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More than a dozen faculty, staff and students from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have been awarded funding by the North Carolina Space Grant Program.

More than a dozen faculty, staff and students from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have been awarded funding by the North Carolina Space Grant Program.

NC Space Grant is a consortium of academic institutions that promote, develop and support aeronautics and space-related science, engineering and technology education and training in North Carolina. The program partners with NASA, industry, nonprofits and state government agencies. The program recently awarded $733,000 to faculty and students at its 11 affiliate universities for 2009-2010.

Student awards support undergraduate and graduate students conducting research at their university or at a NASA/industry center. Faculty awards support research, higher education course development, K-12 professional development and public outreach throughout the state. 

The following students in the UNC College of Arts and Sciences received grants:

  • $5,000 Undergraduate Research Scholarships:
    • Mark Schubel of Cary
    • Jana Styblova of Chapel Hill
  • $1,000 Undergraduate Scholar Award:
    • Apurva Oza from Raleigh
  • $6,000 Graduate Research Fellowships:
    • Jesse Miner of Carrboro
    • Amanda Moffett of Chapel Hill
    • Justin Moore of Chapel Hill
    • Magdalena Sandor of Carrboro
  • NASA and industry internships:
    • Maxwell Ballenger of Charlotte, $7,000, Ad Astra Rocket Company in Houston, Texas
    • Frances Low of Cary, $9,500, LORD Corporation

In addition, sophomore Rebecca Holmes of Chapel Hill has been named a NASA Astronomy Student Ambassador. As a NASA ambassador, Holmes will help to promote the 2009 International Year of Astronomy.

UNC College of Arts and Sciences staff and faculty awardees include:

  • Kevin Ivarsen, Ph.D., a research assistant in the department of physics and astronomy, was tapped for the New Investigations Program for his project, “Expanding UNC-Chapel Hill’s Skynet Robotic Telescope Network to a Global Scale.” The program provides seed funding for scholars aiming to conduct research that is directly aligned with NASA’s priorities.
  • Physics and astronomy chair Laurie McNeil, Ph.D., was given a grant from the NC Space Grant K-12 Education Program to develop a conference for high school physics teachers. The conference will give them a chance to learn from experts about the latest developments in the field.
  • Physics and astronomy professor Gerald Cecil, Ph.D., received a grant for his project, “Engaging the Higher Education Community in Astronomical Research Studies Using PROMPT.”
  • Physics and astronomy professor Daniel Reichart, Ph.D., was given a grant for his project, “Going the Distance: UNC-Chapel Hill's New Introductory Astronomy Curriculum.”

In addition, Crystal Harden, Ph.D., director of external programs for the UNC Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, received grants totaling $20,000. The funding will allow the center to take its traveling science program involving the state’s first portable fulldome digital planetarium to K-3 schoolchildren in eastern and northeastern North Carolina, and to develop related professional development for their teachers.

For more information: http://www.ncspacegrant.org/

College of Arts and Sciences contact: Kim Spurr, (919) 962-4093, spurrk@email.unc.edu
Morehead Planetarium contact: Karen Kornegay, (919) 843-7952, kck@unc.edu
News Services contact: Patric Lane, (919) 962-8596, patric_lane@unc.edu

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