Research grants awarded to students, faculty

Fri, May 23, 2008 |

Valparaiso University students and faculty recently have received grants to support their work on projects ranging from helping elite athletes succeed under pressure to the development of Indian literature.

Faculty members awarded research grants from Valpo’s Committee on Creative Work and Research were:

• Dr. George Pati, assistant professor of theology, for travel to India to research how low caste members of the population viewed the colonial regime in the Kerala area of south India and how the colonial influence shaped the work of writers during the regime; and

• Dr. Gregory Maytan, assistant professor of music, to purchase a violin bow for use in teaching and performance.

Undergraduate students awarded grants from the Committee were:

• Philip Lohrmann, senior civil engineering and Chinese and Japanese studies major from Battle Ground, Wash., to pursue water quality research in China’s Zhejiang Province aimed at reducing non-point source pollution;

• Kristopher Serra, a junior psychology major from Westerville, Ohio, to support research on why athletes choke and the development of instructions that will help elite athletes perform at their peak in high-pressure game situations;

Grants from Valparaiso’s Committee on Creative Work and Research help foster a climate of systematic inquiry and teaching excellence on campus through the support of research and creative work and faculty-student collaboration on projects.