Recent Grant Awards
A team of faculty members in the Mathematics and Computer Science Department, led by Bob VanCamp, received a grant from the National Science Foundation’s CPATH program. The two year grant of $168,446 is designed to introduce the department and campus to the concept of Computational Thinking (CT). Funds will support course revisions, faculty development, and projects that outreach to the K-12 educational community. If this planning grant is successful, the department intends to apply for a full program grant for an additional three years.
Dr. Gloria Stewart was successful in obtaining a grant of $250,000 from the Applachian Regional Commission for the Physician Assistant program. This grant will assist with the cost of equipment and technology that will enable the program to accept 50% more students by the year 2010.
Two foundations provided grants to support the completion and operation of the Anderson Hancock Planetarium. Marietta College received a grant of $20,000 from the Doris and Floyd Kimble Foundation, located in Dover, Ohio, and $10,000 from the Marietta Community Foundation.
The education department was a successful bidder in obtaining a grant of $205,115 to support its Excellence in Mathematics Teaching Academy from the Ohio Board of Regents Improving Teacher Quality program. Elaine O’Rourke is the director of this project, which provides graduate-level courses in mathematics content and pedagogy for southeast Ohio K-8 teachers.
The petroleum engineering department received a grant of $40,000 from the Marathon Oil Foundation. Grant funds will be used to support student scholarships and faculty development.
The McDonough Center’s Office for Civic Engagement, led by Dr. Tanya Judd Pucella, received three grants from the Ohio Campus Compact: $500 to support its Martin Luther King Day of Service activities; $562 to support voter registration outreach activities; and a $5,000 Great Cities, Great Service grant that will provide funds to support student service efforts to address and alleviate hunger issues among local residents.
The Ohio Department of Education awarded the college $37,000 to host a Summer Honors Institute for gifted high school students on its campus. Directed by Elaine O’Rourke in the education department, courses were developed and offered by Dr. Jim Jeitler, chemistry department (The Energy Dilemma); Professors Scott Lewandowski and Bob VanCamp, computer science department (Alice: An Introduction to Computer Programming); and Professor David Makuch, theatre department (Technical Theatre: Stagecraft).
As a collaborator with Ohio University’s College of Education’s successful proposal Choose Appalachian Teaching, Marietta College will receive $112,000 over a five year period to provide scholarships to students who major in STEM disciplines and plan to pursue a teaching license in mathematics or science at the 7th to 12th grade levels. Professor Michelle Jeitler is the director of this program. The grant is provided through the Ohio Board of Regents.
The education department received a grant of $2,000 from the Southeast Ohio Center for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Education to assist with the costs of hosting a regional mathematics conference for K-8 teachers at Marietta College in March.
Multi-Year Grant Projects at Marietta College
The biology and psychology departments at Marietta College were collaborative partners in a successful proposal submitted to the National Institutes of Health by the University of Cincinnati. Drs. Mary Barnas and David Brown are administering a three-year, $150,211 research grant that will assess the impact of manganese on the people and environment in the Mid-Ohio Valley region. This grant project began in March 2008 and will continue through February 2011.
The education department at Marietta College received a two-year grant (2007-2009) of $400,000 from the Ohio Department of Education’s Core Support Program to provide an alternative route to a teaching license for people with a strong educational base and work experience in the STEM disciplines. Directed by Elaine O’Rourke, this project involved a cadre of professors in the education, biology, chemistry, physics, and mathematics departments.
Karrie Clay, campus counselor, has been the director of a NCAA Choices Grant titled Be Sober, Be Yourself. This three-year, $30,000 grant, awarded in 2006 and completed in 2009, focused on implementing methods of reducing the attraction of alcohol and drug abuse on campus.
Dr. Bill Bauer, education department, was the director of the of a $30,000 grant from the Ohio Department of Education – Special Education Personnel Development Advisory Committee (SEPDAC). Spanning the years 2007-2009, this grant provided support for improving the academic and behavioral needs of at-risk K-12 students by teaching and demonstrating the Ohio Integrated Systems Model (OISM). Both pre-service and in-service teachers participated in this program.
The McDonough Center’s Office of Civic Engagement, received a grant of $38,739 from the Sisters of St. Joseph Charitable Fund. Under the direction of Drs. Gama Perruci and Tanya Judd Pucella, and in consultation with the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University, this project conducted a study of the capacity needs of local nonprofit organizations. Dr. Judd Pucella also identified communities that had conducted similar needs assessments and studied community and academic responses to these studies. The final report will be published in August 2009.