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Three faculty awarded Furman Standard Research Grants

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Last updated May 31, 2017

By News administrator

Three Furman professors have been selected to receive 2017-2018 Furman Standard Faculty Research Grants, the university recently announced. The Furman Standard is considered the top award for faculty scholarship at Furman.

The grants are valued at $3,000 annually over three years and are designed to help faculty conduct scholarly and creative activity and remain leaders in their field.

Psychology Professor Kerstin Blomquist, Spanish Professor Ron Friis and Earth and Environmental Sciences Professor Suresh Muthukrishnan have been chosen as grant recipients, according to Dean of Faculty Ken Peterson and Psychology Professor John Batson, also chair of the Research and Professional Growth Committee.

Blomquist will receive a research grant for her project titled “Testing the Efficacy and Dissemination of a Cognitive-­Dissonance-­Based Body Image Promotion Program.” The goal of her project is to promote body satisfaction and prevent disordered eating in two versions of the Body Project—one for adult women and one for adult women and their daughters.

The second grant will fund a project by Friis titled, “White Light: The Poetic World of Alberto Blanco.” His project will lead to an article, a published interview, translations of poems, a book, and an exhibit at Furman by one of Latin America’s most important living poets.

Muthukrishnan’s project, “Sustainable Development and Community Empowerment in Malawi,” is designed to help communities in Malawi create pathways for sustainable development by engaging in community resources mapping research and studying the hydrological impacts of land cover transformations in Malawi using GIS and Remote Sensing.

“This year’s recipients of Furman Standard grants are excellent teacher-scholars whose work is likely to receive professional accolades while ultimately enhancing the experience of their students,” Peterson said.

The Furman Standard is a program that allows donors to honor one or more faculty members by pledging $25,000 (payable over five years) or by establishing a $100,000 planned gift. Contributions to The Furman Standard are pooled to assist professors in procuring the materials, training, development and other needs associated with their research endeavors. For more information, visit the Furman Standard webpage.

 

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