February 2026 Grants and Awards
Environmental Non-Tariff Measures: Opportunities and Challenges for United States Agricultural Export Competitiveness
Principal Investigator:
Nicolas Legrand
Research Assistant Professor
Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Total Anticipated:
$416,577
Sponsor:
United States Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Comparison of Blackberry Polyphenols from Blackberries Grown in Different Environments
Principal Investigator:
Dennis Cladis
Assistant Professor
Department of Food Science and Technology
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Total Anticipated:
$5,000
Sponsor:
Southern Region Small Fruit Consortium
Biomarkers as Outcome-Based Indicators for Chickens Welfare Status
Principal Investigator:
Leonie Jacobs
Associate Professor AY
School of Animal Sciences
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Total Anticipated:
$635,000
Sponsor:
United States Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Breaking Down the Walls: Understanding the Role of Cell Wall Components in Root Growth Regulation Under Water Deficit Conditions
Principal Investigator:
Priyamvada Voothuluru
Assistant Professor
School of Plant and Environmental Sciences
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Total Anticipated:
$114,723
Sponsor:
National Science Foundation
Advancing Integrated Management for the Invasive Box Tree Moth (Cydalima perspectalis) with Biological Control, Cultivar Susceptibility, and Alternative Chemical Strategies
Principal Investigator:
Alejandro Del Pozo-Valdivia
Assistant Professor
Hampton Roads Agricultural Research and Extension Center
Agriculture Experiment Station
Total Anticipated:
$35,000
Sponsor:
Horticultural Research Institute
Accelerating Root Development in Slow-Growing Nursery Stock Using Plant Growth Regulators
Principal Investigator:
Kristopher Criscione
Nursery Production Specialist
Hampton Roads Agricultural Research and Extension Center
Agriculture Experiment Station
Total Anticipated:
$30,311
Sponsor:
Horticultural Research Institute
Intercropping Strawberry and Garlic: Yield, Pests, and Sensory Assessments
Principal Investigator:
Jayesh B. Samtani
Associate Professor
Hampton Roads Agricultural Research and Extension Center
Agriculture Experiment Station
Total Anticipated:
$5,000
Sponsor:
Southern Region Small Fruit Consortium
Experimental and Numerical Study on the Regression Rate and Combustion Characteristics of Solid Fuels in Supersonic Flows
Principal Investigator:
Gregory Young
Professor
Department of Aerospace and Ocean Engineering
College of Engineering
Total Anticipated:
$900,445
Sponsor:
Office of Naval Research
Comprehensive Literature Reviews of Hexavalent Chromium, 1,4-Dioxane, and Microplastics in Drinking Water
Principal Investigator:
Kirin E. Furst
Associate Professor
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
College of Engineering
Total Anticipated:
$48,713
Sponsor:
Commonwealth of Virginia Department of Health
Comprehensive Literature Reviews of Hexavalent Chromium, 1,4-Dioxane, and Microplastics in Drinking Water
Principal Investigator:
Kirin E. Furst
Associate Professor
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
College of Engineering
Total Anticipated:
$19,834
Sponsor:
Commonwealth of Virginia Department of Health
The Operation of Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System Stations for Prince William County, Virginia
Principal Investigator:
Stanley Grant
Professor
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
College of Engineering
Total Anticipated:
$132,102
Sponsor:
Prince William County Public Works
Rethinking Wireless Channel Through the Lens of Radiance Field
Principal Investigator:
Rose Qingyang Hu
Professor and Department Head
Department of Electrical and ComputerEngineering
College of Engineering
Total Anticipated:
$200,000
Sponsor:
National Science Foundation
Defense University Research Instrumentation Program: Versatile Laser Micromachining System for Creating Soft and Hybrid Electronics and Sensors
Principal Investigator:
Michael D. Bartlett
Associate Professor AY
Department of Mechanical Engineering
College of Engineering
Total Anticipated:
$256,794
Sponsor:
Office of Naval Research
Making Dumb Machines Smart, Autonomous, and Reconfigurable via Software-Defined Manufacturing
Principal Investigator:
Christopher B. Williams
Professor
Department of Mechanical Engineering
College of Engineering
Total Anticipated:
$399,537
Sponsor:
Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
In Vivo Mapping of Reproductive Tissue Remodeling During Pregnancy Using Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Principal Investigator:
Noel M. Naughton
Assistant Professor
Department of Mechanical Engineering
College of Engineering
Total Anticipated:
$499,996
Sponsor:
National Science Foundation
Specialized Adaptations in the Model Alpha-Proteobacterium Sinorhizobium meliloti
Principal Investigator:
Birgit Scharf
Professor
Department of Biological Sciences
College of Science
Total Anticipated:
$2,103,284
Sponsor:
National Institutes of Health, National Institute of General Medical Sciences
Mathematical Modeling of Mechanical and Spatiotemporal Processes in Cellular Functions
Principal Investigator:
Jing Chen
Associate Professor
Department of Biological Sciences
College of Science
Total Anticipated:
$2,117,692
Sponsor:
National Institutes of Health, National Institute of General Medical Sciences
Transmission Dynamics and Pathogenesis of Contemporary Mayaro Virus Strains
Principal Investigator:
James D. Weger
Associate Professor AY
Veterinary Medical Research and Graduate Studies
Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine
Total Anticipated:
$422,183
Sponsor:
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
Mechanisms for Impaired Adaptation to Aerobic Exercise with Metabolic Disease
Principal Investigator:
Sarah Lessard
Associate Professor
Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC
Total Anticipated:
$2,857,933
Sponsor:
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
Overcoming Chemoresistance in Melanoma Using a Peptide That Blocks Phosphoinositide 3-Kinase Beta
Principal Investigator:
Zhi Sheng
Assistant Professor
Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC
Total Anticipated:
$3,000
Sponsor:
Melanoma Research Foundation
Maine Bureau of Highway Safety Sharing the Road with Trucks 1
Principal Investigator:
Matthew C. Camden
Division Director Freight Transit Heavy Vehicle Safety
Virginia Tech Transportation Institute
Total Anticipated:
$120,000
Sponsor:
Maine Bureau of Highway Safety