University of Colorado Boulder
Institute of Behavioral Science

Announcements

IBS Breast Cancer Fundraiser in Honor of Denise Porchetta

by
Denise Porchetta at picnic table with glass of wine

On Saturday, September 28, the Institute of Behavioral Science will host a walk/run fundraiser in honor of our former building proctor, Denise Porchetta. The event will kick off at Valmont Bike Park at 10 a.m. Individuals or teams can walk, run or bike two different routes around Boulder, a dream that Denise left sadly unfulfilled.

Denise lost her battle to breast cancer on November 7, 2023. She is remembered for her positive attitude, warmth and incredible work ethic.

Denise Porchetta with her children, Vincent (left), Danielle (second from left) and Dante (right) stand for a family photo amongst a canopy of trees.
Denise Porchetta with her children, Vincent (left), Danielle (second from left) and Dante (right) standing for a family photo.

“Denise was our amazing, inaugural, building proctor who served IBS with incredible heart and dedication. She charted a path for a previously-undefined staff position at the Institute, and her willingness to chart that path will shape our future. She was a delight,” says Lori Hunter, IBS Director and Professor of Sociology.

Born in Erie, Colorado, Denise raised her three children: Danielle, Vincent and Dante, in Arvada. She was a dedicated Boulder Buff, as her daughter Danielle attended CU Boulder and son Dante is a current student. Prior to Denise’s position at IBS, she worked as a librarian for the university, joining Danielle to work at CU Boulder. Denise would often meet up with Danielle after work for a bite to eat on Pearl Street, one of her favorite past times.

Daugher Danielle (left), friend Haley Schuster, and Denise (right) at a CU Boulder event.

In honor of Denise, her family has requested the fundraiser proceeds go to the following community partners:

  1. Roberta’s Legacy in Longmont, who offered Denise important support in her final months. Roberta’s Legacy works in partnership with local businesses to provide services for breast cancer families, while also assisting with the financial difficulties breast cancer can bring.
  2. Boulder Community Health Foundation’s Breast Cancer Treatment Fund which supports individuals diagnosed with breast cancer and experiencing financial vulnerability.

Though Denise held her position at IBS for a few months, her impact on our community was enormous. We hope to see IBSers and Buffs enjoying a beautiful, fall Boulder day next month, in celebration of Denise!

Sign Up/Make a Pledge
Learn More

Stefan Leyk receives $499,999 grant for NSF IMOLA project

by
Old, tan map of the United States that shows all 50 states.

IBS Fellow and Professor in the Department of Geography, Stefan Leyk, has received a grant from the NSF Imola (Intelligent Map recOgnition LAb) project. Leyk received a $499,999 award for the project, “Collaborative Research: HNDS-I: Building Long-term, National-scale Spatiotemporal Data Collections from Historical Map Archives.” The Imola project extracts historical geographic information from US Geological Survey maps published before GPS intelligence, from 1884 to 2006. Read more about the project here.

Professor Karl Hill receives 2024 SPR International Collaborative Prevention Research Award

by
Karl Hill wears a brown jacket and black glasses. In the background are the Flatirons and CU Boulder campus.

CU Boulder Professor and Institute of Behavioral Science Faculty Research Fellow, Karl Hill, has received the 2024 International Collaborative Prevention Research Award from the Society of Prevention Research (SPR). This award is presented to an individual or team of individuals for contributions to the field of prevention science in the area of international collaboration.

Karl G. Hill

Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience at CU Boulder
Faculty, Research Fellow at the Institute of Behavioral Science

I’m excited about this award because, while the U.S. has a more extensive prevention science network, Europe and beyond are ahead of us in critical areas we need to work on: cultural sensitivity, adaptation, and building a prevention infrastructure. The more we can get our different worlds connecting the more we learn from each other! 

Hill is the current director of the Prevention Science Program at IBS, Co-Principal Investigator of the Blueprints for Healthy Youth Development registry, and Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience at the University of Colorado Boulder. Spanning over 30 years, Hill’s career has centered on understanding two pivotal questions: what are optimal family, peer, school and community environments that encourage healthy youth and adult development? And how do we work with communities to make this happen?

Hill will be presented with his award at the Annual Awards Presentation on Thursday, May 30 at the 32nd SPR Annual Meeting held in Washington, DC. The Annual SPR Meeting is the premiere conference for prevention science professionals. Hill and the Blueprints team received an Abstract of Distinction Award at the 30th Annual SPR Meeting in 2022 for their symposium, “Common Flaws in Designing and Analyzing Preventive Interventions and How to Avoid Them“.

Hill will be participating in two presentations at the SPR Meeting. Below is a list of all presentations featuring CU Boulder: 

IBS to support up to $5,000 for two topical workshops in 2024-2025

by
IBS 155A room hosting Amir Behzadan's Harnessing Artificial Intelligence (AI) for Disaster Management: Bridging Research, Practice, and Community Engagement workshop. Participants face a speaker gesturing at a poster.

Calling all IBS Fellows! The Institute of Behavioral Science is now accepting applications for funds to support topical workshops. Workshops must be held in the 2024-2025 academic year and be built around existing funding opportunities. IBS is expected to have up to $5,000 in support for two workshops over this time period.

The deadline to apply is Sunday, June 30, 2024.

IBS is especially interested in supporting:

  1. The development of large-scale, team science endeavors with strong funding potential.
  2. Projects that include collaborations between IBS Research Programs and/or Centers.
  3. Projects that include collaborations across CU Boulder or with other CU campuses.
  4. Diverse teams in terms of discipline, rank, or otherwise.
  5. Efforts that include time for research development conversations with a core group, in addition to time for a broader, campus-wide conversation on the topical area.

The funds may cover honorariums, transportation and lodging for participants. Graduate student salary is an acceptable expense, but faculty salary is not. Fellows are encouraged to seek matching funds if additional support is needed.

Proposal Requirements:

  1. Workshop title
  2. Workshop goal
  3. Significance and potential impact of the longer-term project to the state-of-knowledge
  4. Description of target funding opportunity, including anticipated submission date. NOTE: Target funding opportunity must provide full indirect cost recovery and project must be led by IBS.
  5. Possible key participants (both on and off campus)
  6. Format of workshop
  7. Budget (1-page), with a list of major budget items and a brief justification (reach out to your pre/post award specialist for support)
  8. Proposal length no more than two single-spaced pages, can be shorter.

Deadline to Apply is June 30!

E-mail applications to Lori Hunter, IBS Director (lori.hunter@colorado.edu) and Tamara Tiner, IBS
Administrative Coordinator (tamara.tiner@Colorado.edu). Please enter “IBS Research Workshop” in the email subject line.

Send Application
DONATE

PROGRAMS

CENTERS