Each year, The Graduate School honors graduate students in programs throughout our University for their powerful discoveries that contribute to a better future for people and communities in North Carolina. We're pleased to present 17 Impact Awards and 5 Horizon Awards for 2018.
The longstanding Impact Award, made possible through the generous support of the Graduate Education Advancement Board, recognizes discoveries with a direct impact on our state in the present time. The Horizon Award, first presented in 2017, recognizes discoveries with future potential to benefit North Carolina (and beyond).
View all of the 2018 Horizon and Impact Award winners and their projects
Creating a More Robust Vaccine for Whooping Cough
Ashley Bone, Microbiology and Immunology
Horizon Award
"Ashley's results will lay the foundation for future studies aimed at vaccine, therapeutic and diagnostic development."
Understanding How Pediatric ACL Injuries Are Different, Toward Better Treatment
Stephanie Cone, Biomedical Engineering
Horizon Award
"Stephanie's research has considerable potential to impact the treatment of ACL injuries in youth sports, such as girls' soccer and basketball."
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Supporting N.C. Schools with Implementation of Healthful Living Essential Standards
Julia Considine, Public Health Leadership
Impact Award
"As an outcome of Julia's findings, actions are under way to foster greater and equitable access to this vital health education across North Carolina."
Applying a New Approach to Estimate HIV Drug Resistance in N.C. Patients
Thibaut Davy-Méndez, Epidemiology
Impact Award
"Thibaut's work on HIV drug resistance is essential to informing clinical care management and public health guidelines."
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Lessons in Leadership: How Organizations Can Engage and Prepare Youth for Civic Life
Sarah Gaby, Sociology
Impact Award
"Sarah's multi-method study of youth organizations in the Triangle provides powerful insights for understanding how organizations can help youth become engaged citizens."
Maintaining Water Supply Reliability Through Raw Water Transfers
David Gorelick, Environmental Sciences and Engineering
Impact Award
"David's hard work and ingenuity are leading to more cost-effective and sustainable strategies for the Triangle and many other regions experiencing water scarcity."
Expanding the Arsenal of Potential Antibiotics Using Soil Bacteria
Gabrielle Grandchamp, Microbiology and Immunology
Horizon Award
"Gabrielle's dedicated work on this project has already led to the identification of interactions that appear to generate novel antibiotic activity."
The Effects of Charter Schools on Traditional Public School Students in North Carolina
Joshua Horvath, Economics
Impact Award
"Josh's research is directly relevant to the debate around the funding and expansion of charter schools in North Carolina."
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Understanding How Severity of Food Insecurity Relates to Health Outcomes for Women
Cassandra Johnson, Nutrition
Impact Award
"Cassandra's research is addressing the longstanding need to improve the current, and now outdated, measures of food insecurity."
Understanding How Habitat Features Affect Fish and Crustacean Populations
Danielle Keller, Ecology
Impact Award
" I expect that Danielle's work will be influential in the next draft of North Carolina's detailed Coastal Habitat Protection Plan in terms of oyster reef and seagrass management."
Making Key Connections Across Three Waves of a Youth Tobacco Survey
Sarah Kowitt, Health Behavior
Impact Award
"Without Ms. Kowitt, our research team and our state would lack critical knowledge to advocate for resources to prevent future generations of youth from using tobacco."
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Decisions and Resilience: Community and Economic Development Analysis of Post-Disaster Buyouts in Eastern North Carolina
Amanda Martin, City and Regional Planning
Impact Award
"Helping socially vulnerable communities bounce back better from disasters is the driving focus of Amanda's research."
Understanding a Hormone's Key Role in Improving Embryo Implantation
Brooke Matson, Cell Biology and Physiology
Impact Award
" Brooke's findings may eventually provide new therapies for the greater than 200,000 women in North Carolina struggling with fertility problems."
"If Shan's targeted strategy using safe, inexpensive drugs like aspirin reduces obesity-associated breast cancer deaths by 25 percent (a conservative estimate based on his preliminary data), that could save the lives of 500 women in North Carolina per year."
Exploring the Impact of Living Shorelines on Coastal Water Quality
Kathleen Onorevole, Marine Sciences
Impact Award
"Kathleen's study generated actionable information that will enhance our ability to sustain both water quality and coastal shorelines."
"Avery's multiple findings are ensuring that reefs continue to house and serve fishes that are so valuable for the myriad fish-related industries in North Carolina."
Multilinguistic Analysis of Spelling Among Children with Hearing Loss
Nancy Quick, Speech and Hearing Sciences
Impact Award
"Nancy has translated her approach into a tool that will allow speech-language pathologists to work with teachers to address the children's spelling challenges."
Implications of Antibiotic Use Within Industrial Hog Operations
Sarah Rhodes, Environmental Sciences and Engineering
Impact Award
"Sarah is answering questions of global importance, all while studying local sites and in direct consideration of people affected by disproportionate environmental and health impacts."
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Integrating Homeowner Decisions and Hurricane Damage Data Toward Better Shoreline Protection
Carter Smith, Marine Sciences
Impact Award
"Carter's research has critical implications for coastal management at a time when implementation of hard engineered shoreline protection structures is rampant."
Investigating Cell-to-Cell Interactions to Inform New Autoimmune Disease Treatments
Katie Stember, Pathology
Horizon Award
"Katie's research is an important next step in our decades-long research into these rare and complicated kidney diseases, and will lead to improved therapies."
In Aluminum's Shadows: Finding Power in Resident Voices and Experiences
Pavithra Vasudevan, Geography
Impact Award
"Pavithra's graduate career has been dedicated to working alongside community groups in North Carolina to further their attempts to gain justice for family members suffering illness due to exposure to chemicals in the environment."
Determining Factors That Encourage Physician Presence in Underserved Areas
Teresa Zhou, Economics
Impact Award
"Teresa's work quantifies the impacts of important economic determinants — including compensation, medical care market characteristics and local amenities — that define concerns about our state's physician maldistribution."
