Research

The American Educational Research Association has named Vanderbilt University’s Laurie Cutting, Patricia and Rodes Hart Professor of Neuroscience in the Department of Special Education, a 2026 AERA Fellow, an honor recognizing the nation’s top researchers in education and learning. She and the class… Read More

Vanderbilt Peabody College Professors Chezare Warren and Krista Mehari will lead a new study this fall examining Black youth’s contributions to launching Nashville’s Office of Youth Safety, one of a few city government-initiatives in the United States established to take an evidence-based approach to community safety… Read More

By Jenna Somers In February, Vanderbilt Peabody College of education and human development welcomed two distinguished Japanese scholars as part of Vanderbilt’s Global Scholars in Residence program. Emmanuel Manalo, a professor of educational psychology at Kyoto University, and Yuri Uesaka, an associate professor of psychology at the University of… Read More

A new report by Vanderbilt Policy Accelerator director of artificial intelligence and technology policy Asad Ramzanali and Akhil Rajan analyzes the foundational model market, highlights a case study of a startup that experienced unfair treatment from a foundation model provider, and recommends a requirement for AI neutrality similar to “net neutrality” rules in broadband. Read More

For patients with advanced melanoma without BRAF mutation who no longer respond to immune checkpoint inhibitors, treatment options remain frustratingly limited. A new study from Vanderbilt researchers led by Professor Emerita of Pharmacology Ann Richmond outlines a promising therapeutic strategy that may re-sensitize these resistant tumors to immunotherapy. Read More

The United States’ global leadership in science and technology depends on sustained federal investment in engineering research and education. With that message, Krish Roy, Bruce and Bridgitt Evans Dean of Engineering at Vanderbilt University, joined fellow Tennessee engineering leaders on Capitol Hill to underscore the importance of funding for agencies that power innovation and workforce development. Read More

By Jenna Somers In February, faculty members from Vanderbilt Peabody College of education and human development participated in the National Conference on Education, presented by AASA, the School Superintendents Association, held in Nashville, Tennessee. This annual conference brings together district leaders from across the country to engage with leading… Read More

By Jennifer Kiilerich In several Tennessee high school classrooms, computer science students are stepping away from their screens. Instead, as part of a learning tool Vanderbilt University researchers are developing, the teens are actively moving around their environments, enacting algorithms and processes, asking questions and collaborating on solutions. It’s not… Read More

Since 2023, graduates of Vanderbilt Peabody College of education and human development have won five consecutive research awards from the Association of Child Life Professionals. The nine award-winning graduates earned their master’s degrees in Child Studies at Vanderbilt and were students in the Children’s Healthcare, Illness,… Read More

Joerg Rieger's work raises the question: What shared commitment might bind us all together, and can it be leveraged for the good of humanity? As a theologian, he looks to ancient religious traditions for solutions. Read More

Vanderbilt University and Vanderbilt University Medical Center rank 24th nationally in the National Science Foundation’s 2024 Higher Education Research and Development Survey, with combined research and development expenditures of $1.33 billion. The ranking places Vanderbilt 10th among private research universities. Read More

Velma McBride Murry (Vanderbilt University) Velma McBride Murry, has been selected to receive the APA Distinguished Scientific Award for the Applications of Psychology from the American Psychological Association. Murry is the Lois Autrey Betts Professor of Education and Human Development and University Distinguished Professor of Human and Organizational Development… Read More

Two staffers at the Frist Center for Autism and Innovation have received Live Long and Prosper Tribute Awards from the Nimoy-Knight Foundation. Director of Communications Jessica Schonhut-Stasik, founder of The Neuroverse Initiative, works to create pathways for neurodivergent people in the space sciences. Project manager and author Dave Thompson champions the unique perspectives and talents of the neurodivergent community. The LLAP award recognizes people who embody the values of Star Trek: exploration, diversity and the pursuit of a better future for all. Read More

Being able to tell whether an image is real or generated by AI may be something you’re born with: object recognition. “It’s a stable trait that helps people meet new perceptual challenges,” study author Professor Isabel Gauthier said. “We were shocked to see how intelligence or even technology training did not help accurately judge if a face is AI.” Object recognition has been linked to success in a wide range of tasks, such as X-ray analysis and cancer cell categorization. Read More

Svalbard, Norway, a cluster of islands north of the Arctic Circle, is rich with paradox. A former international whaling base and subsequent site of extractive coal mining, Svalbard is now home to the Global Seed Vault, which stores more than one million seed duplicates to safeguard the world’s food supply. Described as a “geopolitical unicorn,” Svalbard is, at once, an open haven for artists and researchers seeking to generate new knowledge and climate interventions by learning from its landscapes, as well as a target for international meddling because of its prime access to satellite data from above and rare earth minerals below. Site of both extraction and regeneration, attracting both a spirit of collaborative inquiry and pursuits of global dominance, Svalbard’s paradoxical singularity inspired Vanderbilt faculty Jana Harper, Lutz Koepnick and Jonathan Rattner to embark on a three-week research trip in summer 2025 to witness its rapidly changing landscapes and experiment with artistic methods to address the effects of planetary overheating.   Read More

Vanderbilt University has announced its fall 2025 recipients of the Seeding Success, Scaling Success and Rapid-Advancement MicroGrant Program awards, providing internal funding to help faculty launch new research directions, strengthen proposals and compete for major external grants. Read More

By Jennifer Kiilerich Toddlerhood is a critical window for developmental interventions. But up to 75 percent of children born with cleft lip or palate don’t receive the speech-language support they may need until grade school. This lag puts them at risk of challenges with communication, social… Read More

By Jenna Somers A new study finds that a culturally sustaining treatment can help nearly half of young Spanish-speaking children with early language delays improve their skills significantly—five times more than standard care alone. Led by researchers at Vanderbilt University Peabody College of education and human development, the… Read More

The VCL Scholars serve as an integral part of the Vanderbilt Center for Languages' mission of fostering interdisciplinary work. Applicants may propose a program of research for publication, conference presentation, or the creation of a new academic initiative. The Vanderbilt Center for Languages (VCL) is particularly interested in funding proposals that generate knowledge that benefits a broad constituency. A $3500 salary supplement is provided to all Scholars.  Read More