The ORSP Update
March 2025
Our monthly newsletter highlights opportunities, awards, and events through the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs.
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Topic List
Announcements
Research and Creative Activity Day: NEW due date!
Join us on April 4th 2025 for our annual Research & Creative Activity Day. This event highlights student, faculty, and administrator research from all academic disciplines across our campus community. There will be poster presentations, oral presentations and awards presented in each category. Click here to apply by 03/12/2025 - we have extended the due date! For more information, click here.
Summer Undergraduate Research Institute (SURI)
Are you an undergraduate student looking to gain paid research experience? Apply now to the Summer Undergraduate Research Institute (SURI)! For more information, go below to the “Student Opportunities” section. Click here to apply by 03/06/2025!
New Staff
Holly Schwarz has joined ORSP as our administrative assistant. She says "I'm happy to be part of a new team here at WCU. I enthusiastically look forward to new adventures!". Welcome to the team Holly!
Campus Sustainability Grant
The West Chester University Sustainability Council’s Scholarly and Creative Activities committee and the Office of Sustainability invite you to apply for the Campus Sustainability Research and Creative Activity Grant. This program enables faculty to investigate and develop sustainability-related projects on campus and is supported by the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs (ORSP). Click here to apply!
Day of Giving
Support student research with your donation! Our goal is to provide every interested student with an opportunity to engage in research at West Chester University. Help us reach this goal and donate to the Day of Giving initiative.
Grant Funding 201 Workshop
Join us for the Grant Funding 201 Workshop on 03/25/2025! Click here and register to attend. See the flyer below for more information.
IRB Q&A Drop-In Sessions
The Spring 2025 schedule for the IRB Q&A drop-in sessions is here! Drop in at any time during the scheduled times to ak your application questions. Click here for more information!Want your research to be highlighted?
Submit your research story here! Follow us on Instagram to support our office and stay involved with WCU’s research community. Click here to view!
Listen to ORSP's Podcast
Check out ORSP's new podcast, “Faculty Podcasts”! We currently have two episodes available on Spotify: “Connect and Conquer: The Power of Conversations with your Program Officer” and “Student Engagement in Research and Creative Activity”. Click here to tune in to these insightful conversations with our faculty guests. Click here to listen on Spotify!
Faculty Spotlight
Dr. Emily Aguiló-Pérez is an English professor, author, and editor. When asked how she would summarize her research interests, she replied “childhood pop culture”. Specifically, Dr. Aguiló-Pérez’s research explores diversity in children’s literature, Latinx identities and representation, Disney studies, Barbie studies, and the impact of other toys and media in childhood. You can find her books such as, An American Icon in Puerto Rico: Barbie, Girlhood, and Colonialism at Play, available for purchase online. She also is the co-editor for the International Journal of Disney Studies. Her upcoming publications include two edited anthologies, Barbie in the Media: The Transmedia Presence of Mattel’s Celebrity Doll and #Barbie and Social Media: Digital Discourses and Mattel’s Celebrity Doll co-edited with Dr. Rebecca Hains (Salem State University). Both will be published July 2025 by Palgrave Macmillan.
Recently Awarded Grants
- Whitney Katirai, Health: MIT LL - $50,000
- Yessica Gutierres, Twardowski Career Development Center: Justamere Foundation - $15,000
- Sarah Lightner, Literacy: Justamere Foundation - $17,938
- Rita Patel-Eng, Center for Civic Engagement: Pa. Dept. of Ed. - $60,000
Only primary PIs have been listed. Congratulations to all co-PIs on these projects!
Upcoming External Funding Opportunities
Arts & Humanities
03/24/2025: National Endowment for the Arts - Research Grants in the Arts
04/16/2025: State and Impact of the Humanities
05/20/2025: Research and Development
Science & Mathematics
05/20/2025: Cultural and Community Resilience
Education & Social Work
04/18/2025: Fiscal Year 2025 NOAA Delaware Bay B-WET Funding Program
Health Sciences
04/14/2025: Rural Communities Opioid Response Program - Pathways
04/23/2025: Autism Research Consortium
Interdisciplinary Opportunities
03/25/2025: Humanities Initiatives at Colleges and Universities
04/14/2025: Standards Coordination Office Curricula Development Cooperative Agreement Program
04/18/2025: Public Education for Living Organ Donation Reimbursement Program (PE-LODRP)
Upcoming Student Opportunities
Research and Creative Activity Day: NEW due date!
Join us on April 4th 2025 for our annual Research & Creative Activity Day. This event highlights student, faculty, and administrator research from all academic disciplines across our campus community. There will be poster presentations, oral presentations and awards presented in each category. Click here to apply by 03/12/2025 - we have extended the due date! For more information, click here.
Summer Undergraduate Research Institute (SURI)
This is an opportunity for students to work collaboratively with a faculty mentor through a paid five-week program. Conducting research and creative activities will help prepare students for graduate-level studies and/or careers. Click here to apply by 03/06/2025! For more information, click here.
Cognella Cares Student Scholarship Program
We’re excited to announce that submissions for the Spring 2025 Cognella Cares Student Scholarship Program are open! This program awards undergraduate students from any academic discipline with scholarships for writing essays on timely and relevant topics that impact higher education, student life, and society at large. A $1,000 scholarship will be awarded in each category. Click here to apply by 03/31/2025!
Research Internship: Machine Learning for Multimodal Image Segmentation
Internship opportunity for students currently pursuing a Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Physics, or related fields. If postgraduate, degree must have been earned within the last two years of the appointment start date. For more information, click here.
RAM Research Directory
Are you interested in research? Click here to use the RAM Research Directory to find a research mentor!
Save the Dates
03/06/2025: Summer Undergraduate Research Institute (SURI) proposals due.
03/12/2025: Research and Creative Activity Day proposals due.
03/25/2025: Grant Writing 201 webinar on zoom from 11am-1pm. For more information, see the “Announcements” section.
03/27/2025: Spotlight on Research. This event features West Chester University’s faculty by celebrating their research accomplishments.
04/04/2025: Research and Creative Activities Day. Join us from 9:30AM – 3:00PM in Sykes Ballrooms.