Five brand-new grants for Penn faculty that integrate different fields

Earlier this month, Penn’s Fels Research Policy Initiative awarded five new grants designed to support interdisciplinary collaboration to faculty members across eight of Penn’s 12 schools. Each grant was given to between two and five professors that specialize in different fields. 

Built Environment Policies and Interventions for Better Health and Safety:

This project develops new approaches to health care access for urban populations. The project is a collaboration between Penn Integrates Knowledge professor Karen Glanz and Perelman School of Medicine professor Charles Branas. Much of Branas’ research focuses on improving health in urban settings by studying urban violence and access to trauma centers, while Glanz’s research is focused on the fields of behavioral science and public health.

Fairness for Digital Infrastructures:

This project, led by PIK professor Rakesh Vohra in collaboration with School of Arts and Sciences professor Mallesh Pai and School of Engineering and Applied Science professors Sampath Kannan, Aaron Roth and Jamie Morgenstern, aims to develop workshops where scholars from diverse fields like law and computer science can come together to discuss the reformation and modernization of public policy.

The Global Impacts of Race in Biomedicine:

PIK professors Sarah Tishkoff and Dorothy Roberts will use this grant to study policies addressing racial inequities and to put together guest lectures.

Interdisciplinary Collaboration to Support Data-Based Decision Making in Philadelphia:

Graduate School of Education professor John Fantuzzo, Dennis Culhane of the School of Social Policy & Practice and Janet Deatrick of the School of Nursing will develop a set of research goals for Philadelphia’s integrated data systems, focusing especially on how to best assist poverty-stricken families.

Optimizing Government: Policy Challenges in the Machine Learning Age:

This collaboration between Penn Law School professor Cary Coglianese and statistics professor Richard Berk will look at technological advancements within the government, especially in regards to machine learning, the science of teaching computers to recognize patterns.

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