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5X���� has recently received a flurry of grants totaling more than $3 million in funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF), which will support research and innovation in a wide range of fields within the College of Arts and Sciences. 

“We’re thrilled to receive this funding,” Vice President of Research and Sponsored Programs Paul DiCorleto said. “Especially impressive is the breadth and scope of research being funded. To have such a wide range of faculty being successful at garnering extremely competitive funding is a testament to the excellent researchers we have at Kent.” 

Recent grants range from those designed to support early stage faculty and their research programs, to grants that enable purchasing of state-of-the-art equipment, to grants providing life-changing research experiences for KSU undergraduates. 

Recent recipients of NSF grants include :

• Christie Bahlai, Ph.D., Biological Sciences

• Torsten Hegmann, Ph.D., Advanced Materials Liquid Crystals Institute and Michael Tubergen, Ph.D., Chemistry and Biochemistry 

• Gokarna Sharma, Ph.D., Computer Science

• Benjamin Fregoso, Ph.D., Physics 

• John Dunlosky, Ph.D., Psychological Sciences

• Ruoming Jin, Ph.D., Computer Science

• David Costello, Ph.D., Biological Sciences

• Jonathan Maletic, Ph.D., Computer Science

• Maxim Dzero, Ph.D., Physics 

The following demonstrate the breadth of research supported by recent NSF grants: 

Christie Bahlai: Data, Ecology and Podcasts

Bahlai received a CAREER award to support her research examining insect populations through time using various ways of obtaining information. 

The grant provides funding not only for Bahlai’s wide range of biodiversity monitoring systems, but will also help kick off her newest interdisciplinary podcast called “How Do You Know?”  where she works alongside other Kent State faculty to dissect their beliefs and understandings with respect to data collection. 

Gokarna Sharma: Speeding Up The Process 

Sharma received a CAREER award to support his research designed to improve the mechanisms responsible for minimizing the time it takes for computers to complete tasks. “It doesn’t matter how much you know about your field of study,” Sharma said. “The important thing is getting the review board excited about your research in a comprehensible way. Writing it from the perspective of a reviewer helped me receive this grant.”

His grant will also allow him to mentor k-12, undergraduates, and graduate students within his field of study through the SURE program at Kent State. 

Torsten Hegmann and Michael Tubergen: Research Experience 

Hegmann and Tubergen received a Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) grant that supports undergraduates from universities all over North America to work with KSU faculty.

“Overall, there are around 11 different projects happening within this program,” said Tubergen. “The University is very fortunate to have such progressive labs and programs, this gives students from other universities the opportunity to work with experienced faculty and grow their understanding within their field.” 

Over a 10-week period, students will individually contribute around four hundred hours to conduct research within the fields of physics, advanced liquid crystals and biology. 

Learn more about the Division of Research and Sponsored Programs.