Rutgers Global is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2026 Rutgers Global Grants.
Rutgers Global Grants are intended to support faculty international engagement by helping initiate engagement and collaborative research, international partnerships, and new educational initiatives.
These modest seed grants are offered for full-time Rutgers faculty from all campuses, including tenured, tenure-track, and clinical faculty.
This year, there were four categories of grants: (1) Global Health, in collaboration with the Rutgers Global Health Institute, (2) International Collaborative Research, (3) Faculty-Led Study Abroad, and, new this year, (4) Korea University-Rutgers University co-funded Collaborative Research.
For this year’s Global Grants cycle, Korea University (KU) and Rutgers entered into an agreement to foster mutual collaboration with the aim of promoting their research works and accomplishments to both international academic and industrial communities. Researchers from both universities were invited to submit proposals for collaborative research projects.
Johanna Bernstein, Assistant Dean for Faculty Engagement at Rutgers Global, who administered this year’s program noted, “This year, our 14th cycle, resulted in one of our largest submission pools ever that included some especially strong proposals. We were especially excited about the response to the newly launched Korea University-Rutgers University Collaborative Research grants.” She added: “We are gratified to be able to support our faculty in their innovative international work with our annual Global Grants.”
Vice President for Global Affairs Dr. Eric Garfunkel noted: “Rutgers University continues in its strong commitment to expanding our global engagement, especially in the areas of global health, international research, and study abroad. These Rutgers Global Grants represent our continued belief in the power of research and education to help transform lives all around the world.”
Congratulations to this year’s Rutgers Global Grants recipients!
Global Health
Sarah McMahon-Cannizzo, School of Social Work, New Brunswick
Preparing Frontline Workers to Address Intimate Partner Violence in Global Contexts through Serious Games Learning
Silvia Perez-Cortes, Camden College of Arts and Sciences, Camden
Building Linguistic and Cultural Competence in Spanish for Medical Purposes
Joachim Sackey, School of Health Professions, Rutgers Health
Produce Prescriptions and Veggie-Meter Scores: A Feasibility and Pilot Study of an 8-Week Produce Box Intervention to Improve Fruit and Vegetable Intake and Food Security in College Students
Udele Tagoe, New Jersey Medical School Obstetrics/Gynecology, Rutgers Health
Molecular Profiling in Endometrial Cancer in Ghana
Joe Vella, RWJ Otolaryngology, Rutgers Health
Strengthening Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery (OHNS) Training Capacity at KCMC, Tanzania
International Collaborative Research
Nathan Wages, Rehabilitation and Movement Sciences, School of Health Professions, Rutgers Health
Development of a muscle aging index for early detection of muscular health
Maria Kouneli, Linguistics, School of Arts and Sciences, New Brunswick
The Terik Verb: Documentation of an Endangered Kalenjin Language in Kenya
Corday Selden, Marine and Coastal Sciences, School of Environmental and Biological Sciences, New Brunswick
Will changes in circulation affect the ocean’s capacity to take up carbon?
Benjamin Bates, Medicine (Institute for Health, Health Care Policy, and Aging Research), Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences, Rutgers Health
Rutgers–Sungkyunkwan University Partnership to Catalyze Oncology Treatment
Federico Sesti, Neuroscience & Cell Biology, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Rutgers Health
A class of synthetic peptides with antiepileptic activity
Ashutosh Goel, Materials Science and Engineering, School of Engineering, New Brunswick
Design, Discovery, and Translation of Antibacterial-Resistant Glasses
Omar Vasquez Duque, Law School, Camden
Anti-Steering Rules and Regressive Transfers
Ricardo Andres Bello Gomez, Public Affairs and Administration, School of Public Affairs and Administration, Newark
Conceptualizing and Measuring Regional Government Capacity in Latin America
Ulla Berg, Latino and Caribbean Studies and Anthropology, School of Arts and Sciences, New Brunswick
AI and Migration Governance in South America
Faculty-Led Study Abroad
Anna Haley, Social Work, School of Social Work, New Brunswick
Close Neighbors, Different Systems: Canada’s Social Welfare Framework, Program Implementation
Carla Katz, Labor Studies, School of Management and Labor Relations, New Brunswick
Labor Relations in Sweden, Site Exploration
Ethan Schoolman, Human Ecology, School of Environmental and Biological Sciences, New Brunswick
Environmental Solutions in Ireland, Site Exploration
Keisha April, Criminal Justice, School of Criminal Justice, Newark
Understanding Cross-Cultural Correlates of Delinquency: Tokyo, Japan, Site Exploration
Laura Napolitano, Sociology, Anthropology & Criminal Justice, Camden College of Arts and Sciences, Camden
Families, Children and the Criminal Justice System in Scotland and the US, Site Exploration
Laura Ramirez Polo, Spanish and Portuguese, School of Arts and Sciences, New Brunswick
Spanish Intercultural and Linguistic Competence: Latin America Program, Site Exploration
Maria Montenegro, Spanish and Portuguese, School of Arts and Sciences, New Brunswick
Spanish for Health Professions in Oaxaca, Site Exploration
Korea University-Rutgers University co-funded Collaborative Research
Aziz Ezzat, Industrial and Systems Engineering, School of Engineering, New Brunswick
AI4AI: AI-Powered Energy Forecasting in the Era of Large AI Loads
Hyung Jin Ahn, Department of Pharmacology, New Jersey Medical School, Rutgers Health
Investigating the impact of irisin on cerebrovascular impairment in AD
Jingang Yi, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, School of Engineering, New Brunswick
Wearable Exoskeletons for Awkward Gait Assistance in Construction
For more information, visit our Global Grants webpage here.
