Workshops for Best Practices for Managing International REU Site Programs, National Science Foundation, Arlington, Virginia, April and October 2001

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0114502HudeckiThis award supports a series of workshops, to take place in April and October 2001 at the National Science Foundation in Arlington,Virginia, that will explore best practices for the development and management of international research experiences for undergraduate students. Organized by Michael S. Hudecki and Christopher A. Loretz of the State University of New York at Buffalo, the workshops bring together directors of several NSF-supported international REU (research experiences for undergraduates) sites, administrators of study abroad programs, student participants, and foreign mentor-supervisors. Their collective experience will be described as a reference on "best practices" for managing international REUs. Among the issues to be discussed are: program development, selection of research projects and foreign mentors, sustainability, student recruitment, management plans, pre-program activities, on-site activities, post program activities and program evaluation. The April workshop will produce a draft manual to be tested in summer 2001 by a set of new international site directors. Results from the field will be reviewed and findings incorporated into the final version at a second workshop in October. The manual will be available on the Web for public access and downloadable in print version.International undergraduate research programs and sites can promote the development of a globally competent science and engineering workforce. The undergraduate level, in fact, may prove to be an ideal time in a research career for immersion in an intensive international environment. The reference for "best practices" that will be made available to REU directors and the broader research community will advance future efforts in international undergraduate research and education and ensure that students and faculty receive maximum benefit from the experience.