Family Social Science research collaboration with North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University earns seed grant
Faculty in the Department of Family Social Science (FSoS) have been awarded a $9,999 seed grant from the University of Minnesota's Research and Innovation Office (RIO) for a collaboration with the North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (NC A&T).
Jenifer McGuire, (pictured right) professor and extension specialist in FSoS, is the lead principal investigator is the research project, "Understanding Associations between Body Image, Dress & Appearance, Gender Roles and Media Use among LGBTQ+ Black Youth." Co-PI is Devona L. Dixon, associate professor, Family and Consumer Sciences, NC A&T. FSoS Collaborators include Xiaoran Sun, assistant professor; Jennifer George, associate teaching professor; and Chalandra Bryant, professor.
"This project will focus on understanding associations between body image, gender roles, and media use among LGBTQ+ college students of color in Minnesota and North Carolina," says McGuire. "We have met with Dr. Dixon who has expertise in body image, body perception and dissatisfaction as well as the consumer behavior of African Americans. Seminars co-attended by faculty at both institutions will address the context of social media, how the topic of social media is addressed in classrooms and its impact on body image and gender roles among college students of color, with a specific focus on LGBTQ students."
The University of Minnesota's Research and Innovation Office (RIO) created the interdisciplinary seed grant program to develop a strategic collaboration and research partnership between the University of Minnesota and the North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (NC A&T), a leading research institution among America’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). This partnership aims to develop mutually beneficial research collaborations with talented faculty and students at NC A&T. For Phase I, research teams could request up to $10,000 per project; nine projects were awarded for a total of $87,699.
Read more about this collaboration and partnership in the release, "UMN and N.C. A&T Kick Off Research Partnership Program".