Page 11 - 2019 President's Annual Report

Focus on teaching and learning: Monica Miller
named Governor’s Teaching Fellow
MGA Professor is one of 18 selected to participate
in statewide program
A significant element in the learning
equation is that of the teacher, and we
feel confident in saying that the faculty
members who dedicate their time and
energy into teaching our students
understand and embrace that role – and
are being recognized for their excellence
in that regard. One notable recognition
this year: Dr. Monica Miller, assistant
professor of English, was selected as a
2018 Governor’s Teaching Fellow for the
academic year symposium program.
As one of 18 faculty members from
Dr. Miller institutions of higher education across
the State of Georgia, Miller was selected
after a highly competitive application
and selection process.
Miller's specialties include examining the relationship between gender
and region in American literature, as well as the scholarship of teaching
and learning. Prior to joining the English faculty of Middle Georgia State and Kwak. They are working
in 2017, she was Marion L. Brittain Postdoctoral Fellow at Georgia Tech.
She was also the assistant director of the Writing and Communication
program at Georgia Tech.
The Georgia Governor's Teaching Fellows program was established in
1995 by then-Georgia Gov. Zell Miller to provide Georgia's higher
education faculty with expanded opportunities for developing important
teaching skills. Gov. Miller envisioned that this program would address
faculty members' pressing need to use emerging technologies and
instructional tools that are becoming increasingly important for learning
in today's society.
We applaud Dr. Miller’s dedication to her craft and to her willingness to
share that dedication with other educators across our state.
NSF Grant offers new opportunities
for learning outside the classroom
$480,000 grant builds on IT faculty members’ expertise
in important medical field
Faculty and undergraduate research into metabolomics - an emerging
technology with significant implications for medical science - has
earned Middle Georgia State a National Science Foundation grant of
nearly $480,000, the largest award of its kind in the University’s history.
Two information technology professors, Dr. Yingfeng Wang and
Dr. Myungjae Kwak, are directing the research funded through the
award, which began in February and lasts until January 2022. The
research is crucial because metabolomics - a technology for detecting,
identifying, and quantifying metabolites in biological samples - is
strongly correlated to microbiology, pharmacy, and medical science. For
example, accurately identifying metabolites can help with many medical
diagnoses including detection of some specific types of cancers.
“This is a great honor for MGA and a tremendous achievement for
Dr. Wang, Dr. Kwak, and everyone who had a hand in doing the hard
work it takes to apply for such a grant,” said Dr. Alex Koohang, dean of
the School of Computing.
The NSF award will build on
the ongoing work of Wang
with students to enhance
metabolite identification
accuracy by developing
reliable computational
identification tools. Their focus Drs. Wang (left) and Kwak (right)
is on improving the current
tool for more effective and
efficient metabolite
identification by incorporating
new rules into the algorithm.
With $93,000 of the grant funding earmarked for students each year,
the research team will include several undergraduates studying
information technology and biology. Conducting this project will not
only advance the cutting-edge research in metabolite identification but
also promote interdisciplinary education at MGA.