Junior faculty put award to work

As if teaching courses isn’t enough, professors also devote significant time to research in their various fields.

The Office of the Vice Provost for Faculty and Academic Affairs, along with the Office of the Vice Provost for Research, announced the recipients of the Outstanding Junior Faculty Award for 2011 on Feb. 8. The five recipients were honored with three grants totaling up to $14,500 each, according to the press release.

The award was given to candidates that exemplified commitment to their specific areas of teaching, research and service.

The five recipients were Joshua Brown (psychological and brain sciences), Michael Foster (folklore and ethnomusicology), Ilana Gershon (communication and culture), Amit Hagar (history and philosophy of science) and Eden Medina (informatics and computing), according to the press release.

“These awards recognize our exceptionally talented assistant professors and provide resources enabling them to continue their excellent research and scholarship in Bloomington,” said Tom Gieryn, vice provost for faculty and academic affairs, in
the release.

These recipients are using their grants to develop their research opportunities.
“I’m starting a new research project on how new media is affecting people’s work relationships,” Gershon said. “I know my students are really worried about getting hired nowadays, and I’m really interested in figuring out how people are using new media to hire people.

“I’d like to use the grants to interview employers and find out what they’re looking for when hiring people and see how they are using new media in the process.”

Foster described his overseas research and how the grant will help him finish his new book, which takes a look at Japanese rituals and tourism.

“Right now, I’m particularly studying a ritual that takes place in one small island off the coast of Japan,” he said.

“The grant will allow me to get back to Japan to do more research. One of the hardest things in doing research in a foreign country is the cost and the ability to go there knowing you can stay for a decent amount of time.”