Marcus Early Career Research Award Helps Faculty Reach Finish Line

In its second year, the College of Liberal and Creative Arts’ Marcus Early Career Research Award will help five faculty members complete their book and film projects that explore social-justice issues in the US and abroad.

The award, supported by the George and Judy Marcus Fund for Excellence in Liberal Arts, offers one semester off in 2021 – 2022. It funds projects in research, scholarship and creative activities. Probationary tenure track faculty in their third, fourth or fifth year are eligible. Last year three assistant professors won the award.

Assistant Professor of International Relations Si-Won Byun will complete a book examining differences between China’s regions in its economic integration with Asia. “The Revival of the Middle Kingdom: Global Relations on the Perimeter of China” argues that China’s rise in the global economy is “the success story of largely coastal provinces.” The development of inland regions has been slow.

“After four decades of market reform, China’s quest for global leadership depends critically on how it manages regional pressures domestically as globalization moves inland,” Byun said.