USCA Assistant Professor Wins $800,000 Research Award
Aiken, SC (10/06/2021) — Dr. Jessica Sullivan, assistant professor of geology at the University of South Carolina Aiken (USCA) recently received a prestigious National Science Foundation Early Career Development (CAREER) award for her proposal to study why, how, and how fast salt marshes will change in response to sea level and land-use changes. The award totals $800,000 to be dispersed over a five-year period.
The NSF CAREER program supports early-career faculty with potential to be academic role models in both research and education. The goal of the program is to help the awardee build a strong foundation that will lead to integration of research and education. Sullivan will use the funds to involve undergraduate students in her research and develop a field-based course for the new USCA degree in earth systems science. This kind of high-impact programming has great potential to train a new generation of geologists and provide important data for future coastal management.
"This CAREER project will provide an abundance of new and exciting research opportunities for myself and USCA students," Sullivan said. "I am honored to receive this award from NSF and I believe it speaks volumes to the quality of undergraduate led research that can be conducted at USCA and throughout the USC System."
Dr. Chad Leverette, dean of the College of Sciences and Engineering at USCA, emphasized the importance of undergraduate research experiences.
"We are extremely proud of Dr. Sullivan. This is a wonderful accomplishment. In fact, as an institution, this is our second time having faculty members from our Department of Biology and Geology selected to be the recipients of this prestigious early career award from NSF. We value high-quality undergraduate research experiences for our students. We want our students to work with us on cutting-edge research while they are undergraduates. Undergraduate research is a strength for us. This most recent award is just another testament of our commitment to these high-impact experiences for our students."
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Dr. Jessica Sullivan, assistant professor of geology at USCA recently received a prestigious National Science Foundation Early Career Development award for her proposal to study why, how, and how fast salt marshes will change in response to sea level and land-use changes. The award totals $800,000 to be dispersed over a five-year period.
