Prevost Research Program awards grants to seven UAH Honors students its first year

Morgan Blair, Maia Bergeron, Michael Pettit, Reese Boynton, Mr. Prevost, Dean Wilkerson, Cameron McWilliams, Haden Fowler, and Jennifer Hernandez are pictured from left to right.

Michael Mercier | UAH

The Honors College at The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) is pleased to announce that seven Honors students have been chosen to receive grants through the Prevost Research Program. Made possible by a private donation from Mr. Stanley Prevost to the UAH Honors College, the program is intended to support the awardees as they pursue undergraduate research toward their Honors Capstone during the fall 2017 and spring 2018 semesters.

"Competition for the grant was exceptional," says Dr. William Wilkerson, dean of the Honors College. "The number of applicants more than doubled the number of available awards, and the separation between the scored applicants was only a few percentage points. Students with abilities and dedication like those selected for this grant enhance the reputation of the Honors College and UAH."

The recipients of the grant and their research titles are as follows:

• Maia Bergeron (College of Business), Reese Boynton (College of Engineering) and Michael Pettit (College of Science)
  The Woman in Academia Project
  This multidisciplinary project examines the continued disparity of women outcomes in society at large and more specifically in academia.
  Faculty mentors: Dr. Sophia Marinova and Dr. Wafa Orman, College of Business; and Dr. Dianhan Zheng, College of Arts Humanities and Social Sciences
• Morgan Blair (College of Education)
  Taking Steps: Utilizing Learning Walks to Intentionally Notice and Discuss Effective Mathematics Teaching Practices
  This study explores the debriefing conversations from a small group of middle school math teachers to identify effective mathematics teaching practices and their perceptions of knowledge about effective mathematics teaching practices.
  Faculty mentor: Dr. Sarah Roller, College of Education
• Haden Fowler (College of Engineering)
  Investigation of Copper Catalysts for Propylene Epoxidation
  This project seeks to develop a novel gold-copper bimetallic catalyst for the more-efficient, inexpensive, and environmentally friendly synthesis of propylene oxide, a very highly valued chemical intermediate used in the automobile and construction industries.
  Faculty mentor: Dr. Yu Lei, College of Engineering
• Jennifer Hernandez (College of Nursing)
  Autism Spectrum Disorder progression and exposure to indoor and outdoor air pollution
  This study attempts to determine if a relationship exists between indoor and outdoor air pollutants and volatile organic compounds and the severity of autism spectrum disorders.
  Faculty mentor: Dr. Azita Amiri, College of Nursing
• Cameron McWilliams (College of Engineering)
  Climate Data Informed Conditional Assessment for Critical Infrastructures
  This project seeks to develop an algorithm that will be able to prioritize bridges for repair based on data from the National Bridge Inventory database and to quantify the effects of the environmental conditions that drive the deterioration process.
  Faculty mentor is Dr. Hongyu Zhou, College of Engineering

The students are expected to complete their research by the end of the 2018 spring semester. They are also required to submit the results of their research to "Perpetua: the UAH Journal of Undergraduate Research" and participate in the Alabama System Honors Research Day in the fall of 2018 and/or UAH’s Research Horizons Day in the spring of 2019.