Several Hope College research projects have received grants from the Michigan Space Grant Consortium.
A total of 13 projects from Hope received funding from the consortium through its 2023-24 grant period. The awards to Hope projects, which total $82,000, include eight undergraduate fellowships for students conducting collaborative research with faculty; three seed grants for faculty research; and two grants focused on improving STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) education and teacher training.
Hope will provide additional funding, including stipends for students as they conduct research during the summer, and support for the faculty and institutional projects.
The students receiving fellowships were:
Jacob Bergstrom, for “The impact of aerosolized iron oxide nanoparticle exposure on the foraging behavior of the house sparrow (Passer domesticus),” with Dr. Kelly Ronald, assistant professor of biology;
Skylar DeWitt, for “Olfactory Mediated Behavior Following Acute Hypoxia in Zebrafish,” with Dr. Erika Calvo-Ochoa, assistant professor of biology and neuroscience;
Nicholas Figueroa, for “Synthesis of Fe3O4 – TiO2 nanoclusters for water purification,” with Dr. Natalia Gonzalez-Pech, assistant professor of chemistry;
Peyton Hallemann for “The Association between Iron Oxide Nanoparticle Exposure and Auditory Physiology in the House Sparrow (Passer domesticus), with Dr. Kelly Ronald;
Madison Smith, for “Temperature sensitivity of nitrogen mineralization across a climate transect of Michigan peatlands,” with Dr. Michael Philben, assistant professor of geological and environmental science;
Olivia Sprys-Tellner, for “Iron Bioaccumulation in a Sentinel Species: Implications for Nanoparticle Exposure,” with Dr. Kelly Ronald;
Nathan Stolnicki, for “Studying the Dynamics of Collisionless Magnetic Reconnection through Eigenmode Decomposition,” with Dr. Zachary Williams, assistant professor of physics;
and Matthew Stowe, for “Efficient Interpolation of Tables of Compton Scattering Cross Sections for Implementation in Magnetar Simulations,” with Dr. Peter Gonthier, professor of physics.
The faculty members who received seed grants were:
Dr. Uzonna Anyiam, assistant professor of geology and environmental science, for “Exploring the structural architecture, reactivation likelihood and seal-ability of faulted subsurface reservoirs in the northern Gulf of Mexico continental shelf: Implications for CO2 sequestration”;
Dr. Omofolakunmi (Fola) Olagbemi, assistant professor of computer science, for “Explainability in Multivariate Time Series Classification Machine Learning Models”;
and Dr. Michael Philben for “Bogs on the brink: Detecting warming-induced changes in recent carbon accumulation in Michigan peatlands.”
The program support was awarded to Susan Ipri Brown, who is an associate professor of engineering instruction and associate dean for educational outreach. “Preparing STEM Teachers” will expand the mentoring and training aspect of the ExploreHope summer camps to better prepare future science and mathematics teachers. “Engineering the Future Academies” will support collaborations with area youth serving organizations and school districts to provide STEM instructional supplies, training and camp scholarships.
The Michigan Space Grant Consortium is part of the National Space Grant College and Fellowship Program initiated by NASA in 1989, and seeks to foster awareness of, education in, and research on space-related science and technology in Michigan. The MSGC’s mission is to create, develop and promote programs that reflect NASA’s strategic interests and support cooperation between academia, industry, state and local government in science and technology in Michigan. In addition to Hope, the consortium includes Calvin University, Eastern Michigan University, Grand Valley State University, Michigan State University, Michigan Technological University, Oakland University, Saginaw Valley State University, Wayne State University, Western Michigan University, the University of Michigan and the Ann Arbor Public Schools.
A total of 13 projects from Hope received funding from the consortium through its 2023-24 grant period. The awards to Hope projects, which total $90,000, include eight undergraduate fellowships for students conducting collaborative research with faculty; three seed grants for faculty research; and two grants focused on improving STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) education and teacher training.
Hope will provide additional funding, including stipends for students as they conduct research during the summer, and support for the faculty and institutional projects.
The students receiving fellowships were:
Jacob Bergstrom, for “The impact of aerosolized iron oxide nanoparticle exposure on the foraging behavior of the house sparrow (Passer domesticus),” with Dr. Kelly Ronald, assistant professor of biology;
Skylar DeWitt, for “Olfactory Mediated Behavior Following Acute Hypoxia in Zebrafish,” with Dr. Erika Calvo-Ochoa, assistant professor of biology and neuroscience;
Nicholas Figueroa, for “Synthesis of Fe3O4 – TiO2 nanoclusters for water purification,” with Dr. Natalia Gonzalez-Pech, assistant professor of chemistry;
Peyton Hallemann for “The Association between Iron Oxide Nanoparticle Exposure and Auditory Physiology in the House Sparrow (Passer domesticus), with Dr. Kelly Ronald;
Madison Smith, for “Temperature sensitivity of nitrogen mineralization across a climate transect of Michigan peatlands,” with Dr. Michael Philben, assistant professor of geological and environmental science;
Olivia Sprys-Tellner, for “Iron Bioaccumulation in a Sentinel Species: Implications for Nanoparticle Exposure,” with Dr. Kelly Ronald;
Nathan Stolnicki, for “Studying the Dynamics of Collisionless Magnetic Reconnection through Eigenmode Decomposition,” with Dr. Zachary Williams, assistant professor of physics;
and Matthew Stowe, for “Efficient Interpolation of Tables of Compton Scattering Cross Sections for Implementation in Magnetar Simulations,” with Dr. Peter Gonthier, professor of physics.
The faculty members who received seed grants were:
Dr. Uzonna Anyiam, assistant professor of geology and environmental science, for “Exploring the structural architecture, reactivation likelihood and seal-ability of faulted subsurface reservoirs in the northern Gulf of Mexico continental shelf: Implications for CO2 sequestration”;
Dr. Omofolakunmi (Fola) Olagbemi, assistant professor of computer science, for “Explainability in Multivariate Time Series Classification Machine Learning Models”;
and Dr. Michael Philben for “Bogs on the brink: Detecting warming-induced changes in recent carbon accumulation in Michigan peatlands.”
The program support was awarded to Susan Ipri Brown, who is an associate professor of engineering instruction and associate dean for educational outreach. “Preparing STEM Teachers” will expand the mentoring and training aspect of the ExploreHope summer camps to better prepare future science and mathematics teachers. “Engineering the Future Academies” will support collaborations with area youth serving organizations and school districts to provide STEM instructional supplies, training and camp scholarships.
The Michigan Space Grant Consortium is part of the National Space Grant College and Fellowship Program initiated by NASA in 1989, and seeks to foster awareness of, education in, and research on space-related science and technology in Michigan. The MSGC’s mission is to create, develop and promote programs that reflect NASA’s strategic interests and support cooperation between academia, industry, state and local government in science and technology in Michigan. In addition to Hope, the consortium includes Calvin University, Eastern Michigan University, Grand Valley State University, Michigan State University, Michigan Technological University, Oakland University, Saginaw Valley State University, Wayne State University, Western Michigan University, the University of Michigan and the Ann Arbor Public Schools.