UNF celebrates innovation and achievement at 2026 STARS reception and awards ceremony

May 13, 2025

The University of North Florida proudly hosted the 17th annual Scholars Transforming Academic Research Symposium (STARS), recognizing outstanding achievements in research, scholarship and creative activity across all disciplines. Co-sponsored by the Office of Research and the Graduate School, STARS brought together faculty, staff and students from across the university for a full day of presentations, poster sessions, Research NOW chats and a celebratory awards ceremony.

From pioneering early childhood environmental curricula to educational technology, sport research and public scholarship, UNF faculty continue to generate knowledge that transforms lives. Congratulations to all the faculty and staff who shared their work at STARS on Friday, April 24, 2026, and to those who continue to elevate the university through bold ideas and collaborative research.

Silverfield College of Education and Human Services Recognized for Outstanding Contributions

Several faculty members from the Silverfield College of Education and Human Services were honored for their research leadership and scholarship during the 2026 STARS reception and awards ceremony.

Dr. Han Soo Kim, Assistant Professor of Sport Management, received the Tenure-Track Faculty STARS Poster Award. The STARS Poster Competition provided an opportunity for faculty to share their research and scholarship with UNF colleagues, as well as make connections across the campus. Each faculty and staff attendee had the opportunity to select posters that they felt best demonstrated excellence in presentation, content and impact of research.

Additional accolades awarded to the Silverfield College included:

High-Impact Research Article Award: Dr. Rakesh Maurya for his publication, A qualitative content analysis of ChatGPT's client simulation role-play for practising counselling skills, in Counselling and Psychotherapy Research (2024)
Five Consecutive Years of Funding: Dr. Kim Cheek
10 Consecutive Years of Funding: Dr. Wanda Lastrapes
$250,000+ in Annual Research Funding: Dr. Sophie Filibert, Dr. David Hoppey, Dr. Christopher Janson and Dr. Wanda Lastrapes
Platinum STARS - $1 Million+ in Sponsored Research Activity: Dr. Sophie Filibert, Dr. David Hoppey and Dr. Christopher Janson

The ceremony also recognized faculty across UNF for research proposals submitted and awards received between July 1, 2024 and June 30, 2025. Silverfield faculty recognition included:

Proposals Submitted

Dr. Valentina Bongiovanni, Playful Learning Using STEM (PLUS) Toolkits for Families, National Science Foundation (NSF
Dr. Valentina Bongiovanni, Take-home Family STEM Toolkit Program - Y3, Kids Hope Alliance
Dr. Stacy Boote, UNF Teacher Leader Triads: Scaling up and Sustaining Equitable STEM Education through Teacher Inquiry, National Science Foundation (NSF)
Dr. Jamey Burns, JTR Boundless Educator Initiative, National Center for Teacher Residencies
Dr. Jamey Burns, Project PAIR: Partnering to Accelerate School Improvement and Increase Retention through Teacher Leadership, The University of South Florida Board of Trustees
Dr. Jennie Butler, Development of Quantitative Food Frequency Questionnaire to Assess Pork and Traditional Food Intake among Persons of Mexican Heritage in Central Texas, American Society of Nutrition
Dr. Kim Cheek, DUVAL M.I.N.E.S. (Minecraft Integration for Nurturing Enhanced Science Success), Duval County School Board
Dr. Kim Cheek, Parent A.L.L.I.E.S. Program: Advancing Learning and Leadership in Engaging STEM, Duval County School Board
Dr. Kim Cheek, UNF Teacher Leader Triads: Scaling up and Sustaining Equitable STEM Education through Teacher Inquiry, National Science Foundation (NSF)
Dr. Rachelle Curcio, Teacher Identity through Cultural Inquiry and Innovative Computing Content in Elementary Classrooms, National Science Foundation (NSF)
Dr. Sean Davis, Through Sport Analytics: A Five-Year Initiative for Summer Camps, Digital Badges, and Experiential Learning: EDU Core Research, National Science Foundation (NSF)
Dr. Sean Davis, Equipment: MRI: Track #2 Acquisition of High-Performance Computing for Multidisciplinary Research at UNF Explorations: COACH TECH: Creating Opportunities for Advancing Coaches with High-Tech Training and Education, National Science Foundation (NSF)
Dr. Sean Davis, Explorations: COACH TECH: Creating Opportunities for Advancing Coaches with High-Tech Training and Education in Computational Human Performance, National Science Foundation (NSF)
Dr. Daniel Dinsmore, Clinical Learning Environments to Advance Rehabilitation (CLEAR) Project: Phase 1 — Baseline Evaluation, Brooks Rehabilitation Clinical Research Center, Inc.
Dr. Daniel Dinsmore, Factors Shaping DPT Students' Post-Professional Education Pathways, Foundation for Physical Therapy (FPTR)
Dr. Suzanne Ehrlich, Duval MAG(AI)IC: Maximizing Achievement with Generative AI in Classrooms, Duval County School Board
Dr. Suzanne Ehrlich, Leveraging Artificial Intelligence to Enhance Public Participation in Local Governance: A Case Study of Jacksonville, FL, Google Research
Dr. Suzanne Ehrlich, Testing Alternative Grading Strategies in Physics, National Science Foundation (NSF)
Dr. Suzanne Ehrlich, The Power of Presence: Faculty Communities for First-Year Student Success, Spencer Foundation
Dr. Sophie Filibert, GEAR UP C 2025, Duval County School Board
Dr. Terrie Galanti, Collaborative Proposal: Unlocking the Power of Computational Thinking in K-12 Mathematics Education, The University of South Florida Board of Trustees
Dr. Terrie Galanti, Collaborative Research: Developing Equity-oriented STEM Teacher Identity through Cultural Inquiry and Innovative Computing Content in Elementary Classrooms, National Science Foundation (NSF)
Dr. Terrie Galanti, NEFSTEM-Physics Network (PhysTEC 2024), Physics Teacher Education Coalition (PhysTEC)
Dr. Terrie Galanti, UNF Teacher Leader Triads: Scaling up and Sustaining Equitable STEM Education through Teacher Inquiry, National Science Foundation (NSF)
Dr. Christopher Janson, GEAR UP C 2025, Duval County School Board
Dr. Wanda Lastrapes, JTR Boundless Educator Initiative, National Center for Teacher Residencies
Dr. Wanda Lastrapes, JTR Cohort 11 Residents and CRM Stipends-DCPS, Duval County School Board
Dr. Wanda Lastrapes, JTR Cohort 11 Undergraduate and Mentor Stipend Clay County School District (CCSD), School District of Clay County
Dr. Wanda Lastrapes, The Jacksonville Teacher Residency AmeriCorps Program: A Civics and Resiliency Immersive Service-Learning Model, Volunteer Florida (VF)
Dr. Wanda Lastrapes, UNF Teacher Leader Triads: Scaling up and Sustaining Equitable STEM Education through Teacher Inquiry, National Science Foundation (NSF)
Dr. Rakesh Maurya, GEAR UP C 2025, Duval County School Board
Dr. Matthew Ohlson, NEFEC 2025, North East Florida Educational Consortium Inc. (NEFEC)
Dr. Meghan Parkinson, Playful Learning Using STEM (PLUS) Toolkits for Families, National Science Foundation (NSF)
Dr. Meghan Parkinson, Take-Home Family STEM Toolkit Program - Y3, Kids Hope Alliance
Dr. Amanda Pascale, The Power of Presence: Faculty Communities for First-Year Student Success, Spencer Foundation
Xavier Rozas, UNF Teacher Leader Triads: Scaling up and Sustaining Equitable STEM Education through Teacher Inquiry, National Science Foundation (NSF)
Dr. Kristi Sweeney, Through Sport Analytics: A Five-Year Initiative for Summer Camps, Digital Badges, and Experiential Learning: EDU Core Research, National Science Foundation (NSF)
Dr. Kristi Sweeney, Equipment: MRI: Track #2 Acquisition of High-Performance Computing for Multidisciplinary Research at UNF Explorations: COACH TECH: Creating Opportunities for Advancing Coaches with High-Tech Training and Education, National Science Foundation (NSF)
Dr. Kristi Sweeney, Explorations: COACH TECH: Creating Opportunities for Advancing Coaches with High-Tech Training and Education in Computational Human Performance, National Science Foundation (NSF)
Dr. Diane Yendol-Hoppey, Project PAIR: Partnering to Accelerate School Improvement and Increase Retention through Teacher Leadership, The University of South Florida Board of Trustees
Dr. Diane Yendol-Hoppey, UNF Teacher Leader Triads: Scaling up and Sustaining Equitable STEM Education through Teacher Inquiry, National Science Foundation (NSF)
Dr. Shujin Zhong, NSF Award Search: Award # 2225362 - Quantitative Research Methods for STEM Education Scholars Program, University of Maryland
Dr. Brian Zoellner, Eighteenth State of the River Report for the Lower St. Johns River Basin (2025), Jacksonville University
Dr. Brian Zoellner, Sixteenth State of the River Report for the Lower St. Johns River Basin (2023), Jacksonville University

Awards Received

Dr. Kim Cheek, DCPS Using and Leveraging Technology to Reinvent Accessibility (ULTRA), Duval County Public Schools (DCPS), $30,900.00
Dr. Daniel Dinsmore, DCPS STEM SIMS, Duval County Public Schools (DCPS), $19,862.00
Dr. Daniel Dinsmore, Factors Shaping DPT Students' Post-Professional Education Pathways, Foundation for Physical Therapy (FPTR), $10,000.00
Dr. Sophie Filibert, GEAR UP Partnership, Duval County School Board, $257,492.00
Dr. Sophie Filibert, REACH (Recruiting Effective and Compassionate Helpers), US Department of Education (ED), $499,960.00
Dr. Terrie Galanti, PhysTEC Network Cohorts, American Physical Society (APS), $29,844.87
Dr. David Hoppey, School-university Partnerships Influencing, aDvocating, and Engaging Rural Special Educators (Project SPIDERS), US Department of Education (ED), $372,632.00
Dr. Christopher Janson, GEAR UP Partnership, Duval County School Board, $257,492.00
Dr. Christopher Janson, REACH (Recruiting Effective and Compassionate Helpers), US Department of Education (ED), $499,960.00
Dr. Wanda Lastrapes, JTR Cohort 11 Residents and CRM Stipends, Duval County School Board, $166,449.00
Dr. Wanda Lastrapes, JTR Cohort 11: Undergraduate and Mentor Stipend Clay County School District (CCSD), School District of Clay County, $11,890.00
Dr. Wanda Lastrapes, UNF Jacksonville Teacher Residency AmeriCorps Program: Learning through Service 2024-25, Volunteer Florida (VF), $688,737.00
Dr. Matthew Ohlson, NEFEC 2025, North East Florida Educational Consortium Inc. (NEFEC), $68,000.00
Dr. Amanda Pascale, Sorority Women's Mental Health Project, Foundation for Fraternal Excellence, $30,000.00
Dr. James Roberson, Educational Interpreter Preparation Project, US Department of Education (ED), $249,971.00
Dr. Shujin Zhong, NSF Award Search: Award # 2225362 - Quantitative Research Methods for STEM Education Scholars Program, University of Maryland, $12,390.00
Dr. Brian Zoellner, Seventeenth State of the River Report for the Lower St. Johns River Basin (2024), Jacksonville University, $6,527.00