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The Office of Research Development (ORD) has announced eight projects led by UMass Amherst researchers have received Faculty Research/Healey Endowment Grants (FRG) for 2025. Administered by ORD under the Vice Chancellor for Research and Engagement, the FRG program promotes research and scholarly and creative activities in all disciplines and fields across the university campus. Additionally, the grant program supports projects with high potential for future publication and funding from outside of the university, or recognition of excellence.

Full-time UMass Amherst faculty members whose appointments extend beyond the current academic year are eligible to apply for up to $20,000 in FRG grants, provided they have not received two previous FRG awards, have yet to submit a final report for a previous FRG award, or have more than $40,000 in unrestricted, uncommitted funds.
 

2025 FRG Projects and Recipients

“Critical Multicultural Analysis of Children's Literature: Reframing Mirrors, Windows & Doors: The Second Edition”

Maria José Botelho, professor in the Department of Teacher Education and Curriculum Studies, College of Education, will research literature about critical multicultural analysis of children’s literature, theoretical constructs of culture/power and the cultural themes featured to deepen and expand this scholarly work. Botelho argues that critical multicultural analysis, multilayered practices, of children’s literature has the potential recontextualize texts beyond the personal and cultural to become mirrors, windows and doors of how society works.
 

“Fragments of Belonging: Navigating Borders and Cultural Memory”

Mahwish Chishty, associate professor in the Department of Art, College of Humanities and Fine Arts, explores the interplay of borders, identity and cultural heritage focusing on the migration from India to Pakistan. Collaborating with Pakistani women artisans, Chishty aims to document and preserve traditional hand-embroidery techniques at risk of fading. Building on “The Sindhu Project,” Chishty will critique the representation of Harappan artifacts in museums and foster connections between family in London and communities in Pakistan. The goal is to amplify marginalized voices, reclaim cultural narratives and challenge colonial perspectives. The outcome will be a multimedia installation that sparks dialogue on cultural identity and heritage preservation.
 

“Defining the role of RBBP4 in transcriptional regulation during mammalian oogenesis”

Wei Cui, UMass Extension associate professor in the College of Natural Sciences’ Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences and director of animal models for the Institute of Applied Life Sciences, addresses factors that affect oocyte quality. In this study, Cui will explore a new direction in the lab by applying an oocyte-specific conditional knockout (OcKO) approach, instead of the conventional mRNA knockdown in wildtype oocytes, to investigate the role of retinoblastoma binding protein 4 (RBBP4) in transcriptional regulation during oocyte development. The project’s findings will offer insights into oocyte development and female reproductive health.
 

“Fear of Public Sex(ual Dissent): How anti-sex work laws influence surveillance policy and culture”

Ayanna Dozier, assistant professor in the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences’ Department of Communication, focuses on examining sex workers and sex work advocacy groups’ responses to the heightened policing of their practices through film and media work and how their analyses can be used to understand the shifts and changes in police and surveillance culture that affect everyone.
 

Franz Schubert's “Winterreise”

William Hite, professor in the College of Humanities and Fine Arts’ (HFA) Department of Music and Dance, will focus on Franz Schubert’s “Winterreise” (“Winter’s Journey”), an 1827 piece that has been central to Hite’s career and one that is thought of to be the pinnacle of German art song, an area in which Hite has specialized in for many years. The funds will help Hite move the project, which has been recoded and edited, forward through final mastering, production and distribution.
 

“Remapping Infrastructural Affordances: Catalyzing social and ecological engagement on Arizona’s water infrastructure”

Jordan Kanter, assistant professor in HFA’s Department of Architecture, will explore tactics to bring existing water infrastructure in Arizona into a more productive and intimate contact with its human and ecological context. The project builds on research into canal spanning solar power and its potential to address the significant carbon footprint of water systems while reducing the negative effects of solar development. This research aims to fill a gap between technical innovation and the social and ecological impact of infrastructure development.
 

“Novel public water system typology for effective deployment of innovative treatment technologies across the United States”

Jimi Oke and Emily Kumpel, assistant professors in the College of Engineering’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, work to develop a nationwide typology of public water systems. In this study, Oke and Kumpel aim to understand which innovative water treatment technologies perform best in each type of water system and why, and their research findings may accelerate knowledge transfer, save money and improve water quality outcomes across the U.S.
 

“A Longitudinal Mixed-Method Study on Asian International Students’ Racial and Ethnic Identity Development at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and the University of Southern Mississippi in a Post-COVID Era”

Jia Zheng, assistant professor in the College of Education’s Department of Student Development, will examine Asian international students’ (AIS) racial-ethnic identity development at two universities in a post-COVID era. Zheng’s research aims to expand the scholarship on AIS’ racial-ethnic identity development, develop new racial- ethnic identity measurements, inform equity-minded practices and policies to better support AIS at universities, and broaden the discourse on pan-ethnicity and transnational racial sensemaking.