New UConn Program Providing Funds For Inclusive Research Initiatives

STORRS, CT — A half-dozen projects are receiving grants as past of an inaugural University of Connecticut program dedicated to research and collaborations that address societal issues such as equity and inclusion.

UConn Research recently announced the recipients of the JEDI Research initiative. The awards advance innovative research, scholarship, and creative work on topics contained in the acronym – Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion.

Selected interdisciplinary projects include investigations into traffic safety inequities in environmental justice communities and alternative approaches for school safety. Other awarded submissions explore discrimination experienced by transgender and non-binary youth, establishing a memorial and museum at the former Mansfield Training School, and researching the practice of ethnic studies across the United States.

The 2021-2022 JEDI award recipients include:

• Emma Amador, History – $19,638Bright Futures: Antonia Pantoja and the Practice of Ethnic Studies in US History
• Alaina Brenick, Human Development and Family Sciences – $19,997.19Validating a measure of school-based interpersonal and institutional discrimination experienced by transgender and gender non-binary youth
• Brenda Brueggemann, English – $20,000The UConn – “Mansfield Training School” Cross-Institutional History: A Memorial and Museum
• Kiel Brennan-Marquez, Law Instruction and Research – $20,000Reimagining School Safety—in Connecticut and Beyond ... Co-PIs: Sukhmani Singh, School of Social Work; Miguel de Figueiredo, School of Law; Ken Barone, Institute for Municipal and Regional Policy; Andrew Clark, Institute for Municipal and Regional Policy; Casey Cobb, School of Education
• Sukhmani Singh, Social Work Instruction and Research – $59,998.64An Intersectional Examination of the Educational Trajectories of Youth Sentenced to Probation
• Davis Chacon Hurtado, Civil and Environmental Engineering – $60,000Equity in livability: An exploratory analysis of spatial equity in roadway safety and driver behavior using naturalistic driving data ... Co-PIs: Alexandra Paxton, Psychological Sciences; John Ivan, Civil and Environmental Engineering; Kerry Marsh, Psychological Sciences