & Computer Science | 8 | $73,375 |
College of Health Professions | 1 | $11,500 |
College of Liberal Arts | 3 | $13,918 |
College of Sciences | 2 | $18,900 |
Division of Community & Governmental Relations | 2 | $314,848 |
Division of Research, Graduate Studies, and New Program Development | 1 | $5,000 |
School of Medicine | 2 | $554,888 |
Grand Total | 20 | $1,105,994 |
College of Education and P16 Integration
- Dr. John Lowdermilk III, from the department of Human Development & School Services, was awarded $113,565 from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board for a “Texas Affordable Baccalaureate” program. Through a combination of competency-based and traditional courses, online and in-person instruction, academic credit for work experience, and low-cost tuition structures, TAB programs offer an accessible bachelor’s degree that can save Texas students thousands of dollars and semesters of time.
College of Engineering & Computer Science
- Dr. Stephen Crown, Mechanical Engineering, was awarded $4,000 from the Brownsville Foundation for Health and Education for the TexPREP Program. The Texas Prefreshman Engineering Program (TexPREP) provides students the opportunity to develop a passion for engineering and a stronger foundation in science and mathematics by exposing them to current research and student lab facilities, preparing them through interactions with faculty and college students, and inspiring them with hands on activities in a university environment.
- Dr. Constantine Tarawneh from the University Transportation Center for Railway Safety was awarded six new grants to put on Railway Safety Summer Camps for local high schools: $ 31,985 to serve La Joya ISD; $ 1,255 each for Monte Alto ISD - Early College High School and Jose Borrego Middle School; $ 2,055 for San Benito ISD; $4,000 for Valley View ISD; $28,425 for Vanguard ISD; additionally, Dr. Tarawneh was awarded a $400 amendment for Sharyland ISD.
College of Health Professions
- Dr. Roberto Trevino from the department of Health and Human Performance was awarded $11,500 by PSJA for a PSJA ISD- UTRGV Preschool E3E Health Project.
College of Liberal Arts
- Dr. Russell Skowronek from the Department of History was awarded $10,000 from the Summerfield G. Roberts Foundation and $2,500 from the Texas Historical Foundation for the CHAPS project, “The Rio Grande Valley Civil War Trail: Engaging and Educating the Community.”
- Dr. Diana N. Rivera from the Department of Literatures and Cultural Studies was awarded $1,418 from Humanities Texas which contributed towards bringing “New Narratives of the Early Chicana Movement: Chicana Movidas” to UTRGV. This anthology brings together generations of Chicana scholars and activists to offer the first wide-ranging account of women’s organizing, activism, and leadership in the Chicano Movement.
College of Sciences
- Shelby Bessette from the Coastal Studies Lab was awarded $3,900 from the Foundation for Advancement in Conservation (FAIC) to fund a Collections Assessment for Preservation (CAP) Program.
- Dr. Alexey Garber from the School of Mathematical & Statistical Sciences was awarded $15,000 from the National Science Foundation to contribute towards Conferences on Discrete Geometry and Algebraic Combinatorics.
Division of Community & Governmental Relations
- Hector Landez from Business Development was awarded $ 294,848 from the U.S. Department of Defense / Defense Logistics for The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Rio South PTAC (Procurement Technical Assistance Center).
- Karen Dorado from Community Relations was awarded $20,000 from the U.S. Department of Defense for 2019’s HESTEC Navy project.
Research, Graduate Studies, and New Program Development
- Samantha Lopez from International Admissions and Student Services was awarded $5,000 from the Institute of International Education, Inc. to benefit a Venezuela-Emergency Student Fund (ESF). Emergency Student Funds support students who are at risk of dropping out of school due to hardships in their home countries, such as political unrest.
School of Medicine
- Dr. Chelsea Chang from the department of Internal Medicine was awarded $50,000 from the New York Academy of Medicine. The two-year, $50,000 fellowship will support Dr. Chang and her team at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine in developing an innovative curriculum for the Barondess Elective – Advanced Clinical Reasoning, a new elective for senior medical students and Internal Medicine residents. The curriculum will focus on the clinical history, physical examination and clinical reasoning with real patients. The two-year fellowship will yield written cases prepared by the students to guide future learners. For years to come, trainees taking the elective will add cases, increasing volume and variety.
- Dr. John Blangero from the South Texas Diabetes and Obesity Institute was awarded $504,888 from Boston Children’s Hospital for his proposal “Gene Networks Influencing Psychotic Dysconnectivity in African Americans.”
Awards |
Count of Awards |
Sum of Total |
College of Education and P16 Integration | 1 | $99,537 |
College of Engineering & Computer Science | 2 | $2,110 |
College of Health Affairs | 1 | $100,000 |
College of Liberal Arts | 3 | $58,755 |
College of Sciences | 6 | $1,452,254 |
Division of Community & Governmental Relations | 1 | $20,000 |
President’s Office | 1 | $302,790 |
School of Medicine | 1 | $45,000 |
Grand Total | 16 | $2,080,446 |
College of Education and P16 Integration
- Dr. Jennifer Joy Esquiredo from the department of Bilingual & Literacy Studies was awarded $99,537 from the National Endowment for the Humanities for his proposal, “Promoting Humanities Learning in Elementary Schools.”
College of Engineering & Computer Science
- Dr. Constantine Tarawneh from the University Transportation Center for Railway Safety was awarded two new grants to put on Railway Safety Summer Camps for local schools: $1,255 for Monte Alto Elementary School and $855 for Edcouch-Elsa ISD.
- College of Health Affairs Dr. Veronica Umeasiegbu from the School of Rehabilitation Services & Counseling was awarded $100,000 by the Teas Council for Developmental Disabilities – TCDD – for a Rio Grande Valley Community Needs and Strengths Assessment.
College of Health Affairs
- Dr. Veronica Umeasiegbu from the School of Rehabilitation Services & Counseling was awarded $100,000 by the Teas Council for Developmental Disabilities – TCDD – for a Rio Grande Valley Community Needs and Strengths Assessment.
College of Liberal Arts
- Dr. Cynthia Jones from the philosophy department was awarded $20,000 from the Texas Bar Foundation for “Empowering Success for Foster Youth In South Texas.”
- Dr. Sarah Rowe from the Sociology and Anthropology Department was awarded $33,255 from the National Endowment for the Humanities for an Interdisciplinary Public Heritage Curriculum for the Rio Grande Valley.
- Dr. Russell Skowronek from the Department of History was awarded $5,000 from Humanities Texas for the CHAPS project, “The Rio Grande Valley Civil War Trail.”
College of Sciences
- Dr. Teresa Feria from the department of Biology was awarded $ 474,105 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture for her proposal, “Empowering Future Agricultural Scientists: food security and climate change research experiences for undergraduate students.
- Dr. Daniele Provenzano from the department of Biology was awarded $90,448 from Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi to study “Occurrence and functional consequence of a novel prophage linked to non-pathogenic conversion in pandemic O3:K6 Vibrio parahaemolyticus.”
- Dr. Christopher Vitek from the department of Biology’s award was amended $227,550 from the Texas Department of State Health Services to Maintain sentinel Aedes surveillance sites
- Dr. Frederic Zaidan from the department of Biology was awarded $25,000 from the Association of Public and Land- grant Universities (APLU) for “Adaptive Courseware for Early Success.
- Dr. Jude Benavides from the School of Earth, Environmental and Marine Sciences was awarded $335,331 from the Texas General Land Office to study “Bahia Grande Channel Widening: Flow and Water Quality Data Collection Effort and Monitoring.
- Dr. John Breier from the School of Earth, Environmental and Marine Sciences was awarded $ 299,820 from the National Science Foundation for Collaborative Research targeting “Hydrothermal Estuaries: What Sets the Hydrothermal Flux of Fe and Mn to the Oceans?”
Division of Community & Governmental Relations
- Maria Juarez from the department of Business Development was awarded $20,000 from UTSA / U.S. Small Business Administration to benefit the UTRGV Small Business Development Center.
President’s Office
- Brenda Codallo from the department of Athletics was awarded $ 302,790 by the NCAA for a NCAA One-Time Division I Disbursement.
School of Medicine
- Dr. Helene Krouse from the department of Internal Medicine was awarded $ 45,000 from the American Medical Association for a AMA Accelerating Change in Medical Education Consortium Membership Agreement.
Awards |
Count of Awards |
Sum of Total |
College of Engineering & Computer Science | 7 | 138,810 |
College of Sciences | 6 | $637,474 |
Division of Community & Governmental Relations | 1 | $350,000 |
School of Medicine | 4 | $874,354 |
Grand Total | 18 | $2,000,638 |
College of Engineering and Computer Science
- Dr. Robert Schweller, from the department of Computer Science was awarded $16,000 from the National Science Foundation for his proposal on, “AF: Small: RUI: Unifying Self-Assembly Through Tile Automata”.
- Dr. Rajiv Nambiar, from the department of Manufacturing and Industrial Engineering was awarded $800 from the Region One Education Service Center, for his work in the “Boys in Health Science and Girls in Engineering Career Day” project.
- Dr. Constantine Tarawneh, from the department of Mechanical Engineering was awarded $5,680 from Donna ISD, $4,165 from Mercedes ISD, $3,310 from Progreso ISD, and $8,855 from Weslaco ISD with regards to the “2019 Railway Safety Summer Camp”. Dr. Tarawneh was also awarded $100,000 from the Transportation Technology Center, Inc. for the “Reconditioned Railway Tapered Roller Bearings” project.
College of Sciences
- Dr. Feria Teresa, from the Biology Department was awarded $25,000 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture for her work with regards to the “Survey for Cactus Moth in the Texas-Mexico Border”.
- Dr. Rupesh Kariyat, from the Biology Department was awarded $46,325 from The Plant Bloome for “Increasing Minority student recruitment to plan sciences by enhancing high school curriculum through teacher training workshop”.
- Dr. Alexis Racelis, from the Biology Department was awarded $149,985 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, with regards to the “Agroecology Professional Development Institute (APDI) at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley”.
- Dr. Chris Vitek, from the Biology Department was awarded $251,135 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, for his proposal “Bi-National Partnership for the Biological”.
- Dr. Matthew Benacquista, from the Department of Physics and Astronomy was awarded $135,753 from the National Science Foundation, for the “NSF Assignment Agreement”.
- Dr. Tamer Oraby, from the School of Mathematical & Statistical Sciences was awarded $29,276 from The Mathematical Association of America (MAA), for his proposal in the “National Research Experience for Undergraduate Program (NREUP)”.
Division of Governmental & Community Relations
- Jaun Santos, from the Business Development department was awarded $350,000 from the U.S. Small Business Administration, for his work regarding the “UTRGV Veterans Business Outreach Center”.
School of Medicine
- Dr. Shivani Maffi, from the Education and Public Affairs department was award $22,000 from the National Institutes of Health, for her work regarding the “Texas Research Society on Alcoholism Annual Meeting”.
- Stephanie Sharpe, from the Education and Public Affairs department was awarded $12,000 from the University of North Texas Health Science Center, for being an “Individualized Health Information Program Partner - UTRGV SOM Library”.
- Sunand Kallumadanda, from the department of Family Medicine was awarded $5,602 from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, for their proposal in the “Family Medicine Residency Programs”.
- Dr. John Blangero, from the Office of Human Genetics was awarded $834,752 from the Boston Children's Hospital, due his contributions towards “Imaging Genomics of the Aging Brain”.
Awards |
Count of Awards |
Sum of Total |
College of Engineering & Computer Science | 3 | $467,651 |
College of Fine Arts | 1 | $14,403 |
College of Liberal Arts | 1 | $22,500 |
College of Sciences | 4 | $245,959 |
Division of Community & Governmental Relations | 1 | $40,000 |
College of Health Professions | 3 | $677,421 |
School of Medicine | 4 | $2,173,011 |
Strategic Enrollment | 1 | $175,000 |
Student Success | 7 | $224,596 |
Grand Total | 18 | $4,040,541 |
College of Engineering & Computer Science
- Dr. Jungseok Ho, from the Department of Civil Engineering, was awarded $22,650 by the Texas A&M Kingsville University and the EPA. For his work towards the “Arroyo Watershed Protection Plan (WPP) Implementation”.
- Mr. David Ortiz, from the Ctr for Mfg TX Mfg Asst Ctr, was awarded $395,001 by the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA) towards the Texas Manufacturing Assistance Center (TMAC).
- Dr. Kamal Sarkar, from the Department of Mechanical Engineering, was awarded $50,000 from the National Science Foundation for his work on constructing a device for the visually impaired designed to improve mobility.
College of Health Professions
- Mr. Roberto Trevino, from the Department of Health and Human Performance, was awarded $349,981 by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services for his continued work on “South Texas Early Prevention Study Pre-K (STEPS Pre-K) Project (Childhood Obesity)”.
- Dr. Bruce Reed, from the School of Rehabilitation Services and Counseling, was awarded $11,000 by the Trull Foundation for his work on the Licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor (LCDC) Licensing Project.
- Dr. John Gonzalez, from the School of Social Work, continued to be awarded $316,440 from the Texas Department of Family and Protection Services for his work with the Title IV-E Child Welfare Training Program.
College of Sciences
- Dr. Christopher Vitek, from the Department of Biology, was amended $135,307 from The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston with regards to his work on the Western Gulf Center of Excellence for Vector-Borne Diseases.
- Dr. Christopher Kenneth Smith, from the Department of Chemistry, was awarded $60,000 by the Sid W. Richardson Foundation for “UTeach RGV teacher induction by providing TI Navigators and Nspire CS graphing calculators”.
- Dr. Mario Diaz, from the Department of Physics, was awarded $47,652 by the University of Washington for his proposal regarding “Sloan Digital Sky Survey Project”.
- Dr. Jacob White, with the School of Mathematics & Statistical Sciences, was awarded $3,000 by the American Institute of Mathematics for his proposal “Math Teachers’ Circle”.
College of Fine Arts
- Dr. Constance Cortez, from the Department of Art, was awarded $14,403 by The Regents of the University of Minnesota for her proposal “Rhizomes of Mexican American Art Since 1848”.
Division of Governmental & Community Relations
- Michael Uhrbrock, from the Department of Economic Development, was awarded $40,000 by the South Texas College for their project “Starr County Asset Mapping Project and Strategic Planning Project”.
College of Liberal Arts
- Dr. Cecilia Montiel-Nava, from the Department of Psychological Science, was awarded $22,500 by Autism Speaks for her Contractor Agreement.
School of Medicine
- Curtis Galke, from the Department for Family of Medicine, has been awarded $2,000,000 from the Health Resources and Services Administration for his work with regards to “Primary Care Training and Enhancement”.
- Huang Rex, from the Department of Internal Medicine, was awarded $10,000 by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education for their proposal “Teaching Effective Communication: Engaging our Colleagues, our Staff, and our Patients”.
- Dr. Tony Ogburn, from the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, has been awarded $15,011 from the UT MD Anderson Cancer Center / CPRIT for his proposal “CPRIT Expansion of Cervical Cancer Prevention Services Project”.
- Dr. Joanne Curran, from the South Texas Diabetes and Obesity Institute, was continually awarded $148,000 from The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia for her work regarding “Neurobehavioral Family Study of Schizophrenia”.
Strategic Enrollment
- Griselda Castilla, from the Financial Aid Department, was awarded $175,000 from STARS for the STARS Scholarship Fund.
Student Success
- Eddie Armendariz, from the Department of College Access Outreach Program, was continually awarded 2 grants: $34,894 for “The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley UB Rio Hondo”, and $30,037 for “Upward Bound – Port Isabel”, both from the U.S. Department of Education.
- Sonia Del Angel, from the Department of College Access Outreach Program, continued to be awarded $39,812 from the U.S. Department of Education for her UTRGV Edinburg Talent Search Program.
- Norma Miranda, from the Department of College Access Outreach Program, was continually awarded $24,779 from the U.S. Department of Education for her UBMS Harlingen and San Benito High Schools program.
- Irasema Valencia, from the Department of College Access Outreach Program, continued to be awarded 2 grants from the U.S. Department of Education for $30,037 each, for her work regarding Upward Bound.
- Debbie Gilchrist, from the Department of Student Services, was awarded $35,000 from the Communities Foundation of Texas for her proposal towards the “Communities Foundation of Texas Grant”.
View full report.
Awards |
Count of Awards |
Sum of Total |
College of Engineering & Computer Science | 2 | $1,860,731 |
College of Sciences | 8 | $1,004,878 |
Division of Community & Governmental Relations | 2 | $50,000 |
College of Health Professions | 1 | $8,983 |
School of Medicine | 5 |
$3,157,384 |
Strategic Enrollment | 1 | $705,057 |
Student Success | 6 |
$2,218,39 |
Grand Total | 25 | $9,005,430 |
View full report.
Awards |
Count of Awards |
Sum of Total |
College of Education & P-16 Integration | 4 | $7,391,972 |
College of Liberal Arts | 1 | $3,000 |
College of Sciences | 11 | $2,076,664 |
College of Health Professions | 1 | $66,879 |
School of Medicine | 5 |
$977,857 |
School of Nursing | 1 |
$27,855 |
Finance & Administration | 1 | $109,516 |
Presidents Office | 1 | $108,338 |
Strategic Enrollment | 1 | $2,500 |
Student Success | 1 |
$2,375,000 |
Grand Total | 27 | $13,139,581 |
College of Education & P-16 Integration
- Dr. Gregory Sparrow from the Counseling Department, was awarded $1,880 from the Dream Science Foundation for his research towards testing an integrated protocol for the treatment of PTSD-related nightmares and derivative symptoms: meditation, dream reliving and the ingestion of Galantamine.
- Dr. Alma Rodriguez from the Dean's Office, received the Leadership for Change award consisting of $22,170 from the Universidad Autonoma de Bucaramanga.
- Dr. Irasema Gonzalez from the Department of Human Development & School Services, was awarded the Early Childhood Certification Support Grant. The grant consists of a $11,800 award from the Texas Education Agency (TEA).
- Dr. Hilda Medrano, from the Department of Human Development & School Services received the Early Head Start award for $7,356,122 from the Department of Health and Human Services / Administration for Children and Families.
College of Liberal Arts
- Dr. Cecilia Montiel-Nava, from the Department of Psychological Science received additional funding of $3,000 for the Contractor Agreement grant from the organization Autism Speaks.
College of Science
- Dr. Hudson DeYoe, from the Biology Department received $47,655 by the Texas General Land Office as an amendment for the Texas Beach Watch grant.
- Dr. Alexis Racelis, from the Biology Department received an amendment towards the Subtropical Soil Health Initiative of $39,748 from the National Center for Appropriate Tech.
- Dr. Erin Scheunzel, from the Biology Department was awarded $19,303 for the Development and Validation of Diagnostics, and was additionally awarded $19,628 for her work towards Molecular Fruit Fly ID Support FY19; both grants awarded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
- Dr. Christopher Vitek, from the Biology Department was awarded $128,407 for "Assessing the impact of entomopahtogens", as well as being awarded $185,345 for his contributions toward "Biological Control of the Asian Citrus P". Both awards being granted to Dr. Vitek were from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
- Dr. Karen Martirosyan, from the Physics Department has recently received a grant of $599,803 from the U.S. Department of Defense, for the "Acquisition of an Electron Paramagnetic Resonance Spectroscopy System for Interdisciplinary Research and Education in Advanced Materials at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley".
- Dr. Malik Rakhmanov, from the Department of Physics and Astronomy was granted $600,000 from the U.S. Department of Army for his work towards the "Acquisition of an electron Bean Lithography System for Enhancing Research and STEM Education in Nanophtonics and Biophysics".
- Dr. John Breier, from School of Earth, Environmental, and Marine Sciences Department received a new award consisting of $308,612. It was granted by the National Science Foundation for Dr. Breier's contributions towards "Collaborative Research: Underexplored Connections between Nitrogen and Trace Metal Cycling in Oxygen Minimum Zones Mediated by Metalloenzymes Inventories".
- Dr. Richard Kline, from the School of Earth, Environmental, and Marine Sciences received an amendment consisting of $28,163, from the Texas Comptroller. Dr. Kline was awarded this monetary amendment towards his "Endangered Species Research Projects on Black-Spotted Newt" project.
- Dr. Alexis Racelis, from the School of Earth, Environmental, and Marine Sciences has recently been awarded $100,000. It was granted by the USDA / NRCS for his research towards "Building Soil Science Capacity through Research and Education at the University at Texas, Rio Grande Valley, a premier Hispanic Serving Institution in South Texas".
Finance and Administration
- Dr. Richard Costello, from the Department of Environmental Health Safety and Risk Management has received and amendment by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. The amendment consists of $109,516 for Dr. Costello's research towards "Air Quality Monitoring".
President's Office
- James Martinez, from the Athletics Department, received a new award from the WAC (Western Athletic Conference) called "2019-20 Student Assistance Fund", which consists of $108,338 of funding.
School of Medicine
- Dr. Annelyn Torres-Reveron, from the Department of Neuroscience, has been awarded $30,164 from the Ponce Medical School Foundation, Inc. (PMSF)/NIH. She was awarded this grant due to her research contributions toward "Enriched Environments: a multi-level integrative medicine intervention for endometriosis".
- Dr. John Blangero, from the Office of Human Genetics, has received an amendment to his previous grant award regarding "Genomic Sequencing to Establish a Macaque Genotype and Phenotype Research Resource". The amendment consists of $76,500 which has been awarded by the Oregon Health & Science University/NIH.
- Dr. John Vanderberg, from the Office of Human Genetics, has been awarded a grant from the National Institute of Health (NIH). The grant consists of $399,575, and has been awarded due to his work towards "Laboratory Opossum iPSC Lines for Biomedical Research".
- Dr. Marsha Griffin, from the Department of Pediatrics, was granted $99,785 from UNICEF USA for "Creating Care Management for the Most Vulnerable Pregnant Women and their Unborn Children Coming Through the Respite Center in McAllen, Texas".
- Dr. Robert Nelson, from the Department of Pediatrics, has received $371,833 as an amendment to his grant award called "Texas Health Families Project", awarded by UT Tyler.
School of Nursing
- Dr. Sharon Radsyminski, from the Dean's Office, has been awarded the "Project2Heal" grant consisting of $27,855 by Region One.
Strategic Enrollment
- Dr. Griselda Castilla, from the Financial Aid Office, has received a grant from the Consulate of Mexico for "IME Scholarships", the grant consists of a $2,500 award.
Student Success
- Dr. Beatriz Barckholtz, from the Department of College Access & Outreach Programs, has received the "High School Equivalency Program (HEP)" grant from the U.S. Department of Education, which consists of a $2,375,000 award.