Partnerships for Innovation
Faculty and Student Programs
ORAU Enhances Professional Growth Through Faculty and Student Programs
Relevant, hands-on research opportunities connect classroom instruction to real world applications. Oak Ridge Associated Universities (ORAU) maximizes the potential of the talented faculty and students in our university consortium by investing in programs that inspire and support academic excellence, technological innovation, and creative problem solving.
ORAU/ORNL High Performance Computing Grant Program
Co-sponsored by ORAU and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), this competitive grant program program provides faculty-student teams with a monetary award and valuable access to the lab’s leadership class computing resources and staff.
Powe Junior Faculty Awards
As an investment in the future of science education in America, ORAU’s Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Awards Program rewards ambitious young faculty at our member universities.
ORAU Events Sponsorship Program
The ORAU Events Sponsorship Program provides up to $4,000 to support events that involve participants from more than one ORAU institution. Two calls for proposals will be issued each year. Typical events might include visits to an ORAU institution by a renowned speaker, conferences or workshops with a focused theme, or a technology transfer/business plan competition.
To apply, visit the ORAU Members Universities page, find your school, and contact your member councilor, who can submit a proposal to the ORAU University Partnerships Office through the Members Only section of this site.
ORAU Travel Grants Program
The ORAU Travel Grants Program provides up to $800 to facilitate travel by a faculty member from an ORAU Sponsoring or Associate Institution or Branch Campus. Visits can be to collaborate with researchers at ORNL, Y-12, ORAU laboratories or work sites, or another ORAU institution.
To apply, visit the ORAU Members Universities page, find your school, and contact your member councilor, who can submit a proposal for travel funding to the ORAU University Partnerships Office through the Members Only section of this site.
Lindau Meeting of Nobel Laureates and Students
Each year, ORAU co-sponsors the convening of Nobel Laureates in chemistry, physics and physiology/medicine in Germany to conduct open and informal meetings with more than 500 students and young researchers from around the world.
ORNL HBCU/MEI Faculty Summer Research Program
ORNL’s summer research provides research appointments for faculty of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and other Minority Educational Institutions (MEIs). The objective is to increase the number of collaborations and to foster long-term relationships between ORNL research staff and HBCU/MEI faculty members.
Faculty and Student Research Opportunities
Looking for an opportunity to conduct cutting-edge research? Visit our online catalog for an extensive listing of research programs administered by ORAU and the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education, including sabbaticals, research appointments, scholarships, fellowships, and more.
Dr. Deb Jaisi
Assistant Professor
Department of Plant and Soil Sciences
University of Delaware
2012 Winner of the Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Enhancement Award
Education Background:
- Ph.D., Geology, Miami University, Oxford, Ohio
- M.S., Engineering and Applied Geology, Asian Institute of Technology, Bangkok, Thailand
- B.S., Geology, Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, Nepal
Award-Winning Research Project:
Focusing his research on an excessive nutrient found in the Chesapeake Bay, Jaisi will study phosphorus pollutant issue in the water. His analysis will determine relative proportion of phosphorous that is derived from land versus from the ocean, and eventually reveal the real culprit in the bay’s pollution. This data will be useful to resource managers in controlling phosphorus overloads and in the development of detailed nutrient maps of the bay, as well as the rivers that drain into it.
On Winning the Powe Award:
“I feel honored to receive the Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Award. I view this award as a prong test to early career faculty members to identify how the scientific community regards their research. For me, it also became a platform to advertise my research. In fact, after the news about the Powe award was published in UDaily, the online news for the University Delaware, it caught the attention of other media as well as private funding agencies.”