Announcing the 2026–2027 PNW Internal Research Award Recipients

Dear Colleagues,

The Faculty Research Board and the Office of Research are pleased to announce the recipients of the 2026–2027 Internal Research Awards. Please join us in congratulating the following faculty members and their collaborators!

PNW Research Bridge Program

• Wei Dai – Assistant Professor of Computer Science, College of Engineering and Sciences
  Project: Mapping GPS Reliability on Canyon Trails: Enhancing Public Safety
• I-Hsuan Lin – Assistant Professor of Social Work, College of Humanities, Education, and Social Sciences
  Co-Investigator: Dolapo Adeniji, Assistant Professor of Social Work, Indiana State University
  Project: An AI Literacy Program for Older Adults: Examining the Effects of AI Literacy and AI Use on Social Isolation, Loneliness, Perceived Social Support, and Mental Health

Seed Funding for Academic Books

• Lee Michael Johnson – Professor of Criminal Justice, College of Humanities, Education, and Social Sciences
  Book: Maltreatment of Juveniles in Correctional Placements

Research Initiation Program: Cross-Disciplinary Research Award

• Ezra Mutai – Assistant Professor of Foods and Nutrition, College of Business
  Co-Investigator: Matthew Bauman, Associate Professor of Hospitality and Tourism Management, College of Business
  Project: Beyond Appetite: How GLP-1 Receptor Agonist Use Relates to the Experience of Eating

Research Initiation Program: Interdisciplinary Research Award

• Arpan Mahara – Assistant Professor of Artificial Intelligence, College of Technology
  Co-Investigators: Ashok Vardhan Raja, Assistant Professor of Cybersecurity, College of Technology, and Irfan Ahmad Ganie, Assistant Professor of Electrical Engineering, College of Engineering and Sciences
  Project: Trustworthy Vision-Language-Action AI for Safe Human-Robot Interaction

Research Initiation Program: Multidisciplinary Research Award

• Heather Perkins – Assistant Professor of Psychology – Quantitative, College of Humanities, Education, and Social Sciences
  Co-Investigators: Joseph Passi, Assistant Professor of Special Education, and Danielle Starks, Clinical Assistant Professor of Education (both in the College of Humanities, Education, and Social Sciences)
  Project: Estimating Social and Economic Returns of Inclusive Camp for Families of Youth with Disabilities

Congratulations to all our award recipients! We look forward to seeing the impact of their work.

Best regards,

Lindsay Gielda
Chair, Faculty Research Board
Purdue University Northwest