- University News Archive - 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock /news-archive/tag/national-science-foundation-grant/ 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock Tue, 23 Aug 2022 12:47:59 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 Student Researchers Investigate Muslim Hate Crimes in Arkansas /news-archive/2022/08/23/muslim-hate-crimes-arkansas/ Tue, 23 Aug 2022 12:47:59 +0000 /news/?p=82031 ... Student Researchers Investigate Muslim Hate Crimes in Arkansas]]> Dr. Tusty ten Bensel, director of the School of Criminal Justice and Criminology, and Dr. Robert Lytle, the graduate coordinator for the school, received a three-year $324,987 National Science Foundation grant in 2021 to study the perceptions of Muslims in Arkansas who have been the target of discrimination, harassment, or interpersonal crime, along with the impacts such behaviors have on victims. 鈥淭he summer program went very well,鈥 ten Bensel said. 鈥淲e worked with 10 exceptional undergraduate students from all over the country and one from our very own campus. They were bright, excited, passionate about advocacy work, and dedicated to advancing their knowledge in research and Islamophobia. This was a lot of work to complete in eight weeks, but these experiences enriched the learning process, and the students were able to see their own growth and tangible outcomes from their efforts this summer.鈥 This year鈥檚 cohort was the first of 30 undergraduate students who will participate in the design, implementation, analysis, and reporting of this project through the National Science Foundation Research Experiences for Undergraduates program. 鈥淚 took a crime and behavior class from Professor Molly Smith during my sophomore year, and that sparked a passion for me for this research,鈥 said Hailey Davis, a junior criminal justice major at 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock. 鈥淟earning about the experiences of victims of hate crimes really interested me. Growing up in the south, a lot of people don鈥檛 know about special populations. I wanted to do my part as a criminal justice major to contribute to this field of research.鈥 The student researchers chosen for the program include:
  • Anna Bryant, a junior criminal justice and psychology major at Loyola University
  • Anna Cohen, a junior sociology major at California Polytechnic State University
  • Hailey Davis, a junior criminal justice major at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock
  • Malak Dridi, a sophomore public policy and journalism major at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
  • Grace Magori, a sophomore criminology and criminal justice major at the University of Maryland
  • Emily Murphy, a senior criminology and economics major at the University of Oklahoma
  • Gabi Overcast-Hawks, a sophomore sociology major at Wake Forest University
  • Dylan Sarubin, a sophomore criminology and criminal justice major at the University of Maryland
  • Lawson Schultz, a junior sociology and art major at the University of Delaware
  • Rachel Strickland, a sophomore criminology and sociology major at Florida State University
During the summer program from June 6 to July 29, the student researchers participated in research and content workshops, alumni presentations, experiential activities, collecting and analyzing data, writing a research brief on findings, and participating in a final presentation for internal and external stakeholders. Five criminal justice professors at 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock served as faculty mentors for the students. 鈥淚 thought it was really amazing to work one on one with faculty members,鈥 Murphy said. 鈥淎s an undergraduate, it can be hard to get one-on-one time with professors who are guiding your research and your education needs. Being paired with a faculty mentor during this program was awesome.鈥 Dridi, who is the education officer with the Arab Student Organization at her university, said she and the other researchers have been interviewing Muslim leaders in the state. Their answers will help design a statewide survey to better understand Muslim hate crimes and victimization in Arkansas. 鈥淲e have been conducting interviews with leaders in the Muslim community,鈥 Dridi said. 鈥淲e are specifically focusing on experiences of victimization or hate based on their religion. We asked if they have ever felt targeted because of religious clothing or if they have ever felt unsafe in their neighborhoods. This first year is essentially about establishing a better understanding of what the Muslim community is experiencing.鈥 During the second year of the project, the researchers will conduct interviews with up to 50 more people of the Muslim community in Arkansas and send out a statewide survey. The third year of research will include interviews with policy makers, legislators, and law enforcement about hate crime legislation. 鈥淚 think this program sparked an interest in learning more about the impact of victims in hate crimes and how they respond after being a victim of a hate crime as well as the response of the communities of those special populations,鈥 Davis said. 鈥淲e are all very grateful for the opportunity.鈥 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock plans to publish a report on the findings from their first year of research at the end of the year.]]> 糖心Vlog传媒LR researchers tackle cybersecurity education with NSF grant /news-archive/2016/08/03/cybersecurity-ualr-researchers-education-careers-arkansas-little-rock-national-science-foundation/ Wed, 03 Aug 2016 21:17:18 +0000 /news/?p=64830 ... 糖心Vlog传媒LR researchers tackle cybersecurity education with NSF grant]]> While news reports of large-scale cyberattacks and breaches have become commonplace, the cybersecurity field lacks readily available training, which has resulted in a shortage of skilled workers. The $276,424 NSF grant will enable the 糖心Vlog传媒LR team to develop a platform for high school and college competition and education that鈥檚 designed to improve cybersecurity throughout the country. Led by 糖心Vlog传媒LR Associate Professor of Computer Science Dr. Mengjun Xie, researchers will use the grant funds to create PROMISE, a cohesive system of free resources designed for multiple levels of cybersecurity learners. PROMISE鈥檚 features have two main goals 鈥 to improve the quality of national cybersecurity education and to equip students to be exemplary professionals in the field. The program鈥檚 flexible, easily accessible curriculum is intended to make getting a quality education in cybersecurity possible for countless students. As a designated in Information Assurance/Cybersecurity Education, 糖心Vlog传媒LR is well-equipped to launch the platform. Xie is joined by co-principal investigator Dr. Kenji Yoshigoe, professor of computer science and department chair; Dr. Chia-Chu Chiang, professor of computer science; Dr. Shucheng Yu, assistant professor of computer science; and Dr. Amy Sedivy-Benton, assistant professor of teacher education.
Dr. Kenji Yoshigoe head shot

Dr. Kenji Yoshigoe

PROMISE will offer engaging learning modules that can be implemented in high school and college classrooms. These lessons will cover basic principles for cybersecurity beginners as well as rigorous training for cybersecurity competitions and the stages of learning in between. Each learning module will include four levels of content to engage and serve people with different backgrounds and interests. The virtual PROMISE space will house labs that will enable visitors to conduct experiments and collaborate with others. In the cybersecurity world, collaboration often means healthy competition. National competitions take place regularly. PROMISE will cater to this culture in an unprecedented way, the researchers said in their project proposal: 鈥淭he platform is novel in that it will support competitions of different styles as well as hands-on puzzles and labs, all in the same style, which makes PROMISE a versatile facility for both security competition and general security education.鈥 In addition to creating and sharing the virtual platform, the 糖心Vlog传媒LR team will host a variety of outreach events, including a workshop, competitions, and high school and college visits. Team members plan to collaborate with the National Guard Professional Education Center in Little Rock, Pulaski Technical College, and Catholic High School during the PROMISE evaluation period. After the project is completed, it will be free and available to the public.]]>