Division of Research and Innovation

The Division of Research and Innovation has completed the 2021 Communities of Research Scholars (CoRS) Program call for proposals and has awarded 18 grants. The CoRS Program is designed to cultivate interdisciplinary discourse and nurture the growth of research affinity groups across campus. Awards ranged from $2500-$5000, and all projects will be completed by April 30, 2021.

Winners of the 2021 CoRS awards:

PI: Konstantin Sokolov (Finance)
UofM Team Members: Pankaj Jain (Finance), Rasheek Irtisam (Finance)

PI: Leah Windsor (IIS)
UofM Team Members: Abby Parrill-Baker (Arts and Sciences), Marian Levey (Public Health), Deborah Tollefsen (Arts and Sciences), Helen Sable (Behavioral Neuroscience), Esra Ozdenerol (GIS and SAGE), Melinda Jones (Honors College), Robin Poston (Graduate School), Kris-Stella Trump (Political Science), Dale Bowman (Mathematical Sciences and Statistics), Leigh Harrell-Williams (CEPR), Deranda Brewer Lewster (Behavioral Neuroscience)
Project: Earnings Conference Call Sentiment and Stock Price Crash Risk

PI: Fedoria Rugless (Health Sciences)
UofM: Barbara McClanahan (Health Sciences), Onyejebose Okwumabua (Health Sciences), Michelle Stockton (Health Sciences)
Project: Capacity Building for Broader Impacts

PI: Xichen Mou (Biostatistics)
UofM Team Members: Sally Parish (Educational Initiatives), Xinhua Yu (Epidemiology), Meredith Ray (Biostatistics), Yinan Yu (Business Information and Technology), Rui Qi (Hospitality)
Project: Covid-19 screening using pool testing in Memphis

PI: Rui Qi (Hospitality)
UofM Team Members: Radesh Palakurthi (Hospitality), Tim Ryan (Hospitality), Xichen Mou (Biostatistics), Yong Yang (Public Health), Chi Li (COE)
Project: Airbnb and Public Safety Risks

PI: Annapoorna Mary (Nursing)
UofM Team Members: Fedoria Rugless (Church Health)
Project: Impact of virtual health educational program and horticultural therapy in self-management skills and quality of life among people with cardiovascular risk factors: Type II Diabetes Mellitus and Hypertension

PI: Deborah Moncrieff (Communication Sciences and Disorders)
UofM Team Members: Marian Levy (Public Health), Carolyn Kaldon (CREP)
Project: It takes a team to break through invisible barriers to literacy

PI: Carolyn Kaldon (CREP)
UofM Team Members: Sally Parish (Educational Initiatives), Alfred Hall (COE), Stephanie Ivey (Engineering), Kenneth Ward (Public Health), Lorretta Rudd (Child Development and Family Studies), Todd Zoblotsky (CREP), John Sabatini (Psychology), Andrew Tawfik (Instructional Design and Technology), Craig Shepard (Instructional Design and Technology), Shelly Counsell (Communication Sciences and Disorders), Josef Hanson (Music), Remy Debes (Philosophy), Terrence Tucker (English), Deborah Tollefsen (Philosophy), Brian Ruggaber (Theatre and Dance)
Project: University Schools Research Consortium

PI: Melissa Janoske McLean (Journalism)
UofM Team Members: N/A
Project: Building Grantsmanship and Community Engagement within the College of Communication and Fine Arts

PI: Irma Sinagrella (Libraries)
UofM Team Members: Sohye Lee (Nursing), Seok Won Jin (Social Work), Y'Esha Williams (Nursing), Susan Elswick (Social Work), Kathryn Hicks (Anthropology), Christine Bertz (CREP)
Project: Health Spaces and Technology Research Community

PI: Brandt Pence (Health Studies)
UofM Team Members: Gary Bowlin (Biomedical Engineering), Thomas Sutter (Biology), Hongmei Zhang (Public Health), Melissa Puppa (Health Sciences), Yufeng Zhang (Health Sciences), Jim Adelman (Biology), Marie van der Merwe (Health Sciences), Aaryani Sajja (Biomedical Engineering)
Project: Mid-South Metabolism, Immunity and Inflammation

PI: Katharine Traylor Schaffzin (Law)
UofM Team Members: Jacqueline Buford (Nursing), Elena Delavega (Social Work), Demetria Frank (Law), Latrice Pichon (Public Health), Katy Mason (Law), Angel Oigbokie (Nursing), Enrica Ruggs (Management)
Project: University of Memphis Interdisciplinary Center for Public Health and Race

PI: Farhad Jazaei (Engineering)
UofM Team Members: N/A
Project: Water-Smart City

PI: Jin Yang (Journalism and Strategic Media) and Ruoxu Wang (Journalism and Strategic Media)
UofM Team Members: Shannon Cook (Computer Science), Rhema Fuller (Hospitality)
Project: Exploring video game playing in the COVID-19 pandemic- a comparison between competitive gamers and recreational gamers

PI: Kate Roberts (Art)
UofM Team Members: Teri Del Rosso (Journalism and Strategic Media)
Project: Creating a mentorship program for CCFA students

PI: Yong Yang (Public Health)
UofM Team Members: Ken Ward (Public Health), Jim Murphy (Psychology), Aram Dobalian (Public Health)
Project: Examine the influence of the ongoing COVID outbreak to health behaviors and mental health

PI: Ryan Fisher (Music) and Robyn Jones (Music)
UofM Team Members: Sean Holder
Project: Effect of Koru Mindfulness Training on Professional Orchestral Musicians' Music Performance Anxiety

PI: Sachiko Terui (Communication and Film) and Joy Goldsmith (Communication and Film)
UofM Team Members: Matthew Haught (Journalism), Andrew Tawfik (Instructional Design and Technology)
Project: Impacting sustained housing for homeless in Memphis

Congratulations to all CoRS recipients and good luck with your initiatives!  If you have questions about the CoRS program, please email researchdev@memphis.edu.