Research Experiences in Estuarine Science for Undergraduates at Mote Marine Laboratory, with Special Focus on Native Pacific Islanders

该奖项为本科生研究体验（REU）网站提供资金，该网站每年将为总共八名学生提供为期十周的河口科学夏季研究体验。一个由30多名教师导师组成的团队将帮助学生开展有关河口物理、化学和生物方面的研究项目。他们的研究地点将是夏洛特港，这是佛罗里达州最大、最具生态和经济重要性的河口之一。在课程结束时，学生将对他们的研究项目进行展示，并将被鼓励在一个重要的科学会议上展示他们的成果。这个REU网站的一个重要方面是，PI每年将尝试招募至少3或4名土著太平洋岛民（NPI）。NPI的招聘将通过夏威夷大学夏威夷实习计划的分包合同进行。该提案基于这样一种理论，即指导和网络是招募学生进入专业领域和培训年轻研究人员的最有效方法。本课程将为学生提供对河口生态系统的深入了解。该站点的规划包括一个优秀REU站点的所有基本元素。学生们将得到研究人员一对一的指导，并将对科学过程有一个广泛的了解。这个项目也填补了海洋科学部REU项目支持的项目的一个重要空缺，因为它将是唯一一个专注于招募太平洋土著岛民进入海洋科学的网站。

This award provides funding to initiate a Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) site that will provide a ten-week summer research experience in estuarine science for a total of eight students each year. A team of over 30 faculty mentors will help the students develop research projects on the physical, chemical and biological aspects of estuaries. Their research site will be Charlotte Harbor, one of Florida's largest and most ecologically and economically important estuaries. At the end of the program, students will develop a presentation on their research project and will be encouraged to present their results at a major scientific conference. One important aspect of this REU site is that the PI will attempt to recruit at leat 3 or 4 Native Pacific Islanders (NPI's) each year. Recruitment of NPI's will be facilitated by a subcontract to the University of Hawaii's Hawaiian Internship Program. The proposal is based on the theory that mentoring and networking are the most effective methods for recruiting students into a profession and for training young researchers. This program will provide students with an in-depth understanding of the ecology of an estuarine system. Plans for the site include all the essential elements for an excellent REU site. The students will receive one-on-one mentoring from researchers and will gain a broad understanding of the scientific process. This program also fills an important niche in the continuum of program supported under the REU program by the Division of Ocean Sciences as it will be the only site that will focus on recruiting Native Pacific Islanders into ocean sciences.