Kennesaw State University may want to send the National Science Foundation a nice Christmas card this year.

The federal agency awarded research grants to Kennesaw State on four consecutive days last month, a first for the Cobb County institution. The grants totaled nearly $840,000.

“Surreal,” is how Jonathan McMurry, associate vice president for research and professor of chemistry, described it.

The first grant, $118,840, went to Michael Van Dyke, an associate biochemistry professor.

The second grant, $160,453, went to Sigurdur Greipsson, associate biology professor, to remove lead from polluted soils by improving the use of high-biomass producing crops through chemical manipulations.

The third grant, $390,940, was awared to Paola Spoletini, assistant chair of KSU’s software engineering and game development, to develop better system software.

The fourth grant, $169,496, went to computer science professor Kai Qian, for his work to improve Secure Mobile Software Development.

In other Education news:

People 2 People August 14, 2017

About the Author

Keep Reading

Sheree Smith (left) casts her ballot at Wolf Creek Library in Atlanta on Election Day on Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025. In addition to municipal races for mayors, city councils and school board members, this year’s election also will decide the members of the Georgia Public Service Commission. (Miguel Martinez / AJC)

Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC

Featured

Public Service Commission candidate Peter Hubbard gets a hug from Brionté McCorkle, executive director of Georgia Conservation Voters, during an election-night party in Southwest Atlanta on Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025.  (Ben Gray for the AJC)

Credit: Ben Gray for the AJC