FY23 SI-GECS Grant Recipients
The Schiller Institute has awarded 12 grants to faculty members across campus in the second year of Schiller Institute Grants for Exploratory Collaborative Scholarship (SI-GECS) program. The program includes two types of grants: Type 1 grants were awarded up to $15K and Type 2 grants were awarded up to $50K (more information can be found here).
More information on the grant recipients and their projects can be found below:
TYPE 1 SI-GECS Grants
Collaborators:
- Rebecca Lowenhaupt, Educational Leadership Department, Lynch School of Education and Human Development;
- Betty Lai, Counseling, Developmental & Educational Psychology Department, Lynch School of Education and Human Development
Project Abstract: Youth wellbeing is at risk in our country. Building on Phase I of this project (which was supported by the Schiller Institute in 2021-2022), this Phase II study will examine how public schools and community organizations come together to develop a citywide Mental Health Campaign to promote youth wellbeing in the aftermath of a global pandemic. Our focus is the town of Chelsea, MA. Chelsea was at the epicenter of the pandemic with some of the highest rates of illness and death, financial hardships, and a halt to in-person school and additional services that lasted over a year.
Phase II of our mixed methods study leverages a unique community endeavor to address mental health concerns through the Chelsea Children’s Cabinet. The Cabinet includes 30 local community leaders from the school district, social service and health agencies, government including the city manager and housing authority, and non-profit organizations. As a core partner in this work since its inception (captured in Phase I), our research team will focus on these research questions:
- How do stakeholders across roles and institutions understand youth wellbeing in a community context?
- How can we co-design a Mental Health Campaign to address youth wellbeing in context?
- What are the outcomes of engaging in our PDR process for those involved? How does it shape their own perspectives on youth wellbeing in Chelsea?
Collaborators:
- David A. Deese, Political Science Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Dunwei Wang, Chemistry Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences
Project Abstract: We will investigate one of the most expected, central avenues of promising technology to address the urgent demand for net zero economies by 2050--the promise of green hydrogen. It is a key emerging technological pathway to reaching net zero economies by 2050, especially for large industrial energy consumers and the transportation sector. Furthermore, this project aims to assess the overall societal implications of this large-scale energy storage infrastructure program or approach, which would be a crucial step in addressing the climate crisis.
Collaborators will jointly identify the key social, economic, and political barriers and risks associated with economy-wide green hydrogen infrastructure built upon the most promising techniques and projects to date. Together, they will contrast the risks and implications in countries already using hydrogen relatively widely, as opposed to those without this experience. Finally, they will integrate related research by BC colleagues (and Deese’s teaching) on justice and the energy transition to indicate key ways in which energy and climate justice may be aggravated or advanced by green hydrogen economies.
Collaborators:
- Gregory Fried, Philosophy Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- David Goodman, Counseling, Developmental & Educational Psychology Department, Lynch School of Education and Human Development;
- Katie Harster, Philosophy Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Chris Higgins, Teaching, Curriculum, and Society Department, Lynch School of Education and Human Development;
- Micah Lott, Philosophy Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Katie McAuliffe, Psychology and Neuroscience Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Marina McCoy, Philosophy Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Eileen Sweeney, Philosophy Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences Graduate Student Research Associate:
- Michaila Peters, PhD Student, Philosophy
Project Abstract: The Virtue Ethics Working Group will investigate the role of the virtues in students’ well-being, whole-person pedagogy, and civic engagement. Our goal is to develop and implement a longitudinal study to measure, analyze, and implement how the deliberate cultivation of virtuous habits, in conjunction with relevant study and classroom education, can develop moral, intellectual, and civic virtues among students, with applications to societal health beyond higher education. In these polarized times, the health of the body politic itself is at risk, with eroding public trust and epidemics of loneliness, drug abuse, and violence, including increased mental health diagnoses amongst students and a failure of public discourse to address public health threats and climate change. As scholars in education, psychology, and philosophy, the Working Group will examine classical and contemporary virtue ethics in philosophy in the light of recent work in moral psychology, neuropsychology of decision-making, and transformative pedagogy, all with the goal of designing, for further funding, a longitudinal study to test our emerging hypotheses. This study would investigate whether and how developing habits of virtue in the context of coursework at a university devoted to whole-person pedagogy can both increase student well-being and contribute to social justice.
Collaborators:
- Mike Barnett, Teaching, Curriculum, & Society Department, Lynch School of Education and Human Development;
- Ethan Baxter, Earth and Environmental Sciences Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Sara Bernard-Hoverstad, Doctoral Candidate, Theological Ethics, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Lisa Cahill, Theology Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- David Deese, Political Science Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Julia DeVoy, Counseling, Developmental, and Educational Psychology Department, Lynch School of Education and Human Development;
- Brian Gareau, Sociology Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Tara Pisani Gareau, Earth and Environmental Sciences Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- David Goodman, Lynch School of Education and Human Development;
- Mary Ann Hinsdale, Theology Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Mo Jones-Jang, Communications Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Andrew Jorgenson, Sociology Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Praveen Kumar, School of Social Work;
- Phil Landrigan, Biology Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Neil McCullagh, Carroll School of Management;
- Hilary Palevsky, Earth and Environmental Sciences Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Prasannan Parthasarathi, History Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Zygmunt Plater, Law School;Stephen Pope, Theology Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Paul Sarkis, Doctoral Candidate, Economics, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Juliet Schor, Sociology Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Jeremy Shakun, Earth and Environmental Sciences Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Brian Smith, Teaching, Curriculum, and Society Department, Lynch School of Education and Human Development;
- Noah Snyder, Earth and Environmental Sciences Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Richard Sweeney, Economics Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Andrea Vicini, Theology Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Sandra Waddock, Carroll School of Management;
- Mary Walsh, Counseling, Developmental & Educational Psychology, Lynch School of Education and Human Development;
- David Wirth, Law School;
- Gautam Yadama, School of Social Work;
Project Abstract: A very broad-based group of over 30 BC faculty and PhD students representing each professional school and many A&S departments will build out and institutionalize the successful 2021-2022 BC Faculty Climate Research Seminar, which highlights climate change, and cognate energy and environmental issues. Funding covers monthly research presentations by BC faculty and PhD students and four outside speakers, and a graduate student assistant. Working papers are distributed in advance of each presentation.
In extending the Seminar, we also emphasize new multidisciplinary collaborative research initiatives and presentations. In addition, the seminar is designed for exchanging ideas and insights from our ongoing research projects, including those by our PhD students, to develop proposals for external funding (first, to institutionalize the Seminar, but also spin off collaborative research projects). In this way, we will work with Schiller to institutionalize the Seminar for future years, for example as our faculty collaborated intensively with Jim West to prepare a first-class proposal to the US Department of State and to support BC’s delegation to the UN COP in Glasgow. Our core-term objective is to build the foundation for a permanent, multidisciplinary faulty climate research program at Boston College supported by Schiller and/or external grant funding.
Collaborators:
- Sergio A. Alvarez, Computer Science Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences
- Corrine Y. Jurgens, Connell School of Nursing
- Christopher S. Lee, Connell School of Nursing
- Marvin A Konstam (Tufts Medical Center)
Project Abstract: Hospitalization for symptom management among patients with heart failure is frequent, costly and negatively affects quality of life. Currently, heart failure related costs in the U.S. are estimated at nearly $31 billion annually and expected to rise to $70 billion by 2030. Interventions aimed at reducing readmission in the short term have been largely ineffective indicating the need to characterize readmission risk better. Further, there is a critical need to identify those at highest risk for poor outcomes. We will address this need by combining state-of-the-art wearable sensors and machine learning algorithms for physiological data analysis with the latest clinical understanding in the field. We will collect data on heart rate variability, physical activity and bio-behavioral factors in relation to clinical events among 10 adults with heart failure. Improved understanding of factors associated with heart failure admission risk will inform development of interventions to avert unplanned urgent and emergent care. Accurate risk stratification also will determine who needs more frequent clinical oversight versus targeting interventions to improve self-care skills supporting judicious use of healthcare resources.
TYPE 2 SI-GECS Grants
Collaborators:
- Babak Momeni, Biology Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences
- Renato Mirollo, Mathematics Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences
Project Abstract: Our health is tightly linked to our microbiota—microbes that live in/on our body. Our microbiota regulates our immune response and offers protection against disease-causing pathogens. A disruptive change in microbiota, possibly caused by the use of antibiotics, can lead to diseases such as gut inflammation or infections. Given that we exchange microbes with the environment or other individuals around us, we ask how this exchange impacts our microbiota’s capability to maintain a healthy state and fend off pathogens. In an interdisciplinary collaboration, we combine the analysis of dynamical systems (Dr. Renato Mirollo, Math) with experiments based on nasal microbiota (Dr. Babak Momeni, Biology) to investigate coupled microbiota (Co-µB) that are formed by exchange between two microbiota. Our working hypothesis is that Co-µBs are more robust at intermediate rates of exchange, compared to the original uncoupled microbiota. To test this, we mathematically represent microbiota as dynamical systems and explore conditions under which Co-µB exhibit improved robustness. We will then use in-vitro nasal microbiota to experimentally validate our findings. Collectively, our research will generate new insights into how important properties of microbiota are impacted when individuals are in extended contact and their microbiota are coupled. This has valuable implications in our efforts to maintain healthy microbiota.
Collaborators:
- Bryan Ranger, Engineering Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Donglai Wei, Computer Science Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Jinhee Park, Connell School of Nursing
Project Abstract: Human body composition measurements such as fat and fat-free mass play a critical role in qualifying health and nutritional status, the impact of disease, and change due to nutritional, therapeutic, or behavioral intervention. However, these measures are difficult to obtain, and require expensive equipment as well as specialized facilities and staff. Given the rise of low-cost mobile ultrasound systems, and ultrasound’s proven ability to assess measures of adipose tissue and skeletal muscle, our team will develop a novel ultrasound tool that can guide a user to collect high quality data and automatically determine body composition measures for nutritional evaluation. Through support from the Schiller Institute, we are launching a pilot study with clinical collaborators at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital (Boston, MA) and Jimma University (Jimma, Ethiopia). The pilot study will consist of: (1) clinical data collection, (2) developing machine learning models for image analysis and prediction, and (3) human-centered design for frontline healthcare workers. This project involves research collaboration across engineering, nursing, and computer science.
Collaborators:
- Theresa Betancourt, Research Program on Children and Adversity Department, School of Social Work;
- Nam Wook Kim, Computer Science Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Avneet Hira, Engineering Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Science;
Project Abstract: As of Spring 2022, there are an estimated 65,000 Afghan evacuees who have been evacuated to the United States and many more are expected to arrive. Resettling refugee populations are characterized by a range of health disparities, most notably mental health disparities given high trauma exposure.- Family Strengthening Intervention for Refugees (FSI-R) is an evidence-based program to promote mental health in refugee communities that was develop for delivery “by refugees for refugees.” To respond to the high volume and heightened service needs of resettling Afghan populations in the U.S., our team proposes to adapt a digital tool to facilitate home visitor’s delivery of FSI-R in Afghan refugee communities at scale across the U.S. Our project has three aims: 1.) To work with faculty, students, and staff at BCSSW, Computer Science, and Engineering to adapt a digital FSI-R application to the Afghan culture, technical literacy, and context of Afghan families using Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) and human-centered design to co-develop the application with Afghan refugees in local communities in New England; 2.) Pilot-test the prototype application among a sample of Afghan trained home visitors working with refugee families to assess ownership, feasibility, acceptability, and initial impact of the intervention in improving family functioning and promoting child mental health and well-being; and 3.) Develop best practices for adaptation of mHealth tools across cultural contexts using human-centered design techniques. The pilot-tested application will help to respond to the urgent need for community mental health services among the Afghan refugee population by supporting rapid scale-up of FSI-R. The prototype will be the first step toward seeking additional funding to improve the quality of the application with visually sophisticated video and audio to create a more engaging user experience for better service delivery.
Collaborators:
- Fazel Tafti, Physics Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- David Broido, Physics Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Siddhartan Govindasamy, Engineering Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences
Project Abstract: More than 60% of the energy produced in the US, including renewable sources such as solar cells, is wasted as heat. Therefore, recycling the waste heat into a useable form is becoming an area of critical global interest. In recent years, phononics - a field focused on controlling the heat for applications - has emerged as a new technology. Phonons are the quanta of thermal energy that propagate under a temperature difference. There are several theoretical proposals for phononic devices such as thermal diodes, transistors, and logic gates. However, a fundamental challenge is controlling the flow of heat in such devices using a property known as the thermal Hall effect, which is negligible in most materials, because phonons are chargeless and do not respond to external electromagnetic fields. The goal of this SIGECS proposal is to identify and characterize materials with large thermal Hall effect for next-generation phononic applications. The project will deliver a unique instrumentation for high throughput characterization of candidate materials and will generate thermal Hall data for a steady stream of publications and presentations. It will facilitate joint grant applications between physics and engineering departments, and will become an advanced technological platform for training the future workforce.
Collaborators:
- Julia Whitcavitch-DeVoy, Associate Dean of Undergraduate Students and Programs, Lynch School of Education and Human Development;
- Brian Smith, Teaching, Curriculum, and Society Department, Lynch School of Education and Human Development;
- Mark Cooper, Art, Art History, and Film Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- David A. Deese, Political Science Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Sunand Bhattacharya, Provost’s Office;
- Martin Scanlan, Educational Leadership and Higher Education, Lynch School of Education and Human Development
Project Abstract: Textile pollution is an issue of environmental racism that disproportionately affects countries in the Global South. Despite the scale of the problem (more than 34 billion pounds of textile waste generated annually in the U.S.), awareness of textile waste as a public health issue remains low. More importantly, for those who are educated about this issue, it remains unclear how individuals and in particular youth can come together to contribute to meaningful political and community actions that will address the environmental racism of textile pollution and lead to local and systemic changes. Video games and virtual reality have previously been used to educate and engage youth on issues of social and environmental justice. This led our team to ask: how can we leverage video game technology to engage youth on the topics of environmental racism and textile pollution and spur political and community action? We will use design thinking processes to build the game and use policy analysis and stakeholder interviews to develop an innovative political engagement tool. Anticipated scholarly deliverables include symposia on structural solutions to textile pollution, policy briefs, and a scientific paper leveraging data from our team’s prior research to analyze environmental savings of various policies.
Collaborators:
- Maggi Price, Affirm Lab and Associate Professor, School of Social Work;
- Paul Poteat, Counseling, Development, and Education Psychology Department, Lynch School of Education and Human Development
Project Abstract: Transgender adolescents (whose gender identity differs from their birth-assigned sex) are at risk for worse educational outcomes and mental health due to institutional and interpersonal discrimination experienced in school. Gender-affirming practices in schools, which validate transgender students’ gender identities and supportively address their experiences (e.g., using affirmed name and pronouns), have been shown to enhance transgender students' safety and wellbeing. However, training programs for school staff in these practices are scarce. To address this need, we are developing a training program for school staff in gender-affirming practices. The program will be online so that it can be readily adapted to diverse school contexts and easily scalable. The larger project includes three phases (see figure). With support from the Schiller Institute, we will complete Phase 2. Specifically, our research team (Dr. Price and The Affirm Lab and Dr. Paul Poteat) will continue collaborating with key community members (transgender students and high school teachers) to build and refine the training program using two forms of “usability testing” (detailed in figure) to create a useful and effective program tailored to meet the needs of school staff. At the end of phase 2, we will have a training program that is ready for future pilot testing (phase 3).
Collaborators:
- Qiong Ma, Physics Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences;
- Dunwei Wang, Chemistry Department, Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences
Project Abstract: The rich reserves of water, carbon dioxide, and nitrogen on earth can be converted into clean and sustainable fuels via electrochemical processes that are assisted by suitable electrocatalysts. Identifying efficient and low-cost electrocatalysts plays a critical role in clean energy conversion. It has been widely recognized that Pt is the best-performing catalyst for major electrochemical processes such as hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). However, the scarcity and high cost of Pt limited its widespread technological use, which has motivated a search for earth-abundant catalysts that can potentially replace Pt.
Moiré quantum materials are artificially-created atomic structures that do not exist in nature. These materials are produced by mechanically assembling two periodic atomic membranes at a twist angle. Such twisting leads to new periodic structures with a much-enlarged moiré unit cell of 10 nm, compared to the natural atomic lattice unit of only a few Angstroms. Most importantly, within each moiré cell, the spatial variation of stacking configuration produces a corresponding variation of Gibbs free energy for hydrogen absorption in different local regions. Such variation enables the self-adaptive optimization of chemisorption property for a wide range of reaction environments. Through the physics-chemistry synergy, we aim to create a wide range of these new materials with the predicted structures and perform electrochemical measurements to investigate their properties. We anticipate that the one year’s collaboration could catalyze many more research activities and partnerships between physics and chemistry along the direction of quantum material catalysis.