The Office of the Vice President for Research is excited to announce the 2024 recipients of Advanced Support for Innovative Research Excellence (ASPIRE) funding. Since 2012, ASPIRE has been one of the university's primary funding mechanisms to support research by USC faculty at all levels, across all campuses.
This year, the award was granted to 21 faculty members. In the 2024 funding cycle, ASPIRE emphasized support to early-career faculty in the pursuit of subsequent external funding opportunities.
2024 ASPIRE Recipients
| Principal Investigator | Title | Department | College |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alshareef, Ahmed | MRI Safe Head Rotation Device to Measure Brain Biomechanics | Mechanical Engineering | College of Engineering and Computing |
| Chen, Hui | Using Spatial Omics to Dissect the Epigenetic Mechanisms Regulating Zygotic Genome Activation in Early Embryogenesis | Biological Sciences | College of Arts and Sciences |
| Evans, Colin | Promoting Endothelial HIF1α for the Vascularization and Resolution of Deep Vein Thrombosis | Cell Biology and Anatomy | School of Medicine-Columbia |
| Fu, Xiaoxue (Jessie) | A Multimodal Approach to Early Identification of Attention Functions in Autism Spectrum Disorder | Psychology | College of Arts and Sciences |
| Goldberg, Katherine | Mapping Reconstruction Era Economics: An Analysis of 19th Century Stoneware Distribution | Anthropology | College of Arts and Sciences |
| Hogan, Abigail | The relationship between sensory responsivity and social anxiety symptoms in children with autism spectrum disorder | Communication Sciences and Disorders | Arnold School of Public Health |
| Joseph, Lesley | Removal of lithium from contaminated water sources using low-cost waste materials | Civil and Environmental Engineering | College of Engineering and Computing |
| Kanyangarara, Mufaro | Feasibility and acceptability of malaria vector surveillance and control using drone technology | Epidemiology and Biostatistics | Arnold School of Public Health |
| Kathrein, Katie | Loss of Ing4 promotes quiescence and stress resistance in hematopoietic stem cells | Biological Sciences | College of Arts and Sciences |
| Larson, Leila | Understanding the influence of climate extremes on pediatric health and development in the United States | Health Promotion, Education, and Behavior | Arnold School of Public Health |
| Natafgi, Nabil | Identifying preference-concordant telehealth-supported HIV care options to reduce inequalities along the HIV care continuum in South Carolina | Health Services Policy and Management | Arnold School of Public Health |
| Qian, Yingxiao | Building Trust in AI: Empowering Students with a Culturally Relevant AI Curriculum on Abstraction | Leadership, Learning Design, and Inquiry | College of Education |
| Sadati, Monirosadat | Harnessing Molecular Self-assembly for Multifunctional Mechanical Metamaterials Design | Chemical Engineering | College of Engineering and Computing |
| Simoska, Olja | Electrochemical Biosensors for Continuous Monitoring of the Stress Biomarker Cortisol | Chemistry and Biochemistry | College of Arts and Sciences |
| Smolak, Erin | Language and Executive Function in Late-Talking Toddlers | Communication Sciences and Disorders | Arnold School of Public Health |
| Steinberg, Jonah | The Early Romani Archaeologies Project: Towards Engaged Excavation at Europe's Margins | Anthropology | College of Arts and Sciences |
| Weaver-Toedtman, Kristen | Accelerated biological aging among sexual and gender minority groups with disorders of gut-brain interaction | Nursing | College of Nursing |
| Wilder, Colin | Mining Early Modern European Library Collections to Reconstruct Ideas about Freedom, Equality, and Sovereignty | History | College of Arts and Sciences |
| Williams, Rachel | Immersive Learning with Virtual Reality Serious Games in Library and Information Science | School of Information Sciences | College of Information and Communications |
| Wiskur, Sheryl | Understanding photophysical and electrochemical properties of silicon phthalocyanine derivatives | Chemistry and Biochemistry | College of Arts and Sciences |
| Wu, Yanwen | Investigation of Strain-Dependence Phase Transition in 2D IrTe2 using Rapid-Scanning Second Harmonic Generation Polarimetry | Physics and Astronomy | College of Arts and Sciences |
18 June 2024