Michelle Peace, Ph.D. (Forensic Science), received $726,360 from the Office of Justice Programs of the Department of Justice for the development of analytical methods to address the public health and public safety challenges posed by the growing number of synthetic THC analogs, such as Δ8-THC, Δ10-THC and THCP.

Massimo Bertino, Ph.D. (Physics), received $75,000 from the Virginia Innovation Partnership Authority for his project on a commercially viable aerogel that provides superior thermal insulation performance when incorporated in the building envelope. This grant will be used to conduct customer discovery and demonstrate scale-up and adaptability for handling requirements that construction companies have for on-site installation.

Maryanne Collinson, Ph.D. (Chemistry), was awarded $480,000 from the National Science Foundation for a project that aims to advance separation science for large biomolecules by developing mixed- mode gradient stationary phases and mobile phase gradients, potentially improving proteomics, lipidomics and biopharmaceutical sample analysis through enhanced selectivity and band compression.

Christopher Ehrhardt, Ph.D. (Forensic Science), received $329,621 from the National Institute of Justice for the development of a novel method for determining the time since deposition of epithelial cell populations in various types of biological evidence, including touch or trace samples, which can provide critical context to DNA profiling results for forensic casework applications.

Hani El-Kaderi, Ph.D. (Chemistry) was awarded $199,909 from the National Academy of Sciences for the development of advanced nanocomposite sulfur cathodes for lithium-sulfur batteries using metal- doped porous carbon and atomic layer deposition to improve capacity, stability and performance through enhanced polysulfide retention and conversion.

Robin S. Everhart, Ph.D. (Psychology), received $51,121 from the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation for the yETI Study. Funded as a multisite study with the Success with Therapies Research Consortium, this study examines associations between mental and behavioral health (e.g., mood, sleep, body image) and adherence to elexacaftor/tezacaftor/ivacaftor (ETI), a cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator modulator therapy.

Shawn Jones, Ph.D. (Psychology), received $107,273 from the National Institutes of Health for VCU’s role as a site in a study analyzing racial disparities in pain care, integrating patient and provider mechanisms with dyadic communication processes through qualitative and quantitative data analysis.

Alaattin Kaya, Ph.D. (Biology), was awarded $1.9M from National Institute of General Medical Sciences for the investigation of the role of mito-nuclear communication in the adaptation to mitochondrial dysfunction and stress resistance, which will ultimately increase understanding of biological processes and lay the foundation for advances in disease treatment.

Oleksandr Misiats, Ph.D. (Mathematics), received $160,000 from the National Science Foundation for the analysis of singularly perturbed variational problems in materials science, seeking to understand the formation of structures like crumples and wrinkles in various physical systems, with potential applications in developing new materials for aerospace technology.

John Ryan, Ph.D. (Biology), was awarded $140,161 from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases for the creation and characterization of lineage-restricted Stat5B knockout and transgenic mouse strains to better understand the gene’s role in specific cell types and signaling pathways.

Nicola Tarasca, Ph.D. (Mathematics), received $292,239 from the National Science Foundation for a project that aims to advance the study of conformal field theories beyond algebraic curves to explore higher-dimensional varieties and their moduli spaces, integrating quantum field theory, representation theory and mathematical physics.

Dewey Taylor, Ph.D. (Mathematics), was awarded $666,358 from the National Science Foundation for a project that aims to combat vaccine inequity for diseases like COVID-19 and Mpox by developing comprehensive mathematical models that incorporate individual, social and structural factors affecting vaccine uptake in vulnerable populations, particularly racial, ethnic, sexual minority and rural communities. (4)

Xuewei Wang, Ph.D. (Chemistry), received $426,938 from the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering for the development of a self-calibrated ion sensor, which will allow patients to measure electrolytes at home using only a drop of blood collected from a finger stick.

Sarah Williams, Ph.D. (Forensic Science), received $408,987 from the National Institute of Justice for the development and validation of microRNA markers for predicting body weight classification from forensic evidence like blood and saliva samples, potentially enhancing the capabilities of phenotypic profiling in criminal investigations and victim identification.

Bernard Means, Ph.D. (Anthropology), received $70,487 from the Department of Defense Legacy Resource Management Program for the development of best practices for 3-D documentation methods using accessible technology (iPads Pro tablets) to enhance heritage tourism, public outreach and accessibility to cultural heritage. The grant case study was the 3D documentation of Native Hawai’ian cultural heritage in O’ahu, some of which is on restricted military facilities.