Savannah State University has been awarded two grants through the National Institutes of Health, totaling more than $2.2 million, that are focused on supporting and enhancing the research learning experience for SSU students.

Karla-Sue Marriott, Ph.D., is the principal investigator for the Achieving Diversity through Integrative Scientific Research Experience grant for $1.3 million through 2023. Marriott is professor and interim chair of the chemistry and forensic science department. The funding will provide students with research travel, tuition assistance and a summer bridge program. The grant team will recruit seven incoming freshman each year who have declared biology, chemistry, forensic science or mathematics as a major. These students will also be able to take on two summer internships and gain a competitive advantage when applying to doctoral programs.

The grant will also provide for the creation and implementation of a new science course, required for all STEM majors, focused on laboratory techniques and documentation. The course will highlight the importance of slowing down, giving attention to detail and it will allow the faculty to pass techniques to the next generation.

Cecil Jones, Ph.D., professor of chemistry and forensic science, is the principal investigator for a renewal grant of the MARC U-STAR program at Savannah State. The grant is for more than $950,000 over five years. MARC U-STAR focuses on increasing the number of underrepresented minorities in the biomedical and behavioral sciences by providing a stipend and tuition for honor students who meet the criteria. The goal for the next five years of the program is to add 13 MARC scholars, with at least six of them headed to earn Ph.Ds.