Planning Grant: I/UCRC for Microbial Forensics

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This project will help plan for a potential NSF I/UCRC for Microbial Forensics, in order to address the gaps necessary for the further development of the field, including the exploitation of new technological developments, the rigorous testing and validation of techniques, and the standardization of processes. It will do this under a unified banner, with input from academia, industry, and government stakeholders. As a result it will serve as a national platform for interdisciplinary research and communication, charged with investigating natural microbial phenomena relevant to law enforcement and national security, with an eye towards commercialization and economic development for the nation. Though the field of microbial forensics is young, the potential is exciting: ten times the number of bacteria as human cells in the body provides dramatically increased opportunities for detection and attribution of crimes, the tracking of individuals and materials, and even the utilization of microbes as sentinels or recordings of past events. Fundamental questions in microbiology remain and are of broad significance to human health, agriculture, national security, industry, and the environment. Application of these technologies to the field of forensics, with its unique applications and requirements, will support and advance all of these endeavors. This proposed Center's research goals are well aligned with these needs. The Center will leverage existing efforts currently underway at awardee institution for the recruitment and training of underrepresented minorities and women in the forensic sciences. Specifically, the PI will recruit underrepresented minorities and women to the Center by targeting and leveraging existing Bachelors-to-Masters 3+2 agreements between the Department of Medical and Molecular Genetics and historically black and minority serving undergraduate institutions. The Center will be able to provide research opportunities to these students and others in a Professional Master's Degree Program, the population of which is heavily minority and overwhelmingly female. Outreach and research opportunities to participants of the awardee institution's Summer Multicultural Advancement Research Training (SMART) Program will be provided with a goal to bring undergraduate students to the campus for 10-week research opportunities during the summer. In addition to the research opportunities, students will also receive invaluable experience in industry relevant applied research and network opportunities with industry representative in order to capitalize on these experiences for their eventual employment.