Five Southwestern University faculty members have received research funding for the upcoming year from the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry of the United Methodist Church.

The funding comes through the board’s Sam Taylor Fellowship program, which awards fellowships to full-time faculty members at United Methodist-related colleges in Texas.

The five faculty members receiving funding for 2012-2013 are:

Steve Alexander, professor of physics, received $1,950 to study how combining nano- and phyto-technologies could enhance the remediation of soil contaminated by petroleum products.

Maria Cuevas, associate professor of biology, received $2,000 to continue her research on possible hormonal regulation of the tight junction proteins claudin-3 and -4 in breast epithelial and endometrial cancer cells.

Maria Lowe, professor of sociology, received $2,000 to conduct a study on how the i ntroduction of a Division III football team affects a university’s campus climate.

Thom McClendon, professor of history, received $2,000 for a study of South African students in the United States and the anti-apartheid struggle.

Brenda Sendejo, assistant professor of anthropology, received $2,000 to continue her intergenerational oral history project titled “Spirit Stories: Narratives of Spirituality and Social Justice.”