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Through , ����AV faculty members have embarked on new pilot research projects in collaboration with higher education institutions throughout Virginia.��

The 4-VA Collaborative Research Grants, first launched in the 2013-14 academic year, are designed to forge relationships in Virginia higher education to leverage the strengths of each school, decrease working in silos, and launch novel research projects that can provide a springboard for future external funding.��

Other schools in the 4-VA system are the College of William and Mary, James Madison University, Old Dominion University (ODU), University of Virginia (UVA), Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), Virginia Military Institute, and Virginia Tech (VT).��Christopher Newport University is also participating in Collaborative Research Grants.

During the 2024-25 year, nine of the Collaborative Research Grants are being led at George Mason and 11 faculty members will serve as co-principal investigators (co-PIs) for research spearheaded at partner institutions.��

“Each year, we are more and more impressed with the breadth and depth of the proposals,” said Janette Kenner Muir, vice provost, academic affairs, and campus coordinator of 4-VA at Mason, adding that this year’s 25 proposals were especially strong.

The 4-VA@Mason 2024-25 Collaborative Research Grant awardees, proposal title, and partner schools (in parentheses) are the following:

• , College of Science, Department of Environmental Science and Policy and Potomac Environmental Research and Education Center, “Integrative Characterization of the Anatoxin-a-Producing Benthic Cyanobacterial Genus Microcoleus in the Shenandoah River” (UVA/Wise)
• , College of Science, Department of Computational and Data Sciences and Center for Social Complexity, “Quantum-Inspired Modeling for Understanding Social Complexity” (ODU)
• , College of Science, School of Systems Biology, “Proteomic profiling of molecular changes associated with chemotherapy induced neuropathy” (VCU)
• Myeong Lee, College of Engineering and Computing, Department of Information Sciences and Technology, “Understanding Multidimensional Measures of Social Capital: Impacts of Ethnic Heterogeneity, Social Classes, and Historical Legacies of Urban Policy” (VCU)
• , College of Science, Department of Mathematical Sciences, “Data-Driven Modeling of the Time-Dependent Immune Response to Infection and Vaccination” (UVA)
• , College of Humanities and Social Sciences, Department of History and Art History, “Historical Mapathons: Team-Based GIS Training and Transformation of Seventeenth Century Maps” (VT)
• Sang Nam, College of Visual and Performing Arts, Computer Game Design Program, “Developing A Multimodal LLM AI Agent for the XR, Extended Reality Platform for Personalized and Highly Immersive Trauma Training” (UVA)
• , College of Engineering and Computing, Department of Computer Science, “Uncovering Secrets from Virtual Reality Headsets via Electromagnetic Side Channels” (VT)
• , College of Engineering and Computing, Sid and Reva Dewberry Department of Civil, Environmental, and Infrastructure Engineering, “Multifunctional Fungi-Based Biosurfactants for Durable Concrete Structures” (UVA)

The following George Mason faculty received funding as co-PIs for the 2024-25 academic year collaborating with other 4-VA institutions:

• , College of Engineering and Computing, Department of Mechanical Engineering, “MOMENTUM: Assessing the Merits of Personalized Feedback with Generative AI for Foundational Engineering Mechanics Courses” (VT)
• , College of Public Health, Department of Global and Community Health, “A new green space exposure index utilizing AI methods and an eye-tracking device” (VT)
• and , College of Science, Department of Mathematical Sciences, “Collaborative workshops in topology” (UVA)
• , College of Engineering and Computing, Department of Mechanical Engineering, “Printing of Ultrathin Conductive Films on Liquid for 3D Wearable Electronic” (UVA)
• , College of Humanities and Social Sciences, Department of History and Art History, and Heidi Lawrence, Department of English, “Human Dimensions of Infectious Diseases” (VT)
• , Costello College of Business, “Building Machine Learning Resilience During Disasters” (UVA)

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