Murray State University faculty members receive grants via Giving Back Endowment’s Faculty Innovation Initiative

Four Murray State University faculty members have been awarded grants via the school’s Giving Back Endowment, which was established by Dr. Bob Long and his wife Patricia to encourage a community of service for Murray State University and the surrounding Calloway County community. Each faculty member will receive $1,000 to implement their student community engagement opportunity into their course curriculum.

According to an article on Murray State University’s website, the four faculty members who have received Faculty Innovation Initiative grants are Dr. Rupkatha Bardhan, Dr. Faris Sahawneh, and Professor Kari Shemwell and Professor Jake Hildebrant. These four faculty members were chosen by a selection committee chaired by Dr. Elise Kieffer, the program director of Nonprofit Leadership Studies. Submitted projects are evaluated on criteria including the potential impact it will have on student education, the level of importance to the faculty member’s discipline, and the innovation the projects represent.

Dr. Bardhan, who is a professor in the Jesse D. Jones College of Science, Engineering and Technology, received the grant for his submission, the Safety and Health Program Training and Management course. The course will give his students the ability to create a hands-on program for high schoolers who will be entering the workforce after earning their diploma. University students will be able to learn their own skills more effectively by figuring out how to teach them to others. 

Speaking of his project, Dr. Bardhan said, “Teen workers are significantly more likely to experience workplace accidents and injuries compared to older employees, due to lack of experience and inadequate safety training. The purpose of the project is to train these young professionals how to identify hazards in the workplace and proper ways to eliminate those hazards to protect themselves.”

Dr. Sahawneh, also a professor in the Jesse D. Jones College of Science, Engineering and Technology, submitted his course, CNM 440 in the cybersecurity field. Students in the course will learn about managing cybersecurity as well as have the opportunity to instruct senior citizens and older adults in the community on the same topic.

He said, “This project aims to provide CNM 440 students with practical experience in information assurance policy and management while addressing the increasing digital vulnerabilities senior citizens face. Through this project, students address a critical societal issue, fostering mutual growth and collaboration between the university and the local community.”

Shemwell is a professor in the College of Humanities and Fine Arts and her project is for her Introduction to Creative Writing course. Students in the course will be able to interview elderly community members who live at a local care home, and using those interviews, work with the individuals to create an autobiographical essay that will be bound and shared with the care home residents.

Shemwell explained the project, saying, “I'd like to give the students an opportunity to practice the real-world skill of writing other people's stories. I think this gives students real-world experience in the processes of co-writing, editing, revising, compromising and interviewing. These stories will be printed, bound and shared with residents.”

Hildebrant, a professor in the Jesse D. Jones College of Science, Engineering and Technology, has focused his project on serving the underserved children in the community. His class, EMT 312, will collaborate with the Applied Engineering Club, the Calloway County Resource Center, and the Murray Police Department to provide bikes to kids in need. 

He said of his project, “Many children in Calloway County lack reliable transportation, limiting their ability to attend school regularly, participate in extracurricular activities and access essential resources such as grocery stores and community centers. Bicycles offer a cost-effective and sustainable solution to these challenges, enabling greater independence and improved quality of life. Additionally, the project provides hands-on learning opportunities for students in industrial instrumentation, allowing them to apply technical skills to real-world problem-solving.”

The Giving Back Endowment was established by Dr. Bob Long who was once a distinguished visiting professor with the Nonprofit Leadership Studies program at Murray State University. He and his wife Patricia implemented the program in order to foster service, altruism, and generosity among Murray State University’s faculty and students and the greater community.

For more information about Murray State University, visit the school’s website.