UHCL’s Million Dollar Club members apply to grant student success

Five faculty members at UHCL were recognized as inductees into the Million Dollar Club on May 31. The club exists for faculty members who have accrued over one-million dollars in grant money during their time at UHCL. This year also brought the first of two inductees into a Five Million Dollar Club, which recognizes faculty who have accrued over five-million dollars in grant money.

Associate Professor Jennifer Fritz, Associate Professor Sarah Lechago, Professor David Malin, Associate Professor Andrew Yang, and Associate Professor Brenda Weiser were all inducted into the Million Dollar Club this year. Professor George Guillen, as well as Department Chair and Professor Sadegh Davari, were the first two inductees into the Five Million Dollar Club.

The Office of Sponsored Programs, which recognizes these achievements, assists professors with applying for grants.

The grants used by Sarah Lechago, associate professor of psychology goes towards refining and expanding student’s clinical and research skills.

“This makes them better prepared to either go on to practice after they graduate with their master’s degree or to apply for a Ph.D. program,” Lechago said.

Furthermore, they provide Lechago and her colleagues an opportunity to assess their treatment programs and further generate research while serving the community.

“Obtaining the best possible learning and practical experiences for the graduate students, in assessing my treatment protocols, generating research and contributing to the literature base, and serving the community are the driving factors [for my research],” Lechago said.

David Malin, professor of psychology and neuroscience, uses his grant money to provide research opportunities for students.

“Graduate schools and employers want more than good grades in classes,” Malin said. “What have [students] actually done? Aside from attending class and doing well on exams, participation in research is great experience.”

Thus far, Malin’s students have researched topics on drug dependency and age-related memory impairment. Furthermore, many of them have been accepted into medical schools, Ph.D. programs, and have obtained jobs in the Houston area at UTMB, Texas Medical Center, Baylor University, and MD Anderson.

“Without these grants, these things could not have happened,” Malin said.

Brenda Weiser, associate professor of curriculum and instruction applies for grants in order to assist the educational community by providing local education professionals with development opportunities.

“[The grants] provide teachers with the content knowledge and the materials and supplies they need to teach science content,” Weiser said.

One of the development opportunities allowed local educators to learn about light and optics in a science workshop, then provided learning materials to take back to their students.

Sadegh Davari, department chair of computing and mathematics and professor of computer science and computer information systems, is one of two faculty members admitted into the Five Million Dollar Club. Davari uses grant money to provide tools to his students for their professional development.

One of the grants comes from the National Science Foundation for the recruiting and retention of STEM majors. This grant funds local programming efforts for students in high school, community college, or undergraduate college.

“[The STEM challenge is] where local students in high schools and undergraduate colleges use their knowledge in STEM categories to compete for prizes such as a UHCL scholarship, internships in the industry, and other prizes,” Davari said.

Furthermore, Davari uses his grants to fund opportunities for students to develop themselves professionally as peer mentors in the computer science program. These mentors are able to assist newer students with questions regarding classes and maintain office hours where they can be visited by those seeking assistance in the program. Other opportunities offered include paid internships and research assistantships for undergraduate students.

Providing students with opportunities to expand their professional development is a common thread among the inductees who work with The Office of Sponsored Programs to apply for these grants.

The Office of Sponsored Programs inducts new members annually to the Million Dollar Club and “encourages all faculty to apply for grants,” said Laura Moseley, assistant director of the Office of Sponsored Programs.