Faculty and Staff Grants from May and June 2021

Congratulations to the following faculty and staff members who received grants and awards in May and June 2021.

Yoli Anyon, research professor at the Graduate School of Social Work

• Grant from the State of California (University of California at Los Angeles) for "California Multi-Tiered Systems of Support"
• Project abstract: This project will create an electronic repository of resources in support of equity-oriented and school-wide restorative policies and practices and conduct initial steps toward a systematic review of the extant literature on implementation frameworks, measures and instruments. Each component of the scope of work will focus on reducing exclusionary discipline outcomes and mitigating racial disparities by improving school climate.

Marie Berry, associate professor at the Josef Korbel School of International Studies and director of the Inclusive Global Leadership Initiative (IGLI)

• Grant from the National Science Foundation for "CAREER: Inclusive Global Leadership Initiative"
• Project abstract: We are living in a period of multiple, overlapping crises, including attacks on democracy, catastrophic climate change and rampant inequality. At the same time, we are seeing unprecedented people-led social movements arise across the globe to challenge these worrisome trends. Women have been at the helm of many of these movements. The Inclusive Global Leadership Initiative at the Josef Korbel School of International Studies is an effort to advance research and education aimed at strengthening the work that women-identified activists do at the grassroots to counter authoritarianism, demand climate action, and advance equality and justice.

Gary Bishop, senior research engineer in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics

• Grant from the California Aire Resources Board, subaward from Eastern Research Group, for "Remote Sensing Measurements of Light-Duty Vehicle Emissions at Multiple California Locations"
• Project abstract: The University of Denver is subcontracting with Eastern Research Group to identify two new sampling locations in one of eight California cities for remotely measuring vehicle emissions at each of these sites. The results of the sampling campaigns will be delivered to Eastern Research Group for analysis and reporting to the California Air Resources Board.

Daniel Brisson, professor at the Graduate School of Social Work and executive director of the Burnes Center on Poverty and Homelessness, and Phuong Phan, program and community partnerships director of the Bridge Project at the Graduate School of Social Work

• Grant from the Colorado Department of Human Services for "Your Family, Your Neighborhood/Tony Grampsas Youth Services Program"
• Project abstract: This project will fund the delivery of the Your Family, Your Neighborhood (YFYN) intervention. YFYN is a 12-week dual generation, manualized intervention for families with children between 7-12 years old living in subsidized housing communities. The YFYN curriculum supports families as they build relationships within their family, with their children's school and in their neighborhood.

Ashley Brock-Baca and Laricia Longworth-Reed, senior research associates at the Butler Institute for Families at the Graduate School of Social Work

• Grant from the Colorado Department of Human Services for "Environmental Scan of Colorado's ECMHC Coursework and Professional Development Opportunities"
• Project abstract: Butler will engage Early Childhood Mental Health (ECMH) stakeholders in key informant interviews, focus groups and targeted workgroups to identify local, state and nationally available and appropriate training and professional development opportunities for ECMHC professionals as well as current training gaps that impact Colorado's pool of qualified and competent ECMHC workforce.

Elysia Clemens, deputy director and chief operating officer of the Colorado Evaluation and Action Lab

• Grant from the Office of the Child's Representative for "Designing a Rigorous Evaluation of the Use of Case Consultants in Representation of Children in D&N and JD Cases"
• Project abstract: The Colorado Lab will develop a rigorous evaluation plan aimed at understanding the impact of state-contracted case consultants on dependency and neglect (D&N) and juvenile delinquency (JD) case outcomes and youth empowerment.

• Grant from the Colorado Department of Human Services for "Crossover Youth"
• Project abstract: Trials do not indicate the type of court case — dependency and neglect, delinquency case or both — that is associated with placement in out-of-home care. Connecting information across the child welfare and court systems will help meet federal reporting requirements and inform policies and practices aimed at serving crossover youth. The Linked Information Network of Colorado has established the master data sharing agreements with CDHS and State Court Administrator's Office necessary to connect and anonymize the child welfare and court data to address this problem.

Anna de Guzman, senior research associate, Shauna Rienks, research associate professor, and Ashley Brock-Baca, senior research associate at the Butler Institute for Families at the Graduate School of Social Work

• Grant from Fostering Hope for "Preliminary Evaluation of the Fostering Hope Program for Foster Families and Youth"
• Project abstract: Butler proposes to partner with Fostering Hope Foundation to evaluate the success of their program and services to ensure stable, enduring, and enriching relationships with the foster children and families they serve. The proposed project will offer objective third-party evaluation of FHF's existing data.

Tamra Pearson d'Estrée, associate professor at the Josef Korbel School of International Studies and director of the Conflict Resolution Institute

• Grant from the Austrian Study Center for Peace and Conflict Resolution for "Kelman Book Project"
• Project abstract: This project will review existing conference transcripts and proceedings, correspondence with potential contributing authors, selection of contributing authors, correspondence and editing of contributing author chapters, coordination and execution of peer review, coordination and execution of working conference in Schlaining to convene contributing authors, continuing editing and refinement of book manuscript, final edits, indexing and submission, proofreading and distribution.

Laurel Eckhouse, assistant professor in the Department of Political Science at the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences

• Grant from the Russell Sage Foundation for "Registering Returning Citizens to Vote"
• Project abstract: Millions of people in the U.S. are eligible to vote despite past felony convictions, but their voter participation rates are extremely low. Efforts to register and mobilize this population have foundered due to datra limitations. We use administrative data to find contact information for people with past convictions, contact a random subsample with registration help, then track their registration and voting behavior.

Courtney Everson, senior researcher and project director at the Colorado Evaluation and Action Lab

• Grant from the Colorado Department of Human Services for "PDG Case Study Evaluation"
• Project abstract: In early 2019, the Office of Early Childhood at Colorado Department of Human Services began an innovative pilot to connect home visiting agencies with local home child care providers. The pilot included five nonprofit agencies who delivered the Parents as Teacher and/or Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters curriculum trainings to home child care providers in their local area. Initial data collected as part of the pilot indicated promising potential. This project will conduct a case study on the initial pilot.

Xin Fan, assistant professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics

• Grant from the National Science Foundation for "Collaborative: Spin Currents and Spin-orbit Torques in Single Layer Magnetic Systems"
• Project abstract: In this collaborative proposal, we will experimentally and theoretically characterize spin torques generated entirely within single magnetic layers and determine their dependence on the order parameter direction. This optical experimental procedure reduces thermal artifacts present in all-electrical experiments and eliminates other torque mechanisms from adjacent layers. We will use first-principles transport calculations in finite systems to obtain quantitative predictions of the boundary torques in each system and semiclassical calculations to develop models useful for interpreting experimental results.

Rebecca Galemba, associate professor at the Josef Korbel School of International Studies and director of the Latin America Center; Matthew Taylor, professor in the Department of Geography and the Environment at the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics; Jesse Acevedo, assistant professor of political science in the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences; and Michelle Moran-Taylor, adjunct faculty in the Department of Geography and the Environment at the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics

• Grant from the DT Institute for "Climate and Migration in Western Guatemala and Western Honduras"
• Project abstract: Through a multidisciplinary approach, this project will examine how increasing climate variability intersects with social, economic and political determinants of mobility to influence rising U.S.-bound migration from Guatemala and Honduras. Both countries are climate change hotspots and under threat of increased desertification, as well as flooding due to hurricanes and tropical storms. Guatemala and Honduras also have some of the highest homicide, corruption and impunity rates in the world. However, there has been less attention to how climate change and insecurity interact in these countries, to regional variations within and between countries in Central America, and to how these dynamics inform the decisions of local populations.

Michele Hanna, associate professor, dean of DEI and accreditation coordinator; Aneesha Sadru Bharwani, assistant dean for field education and community partnerships and associate professor of the practice; Meredith Silverstein, senior research associate at the Butler Institute for Families; Erin Poole, research associate; and Michael Talamantes, clinical associate professor, at the Graduate School of Social Work

• Grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration for "Behavioral Health Workforce Education and Training (BHWET) Program"
• Project abstract: The Collaborative Learning and Innovative Models of Behavior Health at the University of Denver (CLIMB@DU) will, over the four-year grant period, provide stipends to a minimum of 116 MSW students who complete their concentration year internship in agencies that include interdisciplinary training of two or more health disciplines using a team-based care approach to provide quality behavioral health services. The purpose of the CLIMB@DU initiative is to build the behavioral health workforce in Colorado's rural and medically underserved areas by supporting the professional development of social work students, faculty and field supervisors.

Pilyoung Kim, associate professor in the Department of Psychology at the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences

• Grant from the National Science Foundation for "EAGER: Collaborative Reserach: SaTC: EDU: Teach High School Students About Cybersecurity and AI Ethics via Empathy-Driven Hands-On Projects"
• Project abstract: We propose to design and evaluate a radically different approach to integrating cybersecurity and AI ethics education efforts. Our approach aims to drive three paradigm shifts: 1) charting a career pathway for the future workforce by educating high school students, 2) focusing on issues specifically affecting children who lack the knowledge and resources to advocate for their own interests in cybersecurity and AI ethics and 3) taking a step further to also foster empathy among the students so that they can be more motivated to apply that knowledge and skills to make systems secure.

Eliza Kramer, first year PhD student in the clinical child psychology graduate program at the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences

• Grant from the National Science Foundation for "GRFP FY2021"
• Project abstract: The purpose of the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) is to help ensure the vitality and diversity of the scientific and engineering workforce of the United States. The program recognizes and supports outstanding graduate students who are pursuing full-time research-based master's and doctoral degrees in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) or in STEM education.

Erich Kushner, assistant professor, Cedric Asensio, associate professor, and Schuyler Van Engelenberg, in the Department of Biological Sciences at the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics

• Grant from the National Institutes of Health for "Mechanisms of Delta-like 4 Endocytosis and Notch Activation During Blood Vessel Development"
• Project abstract: This research will focus on two largely uncharacterized proteins that, the team believes, are central to force-generating DLL4 endocytosis, Eps15 homology domain binding protein 1 (EHBP1) and EH domain containing protein 2 (EHD2). The broad hypothesis is that EHBP1 anchors to EHD2 to f-actin filaments, while EHD2 assists in caveolin-mediatec internatlization of DLL4 bound to Notch. They will utilize zebrafish genetics and imaging in combination with in vitro biochemistry, 3D sprouting, and high-resolution microscopy to mechnistically characterize how EHBP1 and EHD2 orchestrates DLL4 endocytosis and to provide a comprehensive training environment for undergraduate scholars.

Erika Manczak, assistant professor, and Elysia Davis, professor and director of the Neurodevelopmental Research Program, in the Department of Psychology at the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences

• Grant from the National Institutes of Health for "Inflammatory trajectories across pregnancy: Investigating novel markers of risk for postpartum depression"
• Project abstract: This project will consider a prospective, longitudinal model of key inflammatory trajectories across pregnancy as predictors of postpartum depression (PPD), overcoming past roadblocks to advance an understanding of biological processes that contribute to depressive symptoms in the postpartum period. Findings from this work will inform subsequent investigations into the precise mechanisms that confer this risk, with the potential to reduce the significant public health burden of postpartum depression by uncovering new factors to target in therapeutic interventions.

Jesse Owen, professor in the Department of Counseling Psychology at the Morgridge College of Education

• Grant from SonderMind Inc. for "Sponsored Research Agreement"
• Project abstract: This project will assist in the development, execution and reporting on SonderMind's research and evaluation needs through data, best practices and innovation.

Galena Rhoades, research associate professor in the Department of Psychology at the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences 

• Grant from the Administration for Children and Families for "Strengthening the Implementation of Marriage and Relationship Programs Involvement"
• Project abstract: This contract will support engaging with the Strengthening the Implementation of Marriage and Relationship Programs (SIMR) project led by Mathematica. The purpose of this project is to collaborate with Rhoades and her team that provides relationship education to teens and young adults in the community to improve clients' engagement in virtual services.

Shauna Rienks, research associate professor at the Butler Institute for Families, and Jenn Bellamy, professor and associate dean for research and faculty development at the Graduate School of Social Work

• Grant from the Administration for Children and Families ACF, subaward from the Colorado Department of Human Services, for "Fatherhood FIRE"
• Project abstract: Butler will conduct a cross-site program evaluation of the effectiveness of a suite of services to be offered by community programs to fathers to improve parenting, financial well-being and co-parenting relationships. Butler will also facilitate a learning community across sites and evaluate value of that shared learning.

Samantha Scott, PhD clinical psychology student at the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences

• Grant from the National Science Foundation for "GRFP FY2021"
• Project abstract: The purpose of the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) is to help ensure the vitality and diversity of the scientific and engineering workforce of the United States. The program recognizes and supports outstanding graduate students who are pursuing full-time research-based master's and doctoral degrees in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) or in STEM education.

Timothy Sisk, professor, at the Josef Korbel School for International Studies

• Grant from the DT Institute for "Institute for Comparative and Regional Studies"
• Project abstract: This grant supports the operational costs of the Institute for Comparative and Regional Studies.

Casey Stockstill, assistant professor of sociology and criminology at the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences

• Grant from the Institute for Citizens and Scholars for "2021 Career Enhancement Fellowship"
• Project abstract: The Career Enhancement Fellowship Program seeks to increase the presence of minority junior faculty members and other faculty members committed to eradicating racial disparities in core fields in the arts and humanities. The fellowship, funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, supports the Mellon Foundation's mission to strengthen, promote, and, where necessary, defend the contributions of the humanities and the arts to human flourishing and to the well-being of diverse and democratic societies.

• Grant from the Russell Sage Foundation for "Teaching in Segregated Preschools: Class Inequality and Teachers' Time Use"
• Project abstract: This project will inform quantitative research on how preschools can advance social mobility and on preschool teachers' experiences as workers. It will advance our understanding of the unexpected ways in which classroom environments might fall short for poor children. This research will also allow us to understand how classroom contexts shape teachers' experiences as workers and how they manage the classroom environment.

Zhihui Zhu, assistant professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the Ritchie School of Engineering and Computer Science

• Grant from the National Science Foundation for "Collaborative Research: CIF: Medium: Structured Inference and Adaptive Measurement Design in Indirect Sensing Systems"
• Project abstract: Pushing the frontiers of what can be measured about the physical world requires going far beyond direct linear measurements. Instead, by design or necessity, many modern sensors acquire only indirect nonlinear or probabilistic observations of some object of interest. In this project, we will focus on three motivating applications that involve such indirect measurements.