The Office for Research and Sponsored Projects (ORSP) would like to congratulate the following faculty and staff members for awards recently received:
Rachel Adams, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, $10,000
Civil Engineering
Clean Water for Isla Espiritu Santo in Usulutan, El Salvador, with undergraduate students Jennifer Rodriguez (Civil Engineering) and Thomas Zachariah (Electrical Engineering).
Jason Baehr, John Templeton Foundation, $424,859
Philosophy
The project is aimed at exploring the role of intellectual character virtues in education. The LMU side of the work will feature an academic workshop and conference, a series of pedagogical seminars and related activities exploring the importance and practical significance of Intellectual Virtues.
Anna Bargagliotti, National Science Foundation, $396,415
Mathematics
The goal and purpose of the proposed exploratory project is to address the challenge of enhancing the ability of teachers to provide high quality STEM education for all students by developing a model of research-based practices that enable teachers to facilitate students’ progress toward statistical understanding.
Anna Bargagliotti, U.S. Department of Education, $29,827
Mathematics
This project consists of research into the effectiveness of the Intelligent Tutoring System ALEKS. It compares student performance on a state level standardized test who have been randomly assigned to either an after school program working on ALEKS or assigned to a teacher delivering very structured lessons on specific topics tested.
Victor Carmona, CIES Fulbright, $31,240
Biology
The long term goal of this research project is to investigate how the clearing of understory vegetation by Pseudomyrmex ants that form mutually beneficial interactions with swollen-thorn Acacia impacts the richness, diversity, and composition of seedling communities in a dry forest.
Victor Carmona, National Geographic Society, $15,000
Biology
Seed grant to establish comparative plots in Costa Rica and El Salvador and conduct preliminary investigations for one year to determine the extent to which Pseudomyrmex-Acacia ant species interactions in the understory vegetation surrounding the base of host Acacia shrubs may act as a keystone mutualism that impacts and shapes the biodiversity of Neotropical dry forests.
Jacqueline Dewar, Mathematical Association of America (MAA)/Tensor Foundation, $6,000
Mathematics
A third round of funding to mentor a junior math faculty member by team-teaching the Women and Mathematics course in Fall 2012. Anna Bargagliotti was selected as an expert in K-12 teacher preparation and mathematics education, the first LMU tenure-track hire with this focus. She teaches math for elementary teachers, and will seek to recruit future K-8 teachers from this group to enroll in the course.
Richard Fox, National Science Foundation, $68,908
Political Science
Support to conduct the first national study of gender and political ambition among high school and college students, an undertaking that is long overdue. The literature on women’s candidate emergence identifies a substantial gender gap in political ambition that is well-established by the time women and men enter the professions from which political candidates tend to emerge.
Michael Gottfried, American Educational Research Association, $20,000
Urban Education
This study will represent one of the first empirical investigations to evaluate the effects of inclusive policies on nationally representative data for a range of outcomes. By identifying how inclusion may facilitate or hinder achievement and the development of noncognitive skills for classmates without disabilities, this study will help policymakers and educators make better decisions based on a broader understanding of the effects of inclusion.
Michael Gottfried, Haynes Foundation, $57,913
Urban Education
This project will explore the assignment of Teach for America (TFA) teachers in the Los Angeles region and will assess which factors are significantly related to retaining these high quality teachers. Specifically, it will examine how teachers are placed in schools and neighborhoods throughout the Los Angeles region.
Michael Gottfried, National Science Foundation, $66,894
Urban Education
The purpose of this project is to evaluate how schooling outcomes differ based on whether students take applied STEM coursework (i.e., graphic design) versus academic STEM course work (i.e., calculus). These coursetaking pathways will be evaluated using a nationally representative dataset of all high school students, such that generalizable conclusions can be formulated.
Paul Jimenez, Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, $413,340
Enrollment Management
In partnership with the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Community College Transfer Initiative (CCTI), Loyola Marymount University (LMU) has established the Cooke Undergraduate Research Scholars Academy (CURSA). Through CURSA, LMU collaborates with El Camino College (ECC) and West Los Angeles College (WLAC) to engage low-income community college students in high-quality educational experiences that lead to their successful transfer to LMU.
Magaly Lavadenz, California Community Foundation, $25,000
Center for Equity for English Learners
In an effort to establish a seamless and consistent K-12 curriculum leading to a focus on college level skills for English Learners, this project proposes the establishment of the El Monte Inter-District LTEL Task Force to serve as a resource for articulating instructional efforts between the English Language Development (ELD) teachers and content area teachers, beginning with English Language Arts (ELA) teachers in the first phase of this project.
Magaly Lavadenz, Star Talk, $99,283
Center for Equity for English Learners
This proposal is the fifth annual STARTALK-funded project in support of the Chinese Bilingual Teacher Education program at LMU. The LMU Chinese Language Teacher Summer Institute will recruit Chinese-proficient (orally and written) teacher candidates and offer them an intensive course of study for graduate credits. The candidates will participate in a Summer Institute for a 6 week intensive program.
Magaly Lavadenz, Star Talk, $99,520
Center for Equity for English Learners
This project provides access to Chinese-language learning to partner school disticts during the summer session. It will include a teacher training component that leads to a Certificate in Teaching Chinese through CEEL/LMU Extension that will prepare Chinese-proficient teachers to deliver arts-based Chinese language instruction to K-6 students.
Lucy Napper, ABMRF Foundation for Alcohol Research, $50,000
Psychology
This project aims to evaluate the efficacy of a parent-based intervention (PBI) to reduce alcohol use and consequences in freshman students. Previous research suggests that parents tend to underestimate how much their children drink and overestimate how approving other parents are towards alcohol use.
Andrea Niemi, JAMS Foundation, $10,000
Student Leadership & Development
Seed funding for the LMU Bystander Awareness Program that will educate LMU students on bystander behaviors, and the intervention strategies and conflict resolution skills that students can use to prevent and decrease the incidence of alcohol abuse, eating disorders, sexual assaults, discrimination and other issues on campus. Includes student leadership training for campus groups, including fraternities and sororities.
Andrea Niemi, Kappa Delta Sorority, $5,000
Student Leadership & Development
To implement activities that will enhance LMU’s 2012 “I Am” Campaign, a multi-strategy, multi-media effort to build confidence and empower the 1,000 women who are part of LMU’s National Panhellenic Conference (NPC) sorority community. LMU Greek Life’s annual “I Am” Campaign will use video testimonials, social media platforms, a series of thought-provoking roundtable or panel discussions, and a toolkit of reusable materials to convey messages that help all LMU women focus on inner strength and beauty, resulting in attitudes and behaviors that demonstrate confidence.
Jeremy Pal, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, $10,000
Civil Engineering
Water Conveyance and Filtration System for the Malingunde School for the Blind and Health Center in Malawi, Africa. Undergraduate Civil Engineer Students Project Team: Kelly McEnerney, Hannah Thames, Michaela Lentz and Will Shaffer.
Joseph Rasmussen, CalRecycle, $30,000
Facilities Management
Enhance LMU's existing recycling program by using the grant funds and matching department funds to purchase 24 additional recycling containers to be placed in new locations around campus. The one-year project will include collecting data on the amount of materials recycled, and producing materials to promote the new recycling bin locations to the LMU community.
Joseph Reichenberger, East Orange County Water District (EOCWD), $5,000
Civil & Environmental Engineering
The East Orange County Water District (EOCWD) Board of Directors seeks to update the existing water system model in a timely and cost effective way. Under the direction of Dr. Reichenberger, students will work on a model development project as a capstone design class for seniors. This will be a partnership between LMU and the EOCWD.
Norma Romero and Marshal Sauceda, U.S. Department of Education, $250,000
Student Affairs
LMU Upward Bound’s five-year continuation grant will support activities designed to assist 56 students each year in preparing for and enrolling in college. Costs include afterschool and weekend enrichment activities at Westchester Enriched Sciences Magnets (WESM), as well as a four-week residential and 2 week, week-day program at LMU during the summer.
Daniel Smith-Christopher, Fulbright, $16,384
Theological Studies
Smith-Christopher was invited to deliver lectures at Juame I University in Spain on Peace Studies.
Rebecca Sager, Louisville Institute/Lilly Endowment, $40,000
Sociology
This grant will fund finishing writing her book on progressive religious activists and their relationship with the Democratic Party.
Maureen Schaukowitch, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), $10,000
Career Development Services
A renewal of the original Institutional Grant of $15,000 to provide ten (10) students with internship opportunities in conjunction with the School of Film and Television, other colleges (Communication and Fine Arts, Business, Liberal Arts), Career Development Services and several film production companies that explicitly state social justice/social awareness in their mission statements.
Eric Strauss, National Science Foundation, $9,967
Biology
Dr. Strauss will assist in developing and implementing scenarios for engaging stakeholders in the metro-Boston communities. In addition, he will be running workshops that will include ULTRA objectives of citizen engagement in data collection.
Eric Strauss, Sempra, $3,000
Biology
This is a request by Friends of Ballona Wetlands (FBW) for funds to activate a new series of collaborative Community Science Expeditions designed to raise awareness of the critical importance of healthy watersheds as essential ecosystem services, focusing on the Ballona Watershed. CURES will provide workshop and coordination assistance.
Paul Zeleza, Carnegie Corporation, $50,000
Bellarmine College of Liberal Arts
This is an extension of the Dean’s previous work and previous award invited by Carnegie on African Diaspora intellectuals, this time from the African perspective. Dean Zeleza is studying how African universities work with and relate to African diaspora academics in the U.S. and Canada.