Eighteen College Researchers Recognized by UVA
In a ceremony on February 1, The University of Virginia and the UVA Office of the Vice President for Research recognized the achievements of researchers across Grounds with its 2023 Research Achievement Awards. University President Jim Ryan and Interim Vice President for Research Fred Epstein presented awards to seven members of the faculty of the College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences and recognized eleven others for their research, their public impact and other significant achievements in their fields.
“2023 was an incredible year for research at UVA,” said Christa Acampora, dean of the College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences. "Celebrations of this sort highlight our commitment to supporting that research, scholarship and creative activity across the arts and sciences."
Recipients of the University’s Research Excellence Award from the College included Elana Swartz and Peter Schauss. Swartz, an associate professor media studies whose work on how money and its infrastructure can be understood as a media technology, has been central to efforts to understand the emerging digital economy. Her first book, New Money: How Payment Became Social Media, was named #12 on a list of the greatest tech books of all time by The Verge. Schauss, an assistant professor of physics, has developed state-of-the-art capabilities for quantum simulation of condensed matter systems at UVA, using them to perform experiments that are having significant international impact. Schauss has been recognized with highly competitive young-investigator awards and has secured substantial external funding to support his growing research program.
Three College faculty members, Ashon Crawley, a professor of religion and African American and African studies; David Getsy, Eleanor Shea Professor of Art History; and Tiffany King, Barbara and John Glynn Research Associate Professor of Democracy and Equity were presented with the University’s Award for Excellence in Arts and Humanities. Crawley is an internationally renowned creative scholar whose interdisciplinary work weaves together Black queer studies, religious studies, music, performance studies and visual art. Getsy’s work focuses on the intersection of art history, queer studies and transgender studies, and he is a leading scholar in post-war American sculpture. Tiffany King is an award-winning scholar whose interdisciplinary work is drawing global acclaim, according to Allison Pugh, chair of the College’s Department of Women, Gender and Sexuality.
Economics professor and director of the Center for Economic and Policy Studies at the Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service, William Shobe was presented with the Public Impact Focused Research Award for his work focusing on reducing emissions, carbon removal technologies, electricity-sector transformation and finding effective solutions to pressing environmental problems. Shobe has made significant contributions to the design of emission markets and auctions and is consulted by the state about Virginia electricity demand forecasting. He also played an important role in the design of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) that helps states reduce carbon emissions and invests in communities.
The Office of the Vice President for Research also recognized Howard E. Epstein, Sidman P. Poole Professor of Environmental Sciences and chair of the Department of Environmental Sciences, with its Research Collaboration Award, and it named Josipa Roksa, associate provost for undergraduate education and professor of sociology one of the University’s top funding recipients.
Ryan and Epstein also recognized College faculty members Linda Columbus (Chemistry), Ana L. Fostel (Economics), Cassandra L. Fraser (Anthropology), Amanda K. Gibson (Biology), Richard Handler (Anthropology), Tracy A. Larson (Biology), Ajay Limaye (Environmental Sciences), Kristina Richardson (Middle Eastern & South Asian Languages & Cultures), Sen Zhang (Chemistry) and Huiyuan Zhu (Chemistry), whose work in their respective fields is earning kudos on a national level and who have won national awards or have received similar recognition from societies and academies outside of UVA.
“Across Grounds, faculty are pursuing groundbreaking research and scholarship that distinguishes the University and advances their disciplines,” Executive Vice President and Provost Ian Baucom said at the event. “As we celebrate their achievements, it is important to acknowledge the tremendous effort these researchers have devoted to their work along the road to discovery.”
“I am grateful that Arts & Sciences faculty are receiving this recognition. Strategic research is a critical part of our mission, and the faculty in Arts & Sciences have tremendous impact,” Acampora said. “As I interact with colleagues, university leaders, students and alumni, it is a point of pride for me, as dean, to be able to share the important and remarkable work that so many of our faculty are advancing.”
President Ryan added, “I’m a great admirer of these talented and dedicated researchers and the impressive breadth of research represented by this year’s award winners. Their work stretches from quantum physics to the Arctic, from cardiology to contemplative sciences. They ask important questions about our health, our well-being, and our cultural world. They also mentor and inspire others, which multiplies their impact across Grounds and in their fields.”
