REU Site: Research Training in Place-Based Field Research

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This REU Site award to the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory located in Gothic, CO, will support the training of 10 students for 10 weeks during the summers of 2018-2022. Resesarch is conducted throughout the Gunnison Basin. The theme of the program is the Ecology of Place, or using a deep understanding of a place to generate general scientific insights. Students design and implement a field research program and present results orally and in writing at the end of the summer. Students also participate in professional development opportunities throughout the summer, such as discussions of scientific and non-academic careers, as well as responsible conduct of research topics such as sexual harassment and the ethics of research. The program recruit students nationally, building on established collaborative relationships with the Los Angeles community colleges. Students apply online, and submit essays and letters of reference. Students for whom the program will have a large impact, including students who would be unable to participate in summer research without financial support, are encouraged to apply.It is anticipated that a total of 50 students primarily from schools with limited research opportunities, will be trained in the program over five years. The goal is that 70% of the participants will be minority students and at least 35% of the students will have a community college background. Students will learn how research is conducted, many will present the results of their work at scientific conferences. Approximately one-third of the students will publish results in scientific journals.A common web-based assessment tool used by all REU Site programs funded by the Division of Biological Infrastructure will be used to determine the effectiveness of the training program. Students will be tracked after the program in order to determine their career paths. Students will be asked to respond to an automatic email sent via the NSF reporting system as well as RMBL surveys. More information about the program is available by visiting rmbl.org/education , or by contacting the PI (Dr. Ian Billick, director@rmbl.org) or the co-PI (Dr. Jennifer Reithel at sd@rmbl.org).This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.