Not Research Rivals

Ten student-led scholarly projects designed to enhance collaboration between Duke and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have been awarded $5,000 each as part of the inaugural Kenan-Biddle Partnership class.

The grants promote student-initiated, inter-institutional projects designed to strengthen established research ties or encourage new ones between the two schools. The Kenan-Biddle Partnership is funded by the William R. Kenan Jr. Charitable Trust and the Mary Duke Biddle Foundation.

The committee in charge of awarding the grants received more than ninety proposals. Each submission was required to include plans for at least one public exhibition, presentation, or performance, and preference was given to proposals made jointly by students from both institutions.

Projects selected include one focused on methods of biodiversity conservation; an effort that looks into the resettlement of Bhutanese immigrants in the U.S.; an outreach and mentoring program in math and science for young women; and a project that will try new ways to increase computer-literacy skills of local fourth- and fifth-grade students.