The Ethics Center is pleased to announce the recipients of the Spring, 2024 Hackworth Research Grants for Faculty/Staff and Grants for Students. Through the grants, SCU faculty and staff can draw on the Center's resources to support their research and teaching on applied ethics and to engage with a community of scholars with an interest in ethics.
Hackworth Research Grants are available for SCU faculty, staff, and students doing research or creating teaching materials on applied ethics in any discipline, and are open to applicants in the fall and spring quarter each year.
The grants are provided through an endowment from Joan Hackworth and the late Michael Hackworth.
Spring 2024 Grantees
Faculty/Staff Hackworth Grant Recipients
Melissa Brown, Assistant Professor, Communication, a $5000 grant to support the project "An Intervention Against Digital Violence Through Black Feminist Ethics." This grant supports the development of a digital platform and research exploring the ethical implications of online misinformation targeting Black women and girls, focusing on fostering a Black feminist ethics of care and personal accountability to combat digital violence and enhance digital equity. Grant funds will pay for a research assistant, benefits, incentives for community organizers, and the creation of a comprehensive multimedia platform that aims to educate and support Black women and girls in navigating and countering online misinformation and digital violence.
Meilin Chinn, Associate Professor, Philosophy, a $4000 grant to support the project "Fengshui and Ahupuaʻa: The Winds and Waters of Native Hawaiian and Chinese Environmental Practices." This project examines two traditional systems of practical environmental ethics undergoing contemporary revivals – the Chinese practice of fengshui and the Native Hawaiian practice of ahupuaʻa – and will contribute to comparative, cross-cultural environmental ethics. Grant funds will be used for an educational course on the application of fengshui to contemporary environmental ethics, research materials, undergraduate research assistants/web designers, and research travel, resulting in an article for publication, an interactive website, and a course module for teaching environmental ethics.
Tim Myers, Senior Lecturer, English, a $5000 grant to support the project "Kasia and the Snowdrops – A Musical." This musical is an updated fairy-tale for children and adults emphasizing how virtues of healthy family interaction, care for the planet, cultivation of peace in the face of war, and overall compassion can make the world a better place. This grant will create professional song recordings necessary for submission to regional theaters and Broadway, a crucial step in getting the play out into the world where it can wield ethical influence for the good of all.
Julia Scott, Adjunct Assistant Professor, Bioengineering, $2800 grant to support the project "Developing a Code of Conduct for Research Involving Human Subjects in Immersive Technologies." Because emerging technologies present novel risks in human subjects research, for which clear guidance on subject protections needs to be established, this project will develop a code of conduct suitable for these new technological circumstances. The funds will be used to develop and disseminate ethical guidance resources for researchers using immersive technology.
Student Hackworth Grant Recipients
Ukeme Abasi Bassey, Counseling Psychology, a $214.44 grant for the project "ChatGPT for ‘Therapy’? A Demographic Analysis of ChatGPT Users Seeking Emotional Support." This project is the first demographic inquiry into the emerging trend of individuals turning to ChatGPT for therapy and the ethical implications of this development. This grant will provide funding for presenting this research at the APS conference in San Francisco.
Sofie Fernandez, Child Studies and Psychology, a $500 grant for the project “A Toolkit for Bilingual Education in California.” This project will examine California’s state policy about bilingual education and will merge the policy information and the information gleaned about bilingual educational opportunities at schools/districts serving predominantly Spanish-speaking communities. The project will create an advocacy toolkit that will present a meaningful and effective way to integrate bilingual education into California schools.
Kaitlin Webster, Gender Studies and Neuroscience, $570 for the project "Black Feminist Concerns in Social Media Research." This grant will question current ethical standards for research on social media, paying special attention to privacy concerns and relying on Black feminist values (such as an ethic of care and collective knowledge production). The funds from the Hackworth Student Grant will be used to pay interviewees for their participation, subscribe to an audio transcription service, and travel and board for attending a research conference.
Emma Williams, Child Studies and Psychology, a $500 grant for the project “Children's Literature and the Criminal Justice System.” This project will examine organizations in California that are dedicated to supporting children with incarcerated parents. She will conduct a systematic search in databases for children’s literature that represents the experiences of children with incarcerated parents. This will result in a toolkit for the California organizations involved.
Congratulations to all the awardees!