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2021 AchievementsRecent faculty, student, and alumni accomplishments
Environmental Science graduate student Joseph Barnes and undergraduate student Natalie Landaverde were awarded AU's Deputy Provost and Dean of Faculty鈥檚 Pilot Grant Award for their project "Effects of biofilm biodiversity and biomass on microplastics in the Potomac River".
Andrea Brothers (staff member, CAS Dean鈥檚 Office) was recognized for her work with AU鈥檚 electron microscopes in support of research and teaching in the Hall of Science in .听
Data Science students and faculty were featured on for creating a free app to help teachers build data literacy skills in the classroom.
Dustin Friedman (Literature) was a guest on the Ivory Tower Boiler Room Podcast to discuss .
Holland Gormley (alumna, Arts Management), a public affairs specialist with the Copyright Office at the Library of Congress was featured on for her work on the Music Modernization Act.
Abdallah Hendawy (Arab World Studies) published a new book, Bleeding Hearts: From Passionate Activism to Violent Insurgency in Egypt, which ranks third on Amazon鈥檚 bestseller list for Middle Eastern Studies for November 2021.听听听
Peter Kuznick (History) spoke with the Sputnik News Agency, RTVI, CGTN America, RT America, the Washington Times, and CrossTalk about a variety of topics.听
Peter Kuznick (History) spoke with RTVI, Republic TV India, RG, Zvezda TV, NTV Russian Television, acTVism Munich, Sputnik International, and CGTN about various topics, including Biden鈥檚 presidency, Donald Trump, and 猫咪社区app-Russia relations.
Gregory Lane (Economics) was awarded $29,249 by the World Bank Group for the project titled 鈥淔ostering Resilience in Low-Income Countries.鈥
Research on 产测听Jesse Meiller, Barbara Balestra,听and graduate student Elisa Davey (Environmental Science) was featured in Washington City Paper.
Alumna Valzhyna Mort (MFA 2011) won the 2021 International Griffin Prize for her third poetry collection, Music for the Dead and Resurrected (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2020), which was named one of the best poetry books of 2020 by the New York Times.
Celine-Marie Pascale (Sociology) published 鈥淭he federal poverty line struggles to capture the economic hardship that half of 猫咪社区apps face鈥 in
David Pike (Literature) was featured on related to his forthcoming book,
Michael Robinson (Mathematics) was awarded $12,000 by NASA for his project titled 鈥淎dvances in DTN simulation and game-theoretic modeling.鈥
Professor Elizabeth Rule (CRGC) has received the Library Company of Philadelphia鈥檚 2021 Innovation Award for , which includes a digital map, mobile application, and monograph of sites of Indigenous importance in the nation鈥檚 capital. This biennial award goes to a project that critically and creatively expands the possibilities of humanistic scholarship.
Anastasia Snelling (Health Studies) received $60,000 from DC Central Kitchen for 鈥淗ealthy Corners Program Evaluation 2022,鈥 an annual evaluation assessing the role of corner stores for promoting and selling fresh produce.
Professor Sybil Roberts Williams (CRGC/AFAM) is the playwright for 鈥淭he Black Flute,鈥 a work produced by the IN-Series opera company and made into a film that was screened on the National Mall October 8. 鈥淏lack Flute鈥 reimagines Mozart鈥檚 classic work 鈥淢agic Flute鈥 in DC鈥檚 historically Black neighborhoods and explores what it means to be young, black, and gifted in today鈥檚 world.
Alexander Zestos (Chemistry) received $55,000 from the 猫咪社区app Chemical Society for his project "Fundamental Reactions of Phenols on Heterogeneous Polymer-Modified Microelectrode Surfaces.鈥
Fall Achievements
Reza Akbari (PhD candidate, History) published in the Iran Primer, published by the United States Institute of Peace.听
Michael Bader (Sociology)听is part of a team of researchers based at Columbia University that was just awarded $42,321 from the National Institutes of Health (NIH)听to research alcohol-related and built environment factors that can be modified to prevent pedestrian road traffic deaths. This represents year one of an expected $182,278 four-year award.
Braxton Boren (Audio Technology), Philip Johnson (Physics), and Bei Xiao (Computer Science) are co-principal investigators as part of a $1 million National Science Foundation (NSF) grant for their project 鈥淢RI: Acquisition of Volumetric Capture System for the Institute for IDEAS,鈥 which they will work on with co-principal investigator Larry Engel and principal investigator Krzysztof Pietroszek.
Zo毛 Charlton (Studio Art) and Tim Doud (Art) published the book (Punctum Books).
Alumna Rebecca DeWolf (History) has published 听(University of Nebraska Press).
Jessica Gephart (Environmental Science) received an $50,000 award from the Environmental Defense Fund for the project 鈥淕lobal seafood trade and nutrition.鈥
Stephanie Grant (Literature) published on LitHub, unpacking the emotion of disgust in relation to the January 6th riots on the 猫咪社区app Capitol. Professor Grant published in the New York Times鈥 Modern Love column.
Sam Hanna (Health Studies) published in the Journal for Medical Internet Research.听
Jeffrey Kaplan (Biology) received an $8,223 award from Kane Biotech for his project 鈥淎ntibiofilm activities of dispersin B against Cutibacterium acnes.鈥
Mieke Meurs (Economics) was awarded $800,000 from the Open Society Foundation (OSF) for her project 鈥淩ENEWAL of grant to support the organizational strengthening of the Program on Gender Analysis of the Economy: PGAE Global Scholars.鈥
Danielle Mysliwiec (Studio Art) exhibited her artwork at McKenzie Fine Art in New York City from September 10 to October 24.
Pamela Nadell (History) discusses how antisemitism fuels white nationalism on PBS鈥 .鈥
Kara Reynolds (Economics) spoke with about bottlenecks in the global supply chain.
Elizabeth Rule (CRGC) contributed to the Washington Post article, discussing how mixed-race 猫咪社区apps affected the most recent census.
Rachel Louise Snyder (Literature) published an essay titled 鈥溾 in the New York Times, addressing domestic violence and anti-violence hotlines. She also appeared on to discuss the mental health impact of domestic violence and how the pandemic has renewed efforts to pass legislation to combat abuse.
Jon D. Wisman (Economics) published in the Journal of Economic Issues.听
Sauleh Siddiqui (Environmental Science), Kiho Kim (Environmental Science), Jessica Gephart (Environmental Science), Annie Claus (Anthropology), and Stacey Snelling (Health Studies) are part of the team of researchers recently awarded a five-year, $15 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF). Titled "Multiscale Resilient, Equitable, and Circular Innovations with Partnership and Education Synergies (RECIPES) for Sustainable Food Systems,鈥 the project will study food waste and work toward sustainability and equity in food systems under the leadership of AU principal听investigator,听Siddiqui.
Andrew Demshuk (History) has published (University of Pittsburgh Press).
Jessica Gephart (Environmental Science) received a $785,240 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for her project, 鈥淐ollaborative Research: HNDS-I: A global seafood trade network database for sustainable food systems, human health, and nutrition security.鈥
Stephanie Grant (Literature) had an essay published in the New York Times on August 27. Her new memoir, (Scuppernong Editions), will be released in November.
Justin Jacobs (History) completed filming 24 episodes for his Great Courses series, "UNESCO World Heritage Sites: Exploring the World's Greatest Places." A Chinese translation of his latest book, (University of Chicago Press, 2020), is being published serially in the Xiyu wenshi.
Sara Clarke Kaplan, the new executive director of AU鈥檚 Antiracist Research & Policy Center, spoke with NPR affiliate KPBS News (San Diego) on critical race theory. Kaplan鈥檚 latest book, (University of Minnesota Press), was published in June.
Mark Laubach (Neuroscience) received a grant for $50,000 from George Washington University鈥檚 District of Columbia Center for AIDS Research (DC CFAR) for his project, "Effects of HIV1 Tat and Antiretroviral Therapy on the Rodent Frontal Cortex.鈥
Anthony Panzera (Health Studies) received a $95,739 grant from the District of Columbia Department of Health, sponsored by the 猫咪社区app Department of Agriculture 鈥 WIC Telehealth Evaluation Collaborative, for the 鈥淭HIS-WIC Telehealth Project.鈥
Malgorzata Rymsza-Pawlowska (History) has been named to the Board of Directors of the Humanities Council of Washington, DC (HumanitiesDC) and served as chair of the Program Committee of the DC History Conference and as series editor for the National Council on Public History and National Park Service鈥檚 2021-2025 猫咪社区app Revolution 250th Commemoration Scholars' Forums.
History alumnus John Schmitz (CAS/PhD 鈥07) published (University of Nebraska Press).
Sauleh Siddiqui (Environmental Science) spoke on CNN about why we need to adjust our approach to infrastructure to protect the most vulnerable from climate change.
David Vine (Anthropology) wrote an op-ed in Business Insider on the 猫咪社区app withdrawal from Afghanistan. His new book, (University of California Press), is out in paperback.
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Summer 2021
Alexander Zestos听(Chemistry) received a grant for $50,000 from George Washington University's DC Center for AIDS Research for his project "Assessments of potential impacts of cognitive deficits on drug use and their implications for HIV intravenous drug users."
Stephen MacAvoy (Environmental Science) coauthored a new book, (Oxford University Press).
David Vine (Anthropology) wrote two op-eds, for Business Insider, and "听for Big Think.
Stefano Costanzi (Chemistry) received a grant for $429,000 from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for his project "Virtual screening for the identification of ligands of GPR101, an orphan GPCR involved in X-linked acrogigantism (X-LAG)."
David Gerard (Mathematics & Statistics) received a grant for $188,694 from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for his project "A U-statistic approach to population genetics."
Douglas Fox (Chemistry) received a grant for $40,000 from Vireo Advisors, LLC., for his project "Nanocellulose Fluorescence Labeling."
Barbara Balestra (Environmental Science) received a grant for $12,000 from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for her project "Predicting Changes in Ocean Habitability on Earth and Other Ocean Worlds."
Anastasia Snelling (Health Studies) received a grant for $66,000 from DC听Central Kitchen for听鈥淓valuation Services for the Healthy School Food Program's Nutrition Education and Engagement Activities.鈥
Mary Hansen (Economics) received a grant for $29,876 from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for 鈥淒octoral Dissertation Research in DRMS: A Comparison of Value of Statistical Life Estimates Derived from Revealed and Stated Preferences.鈥
E. Andrew Taylor (Performing Arts)听published a new book, The Artful Manager: Field Notes on the Business of Arts and Culture (Arts Axis Press).
Kelly Jones (Economics)听received a grant for $26,552 from the Manhattan Strategy Group and the Department of Labor for her project about improving FMLA coverage in underserved communities.
Onaje Woodbine (Philosophy & Religion)听received a $40,000 First Book Grant for Scholars of Color from the Louisville Institute for his book, Take Back What the Devil Stole: An African 猫咪社区app Prophet's Encounters in the Spirit World (Columbia University Press).
Michael Alonzo (Environmental Science)听received a grant for $37,914 from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for his work in improving models of forest ecosystem structure and function through fusion of 3D data derived from stereo imagery and lidar.
Laura Cutler (Center for Israel Studies)听received $25,000 from the Israel Institute for a teaching expansion grant for 2021-22.
Monica Jackson (Mathematics & Statistics)听received a $125,000 grant from the National Security Agency (NSA)for 猫咪社区app University's Summer Program in Research and Learning Program (SPIRAL).
Nicole Kramer (Health Studies)听received a $6,260 grant from the Society for Research in Child Development for her Covid Forward study.
Melissa Scholes Young (Literature)听was interviewed by AU alum Corinne Ahren for听听about her new novel听The Hive.
January-May 2021听Archive
Grants and Research
Kelly Jones (economics)听received a grant for $26,552 from the Manhattan Strategy Group and the Department of Labor for her project about improving FMLA coverage in underserved communities.听June 2021
Onaje Woodbine (philosophy and religion)听received a grant for $40,000 from The Louisville Institute for his project 鈥淭ake Back What the Devil Stole: An African 猫咪社区app Prophet's Encounters in the Spirit World鈥.听June 2021听
Michael Alonzo (environmental science)听received a grant for $37,914 from NASA for his work improving models of forest ecosystem structure and function through fusion of 3D data derived from stereo imagery and lidar.听June 2021听
Laura Cutler (Center for Israel Studies)听received a $25,000 from The Israel Institute, Inc for a teaching expansion grant for 2021-22.听June 2021听
Monica Jackson (math & statistics)听received a $125,000 grant from the National Security Agency (NSA) for the Summer Program in Research and Learning Program (SPIRAL at 猫咪社区app).听June 2021
Nicole Kramer (health studies)听received a $6,260 grant from the Society for Research in Child Development for her Covid Forward study.听June 2021
Daniel Fong (biology) received a $15,165 award from Cave Conservancy of the Virginias for his project titled 鈥淧otential Metabolic Adaptation to Groundwater Warming Among Subterranean Aquatic Crustacean Species鈥 May 2021
Brian Yates (psychology) received $64,735 to evaluate the Emergency Assistance Programs (EAP) of Freedom House, which aids human rights defenders, survivors of religious persecution, and political prisoners. A special focus of Yates's evaluation is EAP鈥檚 Dignity for All: LGBTI (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Intersex) Assistance Program. May 2021
Monica Jackson (mathematics & statistics) received a $29,824 grant from the Mathematical Association of America (MAA) for 鈥淭he Summer Program In Research And Learning SPIRAL at 猫咪社区app University鈥 April 2021
Michael Robinson (mathematics & statistics)听received a $20,500 grant from Battelle Memorial Institute and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) for his project 鈥淗yperThesis DARPA Modeling Adversarial Activity (MAA)鈥澨April 2021
Kathryn Walters-Conte听(physics) received a $50,000 grant from Howard Hughes Medical Institute for her work on the HHMI Driving Change D.C. Learning Grant 2021. April 2021
David Vine (anthropology)听received a $8,000听grant from the Charles G. Koch Foundation for听The United States of War听book release and impact and dissemination efforts.听March 2021
Gregory Lane (economics)听received a $16,727 grant from听London School of Economics for听鈥淭he Potential for E-Commerce Platforms to unlock high growth for firms in Africa鈥澨March 2021
Sauleh听Siddiqui听(environmental science)听received a听$108,130听grant from National Science Foundation (NSF)听March 2021听
Adam McKay听(physics)听received a听$27,756听grant from the University of Maryland for the project 鈥淚nsights into Cometary Nucleus Heterogeneity and Evolution via Orbital Trends鈥澨March 2021
Nathalie听Japkowicz听(computer science)听received a听$70,000 grant from听SRI International for听"Multi-Stage Multi-Task Memory Transfer:听Analysis of Hierarchical听Eigentasks听and Change-Point Detection in SRI Lifelong Learning Machine"听February 2021听
Hanning Chen (Chemistry)听received听$75,000 from听George Washington University for 鈥淣anomechanics听and Electronic Structure of Organic Photovoltaics in Real Application Conditions by Advanced Scanning Probe Microscopy鈥澨February 2021
Silvina Guidoni (physics) and a global team of researchers virtually continued on their work from the NASA Goddard Heliophysics Hackweek 2020 to publish their results about machine learning at the prestigious conference. February 2021
Philip Johnson (physics)听received $153,129.41, representing an incremental fund of $420,518 that is expected to go through 2/29/2024, from NASA for his project called "Research on the Causes and Consequences of Ionospheric Outflow."听February 2021
Andrew Demshuk (history)听and the AU History Department have听been accepted to the听Leibniz Research Alliance 鈥淰alue of the Past鈥 (Wert der Vergangenheit). They听will听now be partnering with a network of nine other scholarly institutions around the world听to take part in joint research activities, workshops, and publications related to critical questions surrounding historical legacies about the politics of space. January 2021
Valentina Aquila (environmental science)听was awarded $19,096, with expected funding of听$296,026 over three years, from the Michigan Technological University, prime funding from NASA, for her project entitled "Tracking Volcanic Volatiles From Magma Reservoir to the Atmosphere: Identifying Precursors and Optimizing Models and Satellite Observations for Future Major Eruptions."听January 2021
Stefano Costanzi (chemistry)听received an award of $140,000 from The Henry L. Stimson Center for his project called "Cheminformatics Tool to Bolster the Control of Chemical Warfare Agents and Precursors."听January 2021
Zois Boukouvalas (mathematics & statistics)听was granted $160,000 from Energetics Technology Center, with prime funding from the Office of Naval Research, for his project called "Human Assisted Machine Learning and Natural Language Processing Approaches for Energetics."听January 2021
Daniel Kerr (history)听received an award of $100,000 from the Henry Luce Foundation for his project called "Food Security in DC during COVID-19" with the purpose of supporting the activities of the Humanities Truck during the coronavirus pandemic.听January 2021
Appointments and Honors
David Vine听(anthropology)听was听named听a finalist for the LA听Times听History听Book Prize for听his book 鈥淭he United States of War: A Global History of America's Endless Conflicts, from Columbus to the Islamic State鈥澨March 2021
Publications, Exhibitions, and Productions
E. Andrew Taylor (arts)听published a new book听The Artful Manager: Field Notes on the Business of Arts and Culture.听June 2021
Douglas Fox and Whirang Cho (chemistry) collaborated on the publication, 鈥溾 in Carbohydrate Polymers.听May 2021
Douglas Fox (chemistry)听wrote听the article, "" in Carbohydrate Polymers.听April 2021
Douglas Fox (chemistry)听wrote听the article, "" in Nanomaterials.听April 2021
Melissa Scholes Young (literature)听wrote听听in Ms. Magazine.听February 2021
Laura Beers (history) authored听"" on CNN. January 2021.
In the Media
Melissa Scholes Young (Critical Race, Gender and Culture Studies Collaborative)听was interviewed by AU alum Corinne Ahren for听听about her new novel听The Hive.听June 2021听
Donald Earl Collins (Critical Race, Gender and Cultural Studies Collaborative)听wrote an article for听听on the issue of second-class citizenship in academia.听May 2021听
Donald Earl Collins (CRGC)听was interviewed 产测听听about DC Emancipation Day, and the progress on racism in our city and country. May 2021听听
Donald Earl Collins (CRGC) was Interviewed about by WTOP April 2021
Theresa Runstedtler (history) was interviewed by Vox in a . March 2021
Nika Elder (art) spoke with 猫咪社区appA Today about . March 2021
Ernesto Castaneda-Tinoco (sociology)听was featured in El Paso Matters about听his lab's .听March 2021
AU Tutoring Corps was featured by WJLA-TV for their during the Covid-19 pandemic.听March 2021
Kyle Dargan听(literature) talked听to the New York Times magazine about the .听March 2021
Kyle Dargan听(literature) talked听to the New York Times magazine about the .听March 2021
Kyle Dargan (literature) was in the Washington Post, sharing听his recommendation for a book that . March 2021
David Vine (anthropology) was featured by in an article about听the 猫咪社区app's global military presence. February 2021
David Vine (anthropology) was featured by in an article about the international reach of the 猫咪社区app's counterterrorism efforts. February 2021
Mia Owens (history)听was featured in an article by WJLA about becoming the听 that focuses on studying slavery, specifically the untold stories in DC.听February 2021
Nathaniel Herr (psychology)听was quoted in an in CNN, which spoke about the 200,000 digital tips sent to the FBI, many of which helped identify and arrest people after the Jan. 6 Capitol riots.听February 2021
Ernesto Castaneda-Tinoco (sociology) spoke with Colombia鈥檚 NTN24 during live coverage of the inauguration of President Joe Biden. January 2021
Ernesto Castaneda-Tinoco (sociology) spoke with about the effect of the inauguration of President Joe Biden on dreamers in the 猫咪社区app. January 2021
Ernesto Castaneda-Tinoco (sociology) spoke with about the local impact of the Biden government. January 2021
Michael Brenner (history) wrote 鈥溾澨齠or the Washington Post. January 2021听