Tags: faculty

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Schmitz receives Charles Albert Shull Award from American Society of Plant Biologists

University of Georgia faculty member Bob Schmitz was honored with the 2024 Charles Albert Shull Award from the American Society of Plants Biologists (ASPB). The award, initiated in 1971 by the Society to honor Dr. Charles A. Shull, is a monetary award made annually for outstanding investigations in the field of plant biology by a member who is generally under forty-five years of age on January 1st of the year of presentation, or is fewer than…

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2024 UGA Research Awards

Congratulations to the many Franklin College faculty members who were recognized this week at the 45th annual University of Georgia Research Awards. Our departments, programs and institutes were well-represented with a range of creative investigations across the full breadth of disciplines and professorial rank, including Early Career Scholar Award winners, all four from the Franklin College: Established by the UGA Research Foundation, these…

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Researchers unveil faster, more accurate COVID testing technique

With new cases, hospitalizations and mortality rates holding steady in many parts of the world, University of Georgia researchers have developed a faster detection technique for COVID-19.  In a new study published in Advanced Materials Interface, the UGA research team describes the rapid diagnostic test for SARS-CoV-2 detection and quantification directly from human nasopharyngeal swabs using surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy…

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Shepherd to receive AAG Presidential Achievement Award

The American Association of Geographers (AAG) announced University of Georgia faculty member Marshall Shepherd as one of two 2024 Presidential Achievement Award winners. The AAG Presidential Achievement Award, established by the AAG Council to recognize individuals who have made long-standing and distinguished contributions to the discipline of geography, honors up to two recipients per year. Shepherd, Georgia Athletic Association Distinguished…

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Gabara named inaugural Nancy Gillespie Brinning Professor in French

University of Georgia faculty member Rachel Gabara has been named the first Nancy Gillespie Brinning Professor in French. The endowed professorship, approved by UGA and the USG Board of Regents at their February meeting, becomes effective August 1, 2024. Gabara, Undergraduate Coordinator in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences department of Romance Languages, teaches literature and film in French, with a particular focus on nonfiction and…

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Franklin College Multidisciplinary Seed Projects Program funds six research projects

The Franklin College of Arts and Sciences Multidisciplinary Seed Grant Program has funded two new tracks of collaborative research projects: Rapid Interdisciplinary Proposals (RIP) and Innovation in Interdisciplinary Instruction (I-Cubed). The seed grant program responds to the need for new paradigms that shape future research, life-long learning, public discourse, service, and dynamic entrepreneurship. $50,000 in seed funding from college…

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Focus on the Future: Computing at UGA

The rapid expansion of technological advances in computing is increasingly being mirrored in the expansion of computing at UGA. With the new School of Computing, one of the most in-demand undergraduate majors, and multiple clusters of faculty hires around artificial intelligence, data science and cybersecurity, computing on campus is already well into its next era. Our colleagues in Research Communications unpack the story: Computer science isn’…

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Small Satellite Lab puts UGA technology in space

Georgia Magazine highlights the next launch of MOCI: Multi-view On-board Computational Imager, the second satellite planned for orbit from the university’s Small Satellite Research Laboratory. MOCI (pronounced mo-chee) will not only capture images but check and process those images, extracting data and deleting images that aren’t needed: The satellite also will use feature detection and matching software to process them and send data back to the…

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Faculty Q & A: Gregory Robinson

Gregory Robinson, the Foundation Distinguished Professor of Chemistry, leads research efforts that have made enormous impact in chemistry and discoveries in sustainable energy, from exploring metalloaromaticity to the first example of a boron-boron double bond in a molecule. A chemistry department faculty member since 1995, Robinson has received many of the most prestigious awards for scientific ac hievement, including the Southern Chemist Award…

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Kudos, March 2024

Excellence in Teaching Awards, Meigs Professorships and our newest Regents' Entrepreneur lead the March kudos. Congratulations to our colleagues, alumni and students on these outstanding accomplishments:   The University System of Georgia Board of Regents approved Valentine Nzengung as Regents’ Entrepreneur. Nzengung, professor of environmental geochemistry in the department of geology and founder of MuniRem Environmental, LLC, is the third…

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Noted and Quoted, March 2024

Our March survey of media mentions and appearances by Franklin College faculty begins with the local coverage of professor and head of the department of history Stephen Mihm's journey to the South Pacific on a mission to search the ocean depths for soldiers who disappeared in a fierce battle of World War II. Mihm chronicled the search in the March issue of Smithsonian, in an article which also highlights the work of Franklin alumnus Dr. Patrick…

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Thompson to lead the Georgia Museum of Natural History

University of Georgia professor Victor Thompson has been appointed the Executive Director of the Georgia Museum of Natural History (GMNH), effective August 1, 2024. Thompson is a Distinguished Research Professor in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences department of anthropology and the current Director of the Laboratory of Archaeology.  The home of more than a dozen distinct collections, facilitating research for professionals,…

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Anderson receives 2024 Russell Award

Jill Anderson, associate professor in the department of genetics and the Odum School of Ecology, is one of three University of Georgia faculty members to receive the 2024 Russell Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching, the university’s highest early career teaching honor for outstanding and innovative instruction: From creating experiments and graphing predictions to interpreting results and designing follow-up studies, Anderson’s…

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Active learning model changing the culture

The Chronicle of Higher Education spotlights innovative efforts at UGA in active learning that are setting a new course for student achievement on campus – and beyond.  Many of our colleagues are leading engagement in the scholarship and practice of improving student outcomes, from the Active Learning Summer Institute, to the school of art and the math department: Getting students in a photography course to exercise their creativity is one…

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UGA joins collaboration to study oscillations in coastal environments

The Simons Foundation has awarded $8.4 million to support collaborative research in coastal tidal marshes, via a cluster of seven linked project awards through its Life Sciences division. The project, “Ecosystem on the Edge: How Coastal Marsh Plants and Microbes Thrive in an Oscillating Environment,” is led by Zoe Cardon at the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) in collaboration with Jennifer Bowen (Northeastern University), Inke Forbrich (…

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Climate change threatens archaeological heritage of coastal Georgia

A new study published February 28, 2024 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Matthew D. Howland of Wichita State University and Victor D. Thompson of the University of Georgia reports that thousands of historic and archaeological sites in Georgia are at risk from tropical storm surges, a number that will increase with climate change. Due to rising sea level and increasingly severe tropical storms, human-caused climate change poses a…

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Noted and Quoted, February 2024

From lost aviators of World War II to category-6 hurricanes and the vanishing Southern accent, scholarship and expetise of Franklin faculty was courted, quoted, featured and relied upon widely in media across the world.  A few examples, plus some well-publicized profiles and awards, from the month of February: Jordan drone strike has many waiting and wondering on government response – Kevin Jones, associate professor of history, quoted and…

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Franklin faculty awarded both 2023-2024 University Professorships

University of Georgia faculty members Keith Langston and Paula Lemons have been named the 2023-2024 University Professors in recognition of their influential vision and leadership. Congratulations to our colleagues on this recognition for their dedicated service to the university: Langston is a professor and head of the department of linguistics and professor of Germanic and Slavic studies in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences. Lemons is…

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kudos, February 2024

The parade of excellence also known as the Franklin College faculty was on full display during the month of February. National awards of professional distinction and achievement bring honor and pride to the University of Georgia and congratulations from friends, colleagues, students, and alumni. A round up the of the recent announcements: Michelle Momany, professor in the department of plant biology and the Fungal Biology Group, is one of 65 new…

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Presidential Interdisciplinary Seed Grants

Devoted to advancing interdisciplinary research across multiple application areas, ten university-wide projects have been awarded Presidential Interdisciplinary Seed Grants as part of the 2023 cohort. The Franklin College congratulates  faculty involved in the the program's two tracks: For the first time, this year’s program has two tracks: New Frontiers and Cluster Engagement. The New Frontiers track is intended to support early-stage…

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Momany elected to American Academy of Microbiology

University of Georgia faculty member Michelle Momany is one of 65 new fellows elected to the American Academy of Microbiology, Class of 2024. Fellows of the American Academy of Microbiology, the honorific leadership group within the American Society for Microbiology, are elected annually through a highly selective, peer-review process, based on their records of scientific achievement and original contributions that have advanced…

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Paving the way for Partnerships for Essential Minerals

UGA, Georgia Tech, Georgia State University and the Georgia Mining Association kicked off February with the first of what promises to be a long-standing workshop to develop essential, critical mineral resources in Georgia. The Georgia Essential Minerals (GEMs) workshop at UGA featured geology faculty experts and stakeholders from across government and industry: Demand for critical minerals and rare earth elements is rapidly increasing as the…

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Downs named Regents’ Professor

Diana Downs, Distinguished Research Professor in the department of microbiology in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences,  is one of two University of Georgia faculty members named Regents’ Professors for the widespread reach and impact of their scholarship and creative activity.  Regents’ professorships are the highest professorial recognition bestowed by the University System of Georgia Board of Regents. Known as an expert in…

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Noted and Quoted, January 2024

Franklin faculty experts welcomed the New Year with advice, experience, perspective, and new research reported in media around the world. Take a journey with our well-versed and generous colleagues in a sample of January's noted and quoted: Next-gen Starlink dish offers more consistent higher speeds, say early users (John Gibbs) – PC Magazine The changing perceptions of what leadership means to people – Brian Hoffman, professor of psychology,…

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New study describes relationship between weather, chronic pain

The perception of weather-related increases in chronic pain leads many people to plan their activities around forecasts and influences the desire for pain-based weather forecasts, according to a new research study from UGA geography. In a survey, about 70% of respondents said they would alter their behavior based on weather-based pain forecasts: “We’re finding more consistent relationships between weather patterns and pain, so it seems more…
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