Dear Colleagues: I am pleased to report the results of the FY07 competition for the Chancellor’s Fund for Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activity. In all 33 proposals were submitted by the September 30 deadline. Formal review and evaluation of the proposals was done using the same process as last year.

The review committee comprised 12 reviewers (3 in Social Sciences, 3 in Natural Sciences, 2 in Arts and Humanities, 2 in Health and allied fields, and 2 in professional fields). Ten of the committee are faculty at the Anchorage campus and one is from Kenai Peninsula College; seven are women. In addition, Kerri Morris (Faculty Senate) served as an observer of the committee’s deliberations. The work of the committee was ably assisted by Joanne Thordarson (Office of the Vice Provost).

Each reviewer prepared a written evaluation of assigned proposals; each proposal received at least three written reviews. The committee met on Friday, December 1, in closed session and evaluated the merits of proposals using criteria identified in the RFP and in the Terms of Reference posted on my website. Because most of the reviewers are from UAA-Anchorage campus, particular concern was given to issues of Conflict of Interest as explicated in the COI statement, also posted on my website.

Reviewers were instructed to select proposals on the basis of merit without regard to size of the request, background of the reviewer, or other extraneous items. Based on these recommendations, I funded the top-rated proposals with the funds available ($200,000). These included 3 proposals with budgets in the top category of $25,000 or less; and 15 proposals with budgets of $10,000 or less. The list is given at the end of this message, and we all should feel proud at the high level of scholarship practiced on our campus.

I thank all of the UAA community who participated in this year’s competition. Regrettably, not every proposal can be funded; however, active participation in research, scholarship, and creative activities is a critical component in the growth and development of research at UAA, and I hope in each of us as well.

Please contact me for more information on the competition, on the process, or on participating in next year’s competition for the Chancellor’s Fund for Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activity.

Sincerely,

Douglas Causey

Douglas Causey, PhD

Vice Provost for Research and Graduate Studies

University of Alaska Anchorage

3211 Providence Drive

Anchorage, AK 99508-4614

o: +907.786.4833

f: +907.786.1021

FY07 Recipients of the Chancellor’s Fund for Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activity

Raymond Anthony (Philosophy), “Identity and the moral status of animals: developing an animal ethics through the philosophy of teaching”

Christiane Brems (Psychology), “Exploring the obesity epidemic among UAA undergraduate students”

Utpal Dutta (ENRI/Engineering), “Investigation of site response around UAA campus area from the dense array of strong motion stations”

Gloria Eldridge (Psychology), “Nicotine dependence and smoking motives in alcohol and drug dependent smokers”

Chad Farrell (Sociology), “Hmong residential patterns in the United States, 1990-2000: segregation or assimilation?”

Kathleen Graves (Social Work), “Alaska Native Community Resilience”

Diane K. Hanson (Anthropology), “Archaeological survey of upland southwest Adak Island”

Cindy Knall (WWAMI), “Modeling smoke exposures in humans”

Lee Huskey (Economics), “Unemployment in rural Alaska: an experimental investigation of the Alaska Todaro Paradox”

Garry Kaulitz (Art), “Two exhibitions: “A sense of self” and “Reel to Real: a sense of family”

Jocelyn Krebs (Biology), “That which doesn’t kill you makes you stronger: A whole genome approach in studying acquired thermotolerance in yeast”

John Mouracade (Philosophy), “Aristotelian Hylomorphism and the metaphysics of persons”

LeeAnn Munk (Geology), “Arsenic load in groundwater resources of Anchorage, Alaska: Sources, seasonal variation and bioavailability”

Cathryn Pearce (History), “Lured by false lights: Cornish wrecking and Victorian myth”

Katherine Rawlins (Physics and Astronomy), “How to detect supernova neutrinos”

Derek Sjostrom (Geology), “Isotopic analysis of groundwater and surface water nitrate: tracing sources of pollution in the Anchorage bowl”

Karen Ward (Center for Human Development), “The use of an audio-visual plan of care to increase staff person-centered behaviors with people with dementia: a pilot study”