March 2024

Greetings from the Interim Director of Sponsored Research at the University

Sonia Suchday, PhD

I want to thank Provost Franco for the opportunity to be part of the Office of Sponsored Research – and to work with incredible colleagues and professionals who comprise the office. In a few short weeks I have been impressed at the dedication and hard work of colleagues at the Office of Sponsored Research. Despite my lifelong commitment to research and involvement in research throughout my career, it was and is an eye-opener to see the complexity of the back-office operation involved in the process of research.

In my role as Interim Director, I hope to share with you the ability and expertise of the Office of Sponsored Research to aid you in your research journey; and to create an avenue for collaboration and friendship. To elaborate, when I was hired as Chair at the Pace, I was invited to participate in a Chair Workshop through the Faculty Center since there were multiple newly hired chairs that year. During this workshop, I got to know many colleagues in different parts of the University and made some close friends who have been instrumental through their support and sage words of wisdom in helping me learn the job of chair. And even today, they continue to support me and make work fun, even during tough times.

In keeping with this idea, the Office of Sponsored Research is pleased to announce The Research BookCamp!! (We liked the term BookCamp better than BootCamp since it is all about knowledge, scholarship, and creativity to change the world!!)

The Research BookCamp is a series of workshops on the A to Z of the process of research.

We hope the BookCamp will serve as an avenue for sharing our opportunities and successes; and will enable the development of working groups where faculty can get together on a regular basis to brainstorm and support each other as they work on their research activities; and our efforts may even lead to a book – justifying its name!!!

The Office of Sponsored Research seeks to serve the needs of all faculty colleagues by meeting them where they are. If you a researcher at the point of beginning your programmatic research at Pace, either as a new investigator or as an expert developing a new avenue of programmatic research, we will have workshops on Programmatic Research and Developing productive research partnerships across institutional lines. For investigators seeking to identify appropriate funding sources, we have a workshop on Identifying grants.

Although the key aspect of research is your hypotheses/specific aims and methods, the process of research involves many different aspects to it including Institutional Review Boards, and documentary, logistical, and financial management of your grants. We will be scheduling workshops on each of these aspects of the research process. The workshops will be led by a combination of experts outside of Pace as well as experts and senior colleagues from Pace. 

Through these workshops, open to the entire Pace Community – all campuses and schools - we hope to provide an avenue for like-minded colleagues from the entire community to come together to help and support each other; and develop new avenues of collaboration and interdisciplinary work.

As a prelude to this effort, the Office of Sponsored Research prepared a survey which will enable you to let us know about your research needs. The survey data will help us with detailed planning of the workshops. Please complete the survey here.



Please Note – These are tentative titles with room to add additional workshops or change the focus of existing workshops as needed. 

1. Developing Programmatic Research 
2.  Developing productive research partnerships across institutional lines
3. Identifying Grants
4.  Grant Writing Workshop
5. Navigating Grant Submission at Pace
6. Grants on Curriculum Development, Experiential Learning
7. Involving Undergraduates in Research
8. Ethics of Research
9. Protecting Research Participants
10. Outstanding Fellowships
11. Fellowships for Faculty

We invite your participation, beginning with the survey, and look forward to learning about your research journey through the BookCamp.

Help us help you!!

Warm Regards,

Sonia

Rita K. Upmacis, PhD (NYC, Dyson College of Arts and Sciences) is an associate professor in the Department of Chemistry & Physical Sciences. She was awarded the 2023 American Chemical Society (ACS), New York Section’s Outstanding Four-Year Undergraduate College and University Chemistry Teaching Award.

Prof. Upmacis has broad research experience and has 46 publications and 9 patents. One area of research focuses on the role of fatty acids in disease. Since sex-specific analyses are often neglected in biomedical science, certain treatment approaches may be less applicable to females than males. She has investigated sex-dependent differences in potent mediators of vascular function and inflammation, and her recent article appeared in one of the top 11% of Pharmacology journals. In a separate area of research, she synthesizes new metal complexes, and explores the relationship between their structures and potential disease-fighting properties. In her latest publication, she reports the structure of a metal compound known to have anti-inflammatory and anti-convulsant properties.

Prof. Upmacis is also engaged in improving educational practices in chemistry. With Elmer-Rico Mojica, PhD (Chemistry & Physical Sciences, NYC, Dyson College of Arts and Sciences), she co-authored the findings concerning the “Challenges Encountered and Students’ Reactions to Practices Utilized in a General Chemistry Laboratory Course During the COVID-19 Pandemic”. This publication has received almost 16,000 views to date. 

Prof. Upmacis is active with the New York Section of the ACS, where she served as the 2021 Chair and is currently an ACS Councilor. Under her leadership,

Marie Maynard Daly, PhD –the first Black American woman to gain a Ph.D. in chemistry in the U.S— and Columbia University were nominated for a National Historic Chemical Landmark designation.

John Damiao, PhD (Occupational Therapy, College of Health Professions, PLV) is an occupational therapist with a background in automotive repair/mechanical/technical experiences. He has worked clinically in the area of developmental disabilities, pediatrics and assistive technology, which has led to the acquisition of a $1.5M Google sponsored grant for the invention of a power mobility device. Prof. Damiao has also engaged in research focused on wheelchair seating, positioning and mobility to address postural support and pressure injury management. This research has culminated in enhanced understanding of the impact of seat cushion design and materials for pressure redistribution.

Professor Damiao’s research agenda has also focused on promotion of student success, which is influenced by his own academic challenges as a young adult. These studies vary from topics such as the impact of smartphone addiction on academic success to the environmental impact of Covid on national boards exam pass rates for OT students. Most recently, he has published on the topic of assisted communication in the high-ranking American Journal of Occupational Therapy; a first for this journal. This publication highlights the qualitative perspectives on using assisted communication to improve the parent-child relationship.

Prof. Damiao has also published works on research methodology, and served as a co-author and consultant on several publications, posters and presentations for his experience in statistical analysis and scientific writing for colleagues as varying institutions, including Dominican University, New York Institute of Technology, and Touro University.

Author Spotlight

Gina Scutelnicu Todoran, PhD (Public Administration, NYC, Dyson College of Arts and Sciences ) authored the book Managing Gender Inequity in Academia (Routledge: Taylor & Francis). Her book provides a comprehensive guide for faculty members and university administrators about academic career avenues and provides a rigorous analysis and discussion about gender disparities in higher education. 

Each chapter discusses different career avenues in higher ed - tenure and promotion to Associate Professor, promotion to Full Professor, advancement into academic leadership roles and promotion of non-tenure-track faculty. In addition to a gender lens, the book utilizes an intersectional lens of gender with race and ethnicity.

The book includes the views of hundreds of faculty members who teach in public affairs programs (over 600 survey participants and 42 interviewees) whose experiences reflect the tenure and/or promotion practices of 319 institutions of higher learning in the U.S. and are applicable across disciplines.

Professor Scutelnicu Todoran is thankful to Pace University's support for the completion of her book. She received a Book Completion Award and benefited from a half a year sabbatical in the spring 2023.

Author bio: Gina Scutelnicu Todoran is a Professor in the Department of Public Administration at Pace University. She has over 15 years of teaching experience in the areas of research design and data analysis, local government management, intergovernmental relations, urban politics, organization theory, ethics and public service leadership. Her research interests focus on two main areas: 1) social and gender equity in public service and 2) collaborative governance with a focus on specialized entities of government. Prof. Scutelnicu Todoran authored over 30 publications for both academic and practitioner audiences and her work has been published in highly ranked peer-reviewed journals among which are the Journal of Public Management and Social Policy, Public Integrity, Public Administration Quarterly, and Public Administration Review. She serves as an Associate Editor for two key journals in her field. She has a PhD degree in Public Affairs from Florida International University.

Zhan Zhang, PhD (Information Technology, NYC, Seidenberg School of CSIS), along with his collaborators, Zhe He PhD (FSU) and Mia Liza A. Lustria PhD (FSU) were awarded $1,014,336 from AHRQ for their project “LabGenie: A Patient-Engagement Tool to Aid Older Adults' Understanding of Lab Test Results.” There is increasing interest in promoting the use of information and communication technology to engage patients in their own healthcare. Patient portals, for example, can provide patients with secure access to lab test results, doctors’ notes, and medication lists, as well as facilitate communication with healthcare providers. Use of patient-facing tools like portals has been found to improve the overall quality of preventive or follow-up care, improve medication adherence and compliance with treatments, as well as reduce caregiver burden. Patients with the highest healthcare needs, such as older adults with multiple chronic conditions, stand to benefit the most from patient portals. However, multiple factors have been found to hinder older adults’ ability to fully optimize their use of these tools and their ability to retrieve and understand health information provided. Viewing lab test results is one of the most used features of patient portals, but older adult patients with limited health literacy and technology skills encounter the most problems locating and interpreting lab results. In this project, the researchers will employ a user-centered approach to design, develop, and evaluate a patient-facing, AI-powered tool---LabGenie---to improve older adults’ comprehension of lab results, and engagement in managing and acting upon their lab test results. LabGenie will provide visual representations and explanations of lab results and generate information and question prompts tailored and contextualized based on patients’ medical information. The research team will collaborate with Tallahassee Memorial Hospital to integrate LabGenie with their Epic EHR system and conduct field testing.

Julia Eisenberg, PhD  (Management and Management Science, PLV, Lubin School of Business) has co-authored an article, “Second-Class Citizens or Free Agents? Social Construction of Equity Perceptions of Contractors in Global Offshoring Arrangements” in the Journal of International Management 29.6 (Dec. 2023). This study examines the ways in which perceptions of equity are socially constructed among contractors involved in global offshoring arrangements. A comparative case study of two global software organizations involved in offshore outsourcing reveals that global contractors across sites constructed different equity perceptions of similar foreign assignments due to a number of contextual factors. These contextual differences combined to produce social comparison processes that led to the construction of different equity perceptions. Drawing on a perceptual model of equity theory, we find that global contractors from one case felt stigmatized and treated inequitably as “second-class citizens”, while those from the other case felt empowered as “free agents.” Our findings contribute a context-sensitive explanation for the construction of different equity perceptions in global offshoring arrangements, with implications for global work design more broadly.

Bennett L. Gershman, JD (Elisabeth Haub School of Law) published a commentary, “Clarence, Take the Money and Drive,” in the New York Law Journal. In his latest commentary, Professor Gershman notes that “some people think Clarence Thomas is a brilliant jurist, some think he is a nitwit, and others, like the late Justice Antonin Scalia think he’s a nut. Regardless of these characterizations, Thomas is the most ethically compromised judge ever to serve on the Supreme Court. He has received millions of dollars from wealthy donors many of whom have cases before the Court, his wife is one of the extreme and virulent activists supporting Trump’s claim that his election was stolen, and he has sided with them in every Trump case before the Court. John Oliver, the talk show host, has offered Thomas $1 million a year and a $2.4 million RV if Thomas agrees to leave a court where he has disgraced himself and the Court. I advise Clarence to take the money and drive away.”



Melvin Williams, PhD (Communication and Media Studies, NYC, Dyson College of Arts and Sciences)  was quoted in the USA Today article entitled, “Gypsy Rose Fans Have Turned On Her. Experts Aren't Surprised.”

Martha Driver, PhD (English, NYC, Dyson College of Arts and Sciences) has moderated a “State-of-the-Field” Symposium at the Grolier Club in New York, titled Women Medievalists on Medieval Women, which was held both virtually and in person. This symposium celebrated the British Library’s upcoming exhibition, Medieval Women: In Their Own Words, opening on October 25, 2024, and the Library's longstanding support for scholarship on women’s experiences during the medieval and early modern periods, along with the Library’s medieval and Renaissance digitization project of volumes, charters and rolls owned by or pertaining to medieval women.

A video of the event is available here.

Christine de Pizan giving instructions, in her Enseignemens que Cristine donne à son Filz, part of her collected works known as The Book of the Queen. The British Library, Harley MS 4431, f. 261v

Elmer-Rico E. Mojica (Chemistry and Physical Sciences, NYC Dyson College of Arts and Sciences) co-authored a paper titled “Phenolic content and antioxidant capacity of Lagerstroemia speciosa (Banaba) and Blumena balsamifera (Sambong) herbal teas sold online in the Philippines: A cost effectiveness analysis.” The research, which includes his undergraduate student Muxi Zhang (Economics 2024) and published in the Bangladesh Journal of Scientific and Industrial Research (58.4. 2024) focuses on the phenolic content and antioxidant capacity of six commercially available banaba (Lagerstroemia speciosa) and sambong (Blumea balsamifera) herbal teas. The antioxidant activity measured using DPPH and ABTS assays showed L. speciosa teas exhibiting higher activity than B. balsamifera teas and the phenolic content showed a direct correlation with antioxidant activity

Internal Funding Opportunities for Faculty

Congratulations to the Book and Performance Completion Award Recipients!

Funds up to $5,000 were awarded on a competitive basis to full-time faculty at any Pace University school to develop or complete a project. This program welcomes applications from faculty who are working on creative projects they are developing into publishable book manuscripts or performances.

Johanna deLeyer-Tiarks, PhD (Psychology, NYC, Dyson College of Arts and Sciences)

"Mind-Body Health Interventions for Schools: Guilford Practical Interventions Series"

Kelley Kreitz, PhD (English, NYC, Dyson College of Arts and Sciences)

"Printing Nueva York: Spanish-Language Print Culture and the Literary Imagination in the Age of Electricity"

Marcelo Hoffman, PhD (Political Science, NYC, Dyson College of Arts and Sciences)

"Foucault in Brazil: Dictatorship, Resistance, Solidarity"

Charles McDonald, PhD (Sociology and Anthropology, NYC, Dyson College of Arts and Sciences)

"Return to Sepharad: Citizenship, Conversion, and the Politics of Repair"

Jillian McDonald, MFA (Art, NYC, Dyson College of Arts and Sciences)

"Tunnel and the Radio Skies"

Perla Masi, PhD (Modern Languages and Cultures, NYC, Dyson College of Arts and Sciences)

"The Place of Poetry: Poesis and Political Theology in 20th and 21st Century Latin America"

Raquel Plotka, PhD (School of Education, NYC)

"The Effects of Covid-19 on Early Childhood Education: Research and Implications"

Call for Applications

Course-based Undergraduate Research Experiences Awards

(formerly known as the Classroom-based Undergraduate Research Experiences Awards)



The Pace University Office of Sponsored Research invites proposals for funding of up to $5,000 to support the incorporation of research and creative inquiry into the undergraduate curriculum. This award process is committed to supporting the developmental integration of research across the curriculum referred to as “scaffolding” in undergraduate research pedagogy. This approach prioritizes the value of inquiry-based learning through the research or creative inquiry process at introductory, intermediate, and advanced levels of instruction across disciplines and schools. This can be done

through the significant revision of existing courses and the creation of new Course-based Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs). Our goal is to make course-based research and creative inquiry more inclusive and available to all students as the experiential pedagogy that distinguishes Pace undergraduate education. Examples of eligible course projects include partnering with a community organization to develop a course-based research or creative inquiry project; incorporating physical or digital archival research into a course; or enhancing labs to emphasize exploration and inquiry.

Call for Applications

Application Deadline: Monday April 22, 2024

Leading with Civic Engagement: Faculty Info Session on community-engaged work in Civic Engagement courses

Friday, April 12, 12:10 pm-1:10 pm. 

Register here

Please join CCAR and the Faculty Center for an informative session about successes and challenges related to Civic Engagement courses, with a particular focus on community partnerships. How can you create a CE course? What is the financial support available? What kind of potential collaborations and training are available? How does CE attribute contribute to students' experiential learning?

Speakers include: 

• Michelle Chase, PhD and a student from HIS 134: Modern Latin America
• Heather Novak, MPA - Director of CCAR
• Erin Mysogland, MA, MSc - Assistant Director of CCAR NYC
• Inbal Abergil, MFA - CCAR Faculty Advocate

 Celebration of the Book and Performance Completion Award Winners and Panel on Book Publishing 

April 18, 3:30 p.m. - 5 p.m.

Register here

On Thursday, April 18, The Office of Sponsored Research is pleased to announce that Pace University will honor the winners of the Book and Performance Completion Award. This event will feature presentations by the faculty award winners and a panel discussion on book publishing. 

We invite you to join us and celebrate your colleagues’ books. And learn about the world of publishing from your colleagues and a panel of experts.

Program

Welcome

Sonia Suchday, PhD, Chair, Psychology Department (NYC), Interim Director for Sponsored Research 

Presentations by 2023 Book and Performance Completion Award Winners

Sarah Blackwood, PhD, English

Cathryn Lavery, PhD,Criminal Justice and Security

Joseph Morreale, PhD, Professor Emeritus, Economics

Nils Myszkowski, PhD, Psychology

Meghana Nayak, PhD Women’s and Gender Studies

Panel Discussion on book publishing y

Michelle Chase, PhD, History, Pace University

Erica Johnson, PhD, English, Pace University

Richard Morrison, MFA, Editorial Director, Fordham University Press

Eric Nelson, BA, Vice President and Editorial Director, Broadside Books

Sponsor: Office of Sponsored Research

The Center for Undergraduate Research Experiences is accepting applications for the Spring Research Days and the Summer Provost's Undergraduate Research and Creative Inquiry Award Programs.

CALL FOR APPLICATIONS TO PRESENT!

Spring 2024 Undergraduate Research and Creative Inquiry Days

• Wednesday, April 24, 2024 | Virtual | Panel Session | 10 a.m. - 3 p.m.
• Friday, April 26, 2024 | Virtual | Panel Session | 10 a.m. - 3 p.m.
• Thursday, May 2, 2024 | New York City Campus | In-Person Afternoon Poster Session
• Friday, May 3, 2024 | Pleasantville Campus | In-Person Morning Poster Session
• Friday, May 3, 2024 | New York City Campus | In-Person Afternoon Project Studio Session

The Spring 2024 Undergraduate Research and Creative Inquiry Days will showcase undergraduates from across the schools and colleges who have engaged in faculty-mentored research and creative inquiry! Students will have the opportunity to present their scholarly and artistic work that was completed as part of a course-based research or creative inquiry assignment, award program, co-curricular project, or in fulfillment of their Senior Capstone or Honors College thesis requirement. Please encourage your students to apply to present!

Apply Here to Present!

Deadline to apply: Wednesday, April 3, 2024

Summer 2024 Provost’s Student-Faculty Undergraduate Research and Creative Inquiry Award Program

This summer research program is for undergraduate students who will be entering their sophomore, junior, or senior year in Fall 2024. This internal funding opportunity supports faculty-mentored scholarly and artistic projects developed in courses and research settings that will benefit from in-depth development over the summer months. Please sponsor an outstanding student for this funding opportunity!

Apply Here!

Deadline to apply: Wednesday, April 10, 2024

Faculty Reviewers

We are seeking faculty members from across the schools and colleges who are interested in serving as reviewers for the undergraduate research award program.

Contact Maria Iacullo-Bird, Ph.D., Assistant Provost for Research at miacullobird@pace.edu if this service opportunity interests you.

Dyson Summer Research Awards

The Dyson College Dean’s Office is pleased to announce for Summer 2024 the availability of two programs supporting research and creative expression at both campuses.

Faculty Research Grants

This program will provide funding directly to full-time faculty for research support. The funds may be used for travel expenses related to research; for research supplies and/or equipment; and to pay for a student research assistant. Grant requests may be made up to $1,000 per faculty member. Actual awards will depend upon availability of funds.

Undergraduate Student-Faculty Research Initiatives

This program will provide support for a student to engage in a summer research project with a faculty mentor. The award will provide a $2,000 stipend for the student and $500 in supplies for the faculty mentor.

Faculty and students interested in applying should forward their applications by email with department chairperson approval to Norma Quiridumbay at nquiridumbay@pace.edu by Wednesday, April 10, 2024. Questions also should be directed to Norma Quiridumbay.

Apply Here!

Deadline to apply: Wednesday, April 10, 2024

Amelia A. Gould Undergraduate Research Assistantship in

the Creative Arts

The Center for Undergraduate Research Experiences (CURE) is soliciting proposals from faculty for undergraduate research assistants to support faculty projects in the Creative Arts. This funding opportunity will support faculty-mentored summer immersion experiences for students who will work on research-based creative arts projects as research assistants.

Apply Here!

Deadline to apply: Wednesday, April 10, 2024

Spring 2024 Faculty Undergraduate Research Webinar Series

Tuesday common hour - 3:25 p.m. - 4:25 p.m.

Maria Iacullo-Bird, PhD, Assistant Provost for Research

Learn about the Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR) - April 23, 2024

Register in advance for Tuesday’s meeting

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Spring 2024 Student Undergraduate Research Webinar Series

Tuesday and Thursday common hours - 3:25 p.m. - 4:25 p.m.

Maria Iacullo-Bird, PhD, Assistant Provost for Research

Designing a Virtual Panel Slides and a Poster for In-Person Presentation

April 11, 2024 and April 18, 2024   

Register in advance for Thursday’s meetings

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

For more information and questions contact:

Norma Quiridumbay, CURE Director of Operations at nquiridumbay@pace.edu



Maria Iacullo-Bird, PhD., Assistant Provost for Research at miacullobird@pace.edu

Prestigious Awards and Fellowships

Recordings of Fulbright Information Sessions Available

This March, a session with Fulbright staff provided a very helpful overview of the many opportunities offered by the program as well as some excellent advice from recent Fulbright recipients. You and your students can view a recording here.

For pace-specific requirements and how the Office of Prestigious Awards and Graduate Fellowships can assist students with their 2024 Fulbright application, please view this recording.

Fulbright is a competitive program, and some of the awards require affiliation letters and language evaluations in addition to the three references that all awards require. Starting early and encouragement from faculty are essential for submitting a strong application. The Office of Prestigious Awards and Graduate Fellowships is happy to work with students you might refer to the program. We appreciate your help in spreading the word about Fulbright and about the importance of beginning the process as soon as possible.  

For more information and questions contact:

Moira Egan, PhD, Director of Prestigious Awards and Graduate Fellowships, 

at megan@pace.edu

Stay connected: visit us at www.pace.edu/office-of-research