The SimTigrate Design Lab has been awarded a 2018-19 Engagement Grant in the amount of $5,000 from the GVU Center and IPaT.

Researchers from the SimTigrate Design Lab and IPaT have been working with Emory Brain Health to develop an “Empowerment Program” for people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), a condition of deteriorated mental capacity that lies somewhere between the effects of normal aging and dementia.

To facilitate the research, they will use this seed money to encourage involvement of other academic units, students, and researchers, expand the range of disciplines, extend discussion and partnerships to external stakeholders and industry, and strategize applications for additional funding.

One goal is to grow the potential impact of Georgia Tech’s involvement in the MCI Empowerment Program.

They plan to use existing campus networks to expand awareness of the opportunities to engage with the MCIEP Innovation Accelerator and recruit additional expertise to the team through several campus wide meetings.

The grant will be used to cover materials and supplies, participant compensation, event supplies, and travel by two key faculty members to Washington, D.C., to speak with the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health about potential future funding.

The GVU/IPaT grants are designed to build new collaborations and strategic plans for new research areas and programs. The goal of this program is to engage researchers in thinking and working across disciplines, as a means to generate the novel research questions and approaches required to address grand challenges.

Key academic and research faculty are Craig Zimring, director, SimTigrate Design Lab; Jennifer DuBose, associate director, SimTigrate Design Lab; Gabrielle Campiglia, research associate, SimTigrate Design Lab; Brian Jones, director, Aware Home, IMTC; Brad Fain, director, Home Lab; and Herb Velasquez, professor of practice, School of Industrial Design.