The UNT D.C. Faculty Research Fellows Program

Established in 2019, this program brings a cadre of tenure-track assistant professors to Washington D.C. to meet with program directors at funding agencies. These initiatives are part of a focused effort to facilitate faculty goals in obtaining resources and becoming aware of opportunities offered by funding agencies. View Press Release

2024 UNT Cohort of Washington D.C. Fellows

This fifth cohort of faculty members were nominated by the Deans and Associate Deans of Research within their respective colleges.

College of Business 

Xun Bian, Department of Finance, Insurance, Real Estate and Law -  Dr. Bian's research interests include household finance, housing market dynamics, housing affordability

Kan Smith, Department of Information Technology and Decision Sciences - Dr. Smith's research interests include Cybersecurity, Blockchain Technology, the Economics of Information Systems/cybersecurity, incorporating sustainability in Information Systems research

Ruoou LiDepartment of Marketing - Dr. Li's research interests include Consumer decision-making and response to marketplace disruptions and innovations.

Pradeep Sapkota, Department of Accounting - Dr. Sapkota's research interests include corporate tax and reporting, auditing, and tax data analytics.

College of Education

Justin Sprick, Department of Kinesiology, Health Promotion, and Recreation - Dr. Sprick's research focuses on cardiovascular physiology, neuro-circulatory control, exercise physiology, and cerebral blood flow regulation.

Jerraco Johnson, Department of Kinesiology, Health Promotion, and Recreation - Dr. Johnson's research interests are in kinesiology, health promotion, and recreation.

College of Information

Frederik Hartmann, Department of Linguistics - Dr. Hartmann's research focuses on linguistics.

Brady Lund, Department of Information Science - Dr. Lund's research aims to understand and address important issues at the intersection of information, data, and people, and to promote ethical and responsible practices in these fields, with an emphasis on international development.

College of Merchandising, Hospitality, and Tourism

Xingyi Zhang, Department of Hospitality and Event Tourism - Dr. Zhang's research interests include marketing, financial and revenue management, social impact analysis, and consumer behavior.
College of Visual Arts and Design

College of Science

Omar Valsson, Department of Chemistry - Dr. Valsson's research focuses on developing and applying classical and quantum simulation methods to study chemical, biological, and material systems

Vanessa Macias, Department of Biological Sciences - Dr. Macias's research investigates various aspects of molecular biology in transgenic mosquitoes.

Yuzhe Xiao, Department of Physics - Dr. Xiao's research focuses on nonlinear optics, nanophotonics, quantum plasmonics, and thermal radiation.

Jens Neu, Department of Physics - Dr. Neu's research focuses on discovering and understanding novel materials for solar applications. Our focus lies on ultrafast photophysics and soft modes in novel materials.

College of Visual Arts & Design 

Su Yang, Department of Foundations - Dr. Yang's research centers on foundations in art education.

Cassini Nazir, Department of Design - Dr. Nazir explores how curiosity can be meaningfully infused into design processes and made more durable.

College of Engineering

Cihan Tunc, Department of Computer Science and Engineering - Dr. Tunc's research interests span computer science and engineering.

College of Health and Public Service

Hedieh Hashemi Hosseinabad, Department of Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology - Dr. Hashemi Hosseinabad's research focuses on predicting speech disorders, tongue movement and speech interactions, dialect and articulatory/acoustic features, and the use of ultrasound in understanding speech motor control.

College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences

Roman Hlatky, Department of Political Science - Dr. Hlatky's research interests encompass voting behavior, public opinion, race and ethnic politics, nationalism, disinformation, and international integration.

College of Music

Erika J. Knapp, Department of Music Education - Dr. Knapp's research interests lie in music education.

Horacio Contreras Espinoza, Department of Instrumental Studies - Dr. Contreras-Espinoza is an associate professor focusing on instrumental studies.

College of Applied & Collaborative Studies

Thomas DeWitt, Clinical Faculty in Multidisciplinary Innovation - Dr. DeWitt's research includes ecology and environmental science of aquatic systems, multidisciplinary placemaking in natural spaces/preserves, multivariate and geospatial analytics, and the pedagogy of interdisciplinary teaching. (Website: Dr. Thomas J. DeWitt)

View the 2023 Washington D.C. Fellows Cohort

View the 2022 Washington D.C. Fellows Cohort

View the 2021 Washington D.C. Fellows Cohort

View the 2020 Washington D.C. Fellows Cohort