Track 1 Proposal to Use Cultural History to Connect African American Students of Tennessee State University to Geosciences at Mammoth Cave National Park

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A team of researchers and educators from Tennessee State University (an HBCU), the Mammoth Cave National Park, and the U.S. Geological Survey has partnered in this project to increase the participation of African American students in the geosciences. This project seeks to capture the attention of minority student audiences with the fascinating legacy of slave explorers in Mammoth Cave, and then teach them more about related geoscience topics, including geology, hydrology, and the chemistry of rock, water and air. This two-year Track 1 project will generate enough geochemical research data to complete one Master''s thesis, collect data for a second Master''s thesis, and complete two undergraduate senior projects in environmental engineering or chemistry. A network of formal and informal educators and researchers will be created to conduct formal education and outreach activities that seek to build a geosciences pipeline from middle school through graduate school. This network will include the involvement of educators in disciplines such as sociology, history, and performing arts to stabilize the underlying premise by designing a plan for performances that will introduce the potential geoscience audience to the story of the cave.