SEPTEMBER 8, 2022 — Closing out this fiscal year, the UTSA Office for Research, Economic Development, and Knowledge Enterprise (REDKE) awarded 76 faculty members with over $85,000 in research-related travel awards. Collectively, UTSA researchers logged over 130,000 miles, covering 22 states and nine countries including Guatemala, France, Mexico, Norway, Slovenia, Spain, Thailand, Turkey and Italy.

Complementing similar programs from UTSA Academic Affairs and the colleges, REDKE launched this new travel support program in 2021-22 to help faculty defray the costs associated with their research activities. Travel expenses are often not covered by extramural funding, leaving a gap in faculty member’s ability to travel for scholarly engagements. Dissemination of their research and networking with peers are crucial for professional development. These activities also enhance the institution’s research portfolio and reputation.

“Coming out of the pandemic, where travel was suddenly halted, it was a priority to kickstart faculty research once again,” said Jaclyn Shaw, interim vice president for REDKE. “Some international projects have been ongoing for years, supporting the local economies of certain regions, while new projects couldn’t wait any longer. While the majority of the funds support scholarly research, some of the funds were used to develop critical research relationships with peer institutions.”

More than 60% of the overall funds were given to faculty in the arts and social sciences. While the majority of the funds were used by faculty to present research findings at national and international conferences and other scholarly meetings, a small number were used to engage in independent or collaborative research projects. Some met with program officers at granting agencies to pursue additional funding and professional development opportunities. A few were used to support musical performances and one art installation. UTSA faculty subject matter experts were also invited to speak at the DC-based AI & Quantum conference co-hosted by the MATRIX AI Consortium, BigBear.ai, and the Maryland Innovation & Security Institute.

The research travel awarded for FY22 are:

Ali Atabey History, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Research focuses on seventeenth-century Ottoman Istanbul with a specific emphasis on cross-religious interactions between Muslims, Christians, and Jews. Research trip to Istanbul, Turkey 

Ibukun Awolusi Construction Science, Margie and Bill Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design Collaborative Research: Improving Students’ Computational Thinking Skills in Construction Engineering and Management 2022 IUSE Summit; Washington, DC

Ibukun Awolusi Construction Science, Margie and Bill Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design Worker Safety and Health Activity Monitoring in Construction using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles and Deep Learning ASCE Construction Institute (CI) and Construction Research Council (CRC) Joint Conference 2022; Arlington, VA

Thad Bartlett Anthropology, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Collaborative Research in Thailand: Focuses on examining the relationship between forest resources and small ape (or gibbon) population density  King Mungkut’s University of Technology Thonburi (KMUTT); Bangkok, Thailand

Rebecca Bria Anthropology, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Temples in Process, not Periods: Reevaluating Narratives of Early Community Practice and Interaction Across North-Central Peru Society for American Archaeology; Chicago, IL 

James Bray Psychology, College for Health, Community and Policy Pregnant and Postpartum Women with Substance Abuse Problems: The PAMPERRS Program European Congress of Psychology; Ljubljana, Slovenia

Kathryn M. Brown Anthropology, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Early Maya Communities, Integration, and Creation of Sacred Landscapes: A View from the Mopan Valley, Belize Annual Meeting of the Society for American Archaeology; Chicago, IL

Krystel Castillo Mechanical Engineering, Margie and Bill Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design Stochastic Modeling for Energy Efficient Supply Chain Networks  Seminar at Anahuac Mayab; Merida, Mexico

Andrey Chabanov Physics & Astronomy, College of Sciences Optical Reflective Limiter Collaborative research/measurements at the EU Center of Nonlinear Spectroscopy  Florence, Italy

Oswaldo Zapata Correa Music, College of Liberal and Fine Arts South American Music for Trumpet & Piano Lecture Recital Charlotte, NC

Tracy Cowden Music, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Cincinnati Conservatory Faculty Concert Cincinnati, OH

Stacey Davis Music, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Perception and Performance of Contrapuntal Monophony in Britten Cello Suite Society for Music Analysis Conference; Newcastle, England

Saugata Datta Geological Sciences, College of Sciences Effect of pH and organic matter on soil phosphate dynamics in a tall grass Prairie Ecosystem  American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting; New Orleans, LA

Bridget Drinka English, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Excavating Language: Linguistic Connections across Latin, Greek, and Modern European Languages Urbino, Italy

Jose Morales Escalante Mathematics, College of Sciences Panel: Convergence of Machine Learning and Quantum Computing AI/Quantum Symposium; Baltimore, MD

Kathleen Ewoldt Interdisciplinary Learning and Teaching, College of Education and Human Development How Can High School Students with Disabilities be Enticed to Pursue Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) Careers in a Virtual Environment? GlobalMindED conference; Denver, CO

Jorge Felipe-Gonzalez History, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Cuban Slave Trade American Historical Association, Annual Meeting; New Orleans, LA

Bryan Gervais Political Science & Geography, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Does Political Incivility Polarize? Considering the Role of Intergroup Dynamics Annual Meeting of the Midwest Political Science Association; Chicago, IL

Garry (Buster) Graybill Art & Art History, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Two-person exhibition including a monumental outdoor sculpture R.MUTT in NYC; New York City, NY

Teja Guda Biomedical Engineering, Margie and Bill Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design HGSE Professional Education Harvard Graduate School of Education: Management Development Program; Cambridge, MA 

Jamon Halvaksz Anthropology, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Climate Change and Agriculture along the Upper Bulolo Association of Social Anthropology in Oceania; Portland, OR

David Han Management Science & Statistics, Carlos Alvarez College of Business  A brief review of blockchain technology and its implication on the practice of data science ASA Symposium on Data Science and Statistics; Pittsburgh, PA

Robert Hard Anthropology, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Stable Isotope Analysis of the Early Agriculture Society for American Archaeology; Chicago, IL 

Anne Hardgrove History, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Postcolonialism and Sexuality  World History Association; Bilbao, Spain

John Harrichand Counseling, College for Education and Human Development Mapping Solidarity, Liberation, and Activism: A Critical Autoethnography of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Leaders in Counseling Dear Student, Please be Honest! Well, but Not Too Honest: Psychological Safety and Gatekeeping in Counselor Education Association for Counselor Education and Supervision 2021 Conference; Atlanta, GA

Matthias Hofferberth Political Science & Geography, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Becoming Global Governors. Self-Agentification, Recognition, and Delegation in World Politics Annual International Studies Association Meeting; Nashville, TN

R. Lyle Hood Mechanical Engineering, College of Sciences Session Chair for two sessions and oversee five student presenters Summer Biomechanics, Bioengineering and BioTransport Conference; Chesapeake Bay, VA

Jie Huang Civil and Environmental Engineering, Margie and Bill Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design Electro-Osmosis Dewatering and Consolidation: G-I China Scan Tour Overview GeoCongress 2022; Charlotte, NC

Sue Hum English, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Advocating For Yet Inadvertently Circumscribing Change: Yellow Peril Rhetoric in Arnold Genthe’s Sympathetic Photographs of the Chinese in Old San Francisco in the late 1890s Rhetoric Society of America; Baltimore, MD 

Estrada Interiano-Shiverdecker Counseling, College for Education and Human Development Foreign-born Counselor Educators’ Profile, Strengths and Challenges Association for Counselor Education and Supervision Conference; Atlanta, GA

Murtuza Jadliwala Computer Science, College of Sciences Panel: AI Ecosystem for the Edge AI & Quantum Symposium; Baltimore, MD

Murtuza Jadliwala Computer Science, College of Sciences Background Buster: Peeking through Virtual Backgrounds in Online Video Calls 52nd Annual IEEE/IFIP International Conference on Dependable Systems and Networks (DSN'22); Baltimore, MD

Yufang Jin Electrical and Computer Engineering, Margie and Bill Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design American Society of Engineering Education 2022 Annual Conference; Minneapolis, MN

Gerald Juhnke Counseling, College for Education and Human Development Teaching Counseling Students to Conduct Suicide Risk Assessments: Meeting the Needs of Your Students in a Post-Pandemic World Association for Counselor Education and Supervision; Atlanta, GA

Seok Kang Communications, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Research Presentation: The Influence of Eudaimonic YouTube Videos: Exposure, Involvement, Empathy, Self-Compassion, Depression, and Happiness International Communication Association; Paris, France

Vikram Kapoor Civil and Environmental Engineering, Margie and Bill Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design Fecal Pollution Source Characterization in Environmental Waters of the Edwards Aquifer WEFTEC 2021; Chicago, IL

Kasandra Keeling Music, College of Liberal and Fine Arts South American Music for Trumpet and Piano Lecture Recital Greensboro and Charlotte, NC 

Md Shamsad Khan Communications, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Critical Health Communication Methodologies: Centering Power and Politics in Health Communication National Communication Association (NCA) Conference 2021; Seattle, WA

Kimberly Kline Communication, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Critical Health Communication Methodologies: Centering Power and Politics in Health Communication National Communication Association; Seattle, WA

Catherine Komisaruk History, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Research in Guatemala City (in the Archivo General de Centro America) Research in government archives; Guatemala City, Guatemala

Andrew Konove History, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Archival research in Making Change: Money, Trust, and Sovereignty in Mexico, 1750-1850. Archivo General de la Nación and the Archivo Histórico de la Ciudad de México; Mexico City, Mexico

Sandeep Langar  Civil and Environmental Engineering, Margie and Bill Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design Online platform to enhance research and funding collaboration among faculty associated with the ASC across the U.S. and Europe (developed in collaboration with construction company Procore and faculty from Colorado State University) 58th Annual Associated Schools of Construction International Conference; Atlanta, GA

Chad Mahood Communications, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Pro and Anti-Gun Control Frames Depicting Mass Shootings: Impact on Fear of Victimization National Communication Association; Seattle, WA 

Antonio Martinez Molina Architecture, Margie and Bill Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design The Impact of Efficient Natural Ventilation on the Indoor Environmental Air Quality: The Case of a Social Housing in Turkey ARCC-EAAE 2022 International Conference; Miami, FL

Ritu Mathur Political Science & Geography, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Cyber Racialism & Cyber Nationalism in the Politics of Cyber Arms Control International Studies Association; Nashville, TN

James McDonald Communication, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Queering CCO Scholarship: Examining Communication as Constitutive of (Hetero)normative Organizations and Organizing Queering Organizational Communication Research: Current Trends and Future Directions National Communication Association; Seattle, WA

Catherine Nolan-Ferrell History, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Migrants or Refugees? Violence and Forced Migration in Southern Mexico and Guatemala, 1950-2000 CIRMA: Centro de Investigaciones Regionales de Mesoamerica; Antigua, Guatemala

Kristen Pellegrino Music, College of Liberal and Fine Arts To Teach or Not to Teach? The Impact of COVID-19 on Music Teachers’ Career Decisions 2022 AERA Annual Meeting; San Diego, CA

Megan Piel Social Work, College for Health, Community and Policy Fostering Educational Success for Foster Care Alumni: Consistency of Needs and Services Society for Social Work and Research Annual Conference; Washington, DC

Annette Portillo English, College of Liberal and Fine Arts A Testimonio on Healing Through Decolonizing Pedagogies  Mujeres Activas en Letras y Cambio Social (MALCS); Denver/Fort Collins, CO

Priya Prasad Mathematics, College of Sciences Problematizing the Notion of Rights and Responsibilities in Mathematics Teacher Education, and What’s Missing in the Research Literature on Mathematics Teacher Educator Knowledge? Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators; Las Vegas, NV

Jeff Prevost Electrical and Computer Engineering, Margie and Bill Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design AI & Quantum Symposium; Baltimore, MD

Zhuolin Qu Mathematics, College of Sciences Multistage spatial model for informing release of Wolbachia-infected mosquitoes as disease control SIAM Conference on the Life Sciences (LS22); Pittsburgh, PA

Rahul Raghavan Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, College of Sciences Examining the evolution of pathogenicity in Coxiella to identify novel therapeutic targets American Society for Rickettsiology 31st Meeting; Greenville, SC

Jeanne Reesman English, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Mark Twain and God 9th Quadrinneal International Conference on the State of Mark Twain Studies; Elmira, NY

Bonita Sharma Social Work, College for Health, Community and Policy Built, Economic, and Natural Capitals' Influence in Health Decision-Making and Gender-Based Outcomes for Women in Nepal Society for Social Work Research; Washington, DC 

Scott Sherer Art & Art History, College of Liberal and Fine Arts The Enduring Rupture of Claudia Rankine's Citizen: An American Lyric Midwest Art History Society 2022 Annual Conference; Houston, TX

Elizabeth Sooby Physics and Astronomy, College of Sciences Nuclear Family Feud: Workshop on Emotional Intelligence American Nuclear Society Winter Meeting; Washington, DC

Tulio Sulbaran Construction Science, Margie and Bill Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design A Review of Genetic Algorithm as a Decision-Making Optimization Tool in Project Management 58th Annual Associated Schools of Construction International Conference; Atlanta, GA

Robert Sutherland Electrical and Computer Engineering, Margie and Bill Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design Panel: Quantum Computing Today AI & Quantum Symposium; Baltimore, MD

Zhongfeng Tian Bicultural-Bilingual Studies. College of Education and Human Development Infusing Plurilingualism and Translanguaging into Teacher Education: Successes and Challenges TESOL 2022 Convention & English Language Expo; Pittsburgh, PA 

Robert Tokunaga Communications, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Identifying the Mediating Pathways between Pornography Consumption and Condomless Sex International Communication Association; Paris, France

Matthew Troia Integrative Biology, College of Sciences Magnitude-duration relationships of physiological sensitivity and environmental exposure improve climate change vulnerability assessments  Joint Aquatic Sciences Meeting; Grand Rapids, MI

Masataka Umeda Kinesiology, College for Health, Community and Policy Role of Physical Activity in Relationship Between Exercise-Induced Muscle Pain and Fibromyalgia Symptom Severity American College of Sports Medicine Annual Scientific Meeting; San Diego, CA

David Vance English, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Artist in Residence School of the Art Institute of Chicago; Chicago, IL

Juliet Weirsema Art & Art History, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Technical analysis of historic map, Library of Congress Research project with LOC's Research and Testing Division; Washington, DC

Kenneth Walker English, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Rhetoric, ethics, and knowledge coproduction: Engaging with discourses of transdisciplinarity Rhetoric Society of America; Baltimore, MD

Melissa Wallace Modern Languages and Literature, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Invisible researchers: Empowering practicing court interpreters to leverage and co-create scholarly inquiry, and Non-professional interpreting and translation: advancement and subversion 10th Congress of the European Society for Translation Studies; Oslo, Norway

Alan Whittington Earth and Planetary Sciences, College of Sciences Magmatic Plumbing Samples a Smorgasbord: At Least Four Components in Lava Erupted From Fissure 17, Kilauea 2018 American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting; New Orleans, LA 

Ethan Wickman Music, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Performance and Recording of a Major Oratorio American Festival Chorus and Orchestra; Logan, UT

Hongjie Xie Earth and Planetary Sciences, College of Sciences Surface classification of ICESat-2 ATL07 sea ice surface height data in the Ross Sea using machine learning American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting; New Orleans, LA

Fang Xu Chemistry, College of Sciences Selected participant: develop NSF CAREER proposal National Science Foundation Chemistry Early Career Investigator Workshop; Alexandria, VA

Jason Yaeger Anthropology, College of Liberal and Fine Arts Peopling the Mopan Valley Landscape: The Legacy of Wendy Ashmore’s Xunantunich Settlement Survey Annual Meeting of the Society for American Archaeology; Chicago, IL

Francis Yoshimoto Chemistry, College of Sciences Application of Organic Synthesis to Shed New Light on Cytochrome P450 Bile Acid Biochemistry International Conference on Cytochrome P450; Arlington, VA

Xiaowei Zeng Mechanical Engineering, Margie and Bill Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design Computational Modeling and Simulation of Epithelial Wound Healing 19th U.S. National Congress on Theoretical and Applied Mechanics; Austin, TX 

Tianou Zhang Kinesiology, College for Health, Community and Policy Mechanical Engineering, Margie and Bill Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design Benefits of Qigong Mind-body Exercise On Salivary Biomarkers, Physical And Mental Health In Older Adults  American College of Sports Medicine Annual Scientific Meeting; San Diego, CA

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This will be a Question and Answer session for faculty who are interested in the First Year Experience Faculty Mini-Grant. Student Success and Academic Innovation will answer questions regarding the application and expectations of mini-grant participants.

Calling on community ages 14 & up to participate in a 2 part workshop series focused on: Selfcare, healthy solutions & organizing, creativity, and performance, all led by local art activists. This series: Spray the Word culminates on the 3rd day of live performance at the Buena Vista Theater within the UTSA Downtown campus.

Working on your thesis or dissertation, or even a long paper this semester? In this hands-on workshop, learn to use the simple but powerful features of EndNote®, a citation management tool.

Start Hispanic Heritage Month with this cleansing and spiritual event in the Sombrilla. 

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Working on your thesis or dissertation, or even a long paper this semester? Citation managers such as Zotero® can help you store and organize the citations you find during your research.

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