Honoring Excellence | Eastern NC Now

    Publisher's Note: This post appears here courtesy of ECU News Services. The author of this post is Kim Tilghman.

East Carolina University honored its faculty researchers and artists at its sixth annual Research & Scholarship Awards ceremony. Dr. Angela Lamson was the winner of the 2022 Research & Creative Activity Lifetime Achievement Award. (Graphic by ECU News Services)

    Give a well-deserved round of applause for the 57 East Carolina University faculty members who were recognized Wednesday at the Murphy Center.

    ECU's Division of Research, Economic Development and Engagement (REDE) division held its sixth annual Research & Scholarship Awards to celebrate university faculty who demonstrated excellence in research, scholastic, engagement, innovative or creative activities in the past year.

    Dr. Angela Lamson with the Department of Human Development and Family Sciences received the Lifetime Achievement University Research & Creative Activity Award. The award is presented in recognition of originality and excellence in research and creative activities over the course of an entire career, as evidenced by sustained high-quality work performed while contributing to the academic functions of ECU.

    Dr. Elizabeth Ables with the Department of Biology in the Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences was honored with the Five-Year University Research & Creative Activity Award. This award recognizes faculty members whose work over the previous five years of continuous service at ECU has had an exceptional impact on their field of study. Her research and work in oocyte production focuses on how nutrition and age-related hormones impact egg production and how the potential impacts of human disease impacts female reproduction. Not only a valuable researcher, but Ables is also a collaborative colleague and is routinely recognized for excellence in teaching.

    The Scholarship of Engagement Award went to Dr. Randall Etheridge, associate professor of engineering, College of Engineering and Technology. The award is presented to a university faculty member in recognition of sustained commitment to partnered scholarly endeavors with nearby communities. Dr. Etheridge's current investigative research collaboration is looking at ways to reduce flooding on agricultural land near Lake Mattamuskeet.

    Award winners are selected by the Research & Creative Activity subcommittee of the Faculty Senate Academic Affairs committee, which includes members from five ECU schools or colleges.

    Others recognized during the ceremony included 11 inventors who secured U.S. patents over the past year, the 2021-22 Engagement & Outreach Scholars Academy (EOSA) cohort, and 32 Outstanding Research Scholars and Artists selected by department chairs.

    The accolades are merited for the distinguished group of scholars and thought leaders who are dedicated to advancing and serving ECU's mission.

    During the ceremony, Chancellor Dr. Philip Rogers announced that through the efforts of ECU's outstanding faculty, the university exceeded its extramural funding goal set by the UNC system strategic plan by $15 million. That funding goes to support research, engagement and other diverse creative activities at ECU.

    Interim Vice Chancellor for REDE Dr. Michael Van Scott noted that 10 years ago, about 10% of ECU faculty were principal investigators on extramurally funded projects. That figure now sits at 30%. And ECU ranks 192nd in the National Science Foundation's annual Higher Education Research and Development Survey, up 56 spots since 2011.

    "This is what it's all about," Rogers said, "... the creation and transmission of knowledge to support our society, our economy, our culture, our health, our environment, our communities, and so many other parts of the world we live in today."