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<\/a>Jones<\/p><\/div>\n
Jones will explore the urban agricultural experience and Black foodways in Toledo and Dayton, two Ohio cities that saw a large influx of African Americans during the Great Migration. They are also legacy cities, meaning they lost a significant amount of population and economic viability after the decline of manufacturing in the region. She plans to look at land use and barriers to urban agriculture in these cities and how it impacts African American communities.<\/p>\n
In recognizing Jones as a grant recipient, VERBI noted, \u201cWe were greatly impacted by Mrs. Jones\u2019 story and how her life history has inspired her to pursue food system and sovereignty studies. With her project, she aims to uncover racialized hypocrisies embedded within both the local and global food system, which is now as relevant as ever. Mrs. Jones is a first-generation Ph.D. student in her family, and we are glad to be able to support her.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jones said in her master\u2019s program, she began to fully understand the nutritional problems of the world she grew up in were rooted in systemic causes. In applying for the grant, Jones said she hopes her work will not only suggest solutions, but improve research methodology.<\/p>\n
\u201cResearch for change means more than just finding solutions to a complex problem, [it] embodies the [grassroots] efforts of providing resources and realistic methods that can be easily replicated and adapted, all the while acknowledging cultural differences\/expectations, which is crucial to long-term change,\u201d Jones said.<\/p>\n
Dr. Beth Schlemper, associate professor in the UToledo Department of Geography and Planning, said she believes Jones\u2019 doctoral course work helped her win the grant.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt makes me happy because I taught the Ph.D. students, who took advanced qualitative methods for spatially integrated social science students, how to use MAXQDA [research software], and she was inspired to use the software in her research methods and apply for this grant.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jones agreed: “The skills I acquired through my degree program have allowed me to confidently apply for opportunities best fit for my research. It has taught me that, as a doctorate student, you are the CEO of your degree and must stand in your truth as a contributor to universal knowledge, especially as a scholar of color.”<\/p>\n
The $1,600 grant includes a two-year student subscription to MAXQDA Analytics Pro software, two online trainings with certified MAXQDA trainers, a registration waiver to the MAXQDA International Conference in Berlin, and full tech support. In addition, Jones\u2019 research will receive international exposure through MAXQDA promotions.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis software is highly used to fully integrate qualitative data analysis into your research and is especially popular with mixed methods researchers,\u201d said Jones, who is a graduate research assistant in the University\u2019s Jack Ford Urban Affairs Center and president of the UToledo Graduate Student Association.<\/p>\n