Archived Research Projects

This project is funded through the Veterans Legacy Grant Program. It will be completed by faculty and staff in the Center for the Advancement of Military and Emergency Services Research and supervised by Dr. Kristin Horan (Psychology) and Dr. Chris Hess (Sociology). The goal of this project is to document the stories of World War II veterans who are buried in one of several Georgia military cemeteries and who participated in the Civil Rights Movement in some way.

Researcher Requirements

• Good interpersonal and verbal communication skills (e.g., in order to conduct interviews) 
• Dependability and good attention to detail (e.g., to collect and analyze census and ancestry data)
• Good written communication skills and proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (e.g., to transcribe interviews and write manuscripts)
• If possible, familiarity with statistics and a software platform for data analysis would be valuable (e.g., SPSS, Excel, R/Python)

Faculty Mentor

Dr. Kristin Horan
Dr. Chris Hess

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Our interdisciplinary research team studies the influence of abdominal fat, physical activity/inactivity, diet, and other factors on metabolic health and risk for diabetes. This is an ideal program for students planning future graduate school in healthcare-related fields. Student assistants on our team gain experience with all parts of research—from planning studies and acquiring approvals to working directly with human participants and biological samples in the laboratory. Students spend time working both independently and with other students and faculty to collect and interpret data for our studies and to develop projects for presentation. 

Researcher Requirements

• Time Commitment: Students can expect to spend approximately 7-12 hours per week, between research team meetings and research tasks. Our meetings will be mostly virtual during Fall 2020 and will transition to laboratory testing during Spring 2021.
• Communication: Excellent writing and communication skills are necessary.
• GPA Requirements: A minimum GPA of 3.0 is required for consideration.  
• Final Projects: Students will be expected to present their findings at a scientific conference.
• Laboratory Skills: Laboratory experience is preferred, but not required.

Faculty Mentor

Dr. Katherine H. Ingram

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The project will involve creating a ground vibration data collection system using our existing geophones. A geophone is an accelerometer installed at the ground surface to capture the acceleration response of the ground to any seismic disturbance. The data will be used to estimate the engineering properties of the soil and locate voids or soft spots in the ground.

Research Requirements

• Minimum GPA 2.7
• Junior standing

Faculty Mentor

Dr. Adam Kaplan

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The Brain Augmented Technology BAT aspect of this study will research event-related potentials (ERPs) which reflect the electrical activity of neurons that underlie cognitive and sensory processing. Our EEG and ERPs laboratory will enhance our ability to investigate the neural processes underlying, for example, attention, memory, inhibition, and language. The in-house EEG  systems have high performance relative to other systems.

Research Requirements

Students from diverse and multi-disciplinary programs are encouraged to join this Team.

Faculty Mentor

Dr. Cyril Okhio

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Need a statistical analysis of 1600 responses to the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI), which is an instrument with high validity and reliability. Using Excel and SPSS this statistical analysis would be part of a submission to a peer related journal. Specifically, need Chronbachs alpha for internal reliability, skewness, means, standard deviations, and multivariate outliers.

Research Requirements

Knowledge of Excel and SPSS software. Interest in scholarly research.

Faculty Mentor

Barbara A. Wood

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The use of soft soils for roadway and construction purposes is highly problematic. Soft soils generally lack sufficient shear strength to resist loading and can result in catastrophic failure specially on the steep slopes. Soils typically need at least 35% sand and gravel content to be considered well-graded and to produce stable strength characteristics. Soils that have a high degree of silt and organic matter also have poor erosion resistance.  Recent research shows that soil can be stabilized with fly-ash (FA), sewage sludge ash (SSA), and/or other additives and used for roadway and construction purposes that could be less problematic and stronger.

Research Requirements

Required GPA to qualify for CE 4400. However, students can work on the project without course credit. Junior or senior with GPA of 3.0 (lower GPA can be accepted with waiver) will qualify for CE 4400.

Faculty Mentor

Dr. M.A.Karim 
Dr. Adam Kaplan 
Dr. Youngguk Seo

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Light travels within two parallel flat planes, just like in optical fiber, very well without scattering. The project is to design, test and implement illuminated signs using LED lights in the background. 

Research Requirements

• Background of high school physics with a B.E. special interest will be reflection and refraction of light through transparent media, like a glass.
• Lot of interest and willingness to make it work.
• 4-6 hours per week of study and research/experimental work along with the advisor.

Faculty Mentor

Dr. Mir Atiqullah

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Since cancer affects most families in America and the number of cancer survivors is growing, there is an urgent need to explore reasons why prelicensure nursing students lack the aspiration to care for patients with cancer on a Nationwide level; a study which has not been investigated previously.

Research Requirements 

Must have understanding of basic research process and be a good student with good work/study ethic and understanding of how to read a research article. Hours can be flexible. We are in the midst of Data verification and cleaning right now which we need help with. student will progress to another literature search during manuscript prep.

Faculty Mentor

Tracy Ruegg

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Several recycled waste materials such as plastic, rubber, glass, sewage sludge ash (SSA), fly-ash (FA), scrap metals (slags), etc. are abundant in the waste stream that go to landfill and occupy the valuable landfill space. Research shows that these waste materials are used in several applications such as manufacturing mortar, concrete, and bricks. During the lifetime of these materials usage heavy metals and other chemicals can leach out and contaminate the water and soil.

Research Requirements 

• GPA
• Able to work 5-10 hours a week

Faculty Mentor

Dr. M.A. Karim

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This project aims to develop functional mesoporous (2-50 nm) nanomaterials with controlled morphology, surface area, pore size, and nano-crystallinity. Mesoporous Materials are an important class of materials finding applications in numerous fields such as catalysis, adsorption-separation, sensors, and energy storage. Mesoporous carbon and transition metal (Mn, Co, Fe, and Ni) oxide will be synthesized using sol-gel, reflux, and nanocasting methods.

Research Requirements 

• Interested students must have completed CHEM 1211, CHEM 1212 and MATH 1190 courses.
• Preference will be given to students who have completed additional course work in chemistry, physics, engineering and/or mathematics.

Faculty Mentor

Dr. Altug S. Poyraz

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Students will be trained in genetics, bioinformatics, and cytological techniques as they investigate mechanisms that underlie maternal epigenetic reprogramming at fertilization.

Research Requirements 

A minimum GPA of 3.0 in a Biology related concentration is preferred. Additionally, students should be able to commit to at least two semesters of work in the Carpenter lab (including summers). Student researchers are expected to present their findings at the Symposium of Student Scholars. 

Faculty Mentor

Dr. Brandon Carpenter

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This project is intended to understand the impacts of the waste materials such as fly-ash (FA), bottom ash, sewage sludge ash (SSA), solid waste incinerator ash, slags (scrap metals), and other waste materials, as an alternate cementitious material in Portland cement concrete (PCC) mixtures that are commonly used in engineering constructions. These materials can be used for partial replacement of cement in the PCC. The project focuses specifically on how the performance of PCC may change with the varying types and dosages of recycled waste materials collected from local recycling facilities/industries.

Research Requirements 

Required GPA to qualify for CE 4400. However, students can work on the project without course credit. Junior or senior with GPA of 3.5 (lower GPA can be accepted with waiver) will qualify for CE 4400.

Faculty Mentor

Dr. M. A. Karim

Dr. Youngguk Seo

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This course is intended to understand the impacts of traffic on air pollution in and around schools. The course focuses specifically on monitoring and evaluating the criteria air pollutants, mostly PM2.5 or PM5.0 and compare with nearby ambient air quality to understand the pollution level caused by the traffic in schools' drop off and pickup areas.

Research Requirements

Required GPA to qualify for CE 4400. However, students can work on the project without course credit. Junior or senior with GPA of 3.5 (lower GPA can be accepted with waiver) will qualify for CE 4400.

Faculty Mentor

Dr. M. A. Karim

Dr. Parth Bhavsar

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This exploratory sequential mixed methods study aims to investigate the extent to which population health content is integrated into prelicensure nursing curricula in the United States.

Research Requirements

Completion of a basic research course.

Faculty Mentor

Dr. Modupe Adewuyi

Dr. M'lyn Spinks

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A new sexual violence prevention initiative is being piloted at KSU this year. The initiative involves gathering student input, experiences, and opinions that will contribute to recommendations regarding ways to decrease sexual violence on Georgia campuses. Students will be relied upon to help design data collection tools and methods. They will then work with other students to anonymously gather their opinions and experiences regarding sexual violence at KSU. This opportunity is open to all undergraduate and graduate students.

Research Requirements

None

Faculty Mentor

Dr. Kevin Baldwin

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Skeletal muscles play a vital role in everyday activities. With aging, muscle tissue accumulates detrimental changes, which negatively impact the quality of living and promote morbidity and mortality. Our lab studies muscles using the fruit fly - a useful model organism for genetic research. With this project, we would like to identify genetic conditions associated with stronger resistance of muscles to aging.

Research Requirements

We look for responsible and self-motivated individuals, capable of autonomous work.

• Must be freshman, sophomore, or junior,
• Minimal GPA - 3.5,
• Biology/Chemistry as a major,
• Minimal availability for project - 5 hrs/week,
• Previous experience in research - not required.

Faculty Mentor

Dr. Anton Bryantsev

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Requirements engineering is the set of activities concerned with determining and communicating the expectations for a new or modified product, and the contexts in which it will be used. Requirements elicitation, i.e., the practice of collecting these features, called requirements, is the first of these activities and is recognized as a critical and difficult stage in the development of software systems. Among the available elicitation techniques, interviews with stakeholders are the most commonly used in practice. Normally, they involve two actors: a customer and a requirements analyst; and their goal is to allow the knowledge transfer from the first to the second one so that the analyst can collect precise, correct, and complete requirements.

Researcher Requirements

Students will be hired to work on the project for a variable number of hours; minimum 10 hours/week

Faculty Mentor

Dr. Paola Spoletini

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Design a new type of wireless EEG headset including flexible printed circuit boards and bluetooth to transfer brain waves to smartphone and the cloud by developing an app. A way of testing the new EEG headset will also be developed using artificial skin and head models.

Research Requirements

Some circuits background or app development background or some coding background (e.g. Matlab or C++ or any other language), or willing to learn one or both. Attend weekly meetings and share your research findings during meetings.

Faculty Mentor

Dr. Hoseon Lee

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Ground penetrating radars are used for subsurface exploration purposes, and for locating underground utilities. CEE department has multiple-size radars ready to be used for research. This project is about designing and building a controlled earth fill with known objects at known depths to be used as a test bed for research purposes. The testbed is a v shape ditch of 50 feet long and approximately 5 feet deep and located at the KSU Field Station. Basic training on using ground penetrating radars will be given. The project will involve a literature survey, design, and construction activities such as filling and compacting the soil.

Research Requirements

• Must have a car
• Fundamental knowledge of Microsoft Word and PowerPoint is required
• Knowledge of any CAD application is preferred
• Commitment to 3 hours of work per week is required
• No GPA or coursework is required

Faculty Mentor

Dr. Adam Kaplan

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This is a sequential explanatory mixed-method designed study. The purpose of the study is to evaluate the efficacy of the clinical experiential approaches being used by nursing programs during the COVID-19 pandemic with respect to pre-licensure nursing students' dementia care knowledge, skills, and attitudes.

Researcher Requirements

Completion of a basic research class.

Faculty Mentor

Dr. Modupe Adewuyi

Dr. Kathleen Morales

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Different cognitive skills are required during a teaching and learning exercise. Attention is an important variable to measure during this process because it plays a fundamental role in the accumulation of information with the stimulus of the learner’s memory during the assimilation of knowledge. The purpose of this research is to demonstrate the impact of 3D Immersive content used as a tool for stimulating student concentration when compared with the use of traditional D2L teaching and learning tools. The attention of the user will be monitored through electroencephalography devices while performing educational/learning tasks using either Immersive or a Traditional Teaching Tools. 

Research Requirements

• Self-motivated & responsible individuals are sought, that can work well within Teams.
• You will need  to be either a Freshmen, Sophomore, Junior or even Senior with an average GPA of 3.0.
• You can also be from any discipline. 

Faculty Mentor

Dr. Cyril Okhio

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A new sexual violence prevention initiative is being piloted at KSU this year. The initiative involves gathering student input, experiences, and opinions that will contribute to recommendations regarding ways to decrease sexual violence on Georgia campuses. Students will be relied upon to help design data collection tools and methods. They will then work with other students to anonymously gather their opinions and experiences regarding sexual violence at KSU. This opportunity is open to all undergraduate and graduate students. Time requirements are flexible but not expected to exceed two hours per week on average. While this is an unpaid opportunity, students will benefit from real-world research experience addressing an issue that impacts countless students nationwide. The initiative is being directed by Dr. Kevin Baldwin of Applied Research Services, Inc. It is funded by the Georgia Department of Public Health and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Project Field of Study

Psychological Science

Faculty Mentor

Kevin Baldwin

While birds face many pressures, one that is present on Kennesaw State University's campus is that of collisions with structures. Between 365 million and 1 billion birds are estimated to perish each year from colliding with buildings in the United States, the 3rd leading cause of avian death. Bright lights at night, shiny glass exteriors, and transparent facades can be deadly as birds struggle determining what is and isn't a clear pathway during flight.

Project Field of Study

Ecology, Evolution & Organismal Biology

Faculty Mentor

Dr. Sarah Guindre- Parker

For this project, we will try to understand factors that impact political polarization. Specifically, we will look at how Democrats and Republicans think the other party views them and if these beliefs impact their own behavior.

Project Field of Study

Psychological Science

Faculty Mentor

Danica Kulibert

This project aims at understanding what factors impact people's willingness to believe victims of sexual harassment.

Project Field of Study

Psychological Science

Faculty Mentor

Danica Kulibert

Characterizing the misinformation diffusion on social networks enables us to understand the properties of underlying media and model communication patterns. In this research project, we will use epidemiological modeling to study the spread of misinformation(rumors).

Project Field of Study

Mathematics

Faculty Mentor

Pengcheng Xiao

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This project aims to identify genetic conditions associated with stronger resistance of muscles to aging, planning to screen multiple lines of flies to find those that demonstrate significantly better preservation of their muscle function during aging. 

Project Field of Study

Molecular & Cellular Biology

Faculty Mentor

Anton Bryantsev

This project is two-fold, examining both the counterterrorism (CT) workforce and the academic literature to identify the most up-to-date technologies and datasets that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) can provide its CT workforce.

Project Field of Study

Sociology and Criminal Justice

Faculty Mentor

Michael Logan

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This project explores the communication challenges within the legislative world. The purpose of this project is to establish the current narrative influencing lobbyist obstructions. Then, we will explore a new theoretical model for changing the narrative for negotiation success.

Project Field of Study

Communication and Media

Faculty Mentor

Dr. Robin Smith Mathis

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A major difficulty in the rotational spectroscopy research is the vacuum system. This is an interdisciplinary research project which integrates the powers of science and engineering technology.

Project Field of Study

• Chemistry and Biochemistry
• Engineering
• Math

Faculty Mentor

Lu Kang

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This project studies the collective migration of breast cells with both mathematical and experimental approaches, along with a component of artwork, and have openings for undergraduate researchers.

Project Field of Study

Department of Mechanical Engineering
Department of Mathematics
Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology
School of Art and Design

Faculty Mentor

Yizeng Li
Glenn Young
Eric Albrecht
Craig Brasco

Since cancer affects most families in America and the number of cancer survivors is growing, there is an urgent need to explore reasons why prelicensure nursing students lack the aspiration to care for patients with cancer on a Nationwide level; a study which has not been investigated previously.

Project Field of Study

Nursing

Faculty Mentor

Tracy Ruegg PhD ANP-BC AOCN

Kawther Hamash PhD RN

This project uses Chinese legal advice websites (which function in a manner similar to Quora or Yahoo Answers) as an untapped resources for analyzing the political and legal systems of contemporary China.

Project Field of Study

Political Science and International Affairs

Faculty Mentor

John Wagner Givens

This project will explore the current state of automated license plate reader (ALPR) legislation in the United States.

Project Field of Study

Information Systems

Faculty Mentor

Andy Green

The aim of this project is to use NFL team data to determine if a relationship exists between team statistics, both offensively and defensively, to determine if they play a role in the length of a player's career.

Project Field of Study

Statistics and Analytical Sciences

Faculty Mentor

Austin Brown

Multi-disciplinary faculty will supervise a team of both graduate and undergraduate students to explore culturally relevant communication strategies to analyze effective messaging and messaging fatigue of HIV/AIDS prevention among Botswanan youth. Students with an interest in International Relations, Communications, health issues such as HIV/AIDS, and qualitative and/or quantitative research skills are encouraged to apply. 

Project Field of Study

School of Conflict Management, Peacebuilding, and Development

Faculty Mentor

Maia Hallward

The Philippines have declared a major measles outbreak in early 2019. In this study, we will build the epidemiology model to investigate this outbreak. A multi-scale modelling framework, parameterized by weather conditions, human case data, and vector, will be used to examine the seasonal effects and the measles vaccines rate on the effective reproduction number.

Project Field of Study

Mathematics

Faculty Mentor

Pengcheng Xiao

This research will explore the impact of a reading motivation intervention on attention, comprehension, and motivation. We will utilize eye-tracking technology in the study.

Project Field of Study

Psychology

Faculty Mentor

Ordene Edwards

The purpose of this study is to examine whether or not the type of KSU 1101: First-Year Seminar course format impacts the degree to which one of the course learning outcomes (academic and social belongingness) is met.

Project Field of Study

First-Year and Transition Studies

Faculty Mentor

Deborah N. Smith

The Bryantsev lab seeks motivated individuals for technical assistance in creating novel transgenic lab strains of Drosophila fruit flies. The participants will learn fly husbandry, microscopy, microinjections, and a lot of basic lab skills.

Project Field of Study

Molecular & Cellular Biology

Faculty Mentor

Anton Bryantsev

We will design and develop an open source Mobile Secure Software Development API plugin based on FindSecurityBugs for Android Studio IDE which will check your mobile project to detect any untrusted input and output and other security vulnerability to prevent mobile apps from attacks. 

This is a paid project from a National Science Foundation (NSF) grant ($10/hr, max 100 hr). 

Project Field of Study

Information Technology

Faculty Mentor

Hossain Shahriar

This pilot research project will collect preliminary data (with five Reformers) measuring the positive impacts of Reformer training on dancer technique, as well as Pilates' potential to increase dancer long-term employability. 

Project Field of Study

Dance

Faculty Mentor

Sarah Holmes

The Siegel Institute Ethics Research Scholars (SIERS) program offers a full original research experience to undergraduate students, graduate students, and faculty interested in the umbrella research topic of the ethics of housing. 

Project Field of Study

Siegel Institute for Leadership, Ethics and Character

Faculty Mentors

Crystal Money
Linda Johnston

We want to find genes that can make cells resistant to toxic heavy metals, especially cadmium. 

Project Field of Study

Molecular and Cellular Biology

Faculty Mentor

Anton Bryantsev

We are currently working with Cobb County Senior Services to collect both quantitative and qualitative data about the current and future needs of older adults living in Cobb County. This project will involve collecting and analyzing data from interviews, focus groups and surveys targeting older adults, their caregivers, and professionals working in the aging field. Once all the data are collected...

Project Field of Study

Sociology and Criminal Justice

Faculty Mentor

Evelina Sterling

The undergraduate research assistant will perform a literature review of relevant information concerning art therapy and digital technologies. This information will be compiled and summarized in order to produce content for an edited book on art therapy and digital technologies to be published by Jessica Kingsley Publishers. Additionally, the research assistant will review submitted manuscrip...

Project Field of Study

School of Art and Design

Faculty Mentor

Ricky Garner 

The meteoritic mineral schreibersite is believed to have played an important role in the phosphorylation of the first biologically important molecules formed on the Early Earth.

Project Field of Study

Chemistry and Biochemistry

Faculty Mentor

Heather Abbott-Lyon 

The study of human rights is dominated by secular voices; however, increasingly the study of international relations recognizes the tension and interplay between the religious and the secular, and the impetus for human rights work has often come from a religious or moral foundation.

Project Field of Study

Political Science and International Affairs, International Conflict Managemet, Interdisciplinary Studies, Foreign Languages

Faculty Mentor

Charity Butcher 

In general, I am interested in motivation in three areas: unconscious motivation (increasing motivation underneath awareness), achievement motivation (mainly intrinsic/extrinsic motivation), and environmental motivation (what gets people to act in environmentally friendly ways). How many projects I have going in each of those areas varies each semester.

Project Field of Study

Psychology

Faculty Mentor

Paul Story 

When Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring gave a prophetic warning of the deleterious effects of DDT pesticides on organisms and the environment, never did we realize that environmental pollutants would so heavily influence our development and our survival.

Project Field of Study

Ecology, Evolution and Organismal Biology

Faculty Mentor

Adrienne King 

We are seeking four undergraduate research assistants to join us in exploring the current state of clothing projection, sales, and ethics by examining concerns raised in recent years about the use of sweatshops, child labor, and contracting. The successful applicants will work with two graduate students and faculty to build ethical decision-making models which will help us evaluate the ethical conflicts that arise within the companies and in the industries.

Project Field of Study

Siegel Institute for Leadership, Ethics and Character

Faculty Mentor

Serena Newhall 

The Siegel Institute for Leadership, Ethics and Character invites students, faculty, and staff to apply for the SIERS Fall 2016 Cohort.

Project Field of Study

Academic Affairs

Faculty Mentor

Crystal Money 

Seeking students to participate in a research project exploring the post-political city through an economy of jouissance (Žižek). The research approaches a way of thinking that restores philosophy’s useful role in art, politics, and everyday life.

Project Field of Study

Architecture, Digital Writing and Media Arts

Faculty Mentor

Elizabeth Martin-Malikian 

Virtual Reality (VR) applications have been developed for numerous diverse fields, such as physical rehabilitation, education, and healthcare. Beneficiaries of VR technology include children, the elderly, and persons with physical and mobility impairments.

Project Field of Study

Gaming & Software Engineering

Faculty Mentor

Rongkai Guo 

The faculty members are involved in a longer term research project looking at the intersections of research, activism, and policy making related to human rights, peace, and development and various aspects of identity, including religion and ethnicity.

Project Fields of Study

School of Conflict Management, Peacebuilding, and Development

School of Government and International Affairs

Faculty Mentors

Maia Hallward
Charity Butcher

The COVID-19 pandemic has systemically peeled back the layers of our ways of life and
exposed the most delicate parts of our society. With the immense losses experienced of loved ones, jobs, and daily activities, there is an increased importance to understand the ways in which faculty, staff, students, and community members are navigating the various dimensions of grief and loss. 

Project Field of Study

Educational Leadership

Faculty Mentor

Chinasa Elue

Solar Photovoltaic power systems utilize sun light to generate electric power. They have been replacing traditional fossil fuel-based power plants at an increasing rate. Recently, several unexpected fire incidents that damaged solar PV systems in US raised reliability, safety, and efficiency concerns. Subsequent investigations attributed the fire incidents to faults occurring within solar PV systems via accidental connections of parts of a system to ground.

Project Field of Study

Electrical and Computer Engineering

Faculty Mentor

Yousef Mahmoud

Our interdisciplinary research team studies the influence of abdominal fat, physical activity/inactivity, diet, and other factors on metabolic health and risk for diabetes. This is an ideal program for students planning future graduate school in healthcare-related fields. Student assistants on our team gain experience with all parts of research—from planning studies and acquiring approvals to working directly with human participants and biological samples in the laboratory.

Project Field of Study

Exercise Science and Sport Management

Faculty Mentor

Katherine Ingram

Need a statistical analysis of 1600 responses to the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI), which is an instrument with high validity and reliability. Using Excel and SPSS this statistical analysis would be part of a submission to a peer related journal. Specifically, need Chronbachs alpha for internal reliability, skewness, means, standard deviations, and multivariate outliers.

Project Field of Study

Statistics, Psychology

Faculty Mentor

Barbara A. Wood

Solar Photovoltaic Systems convert sunlight into electricity. Control and operation of these systems are affected by their dynamic model which adaptively varies with several factors such as temperature, irradiance and shading. The goal of this project is to characterize solar modules and collect data  to be used for developing a generic dynamic model for PV modules.

Project Field of Study

Electrical and Computer Engineering

Faculty Mentor

Yousef Mahmoud