The purpose of the Academy of Scholars program is to draw upon the expertise of selected faculty to enhance the overall research profile of the College. For 2024-2025, five outstanding Academy of Scholars members were chosen based on their record of research productivity and the type of research support they will provide to their colleagues. 

For more information about these workshops and services, please see the descriptions below. To register for any service or workshop, please click on the workshop or service listed below and complete the registration form. If you have questions, please contact Juhee Kim in the Office of Research.

Meeting with the IRB Chair session

Date and Time: Sept 13, 12pm

Location: Online (The Zoom link will be provided via the RSVP confirmation email)

Click here to RSVP

Activity Leader: Joshua Newman

Description: The Academy of Scholars has invited Dr. James Whyte, Chair of FSU’s Institutional Review Board (IRB), to lead an informal discussion of the IRB’s procedures, processes, and best practices. Dr. Whyte will discuss issues such as what types of studies are eligible for exempted, expedited, or full Committee review, what counts as an ‘intervention,’ what characteristics must a study have (or not have) for it to be classified as a ‘clinical trial,’ how faculty mentors can support ethical practice in student research, and many other topics relevant to both new and seasoned investigators across the College’s health, human, and social sciences. 

Workshop Series on Mediation and Moderation

In educational and psychological studies, the relationship between an input variable and an outcome variable is often influenced by a third variable, which usually answers questions of “how”/“why” or “when”/“for whom” the input variable affects the outcome. To address these questions, we use mediation or moderation analyses. The workshop series will introduce the principles and methods (e.g., multivariate regression, path analysis, etc.) for mediation and moderation analyses. Emphasis will be placed on concepts of mediation and moderation and the interpretation of relevant effects. We aim to help researchers understand and differentiate mediation and moderation, use advanced methods such as Bootstrap to test the mediation effect, and interpret and display empirical findings. There will be Q&A sessions on mediation and moderation with optional exercise in spring.

Workshop on Introduction to Moderation Analysis

  • Date & Time: October 18, 12:00pm-1:30pm
  • Location: Online (open to students and faculty; the Zoom link will be provided via the RSVP confirmation email)
  • Click here to RSVP
  • Activity Leader: Thomas Ledermann
  • Description: A brief introduction to moderation analysis is provided. We will focus on both continuous and categorical moderating variables and demonstrate how interaction plots can be created that facilitate the interpretation of moderation results. We will also discuss different effect sizes that are appropriate for interaction effects.

Workshop on Introduction to Mediation Analysis

  • Date & Time: 12 pm – 1:30 pm on a Friday in Spring 2025
  • Location: Online (open to students and faculty; the Zoom link will be provided via the RSVP confirmation email)
  • RSVP: TBA
  • Activity Leader: Thomas Ledermann
  • Description: A brief introduction is provided to basic mediation analysis and the testing of different effects in mediation models. We will provide information on the popular bootstrap method to test mediating effects and illustrate the estimation and testing of the various effects for a model with two simultaneous mediators. We will also discuss different effect sizes for direct and indirect effects.

Workshop on Causal Mediation Analysis (A Follow-up to the Intro to Mediation Analysis Workshop)

  • Date & Time: 12 pm – 1 pm on a Friday in Spring 2025
  • Location: Online (open to students and faculty; the Zoom link will be provided via the RSVP confirmation email)
  • RSVP: TBA
  • Activity Leader: Qian Zhang
  • Description: The workshop will focus on the causal inference framework (i.e., the potential outcomes) while conducting mediation analysis. The assumptions, estimation, and identification of the causal mediation effect will be introduced and illustrated. Relevant methods of causal inferences in intervention studies will also be briefly discussed.
Workshop on Collaborative Strategies for Research Projects

​​​​​Date & Time: November 15, 11am

Location: Online (The Zoom link will be provided via the RSVP confirmation email)

Click here to RSVP

Activity Leader: Amy Kim

Description: In today’s interdisciplinary research landscape, collaboration is the key to securing external/internal research grants. Dr. Kim will discuss the effective strategies for collaborative research projects.

Increasing Awareness of the Fulbright Scholar Program

Date and Time: Spring 2025

Location: Hybrid

RSVP: TBA

Activity Leader: Christine Mokher

Description: Dr. Mokher will organize one to two workshops to increase awareness of the Fulbright Scholar program, the types of opportunities available, how to identify a host institution, and how to prepare a successful application.

Crafting Quantitative Journal Manuscripts

Date and Time: Spring 2025

Location: Hybrid

RSVP: TBA

Activity Leaders: Qinchun Rao & Amy Kim

Description: This workshop can focus on the key elements of a high-quality quantitative journal article, including research design, data analysis, and result interpretation. It can also cover the process of writing and structuring the manuscript, with a focus on presenting quantitative data effectively.

Pre-Submission Journal Article Reviews/Consultation

Date and Time: Recurring

Location: In-person or Online (The Zoom link will be provided by the AoS member)

Click here to register

Activity Leaders: Qinchun Rao, Christine Mokher, Qian Zhang, & Amy Kim

Description: These sessions can involve scholars reviewing each other’s draft manuscripts before submission. This can provide valuable feedback and help improve the quality of the articles.

Grant Application Review

Date and Time: Recurring

Location: In-person or Online (The Zoom link will be provided by the AoS member)

Click here to register

Activity Leaders: Christine Mokher, Amy Kim, & Qian Zhang

Description: AoS scholars will review faculty grant applications prior to submission.

Consultation on Quantitative Research Methodology

Date and Time: Recurring

Location: In-person or Online (The Zoom link will be provided by the AoS member)

Click here to register

Activity Leaders: Qian Zhang & Amy Kim

Description: Dr. Zhang will provide consultations regarding study designs, statistical modeling, and data analyses. In addition, Dr. Zhang can advise handling sub-optimal and/or complex data conditions (e.g., with missing data, multilevel data structure, and/or longitudinal data). Dr. Kim is also available for consultation on quantitative research methodology.

Consultation on Fulbright Scholar Award

Date & Time: Recurring

Location: In-person or Online (The Zoom link will be provided by the AoS member)

Click here to register

Activity Leader: Christine Mokher

Description: Dr. Mokher will provide individual consultations to faculty interested in applying for an award.