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