Marine Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experience (CURE) Targeting Transfer Students as a Means for Building a Science Learning Community.

如今，超过50%的STEM学生将在一所以上的高等教育机构完成学士学位。这些学生中有很多是转学生，他们先上两年制的社区大学，然后转到四年制的大学。不幸的是，许多转学生无法完成学士学位。造成这种现象的一个主要原因是，转学生经常面临对他们的学业成功产生负面影响的挑战，最终影响他们在STEM专业的保留和毕业。提高转学生成功率的项目可以显著提高STEM毕业率，这将有助于实现增加STEM劳动力多样性和规模的国家目标。参与涉及现实问题的科学研究经验有助于学生的成功，提高学生的保留率和毕业率。这个项目为在暑期过渡项目和学年期间的转学生提供本科研究经验。这些经验将有助于建立一个多样化和可持续的研究社区，更好地支持和准备所有本科生从事STEM职业。该项目将在西佛罗里达大学（UWF）进行，这是一所中等规模的地区性州立大学，转校生比例很高。本项目的中心目标是建立一个以当地coquina clam Donax variabilis的新遗传学和细胞生物学为中心的多面课程本科研究（CURE）社区。该项目还将解决转学生学业成功的具体挑战，让教师参与研究并提高他们的教学技能，并制定机构转型和可持续性战略。中心项目活动将：1)发展和提高学生的研究和实验室技能，2)通过一个夏季桥梁项目吸引即将到来的转学生和教师，该项目结合了同伴指导和基于coquina研究项目的CURE培训研讨会系列。该项目将有助于更好地了解鳕鱼蛤的生物学。此外，该项目将有助于对影响高等教育转学生成功的因素进行教育研究，并产生其他机构可能实施的最佳做法。该项目将提高对当前转校生所面临的影响他们在生物学上取得成功的挑战的理解，CURE经验和桥梁项目对转校生归属感、科学素养和技能的影响，以及3)在生物课上实施CURE的最佳实践，以及吸引教师参与机构转型。调查结果将通过UWF Coquina CURE网站进行交流，该网站将整合学生和教师创建的内容，以共享课程材料。研究成果将通过同行评议的出版物和会议报告进行传播。该项目由生物基础设施司生物科学理事会和本科教育司教育和人力资源理事会共同资助，作为其应对《本科生物学教育的愿景与变革：行动呼吁》（http://visionandchange.org/finalreport/）所提出的挑战的努力的一部分。

Today more than 50% of STEM students will attend more than one higher education institution to complete a bachelor's degree. Many of these students are transfer students who attend a 2-year community college and later transfer to a 4-year institution. Unfortunately, many transfer students fail to complete a bachelor's degree. A major reason for this phenomenon is that transfer students often face challenges that negatively affect their academic success, and ultimately their retention and graduation in a STEM major. Programs that increase the success of transfer students can significantly increase the STEM graduation rate, which will help meet the national goal of increasing the diversity and size of the STEM workforce. Participation in scientific research experiences involving real-world problems supports student success, increasing student retention and graduation rates. This project provides undergraduate research experiences to transfer students both during a summer bridge program and the academic year. These experiences will help establish a diverse and sustainable research community that will better support and prepare all undergraduates for STEM professions.This project will take place at the University of West Florida (UWF), a medium-sized regional state university with a high percentage of transfer students. The central goal of this project is to establish a multi-faceted course-based undergraduate research (CURE) community centered on the novel genetics and cell biology of the local coquina clam Donax variabilis. This project will also address specific challenges to the academic success of transfer students, engage faculty with research and enhance their pedagogical skill, and develop strategies for institutional transformation and sustainability. The central project activities will: 1) develop and enhance student research and laboratory skills, and 2) engage incoming transfer students and faculty through a summer bridge program that incorporates peer mentoring and a CURE training workshop series for faculty based on the coquina research project. The project will contribute to a better understanding of the biology of the coquina clam. In addition, the project will contribute to education research on factors that influence the success of transfer students in higher education and generate best practices that other institutions might implement. The project will improve understanding of current challenges encountered by transfer students that impact their success in biology, the effect of the CURE experience and bridge program on transfer students' sense of belonging and their scientific literacy and skill, and 3) best practices for implementing a CURE in a biology class and engaging faculty for institutional transformation. Findings will be communicated through a UWF Coquina CURE web page that will incorporate content created by both students and faculty to share curriculum materials. Research results will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications and conference presentations. This project is being jointly funded by the Directorate for Biological Sciences, Division of Biological Infrastructure and the Directorate for Education and Human Resources, Division of Undergraduate Education as part of their efforts to address the challenges posed in Vision and Change in Undergraduate Biology Education: A Call to Action (http://visionandchange.org/finalreport/).