ORGSP Newsletter
Office of Research, Grants
and Sponsored Programs
March/April 2014
Eleven Mini-Grants Awarded to LMU Faculty for Research
The LMU Mini-Grants Program
was instituted during the 07-08
academic year as a way to encourage faculty research. Many faculty
seek support for pilot studies or
projects in hopes that these funds
will facilitate their efforts to compete on a national level for larger
grants from state and federal agencies. While the application deadline for this academic year has
ended, faculty from all schools and
all departments are encouraged to
talk to their chair or dean about
applying for this program next
year. Mini-grant applications become available each year on or
around December 1.
This year, eleven mini-grants were
awarded to LMU faculty. Details
on the awardees and their proposed
research can be found below. Anyone with questions regarding the
LMU Mini-Grants program is encouraged to contact Dr. Dennis
Kiick, chair of the University Research Committee or the ORGSP.
Steven Furches
“Genetics of the Freshwater Sponges Within Tennessee”
Dr. John Copeland “Species and Distribution of Tennessee’s Freshwater Sponges Tennessee”
“Spore morphology of Myxobolus sp. protozoan parasite from the red line
Dr. Vina Faulkner darter, Etheostoma rufilineatum.”
Dr. Adam Rollins,
Catherine Benson,
Steven Furches
“Fungi and Vascular Plants of Lincoln Memorial University”
“Cambaridae (freshwater crayfish) Biodiversity in Belize, Central America: Determination of fresh water crayfish species diversity in the Belize,
Dr. John Hoellman Central America”
Crystal Odle
“Does the Use of a Bair Hugger Increase Bacteria Counts?”
Dr. Cynthia Ryder “Bacterial Diversity in Two Microhabitats: Forbs and Grasses”
Dr. Anna Teekell
“Emergency Writing: Irish Literature and the Second World War”
Dr. Chris
Underwood
“Dendroecological Research at the North American Dendroecological
Fieldweek, Shoshone National Forest, Wyoming”
“Imaging and Elemental Analysis of Controlled Nanoparticle Size Composites of 1) Polymer Coated Magnetite for Drug Targeting, 2) Cyclodextrin Complexes of Acetaminophen for Solubility/Toxicity Modification,
Dr. Roy Wilcox
and 3) Boron Graphene Nanocomposite for Photovoltaic Cells”
“The Effects of Traffic Noise, Temporal, Frequency, and Entropic Characteristics of the Chick-A-Dee call of Tufted Titmice (Baeolophus BicolDr. Jessica Owens or)”
ORGSP Newsletter
Office of Research, Grants
and Sponsored Programs
March/April 2014
LMU Faculty and Students Participate in 2014 BRURC
The Blue Ridge Undergraduate Research Conference (BRURC) was held March
14th and 15th at LMU. The BRURC is designed to encourage undergraduates to
conduct research projects by providing a high quality, low pressure forum for
presentations. Faculty and students from all disciplines are invited to attend and
participate. Students from areas colleges and universities participated and presented at this year’s conference on a wide variety of topics. Several presenters
received outstanding presentation or poster awards for their research.
Those receiving awards for poster presentations included Kelly Wright—
Maryville College, Garland Cleek and Colin Wolpher—University of Pikeville,
Hannah McIntosh—University of Pikeville, and Morgan Carson—University of
Central Florida.
Those receiving awards for paper presentations included Paul EarheartBrown—Maryville College, Kelsey Neeley—LMU, and Amber Tolley—LMU.
The conference invites undergraduate students from institutions throughout
the Southern Appalachian region to present their research projects in a highquality, low-pressure forum at minimal cost. Faculty members and undergraduate students are encouraged to attend. Students may present their projects in
either a paper presentation or a poster presentation format. Dr. Earl Hess, LMU
Associate Professor, History/The Stewart McClelland Distinguished Professor in
Humanities, served as keynote speaker.
Pictured left are several award
recipients from the BRURC.
Pictured right is Dr. Earl Hess, keynote speaker for the 2014 BRURC.
ORGSP Newsletter
Office of Research, Grants
and Sponsored Programs
March/April 2014
Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum (ALLM) News
The ALLM recently hosted two related programs on Lincoln in the Civil War.
The first scholarly presentation was by Dr. George Gross on April 3rd. Dr. Gross
was the first speaker for the Kincaid Lecture Series. His title "Retribution and
Rebirth in the American Civil War -- Lincoln's Perspective" examined Lincoln's
theme that the Civil War was a punishment for the crime of American slavery.
Dr. Gross help the audience explore a variety of Scriptural meanings in Lincoln's
idea of "a new birth of freedom" at Gettysburg.
On April 4th and 5th, the ALLM also hosted the fifth Lincoln Symposium. Guest
speakers all addressed the theme “Lincoln and the War”. An audience of nearly
40 guests, students, and faculty engaged our guest scholars in discussions on
the policies of Lincoln during the late Civil war years. The ALLM Lincoln Symposium occurs every four years.
Guest Scholars included:
 Dr. Brian McKnight, “Twisting Lincoln’s Arm: East Tennessee and the Politics
of Liberation”
 Dr. Daniel Stowell, “Little Burdens: Empathy in the Chief, Abraham Lincoln”
 Honorable Frank J. Williams, “Abraham Lincoln’s Bid for Re-election: Almost
Derailed by Causalities and the Pressure for Peace”
 Dr. Anne Marshall, “Ripe for Mutiny: Lincoln and the Loyalty in Civil War
Kentucky”
 Warren Greer, “The Golden Mean: Lincoln’s Wartime Principle”
Pictured at right is Dr. George Gross along with other photos from the events.
Information and photos provided by Tom Mackie
ORGSP Newsletter
Office of Research, Grants
and Sponsored Programs
March/April 2014
Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum (ALLM) News Continued
ALLM Educational Programs to Be Used With Lincoln and the Technology of War
Exhibit in Washington D.C.
The story of military balloon
usage during the Civil War,
accompanied by lesson plans,
was researched and developed for a teachers’ workshop
scheduled to coincide with the
Abraham Lincoln Library and
Museum’s exhibit – Lincoln
and the Technology of War -at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C. Research was a staff
effort. Steven Wilson, Assistant Director and Curator, designed the exhibition. Carol
Campbell, Program Director,
drafted the classroom education packages. The use of Military Balloons for observing enemy forces was new
to the United States Army; however, a dedicated cadre of aeronauts developed
several innovative methods of spying on Confederate forces during the early
years of the war. Though the use of trains, ships and advanced weaponry clearly had a major impact on the war, two important innovations included developing the first aircraft carrier to move inflated balloons and the use of air-toground telegraph messages to inform Union commanders of battlefield changes
and observation of increased enemy activities. The story of military balloon
usage during the Civil War
is part of a Civil War series
of lesson plan packages
available free for area and
regional teachers. Forthcoming packets include
the use of railroads by the
military and the telegraph. For more information contact the Abraham Lincoln Library and
Museum at 423-869-6235.
Information and photos provided by Tom Mackie
ORGSP Newsletter
Office of Research, Grants
and Sponsored Programs
March/April 2014
Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum (ALLM) News Continued
Ganz Published by ARMA International
Michelle Ganz, museum and university
archivist was recently published by ARMA International and registered with
ANSI (American National Standards Institute) January, 2014. The publication entitled “Auditing for Records and Information Management Program Compliance: A Technical Report”, was written
as part of a working group made up of
records mangers and archivist and is designed to be a general guideline for auditing a RIM (records and information
management) program. The publication
is available through ARMA International.
No winter lasts forever; no spring skips its turn.
~Hal Borland
Information provided by Michelle Ganz
ORGSP Newsletter
Office of Research, Grants
and Sponsored Programs
March/April 2014
News from the School of Arts and Humanities
Dr. Joseph Carucci
The North American Saxophone Alliance Biennial Conference was held on
March 20-23, 2014 at the University
of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana. The
conference featured performances
and presentations by saxophonists
from around world. Assistant Professor of Music and Music Program Director Dr. Joseph Carucci presented a
lecture and demonstration titled A
Transcription and Analysis of Three
Solos by Gerry Mulligan. The presentation compared three baritone saxophone solos by Gerry Mulligan (19271996), which are performed on Johnny Mandel’s arrangement of Black
Nightgown. How and when Mulligan
implements melodic ideas during the
solo process and what influence these ideas had on the character and flow of
the solo was examined. The balance of diatonicism, chromaticism, arpeggiation,
and the blues is an important part of Mulligan’s improvisation language. By manipulating these ideas, Mulligan has the ability to create great lyricism, strong
tension, anticipate musical phrases, and connect his improvisation to the original arrangement.
Dr. Rebecca Brackman
On March 7th, Dr. Rebecca Brackman, Associate
Professor of English, gave her address as President of the Kentucky Philological Association
(KPA) entitled “How Philologists Can Save the
World: Tolkien’s Adaptation of Spenser’s
“Gealousie,” to the KPA in Lexington. It will be
published in next year’s Kentucky Philological Review, the KPA’s MLA-indexed journal. Dr. Brackman was elected Executive Director of the KPA at
the business meeting on Saturday. Dr. Brackman
was also invited to give the spring lecture to the
University of Louisville's Humanities Program. The
talk was on April 3, titled "Kings, Archbishops,
and Manuscripts: The Political Dimension of Abraham Wheelock's Anglo-Saxon Studies, 16381644"
Information provided by Dr. Joe Carucci and Dr. Rebecca Brackman
ORGSP Newsletter
Office of Research, Grants
and Sponsored Programs
March/April 2014
School of Business News
Drs. Dave Hinkes and Dan Graves,
MBA Alums Lieven Cox and Tony
Parker, and MBA Student Herbert
Swender co-authored a scholarly
article, “Leadership in Management: A Universal Leadership Model for the 21st Century”, which was
published in the February 2014 Edition of the International Journal of
Business Management & Research.
Society for Advancement of Management-2014 Conference “INNOVATION & BEYOND”
A paper prepared by
McCann, J., Offoha, E., and
Bryant, R. (2014), “Student
Perceptions of Accounting
and Business Scandals on the
Accounting Profession” was
presented by Dr. McCann at
the 2014 International Business Conference “Innovation
& Beyond”, held April 3-6,
2014 in Orlando, Florida, and
will be published in the conference proceedings.
McCann, J. (2014). Presentation of paper, “Global Executive and Management Selection, Cultural Training,
and Relocation”, at the 2014 International Business Conference “Innovation &
Beyond”, held April 3-6, 2014 in Orlando, Florida, and will be published in the
conference proceedings.
Information provided by Dr. Jack McCann
ORGSP Newsletter
Office of Research, Grants
and Sponsored Programs
March/April 2014
Foundation Corner by Martha Scheidler
Earlier this month I spent a day in Nashville reviewing grants for the Tennessee
Arts Commission. It’s a different perspective being on the other side of the
desk, so to speak. I’m not sure how other reviewers feel, maybe a sense of power over the poor petitioners? But for me,
I feel a great deal of responsibility. I
want organizations to succeed and score
high enough to get the funding they
need. So before the reviewer sees a grant
application, let’s consider the things that
are really important.
Deadlines are important. There is no
way to end-run around a due date.
Whether the application is snail mailed,
Photo by Stephanie Maiden
submitted on-line, or hand delivered,
there needs to be ample time for last
minute rewrites and delivery schedules.
Next day delivery is expensive, websites go down and traffic jams happen. If the
grant is due in a week, and if there is plenty of narrative available, we might just
squeak it out. If the application requires letters of support or other approvals from a
Dean, Finance or ORGSP, please be kind to your grant developer and plan ahead. A
hurried grant writer is a cranky grant writer!
Narratives are important. The golden rule of writing a grant: Don’t make the reviewer
angry. Tiny font size, bad grammar and misused punctuation will set off the kindest
soul. While facts and data are vital to establishing a case statement, most grant reviewers are generalists. I had someone tell me that as she writes a narrative she pictures her mother reading it. Do not use technical jargon unless that is specifically
needed by the reviewer or the funding agency. Do not insult the reviewer’s intelligence. Tell the story, make a convincing case, and be personable. And please, spell
check and proof read.
Budgets are important. I admit I am terrible with numbers. But math matters. The
budget should add up correctly. Percentages should be accurate. The funder will
know if the budget is adequate for the project, so ask accordingly.
Persistence is important. Grants are a numbers game and competition is stiff. If the
grant is declined it may be possible to receive feedback on the application and if the
funder will allow resubmission. If the project does receive funding, the foundation
may provide excellent thoughts and suggestions on improving the project. Learn from
their experience.
Patience is important. Once the grant is out the door the wait begins. There is no way
to hurry, cajole, or guilt a funder into making a decision.
I know that each reviewer reads grant applications from their own unique perspectives, backgrounds and experiences. That’s to be expected. Hopefully each will be
fair and unbiased. Paying attention to the important components of a grant application
will lead to success. Marca, Pauline and I are here to help the grant process go as
smoothly as possible. Contact us before you start!
ORGSP Newsletter
Office of Research, Grants
and Sponsored Programs
March/April 2014
Foundation Corner by Martha Scheidler Continued
March-April 2014 Submissions
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Evelyn Smith has submitted a request to Bringing Theory to Practice for
a lecture and discussion workshop on the University’s mission and civic
responsibilities.
Renee Leslie has submitted a request to the CSX Foundation for equipment for the Youth Aquatics Program.
Mary Anne Modrcin has submitted a request to the Jane L. Pettway
Foundation for nursing scholarships.
Turner Bowling has submitted a request to Enterprise Holdings Foundation for the High Adventure/Bicycle Program.
Tom Mackie has submitted a request to the Fidelity Foundation for the
ALLM capital project.
Evelyn Smith has submitted a request to the BMW Group North America for the Kanto Program.
ORGSP Newsletter
Office of Research, Grants
and Sponsored Programs
March/April 2014
Reminder From the LMU Institutional Review Board
Please remember that all research proposals and projects involving human subjects,
must have IRB approval prior to the presentation of any information gathered during
the course of the research.
Under federal policy, the IRB cannot grant retroactive IRB approval.
For more information regarding the LMU IRB, please visit
http://www.lmunet.edu/curstudents/ORGSP/IRB.shtml.
ORGSP Contact Information
pauline.lipscomb@lmunet.edu
or call (423) 869-6214
carolyn.gulley@lmunet.edu
or call (423) 869-6291
melissa.miracle02@lmunet.edu
or call (423) 869-6834
If your grant award, application, presentation,
or publication has not been mentioned in this
edition, please forward your information to us
using the contact information listed.
The ORGSP is located in Duke Hall, Suite 304
As a reminder, all applications for external funding must first begin by contacting the
ORGSP.
The ORGSP staff would like to thank everyone for
their submissions to the newsletter!
Photo provided Tom Mackie