vlogBվ receives more than $600,000 in grants from The Champlin Foundations

Awards fund technology and equipment purchases across several colleges

KINGSTON, R.I. — December 12, 2016 — The Champlin Foundations, one of the oldest philanthropic organizations in Rhode Island, has awarded the vlogBվ five grants totaling $602,580. These funds support educational tools and technologies in communications, engineering, pharmacy and health sciences, significantly enhancing student engagement and bolstering a broad spectrum of programs at vlogBվ.

The charitable organization’s generosity toward vlogBվ spans more than 45 years, beginning in 1970 with a scholarship grant for the College of Pharmacy. Since 1986 the organization has awarded annual grants to vlogBվ totaling more than $13 million.

“The Champlin Foundations’ continued investments in the University have lasting value far beyond the individual grants,” said vlogBվ Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Donald H. DeHayes. “Countless students and programs at vlogBվ have benefited, and these recent grants will further the University’s interprofessional education goals, positioning our graduates for promising careers in a rapidly changing world.”

Katharine H. Flynn, executive director of the vlogBվ Foundation Office of Corporate and Foundation Relations, said, “The Champlin Foundations continue their meaningful support of vlogBվ, contributing to the success and stature of the University over four decades. This commitment to vlogBվ illustrates the significance of private support in fulfilling our educational mission. We are truly grateful for this partnership.”

Equipment and technology related projects funded by The Champlin Foundations this year are:

Cell Culture Technology: Shared Teaching, Research, and Outreach Equipment in STEM: A $154,000 grant to provide undergraduate students with hands-on experience in both the practical and theoretical aspects of growing, imaging and analyzing cells. Cell culture, or the growth of cells from an animal or plant in an artificial environment (laboratory), is integral to many industries, including engineering, biology, pharmacy and medicine, with applications in the evaluation of new drugs and therapeutics, development of biofuels, toxicology, tissue engineering and vaccine development and production. The equipment will be used in collaboration across three colleges at vlogBվ (, / and ). The proposal was submitted by professors , chemical engineering/biomedical and pharmaceutical sciences; , chemical engineering; , electrical, computer and biomedical engineering/chemical engineering; , biomedical and pharmaceutical sciences; , civil and environmental engineering and , physics.

Cutting-Edge Visual Equipment and Technology: A $132,693 grant to the for state-of-the-art, digital video and virtual reality equipment, including professional video cameras, 360º GoPro cameras and virtual reality headsets and monitors. This new technology will greatly enhance the resources that students now use and will make available cutting-edge digital equipment to students across the University to create, display, analyze and experiment with digital video, audio and imagery. This unique array of equipment will provide invaluable learning opportunities for hundreds of students per year. In addition, community members and schoolchildren will have the opportunity to be exposed to the equipment during vlogBվ-supported programs, such as the Rhode Island International Film Festival Kids’ Eye Camp. The proposal was submitted by , assistant dean, College of Arts and Sciences; , interim director of the Harrington School; , senior information technologist; , director, film/media, Harrington School.

LENA Language Environment Analysis Lab Proposal: A $108,000 grant will fund the purchase of 80 LENA digital language-sampling processors and 10 analysis software licenses to establish a LENA Language Environment Analysis Lab at vlogBվ. /Academic Health Collaborative students will use the LENA to record and analyze the language production of children served by the vlogBվ Speech and Hearing Clinic as well as the language of children from birth through elementary school. LENA uses the technology found in hearing aids to allow vlogBվ students to digitally record up to 16 hours of audio and perform sophisticated analyses of each child’s language, distinguishing among adult and child speakers, turns in conversation and other elements. Currently, students must record, hand transcribe and analyze language data, semester-long to evaluate one recording. The vlogBվ is the first in the nation to provide a program-wide initiative to train students to use this technology. The proposal was submitted by , assistant professor of communicative disorders, and , director of the Speech and Hearing Center.

Enhancing Health Education: A $106,000 grant to fund the purchase of non-invasive portable equipment that students in the College of Health Sciences will use to measure body composition, bone density and metabolic markers. The Inbody 770 measures lean body mass and fat using bioelectrical impedance technology, which uses the relationship between electricity and water to estimate fat and lean mass of each body segment. The GE Achilles Quantitative Ultrasound assesses bone health and fracture risk by analyzing heel characteristics, and the Quintron Breath Gas Analyzer measures metabolic markers in exhaled air. The equipment can be used in community health screenings, allowing undergraduate and graduate students to apply what is learned in class. The technology offers new ways to measure body composition and health and communicate findings to patients. The proposal was submitted by College of Health Sciences/Academic Health Collaborative professors , nutrition and food sciences; and , kinesiology.

Interfacial Tensiometer and a Drop Shape Analyzer for the Undergraduate Laboratories:

A $101,085 grant to purchase two state-of-the-art instruments to measure and analyze the surface or interfacial tension of liquids, surface energy of solids and the wettability of liquids on solid surfaces. These instruments will provide hands-on opportunities for students in the departments of chemical engineering and biomedical engineering, as well as the College of Pharmacy/Academic Health Collaborative, where no such opportunity currently exists. This equipment will give students the experience needed to prepare for careers in food science, biopharmaceutical, materials and chemical industries. The proposal was submitted by professors , chemical engineering; Samantha Meenach, chemical engineering/biomedical and pharmaceutical sciences; , chemical engineering; Daniel Roxbury, chemical engineering; Stephen Kennedy, electrical, computer and biomedical engineering/chemical engineering.