REU Site: Studies in Social Inequality and Social Vulnerability

德克萨斯农工大学的本科生研究经验（REU）项目旨在吸引本科生从事社会科学研究，并增加来自代表性不足的群体（如非洲裔美国人和拉丁裔美国人）的有才华的个人的参与。社会学系（SOCI）和景观建筑与城市规划系（LAUP）合作主办了这个REU网站，让主修社会学、规划和相关学科的本科生参加为期八周的暑期学院，重点研究不平等和社会脆弱性。学生的主要活动是参与教师指导的研究项目，并在专业会议上发表研究论文，而辅助活动包括研讨会，为研究项目提供理论基础，数据和方法；两次研究实地考察；以及关于研究生教育和研究职业机会的研讨会。网站的主题是“社会不平等和社会脆弱性研究”，这反映了来自社会研究所和法学院的研究导师的专业知识，并被证明在吸引非裔美国人和拉丁裔学生的申请方面是有效的。这8位研究导师在监督成功的NSF REU和SBE项目方面具有很强的研究和指导资质和先前的经验。学生被纳入导师正在进行的研究项目，并分配个人研究项目。选定的例子包括：按种族和贫困收入状况记录社会经济、居住和健康结果的差异；评估不同社会群体对自然灾害和技术灾害的脆弱性；评估灾害（如飓风和洪水）对少数民族、低收入和其他弱势群体的不同影响；调查按种族和收入划分的居住隔离的相关性、原因和后果；对选定城市的居住隔离随时间的演变进行历史案例研究；评估从灾害影响中恢复的变化。多样性目标将通过以前成功的REU站点使用的实践来实现。这些措施包括与少数族裔服务大学的教师密切合作，这些大学的STEM学生研究机会有限，以确定对研究生教育和研究事业感兴趣的有前途、有动力的学生。拟议的REU网站利用两个全国知名博士部门的教师专业知识和机构资源，为学生提供基于参与正在进行的研究项目的深入研究经验，其中一些由美国国家科学基金会资助，与社会不平等和社会脆弱性有关。学生承担由教师导师指导的个人项目，这些项目的设计在暑期学院和高级本科生的能力范围内是可行的。虽然学生项目对科学的直接贡献可能是有限的，但更大的智力价值是提高学生的研究能力，对研究的理解和兴趣，以及继续研究生教育和研究事业的机会。

This Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Sites program at Texas A & M University aims to attract undergraduates to careers in social science research and to increase the participation of talented individuals from under-represented groups (e.g., African Americans and Latinos). The Departments of Sociology (SOCI) and Landscape Architecture and Urban Planning (LAUP) collaborate to host this REU Site that brings undergraduate students majoring in sociology, planning, and related disciplines to participate in an eight-week Summer Institute focusing on Studies of Inequality and Social Vulnerability. The primary student activities are participating in a faculty-supervised research project leading to a research paper and presentation at a professional conference, while upporting activities include a seminar providing grounding in theory, data, and methods relevant for research projects; two research field trips; and workshops on opportunities for graduate education and research careers. The site theme "Studies of Social Inequality and Social Vulnerability" reflects the expertise of the researcher mentors from SOCI & LAUP and is proven effective in attracting applications from African American and Latino students. The eight research mentors have strong research and mentoring credentials and prior experience in overseeing successful NSF REU and SBE programs. Students are incorporated into the ongoing research programs of the mentors and assigned individual research projects. Selected examples include: documenting disparities in socioeconomic, residential, and health outcomes by race and poverty-income status; assessing differential vulnerability of social groups to natural and technical hazards; assessing how hazards (e.g., hurricanes and floods) differentially impact ethnic minority, low income, and other vulnerable populations; investigating correlates, causes, and consequences of residential segregation by race and income; conducting historical case studies of the evolution of residential segregation over time in selected cities; and assessing variation in recovery from the impact of hazards. Diversity goals will be served by practices used in prior successful REU Sites. These include working closely with faculty at minority serving universities that have limited STEM student research opportunities to identify promising, motivated students with interests in graduate education and research careers. The proposed REU Site draws on the faculty expertise and institutional resources of two nationally prominent doctoral departments to provide students intensive research experiences based on participating in ongoing research projects, some funded by NSF, relating to social inequality and social vulnerability. Students undertake individual projects directed by faculty mentors and designed to be feasible over the summer institute and within the capabilities of advanced undergraduates. Although the mmediate contributions of student projects to science could be modest, the larger intellectual merit is enhancing student research capabilities, understanding of and interest in research, and odds of going on to graduate education and research careers.