Laura Siebeneck, associate professor in the Department of Emergency Management and Disaster Science, along with collaborators from Purdue University, received a $2.5 million, four-year grant from the National Science Foundation to examine why some communities recover from natural disasters more quickly than others.

Siebeneck and UNT team members Ronald Schumann, assistant professor in the Department of Emergency Management and Disaster Science, and Britt-Janet Kuenanz, a first-year student in the doctoral program in public administration and management, traveled to New Jersey in May to track the recovery of towns affected by Hurricane Sandy in 2012 and conduct focus groups.