Institute for Public School Initiatives (IPSI)
J. Matt Orem • Executive Director, PI
Connie Dawes • Director, PI
The University of Texas at Austin, through the Institute for Public School Initiatives, has been selected to receive a seven-year, $33.9 million award ($4.8 million, 1st year) under the Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) Partnership Program from the United States Department of Education. As part of a highly competitive national grant program, IPSI’s GEAR UP proposal was one of only four partnership applications awarded in 2022. The GEAR UP program utilizes current research to focus supplementary services to increase the number of low-income students who are prepared to enter and succeed in postsecondary education. As the fiscal agent, IPSI partners with six school districts, other institutions of higher education, corporations and community organizations to serve over 6,000 students in Central and East Texas starting in middle school and continuing into postsecondary education.
Department of Kinesiology and Health Education
Hao-Yuan Hsiao
Assistant Professor
Principal Investigator Dr. Hsaio was awarded an NIH R21 grant from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health & Human Development to study the underlying neuromuscular and biomechanical mechanisms responsible for the deficits in weight-bearing during walking in individuals with chronic stroke. The team’s research will determine the immediate and short-term effectiveness of a 6-week treadmill oscillation walking training program on improving weight bearing and mobility function in individuals post-stroke.
Jaylen Wright
Doctoral Candidate
Jaylen Wright, a doctoral candidate in the Department of Kinesiology and Health Education, was awarded a Harry E. and Bernice M. Moore Fellowship from the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health. His dissertation is titled, “Birthing While Black: A Qualitative Exploration into the Experiences and Implications of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Black Maternal Health and Care in Texas.” The Moore Fellowship is awarded to students from UT Austin who demonstrate primary research interest in the human experience in crises, including those resulting from natural or other major disasters or, more broadly, stress and adversity. Selected fellows receive a one-time, unrestricted award of $20,000.
Department of Educational Leadership and Policy
M. Yvonne Taylor
Doctoral Candidate
M. Yvonne Taylor, a doctoral candidate in the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy, was awarded a Harry E. and Bernice M. Moore Fellowship from the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health. Her dissertation is titled, “‘We don’t even have a name’: Women Knowledge Workers in Higher Education Show Themselves Out.” The Moore Fellowship is awarded to students from UT Austin who demonstrate primary research interest in the human experience in crises, including those resulting from natural or other major disasters or, more broadly, stress and adversity. Selected fellows receive a one-time, unrestricted award of $20,000.
