COSM Weekly Issue 88

THE COLLEGE OF SCIENCE AND MATHEMATICS

COSM WEEKLY

What’s Inside: Stay up to date with COSM’s strategic priorities, leadership insights, faculty and staff accomplishments, opportunities for collaboration, operational updates, upcoming events, and the latest news from the Center for Advanced Materials Science (CAMS).

ASSOCIATE DEAN’S CORNER An Update from Your Interim Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs & Student Success Student Success STEM Basecamp (Aug. 10-14): COSM’s annual, week-long summer bridge program prepared 50+ new students for college life through math refreshers, major-inspired activities, and cohort building.

Big thanks to faculty participants Dragos Amarie, Shainaz Landge, Craig Amack, Loren Matthews, Scott Mateer, Jacque Kelly, Masahiko Uchida, Joseph Roberts, Carly Casey!

NSF S-STEM Scholars: COSM is thrilled to welcome our 2nd cohort this Fall! These 17 incoming students (Biology, Biomedical Science, Chemistry, and Physics) bring an impressive average high school GPA of 3.84. They’ll receive 4 years of scholarships, research support, and dedicated academic, vocational, and well-being programming.

Interested in serving as a student mentor (academic mentor or research mentor)? Let me know!

Faculty Mentoring & Support in COSM Faculty Promotion & Review: Aug. 24th is the deadline for complete candidate dossiers for Promotion, Promotion & Tenure, and 6th Year Review Tenure and Promotion.

Questions about your timeline or due dates? I’m here to help!

New Faculty Orientation: August 28, 2026 from 9:15 am - 2:15 pm in Nursing- Chemistry Building, Room 1008 on Statesboro campus.

Stay Connected Have ideas, questions, kudos, or concerns regarding ANYTHING Faculty Affairs or Student Success in COSM? Just email me and I’ll be happy to set up a meeting.

Dr. Sara Gremillion Interim Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs & Student Success sgremillion@georgiasouthern.edu

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COUR 2026-2027 Call For Faculty Mentors For COUR Emerging Researchers Program The College of Science and Mathematics Office of Undergraduate Research (COUR) is looking for researchactive faculty to serve as mentors for undergraduate research students as part of our Emerging Researchers Program, which aims to offer up to 13 hours per week of paid research experience to COSM students eligible for federal work-study. The Emerging Researchers Program has funding for 13 student positions for Fall 2026.

To serve as a research mentor for a student as part of the COUR Emerging Researchers Program, faculty should provide the following information through the COUR Emerging Researchers Program Mentor Google Form: An abstract (no more than ½ page) for each project available to students; and 2-3 sentences describing the work students would be doing as part of that project To have a student begin in your lab in the Fall semester, please complete and submit the form

by September 4. Faculty may submit multiple projects, if applicable. For any questions, please email Heather Joesting (hjoesting@georgiasouthern.edu).

RESPONDER LINK Call For Proposals For 2026-2027 COUR Research Grant The COSM College Office of Undergraduate Research (COUR) invites proposals for the 2026-2027 COUR Research Awards. These awards are designed to support undergraduate research in COSM by enhancing experiential learning for students. Awards up to $3000 will be made to the best submitted proposals to cover the following: Up to $1000 for supplies/equipment and travel associated with the research project (with the exception of conference travel); Up to $2000 for an undergraduate student stipend; and To qualify, faculty must include plans to mentor a student enrolled as an undergraduate major or minor in one of the departments under COSM. For more information and to view application instructions, visit https://www.georgiasouthern.edu/cosm/cour or email Dr. Heather Joesting at hjoesting@georgiasouthern.edu.

Applications are due September 15, 2026.

LINK TO 2026-2027 APPLICATION FORM

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SMART CENTER SMART Center (Armstrong Campus and Online) The Science & Mathematics Academic Resource & Tutorial (SMART) Center offers free tutoring to the Armstrong campus by student tutors in Anatomy and Physiology, Biology, General and Organic Chemistry, Physics, Statistics, and Mathematics.

In-person tutoring: Available on a drop-in basis and does not require an appointment (Science Center room 132).

Virtual tutoring: Appointments can be made through the Penji App. More information about our services, current schedules, and step-by-step instructions to create virtual appointments can be found at the SMART Center website.

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CENTERS & INSTITUTES UPDATES Center for Advanced Materials Science (CAMS) Update Since its launch at Georgia Southern University in July 2024, the Center for Advanced Materials Science (CAMS) has pursued a threefold mission: to advance fundamental and applied materials research at a nationally recognized level, to enhance undergraduate and graduate education in materials science, and to support economic growth and development in Southeast Georgia and beyond.

Over the past year, CAMS has brought together 18 faculty members from chemistry, physics, mechanical engineering, and manufacturing engineering, fostering interdisciplinary approaches to advancing materials research and innovation. CAMS faculty are generating new knowledge and practical solutions across several key research themes, including materials for environmental remediation, advanced energy storage, bioactive materials, and bio-based performance materials. CAMS currently supports approximately $2.46 million in active research funding. In 2025, CAMS faculty produced 49 peer-reviewed journal publications, with 75% appearing in Q1 or Q2 journals.

During the 2026 COSM Summer Research Showcase, CAMS successfully organized a 1.5-day mini-symposium that brought together participants from Georgia Southern, five regional universities (University of North Georgia, University of West Georgia, Troy University, University of North Florida, and University of Central Florida) as well as industry. The mini-symposium featured 14 invited talks, including 5 from external speakers and 9 from current CAMS members, along with 28 poster presentations by CAMS-affiliated students. The event strengthened connections among Georgia Southern, regional university partners, and industry collaborators while creating new opportunities to explore shared research capabilities and future collaborations.

CAMS currently hosts five postdoctoral researchers — Dr. Manikanta Grandhi, Dr. Wathsala Jayawardana, Dr. David Keene, Dr. Rahul Khandge, and Dr. Yiteng Tang — whose research focuses on functional materials for nanocatalysis, environmental remediation, magnetoelectric coupling, energy applications, and sustainable developments.

August 2026 also marks an important milestone for CAMS: the arrival of the inaugural cohort of nine Ph.D. students in Materials Science at the Statesboro campus. We are pleased to welcome Hubert Agamsu, Marcia Ahn, Elizabeth Alexander, Md Romzan Ali, Lara Dipre, Md Alal Hossain, Aye Khaing, Tajrin Nizhum, and Amaya Tzib. We wish them every success as they begin their academic and research journeys at Georgia Southern!

Dr. W. Marshall Ming Director, Center for Advanced Materials Science Phone: (912)478-5043 Email: wming@georgiasouthern.edu

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UNIVERSITY FACULTY GOV. Dear Colleagues, I hope everyone is having a great start of the semester. Currently, there are two vacant Faculty Senate seats and several committee vacancies representing our college.

Nominations are open through midnight, Thursday, September 10. Please submit your nominations by clicking here: https://forms.gle/tSZ7MJ9DWFdegwdUA The vacancies for COSM are: 2 Senators 5 Senate Alternates 1 Graduate Committee Alternate 1 General Education and Core Curriculum Committee (SEC Appointed) Thank you everyone for your attention to this matter.

If you have any questions, please send an email to mdurach@georgiasouthern.edu Have a great week!

Maxim Durach Senate Elections Committee Member from COSM

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COSM KUDOS Last Week, the Department of Mathematical Sciences hosted its annual Stone Distinguished Lecture, featuring Po-Shen Loh, Ph.D., Professor of Mathematical Sciences at Carnegie Mellon University.

This year’s lecture, “The Future of Humanity After AI,” explored what the rapid growth of artificial intelligence means for the people and communities it impacts. Reflecting Georgia Southern’s leadership in advancing the responsible use of AI in education and industry, the lecture highlighted practical applications of AI, the societal effects of its implementation, and the infrastructure needed to support this evolving technology.

The successful event brought together more than 100 students and community members for an engaging conversation about the future of AI and its impact on our world.

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