UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA

Research

USC faculty garnered a record $173.3 million in federal, state, and private funding for research, outreach, and training programs in 2005-2006, a 4.3 percent jump from the previous year's $166.2 million.

Spring 2007 Faculty Awards

Mark A. Berg, chemistry and biochemistry, USC Educational Foundation Research Award for Science, Mathematics, and Engineering
Walter B. Edgar, history, Carolina Trustee Professorship
Berten E. Ely III, biological science, USC Educational Foundation Outstanding Service Award
Thomas J. Hilbish, biological sciences, Michael J. Mungo Professor of the Year Award
Ann Kingsolver, anthropology, Outstanding Undergraduate Research Mentor Award
John Lavigne, chemistry and biochemistry, Golden Key Faculty Award for Creative Integration of Research and Undergraduate Teaching and Outstanding Undergraduate Research Mentor Award
Robert Lyon, art, Michael J. Mungo Undergraduate Award
Charles F. Mactutus, psychology, USC Educational Foundation Research Award for Humanities and Social Sciences
Manoj Malhotra, business, USC Educations Foundation Research Award for Professional Schools
Antonello Monti, electrical engineering, Michael J. Mungo Undergraduate Award
Stephen Morgan, chemistry and biochemistry, Outstanding Undergraduate Research Mentor Award
Edsel Pena, statistics, Michael J. Mungo Graduate Award
Peter Sederburg, distinguished professor, Lifetime Achievement Award for Undergraduate Research
Richard M. Showman, biological sciences, Ada B. Thomas Outstanding Faculty Advisor
James M. Sodetz, chemistry and biochemistry, Carolina Trustee Professorship
H. Meili Steele, English, Russell Research Award for Humanities and Social Sciences
Laslo A. Szekely, mathematics, Russell Research Award for Science, Mathematics, and Engineering
David Tedeschi, physics, Michael J. Mungo Undergraduate Award
Stacy Wood, business, Michael J. Mungo Undergraduate Award

Claudia Benitez-Nelson

The associate professor of geological sciences, as part of the E-Flux research team, has published her research on phytoplankton found in ocean surface waters in Science magazine. Read more.

Frank G. Berger

The molecular biologist and cancer researcher has received the 2005 Governor's Award for Excellence in Scientific Research.

Charles A. Blake

The professor of cell and developmental biology and anatomy has been named president of the Society of Experimental Biology and Medicine.

Allen Brett

The professor of internal medicine at the School of Medicine was published in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine. His column addressed the ethical issues of patient demands for the prescription drug commonly known as Tamiflu.

Robert Brookshire, Herb Brown, Tena Crews

The faculty in the Technology Support and Training Management program in the College of Hospitality, Retail & Sport Management won the McGraw-Hill Irwin Distinguished Paper Award for the 2006 Organizational Systems Research Association. Their paper was titled “Factors Contributing to Student Success in a University Introductory Networks and Telecommunications Course.”

Crews also has garnered three other honors in 2006. She was named Educator of the Year by the Organizational Systems Research Association; National Collegiate Teacher of the Year by the National Business Education Association; and one of the top 10 most vital business educators in the nation, based on a survey by California State University's College of Business and Economics.

Thomas Brown

The associate professor of history has been awarded a research fellowship by the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. The fellowship supports research in New York City's five archives. Brown will conduct research at the Library of the New York Historical Society for his project, " The Reconstruction of American Memory: Civic Monuments of the Civil War."

Phillip Buckhaults

The assistant professor of pathology and microbiology has helped uncover 176 genes, many of which had never before been linked to cancer, that will allow scientists to better understand the mutation of cancer cells. The findings were published in the Sept. 7, 2006, issue of Science. Buckhaults, also director of the S.C. Cancer Center Tissue Bank at Palmetto Health, worked with researchers at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center. Details

Duncan Buell

The professor and chair in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering has been named co-Editor in Chief of the new publication Transactions on Reconfigurable Technology and Systems by the Association for Computing Machinery. Dr. Buell will serve as co-Editor with Dr. Wayne Luk of Imperial College London.

Shirley Staples Carter

The director of the School of Journalism and Mass Communications at the University of South Carolina, has been named Journalism Administrator of the Year by the Scripps Howard Foundation. She receives $10,000 for the honor, and the school receives $5,000. The award is given in cooperation with the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication. Details.

Rita Chou

The assistant professor of social work was accepted to the National Institutes of Health 2006 summer Institute on Design and Development of Quantitative Research on Social Work Interventions in Health. Details

Arthur D. Cohen

The geological sciences professor is the recipient of the 2005 Gilbert H. Cady Award, from the Coal Division of the Geological Society of America. Cohen received the award for his achievements in coal and peat petrology. He established the only peat sample bank in the world. Cohen helped establish peat petrology.

Kim Connolly

The University of South Carolina law professor has written the lead article, "Survey Says: Army Corps No Scalian Despot," for the May 2007 edition of Environmental Law Reporter, one of the nation's top environmental-law journals.

David Cowen

The chair of the Department of Geography and co-director of the NASA Affiliated Research Center has received just the ninth Lifetime Achievement Award from ESRI, the world leader in GIS technology.

Holly Crocker

The assistant English professor was awarded the Josephine Abney research award, worth $5,000, for her book “Conductive Subjects: Engendering Virtue in England, 1350-1623,” which examines how examples of feminine virtue influenced masculine identity in England during the 14th and 15th centuries.

Susan Cutter

A team of researchers led by geography professor Cutter has been awarded a $719,000 National Science Foundation grant to study the Gulf Coast's recovery from Hurricane Katrina. Cutter, a Carolina Distinguished Professor, will lead a team that includes geography assistant professor Jerry Mitchell, history professor Mark Smith, and psychology professor Lynn Webster.

Cutter has been named a recipient of a Decade of Behavior Research Award for 2006. More than 50 national and international professional and scientific organizations support the initiative. Details. Cutter is also leading USC researchers in a five-university project to study the social and behavioral aspects of worldwide terrorism. The project is based at the Department of Homeland Security's $12 million Center of Excellence for Behavioral and Social Research on Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism. Details

Tom Davis

The research professor of chemical engineering has formed a corporation and signed an exclusive deal to let Dow Chemical commercialize his new desalination process. Davis has formed ZDD Inc., named for his Zero Discharge Desalination technology, with a USC alumnus, and is awaiting patent approval on his process—which would give him 14 patents for products or technology. Details

John H. Dawson

The professor of chemistry and biochemistry recently received the 2006 Charles H. Stone Award from the Carolina Piedmont Section of the American Chemical Society. The annual award recognizes Dawson's “outstanding and valuable achievements in chemical research” in the field of bioinorganic chemistry. Details.

Beth Dickey

The associate professor of journalism has been awarded the National Scholastic Press Association Recognition Award for National Service to Scholastic Journalism. The award will be renamed the Elizabeth B. Dickey Distinguished Service Award. Details

Larry Durstine

The chair of the Department of Exercise Science was the 2005 Michael J. Mungo Distinguished Professor of the Year—the University's highest teaching honor—and has been named president-elect of the American College of Sports Medicine. Read more in Spotlight

Kate Flory and Ben Hankin

The assistant professors of psychology have been awarded $139,000 from the National Science Foundation to study genetic and psychological resilience factors related to the emotional aftermath of Hurricane Katrina survivors who relocated to Columbia. Details

Joseph Gibbons

The professor of chemical engineering has received the Order of the Palmetto, the highest honor that the governor can bestow on an individual in the state.

William L. Graf

The geography professor has been awarded the 2005 John Wesley Powell Award, the highest honor given by the U.S. Geological Survey. Details. In addition, the Association of American Geographers has recognized Graf with the Meredith F. Burrill Award, geography's highest honor for environmental public policy contributions. Details

Joanne Herman

The associate professor of nursing received one of three Micheel J. Mungo Undergraduate Teaching Awards for 2006. Details.

Thomas J. Hilbish

The Professor of Biological Sciences received the 2007 Michael J. Mungo Professor of the Year award.

Julie Hubbert

The assistant professor of music history received one of three Micheel J. Mungo Undergraduate Teaching Awards for 2006. Details. Read more about Dr. Hubbert's research on the Jenkins Orphanage Band.

Louise Jennings

The associate professor in the School of Education was awarded the Josephine Abney research award, worth $5,000, for her paper titled “Women Educators as Agents of Change: Working toward Radical Democratization of Brazilian Schools.”

John R. Jensen

The geography professor has received the 2006 William T. Pecora Award from the Department of the Interior and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration for outstanding and sustained international leadership in advancing geographical remote sensing and remote sensing education. Details

Robert Jesselson

The professor of music has been named a Carolina Distinguished Professor, one of the most prestigious recognitions for scholarly achievement and distinction by the University. Details.

Paul Johnson

The professor of history has received a National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship. The fellowship, part of the NEH's “We the People” initiative, will support a book project. Details

Brian Kelly

The research fellow at the Institute for Southern Studies has received a $385,000 grant from the United Kingdom's Arts and Humanities Council to fund a research project on the aftermath of slavery called “After Slavery: Race, Labour and Politics in the Post-Emancipation Carolinas.” Details

M. Asif Khan

The Carolina Distinguished Professor and department chair of Electrical Engineering has been named an IEEE Fellow by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. Details

Ann Kingsolver

The associate professor of anthropology has been elected general editor of the Anthropology of Work Review.

Shawna Lee

The assistant professor of social work was accepted to the National Institutes of Health 2006 summer Institute on Design and Development of Quantitative Research on Social Work Interventions in Health. Details

Tom Lekan

The associate professor of history has been awarded a full fellowship from the American Council of Learned Societies. The fellowship is in support of his current project, “Sublime Consumption: German Nature Tourism from Romanticism to Ecotourism, 1850-2000.” Details

Becky Lewis

A member of Academic Credit Programs in Continuing Education, she has been appointed a Fulbright senior lecturer at the University of Jordan in Amman, Jordan, where she will teach American Studies.

Ana Lòpez-De Fede

The director of health and family studies at the Institute for Families in Society has been appointed by to the Advisory Council for the Elimination of Tuberculosis for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Details

Michelle Maher

The assistant professor of education has been appointed editor for The Journal of the First-Year Experience & Students in Transition.

Manoj Malhotra

The professor and chairman of management science at the Moore School of Business received the 2006 Michael J. Mungo Graduate Teaching Award. Details. Read more about Dr. Malhotra's work in supply chain management.

Cary Mock

The geography professor, America's leading authority on hurricane history in the Southeast, has been awarded a grant of nearly $300,000 from the National Science Foundation to reconstruct U.S. hurricane history. Using plantation diaries, ship logs, newspapers and diaries, Mock went back hundreds of years to reconstruct the hurricane history of American South.

Willard Moore

The professor emeritus of geological sciences has been named a fellow of the American Geophysical Union.

Cathy Murphy

The Guy F. Lipscomb Professor of Chemistry has been named an editor of the Journal of Physical Chemistry.

Charles Pierce

The associate professor of civil and environmental engineering received one of three Micheel J. Mungo Undergraduate Teaching Awards for 2006. Details

Joe Quattro

The associate professor of biological sciences and marine science, in collaboration with several researchers from other universities, has recently discovered a genetically distinct species of hammerhead shark. The species, the ninth recognized in the hammerhead family, appears to be rare and localized to the S.C. coast, making it a high risk for extinction and the state's coastal waters crucial for conservation efforts. Details

Carole Pillinger

The professor and director of pathology in the Department of Pathology and Microbiology has been named the first chair of the new Course Director's Section of the Association of Pathology Chairs. Details

William Ranson

The engineering professor has been inducted into the Pan American Academy of Engineering as a charter member for his research contributions.

Gene Reeder

The professor of pharmacoeconomics received the Distinguished Service Award from the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy. Details

Dan Reger

The professor of chemistry has received the 2007 Governor's Award for Excellence in Scientific Research. Reger has published more than 180 original research articles in chemistry journals and has mentored 27 Ph.D. students, one master's student, and numerous postdoctoral fellows and undergraduate students.

William E. Rivers

The English professor has been awarded the William L. Mitchell Prize by the Bibliographic Society of America. The award is for the best bibliography or documentary work on early British periodicals or newspapers. Details

David A. Rotholz

The Associate Professor of Clinical Pediatrics was named president of the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD) beginning in July. Founded in 1876, AAIDD promotes progressive policies, sound research, effective practices, and universal human rights for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Tara Sabo-Attwood

The molecular toxicologist in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences has received a TIP (Transition to Independent Position) Award from the National Institutes of Health. The $320,000, three-year award will fund her research on lung fibrosis related to asbestos exposure. Details.

Virginia Scotchie

The art professor was awarded a public art commission by the Yingge Ceramics Museum in Taipei. She was selected from four international artists who made proposals. In October 2006, she installed 100 ceramic globes in a reflecting pool by the museum.

John M. Shafer

The research professor and director of the Earth Sciences and Resources Institute has been awarded a three-year, $1.65 million Environmental Management Science Program grant. Details

Marjorie Spruill

The history professor has been awarded one of 50 yearlong fellowships at Harvard University's Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study.

Roy Stuckey

The S.C. Law School professor has received the 2007 Award for Outstanding Advocated for Clinical Teachers, given by the Clinical Legal Education Association. The award recognizes an outstanding clinical teacher in three areas: commitment to the field, advancement of the profession and enhancement of the community's spirit.

Tangali Sudarshan

The professor of electrical engineering received the 2006 Michael J. Mungo Distinguished Professor of the Year Award, the University's highest teaching honor. Details

Bill Sudduth

The head of Thomas Cooper Library's department of government information, microforms, newspapers, and maps, has been selected chairman of the Government Printing Office's Federal Depository Library Council. Details

Patricia Sullivan

The associate professor of history has been named an Alphonse Fletcher Sr. Fellow and will receive $50,000 for her research and contribution to improving race relations in the United States. Sullivan is an expert in the history of the civil rights movement and has a forthcoming book on the history of the NAACP. Details

Suzanne Swan

The assistant professor in psychology was awarded a Carol Jones Carlisle award of $1,000 toward her research on women’s aggression and violence in intimate relationships.

Thomas E. Terrill

The distinguished professor emeritus of history has been awarded a Fulbright Scholar grant to lecture at the Dokuz Eylul University in Izmir, Turkey, during the 2005-2006 academic year.

Robert Thunell

The geology professor and director of the Marine Science Program has been named a fellow of the American Geophysical Union.

Ercan Turk

The Sloan Scholar and professor at the School of Hotel, Restaurant, and Tourism Management has been awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to lecture at the St. Petersburg University Federation in 2006-07.

Homayoun Valafar

The assistant professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering recently won a National Science Foundation CAREER award.

Abe Wandersman

The psychology professor has received the 2005 Distinguished Contribution Award in Theory and Research from the Society for Community Research and Action.

Richard Webb

The first scientist hired under USC's endowed faculty chairs program has been named the first recipient of USC's Palms Bicentennial Professorship in physics. Webb is internationally known for his research in nanoscience. The award is named for former president Dr. John M. Palms and was created in his final year of service to attract high-profile scientists to the Columbia campus.

Ernest Wiggins

The associate professor in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication has been named the 2004-2005 David Eshelman Outstanding Campus Adviser at the Society of Professional Journalists' national convention. Details

Laura R. Woliver

The professor in the Women's Studies Program and the Department of Political Science has been appointed to the editorial board of the journal Women, Politics, and Public Policy. She recently completed a term as president of the Women's Caucus for Political Science of the American Political Science Association.

Nancy Zimmerman

The associate professor in the School of Library and Information Science has been elected President of Beta Phi Mu, the library and information studies international honor society. She will serve as president-elect in 2006-2007 and president in 2007-2008. Details