Scholarship, Engagement, the Arts, Research, Creativity and Humanities Award

About the SEARCH Award

The Scholarship, Engagement, the Arts, Research, Creativity, and Humanities (SEARCH) Award Program supports UTC graduate students and undergraduate students across all disciplines who pursue original scholarship under the supervision of UTC faculty.

SEARCH awardees gain intensive, hands-on experience with writing a research proposal, designing a research project or creative work, and disseminating findings through publication and/or presentation. Most projects commence at the beginning of the fall semester and conclude the following spring or summer.

The 2027 application will be available in Fall 2026.

Student Application Deadline: 11:00 pm, Sunday, March 7, 2027

Support letters must be received by 11:00 pm, Monday, March 15, 2027.

Eligibility

Applicant must...

Be a currently enrolled, full-time, degree-seeking graduate or undergraduate level student in good academic and judicial standing.
Have a graduation date of Spring 2028 or later at the time the application is submitted.
- Note: Students who receive a SEARCH Award must be active UTC students (an active UTC student is defined as a currently enrolled, full-time, degree-seeking graduate or undergraduate level student in good academic and judicial standing) during the SEARCH Award cycle (Fall 2027 and Spring 2028 semesters). Awardees who fail to meet this requirement (i.e. apply for graduation in Fall 2027) will have the SEARCH Award rescinded.
Be working with a UTC faculty advisor/mentor who will help develop the SEARCH proposal, and who will supervise the research/creative project during the award period.

*Students may submit one application per funding cycle.

*Students who received a SEARCH Award during the 2026-2027 cycle are not eligible to apply.

*Students enrolled in completely virtual degree programs are NOT eligible to apply.

Award Details

Award amount: A maximum of $1,000 may be requested to support the SEARCH research project. See funding details below.
Award availability: Funds are typically available at the beginning of the fall semester.
No funds will be transferred directly to the student SEARCH awardee.

Funds Distribution and Management

SEARCH expenses may be submitted starting on August 1, 2027. All funds must be spent by the awardee's department by June 30, 2028. SEARCH funds will not be available after this date per UTC fiscal policy.
Award funds can be used to support SEARCH research as outlined by the SEARCH Award criteria, UT system, and UT policy. No funds will be transferred directly to the student SEARCH awardee.
Department personnel (administrative specialist, budget coordinator, or similar) are responsible for maintaining the SEARCH budget and expending SEARCH funds to support the SEARCH research.
Department personnel will charge approved and allowable SEARCH expenses to the SEARCH Award account up to and not exceeding the amount of the award. Expenses will be routed to Office for URaCE personnel for review and approval.
The awardee's mentor/advisor, and the department head are responsible for ensuring the funds are spent for SEARCH-related research activities ONLY. Office for URaCE personnel will conduct an additional review once expenses are submitted for approval.

Allowable Expenses

Award funds must solely be used to support the costs associated with carrying out the SEARCH research project as outlined in the SEARCH Award proposal submitted as part of the SEARCH application.
All costs must be reasonable and directly related to the SEARCH project.

SEARCH Award funding may be used for the following:

Supplies, which will be used to support the SEARCH Award project.
Minor equipment, which will be used to support the SEARCH Award project.
Conference registration fees for SEARCH awardee presentation at in-person conferences. The conference presentation must be directly related to the SEARCH project.
Conference travel for SEARCH awardee presentation at in-person conferences. The conference presentation must be directly related to the SEARCH project.
Other operating expenses.
Other research-related expenses.

NOTE: This is an internal grant award and is subject to all University of Tennessee policies. The PI and Head of the administering department are responsible for ensuring that applicable policies are followed. Approval may be needed from the Budget and Finance Office. While this is by no means an exhaustive list, the following policies may apply and warrant careful review and consideration as you implement your project:

SEARCH Award funding may NOT be used for the following:

Student wages and fringe benefits

Application Instructions

NOTE: The 2027 SEARCH Award application will be managed via the InfoReady portal.

Applications must be submitted via InfoReady by 11:00 pm on Sunday, March 7, 2027. Once the application has been submitted, applicants will receive an automated confirmation via InfoReady.

Late submissions will not be considered.
Incomplete applications will not be reviewed.
Applications that include budget items that are NOT allowable (see Allowable Expenses section above) will not be reviewed.

Applicants should review the information below thoroughly before preparing application materials.

NOTE: Applicants must be working with a UTC faculty advisor/mentor who will help develop the SEARCH proposal and supervise the research/creative project during the award period.

Download and carefully review the SEARCH Award Proposal Guide.

Required Application Materials

SEARCH Research Proposal (submitted via InfoReady)
Advisor/Mentor Letter of Support (see additional details about this item below)

SEARCH Award Research Proposal Sections

Before you compose your proposal, please download and review the SEARCH Award Proposal Guide.

Section One - Project Description/Research Objectives (35 points)
Section Two - Research Design, Methods, and Data Management (35 points)
Section Three - Project Significance (15 points)
Section Four - Budget Justification (10 points)
Section Five - Student Merit and Need (5 points)

Advisor/Mentor Letter of Support

The letter should address the advisor's commitment to supervise the project for the duration of the award period, how the supervisor will provide oversight for the project, and the applicant's skills relevant to the project.
The advisor/mentor will submit the letter of support via InfoReady after the application is submitted.
SEARCH Award applicants should discuss the advisor/mentor letter submission process and deadline (March 15, 2027) with their advisors/mentors prior to submitting the SEARCH Award application.

Submitting Support Letters:

SEARCH applicants will identify the advisor/mentor's contact information (name and e-mail address) within the SEARCH Award application. Once the SEARCH application is submitted, the advisor/mentor will receive an automated message (via InfoReady) which will include instructions for submitting the support letter.

Information About Group Submissions

If the proposed project involves a research team, i.e. multiple students working on the same project:

One team member will submit a SEARCH Award application on behalf of the group. The group member who submits on behalf of the group will be tagged in the SEARCH application system as the "primary applicant." Only the primary applicant will receive application updates and other information from the Office for URaCE during the application process. It is the responsibility of the primary applicant to share updates with group members.
Group applicants may NOT submit separate applications for the same project.

SEARCH Awardee Responsibilities and Expectations

SEARCH Awardees

Must be a currently enrolled, full-time, degree-seeking graduate or undergraduate level student in good academic and judicial standing during the SEARCH Award cycle (Fall 2027 and Spring 2028).
Must have a graduation date of Spring 2028 or later at the time the SEARCH Award is accepted by the awardee (Summer 2027). Awardees who fail to meet this requirement (i.e. apply for graduation in Fall 2027) will have the SEARCH award rescinded).
Must be working with a UTC faculty advisor/mentor who will supervise the project during the award period (August 2027 - June 2028).
Are responsible for communicating to the Office for URaCE any changes to the research project which deviate from the original submitted proposal. Examples include changes to proposed budget items (how funds will be spent), major changes to the research project design/methods, and other components of the research project.
Must be registered for in-person classes during the Fall 2027 and Spring 2028 semesters.
Must attend all mandatory meetings, activities, and events as outlined in the SEARCH Awardee acceptance letter.
Must complete all research benchmarks and deadlines associated with the SEARCH research project.
Must respond to information requests and other communications from faculty advisors/mentors and Office for URaCE coordinators in a timely manner.
Must submit SEARCH reporting documents (as outlined in the SEARCH Awardee acceptance letter) to Office for URaCE coordinators by the published deadlines.
Must present SEARCH research project findings at the 2028 UTC Spring Research and Arts Conference.

Award Funds Distribution

Funds will be disbursed to the awardee’s department once the following criteria are met:

A fully completed SEARCH Award Terms and Conditions agreement (including mentor and department head approvals) is returned to the Office for URaCE by the deadline indicated.
If applicable, approval documentation from the UTC Office of Research Integrity.
- Note: research that involves human subjects or animals must be approved by the UTC Institutional Review Board (IRB) or Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) before the research commences.
If applicable, approval documentation from the UTC Office of Research Integrity that the Institutional Biosafety Committee Registration has been completed. The Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC) for the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga was established in accordance with guidelines set forth by the National Institutes of Health Office of Biological Activities (OBA) regarding research involving recombinant nucleic acid molecules. Additionally, the IBC provides the policies and guidelines to researchers under which studies may be conducted in order to maintain compliance with local, state, and federal requirements (e.g. NIH, CDC, OSHA, USDA, etc.). The current scope of the IBC covers research involving:
- Recombinant DNA molecules or synthetic nucleic acids as defined in Section I the NIH Guidelines, including transgenic plants and animals.
- Biological agents (bacteria, viruses, fungi, protozoa, parasites, and prions) and/or vectors that carry biological agents (arthropods, snails, etc.) which: 1) cause or are reasonably expected to cause disease in immunocompetent humans; or 2) cause or are reasonably expected to cause significant disease in local livestock (including poultry), agricultural crops, or indigenous wildlife; or 3) otherwise require containment and safeguards at biosafety level (BSL)-2 or higher.
- Acute biological toxins having an LD50 < 100 ng/kg in mammals and/or those listed as Select Toxins (Department of Health & Human Services).
- Human or nonhuman primate blood, blood products, tissues, secretions, excretions, or cell lines unless documented to be free of bloodborne pathogens or are otherwise low risk as per written risk assessment.
- Venomous animals posing a risk to humans through bite or sting and housed and/or manipulated in laboratories or other indoor facilities (e.g. greenhouses).
- Poisonous plants posing a risk to humans via dermatological contact, inhalation, or other route of exposure and housed and/or manipulated in laboratories or other indoor facilities (e.g. greenhouses).
- Novel nanoparticles conjugated to biologically active or cell-modifying molecules.
- Diagnostic specimens or environmental samples likely to contain any of the above and posing a significant risk to humans or local livestock (including poultry), agricultural crops, or indigenous wildlife as per documented risk assessment, including materials requiring a federal or state permit (e.g. foreign soils, noxious weeds, etc.).
- Investigators whose work involves any of these categories are required to file an Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC) Registration with the committee prior to the initiation of any new project. Approval of registrations allow the work outlined within to be conducted for up to three years, barring major changes to the scope of the experiments, and providing the investigator completes the required IBC Registration Update Form.

Application Review and Selection

SEARCH Award proposals will be reviewed by a selection panel composed of UTC faculty and other UTC personnel. Each proposal will be evaluated using a 100-point scale. Proposals will be ranked by score, and awardees will be notified of the outcome via email during Summer 2027.

Questions? Contact the Office for URaCE.

SEARCH Awardees

2026 SEARCH Awardees

Student(s)	Faculty Mentor	Project Title
Evelyn Bonner	Dr. Pratibha Deepak	Instrumental or Defensive? Mentoring Implications of Motivational Code-Switching among Black Women in Leadership
Amy Brown	Dr. Bret Eschman	Working Memory in Neurodivergent College Students: Examining Group Differences under Cognitive Load
Isabella Charnley	Dr. Bret Eschman Dr. Jill Shelton	Investigating Acute Stress Effects on Working Memory Performance
Ratri Chowdhury	Dr. Reetesh Ranjan	Assessment of Two-Level Simulation Modeling for Turbulent Reacting Flow
Amy Clemmer	Dr. Jose Barbosa	Effects of Lipocalin Expression on Environmental Stress Response in Saccharomyces cerevisiae
Anna Craddock	Dr. Keenan Dungey	Stream Monitoring to Improve Laurel Dace Habitat
Drew Crespo	Dr. Joey Shaw	The Vascular Flora of Scott's Gulf Wilderness State Park
Erin Fitzgerald Katelyn Hamilton	Dr. Venkateswara Kode	Coffee Derived Quantum Dots for Polymer Composite Applications
Sergio Reza Hernandez	Dr. Jose Barbosa	Lipocalin Gene Expression of OPB2B and Its Effects on Saccharomyces cerevisiae Response to Stressful Environments
Fatin Ihsan Hredoy	Dr. Reetesh Ranjan	Hybrid Quantum-Classical Simulation of Turbulent Premixed Combustion Using the Linear Eddy Mixing Model
Rahul Kumar	Dr. Reetesh Ranjan	Comprehensive Assessment of One-Temperature, Two-Temperature, and Three Temperature models for Hypersonic Nonequilibrium Flows
Titus Lim	Dr. Trevor Elliott	Modeling and Validation of Paraffin Support Structures for Additively Manufactured Energetic Material
Anna Melby	Dr. Sean Richards	Hazard Assessment of SSRIs in the Upper Tennessee River using Daphnia Magna
Rachael Miller Olivia Ziemer	Dr. Luis Sanchez Diaz	Microplastics-Induced Modulation of Ion Channel Conductivity in DPhPC Lipid Bilayers: Implications for Synaptic Plasticity and Long-Term Potentiation
Het Patel	Dr. Jose Barbosa	Binding Kinetics of Lipocalins for Enhanced Uremic Toxin Removal
Brady Permenter	Dr. Ricardo Wilhelm Dr. Jill Shelton	How Do We Trust AI? Examining Neural Processing in Artificial Intelligence versus Human Agents
Ellie Pugh	Dr. Rich Walker Dr. Steven Symes	Periodically Forever: Examining the Bioaccumulation of Perfluorinated Compounds in Periodical Cicadas
Iqra Sheikh Megan Lewis Gracen Voyles Olivia Adams	Dr. Erin Melhorn	Unlocking Collaboration: Escape Room-Based Interprofessional Education for Students
Itzayana Torres-Martinez	Dr. Loren Hayes	Does homophily in group composition influence spatiotemporal foraging?
Allison Turner	Dr. Jannatul Ferdoush	Identification of the E3 Ubiquitin Ligase of Transcription Factor Taf2 for Future Therapeutic Intervention

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