Faculty Highlights: Recent Awards and Grants from Fall 2025

Last term, Drexel University faculty members were recognized for their scholarly research and prolific academic and professional contributions. This update offers a snapshot of activity courtesy of the Office of the Provost.  

Sponsored Research

Christopher Rodell, PhD, assistant professor in the School of Biomedical Engineering, Science and Health Systems, received a one-year grant for $152,000 from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases for the project titled “Placating Death Eaters: Tuning Macrophage Metabolism and Phenotype via Nanoparticles.”

Lin Han, PhD, professor in the School of Biomedical Engineering, Science and Health Systems, received a one-year grant for $109,000 from the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases for the project titled “Mechanical Regulation of Cell Fate and Multi-Scale Function in the Developing Meniscus.”

Shadi Rezapour, PhD, assistant professor of information science in the College of Computing & Informatics, is a co-investigator on a recently awarded pilot project by the National Institute of Aging and Penn Artificial Intelligence and Technology Collaboratory for Healthy Aging, a total award of $259,711. The pilot project addresses Alzheimer’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease-related dementias (AD/ADRD) and is titled “A Synthetic Data Approach to Catalyzing Innovation in Dementia Caregiver Support.” 

Girija Kaimal, EdD, professor and interim department chair of creative arts therapy, and Minjung Shim, PhD, assistant professor in creative arts therapy, both in the College of Nursing and Health Professions, have been awarded a two-year, $150,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.

Michael Lowe, PhD, professor of psychology in the College of Arts and Sciences, is a principal investigator on a National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant titled “Predicting Weight Regain Following Weight Loss Using Physiological Measures of Appetite and Energy Expenditure.” This consortium grant includes the University of Pennsylvania, Columbia University, Dartmouth College, Tufts University and others; they just received an NIH supplement in the amount of $1,127,574 to finish year five of the study.

Alison Carey, MD, associate professor of pediatrics, and microbiology and immunology in the College of Medicine, was awarded a $554,786 grant from the NIH for the project “Use of Probiotics to Modulate Antimicrobial Peptide Signaling in the Neonatal Innate Immune Response to Influenza Virus.”  

Eugenia Lo, PhD, associate professor of microbiology and immunology in the College of Medicine, received a $190,261 grant from the NIH for the project “A Longitudinal Cohort Study of Plasmodium vivax Relapses in Central Africa.” 

A new $50 million Autism Data Science Initiative from the NIH explores genetic factors and environmental influences that play a role in the development of autism. A research team led by Kristen Lyall, ScD, associate professor and chair of the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics in the Dana and David Dornsife School of Public Health, will investigate the role diet plays in autism's development. 

Frank Lee, PhD, professor of digital media and director of the Entrepreneurial Game Studio in the Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts & Design, received a Small Business Technology Transfer grant from the National Institute of Nursing Research at the National Institutes of Health. Lee is co-investigator on the project titled “Life at 100.4: An Immersive Social Virtual Reality Education Tool for Adolescent and Young Adult Cancer Patients and Caregivers,” which will develop and evaluate an immersive VR-based program designed to improve patient understanding and management of febrile neutropenia during cancer treatment. 

Lee and Erin Truesdell (BS game design & production ’19) are among 10 recipients of the Young Futures “Here Comes the Fun” funding challenge in partnership with the Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop, with support from Niantic. This challenge will uplift and scale solutions that design, build and facilitate play that meets pre-teens and teens where they are to enhance wellbeing outcomes across digital experiences. 

Fred Krebs, PhD, associate professor in the Department of Microbiology & Immunology in the College of Medicine, was awarded a one-year $100,000 cancer research grant by the Pennsylvania Breast Cancer Coalition. The project, titled “Exploring non-thermal plasma as a novel immunotherapy for breast cancer,” will also involve the collaborative contributions of Mauricio Reginato, PhD, professor and chair of the Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, and Vandana Miller, MD ,professor and chair of the Department of Microbiology & Immunology, both from the College of Medicine.

Major Gifts, Honors & Recognition

Alex Poole, PhD, associate professor of information science in the College of Computing & Informatics, received the Bohdan S. Wynar Research Paper Award from Alise, the global leader for the education of information professionals. The awards jury praised the work for its innovativeness and its overall contribution to library and information science scholarship. The paper will be published in Library Quarterly.

Robert T. Sataloff, MD, professor and academic chair of the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery in the College of Medicine, has been listed as top expert in otolaryngology worldwide, according to Expertscape, which assesses 27,000 physicians and health care facilities worldwide, primarily considering publications, citations and scientific outcomes in their rankings. 

Martin Herman, MD, professor and interim vice chair of the Department of Orthopedics at the College of Medicine, received the Distinguished Service Award from the American Academy of Pediatrics Section on Orthopaedic Surgery. The award, which is the highest honor bestowed by the Section, recognizes Herman’s contribution to the field of pediatric orthopedics and to the AAP’s mission of excellence in patient care, research and teaching. 

The Latino Health Collective, founded by Ana Martinez-Donate, PhD, professor and associate dean for public health practice and external relations in the Dornsife School of Public Health, was selected as the Health and Wellness Achievement award winner for the 2025 Philadelphia Welcoming Awards. This award recognizes their outstanding commitment to immigrant inclusion and empowerment.

Lisa Tucker, JD, professor of law in the Thomas R. Kline School of Law, and her co-author Michael Risch won the Eisenberg Prize from the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers for the best piece of appellate law scholarship in the past two years. 

Nicole Iannarone, JD, associate professor of law in the Kline School of Law, was selected as a public member of the board of the directors of the Certified Financial Planner Board.

Elea Feit, PhD, assistant dean for research and professor of marketing in the Bennett S. LeBow College of Business, has been appointed as one of the co-editors of the Journal of Marketing Research, a top-tier publication and one of the most prestigious and influential journals in the field of marketing.

Dornsife School of Public Health researchers Sherry Brandt-Rauf, JD, teaching professor, and Jennifer Taylor, PhD, Arthur L. and Joanne B. Frank professor and director of the Center for Firefighter Injury Research & Safety Trends (FIRST), won a Best Paper Award by the Journal of Public Health Policy for their publication titled “Inventory of state workers’ compensation laws in the U.S.: first responder mental health.” This award recognizes excellence in advancing public health policy research and practice through written scholarship. 

Mark E. Schafer, PhD, research professor in the School of Biomedical Engineering, Science and Health Systems, and immediate past president of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers’ (IEEE) Ultrasonics, Ferroelectrics, and Frequency Control (UFFC) Society, was elected as IEEE Division II Director-Elect.