REU: Global Engagement Research Experience for Undergraduate Students in Food Security: A focus on Indigenous Vegetables and Grain Crops; the "Forgotten Food" Crops of Kenya

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This REU Site award to Bowie State University (BSU), located in Bowie, MD, will support the training of 8 students in a 10-week program during the summers of 2019-2020. The program is hosted by the BSU Department of Natural Sciences and the University of Nairobi in Kenya and Egerton University (Kenya, Department of Crops, Horticulture and Soils). Students spend the first week at BSU for an intensive boot camp on the history and culture of Kenya, safety, ethics/responsible conduct of research, basic scientific principles, and skills to prepare for the research project. The next 8 weeks are dedicated to research at Egerton University (Year 1) or the University of Nairobi (Year 2) with field sampling trips, followed by a concluding week at BSU where students present the results of their research. Research focuses on the genetic, physiological, and ecological mechanisms that underlie crop responses in a changing environment with a goal towards food security. Example student projects include molecular studies of aflatoxin grain contamination, sweet sorghum genotypes and ecotypes, genetic and metabolite diversity of the indigenous vegetable Cleome gynandra, analysis of sweet sorghum enzymes, and characterization of Rhizobia species in Dolichos lablab. Workshops focus on professional skills (e.g., literature review, experimental techniques and design, data collection and analysis, oral and written presentation skills). Recruitment and participant selection will focus on students with outstanding research potential with special emphasis on students from underrepresented groups. It is anticipated that a total of 16 students, primarily from schools with limited research opportunities, will be trained in the program. Students will learn how research is conducted, analyzed, and communicated. Many will present the results of their work at scientific conferences, and some will publish the results in peer-reviewed journals.A common web-based assessment tool used by all REU programs funded by the Division of Biological Infrastructure (Directorate for Biological Sciences) will be used to determine the effectiveness of program. Students are required to be tracked after the program and must respond to an automatic email sent via the NSF reporting system. This REU is also supported by the Division of Human Resource Development in the Directorate for Education and Human Resources. More information is available by visiting https://www.bowiestate.edu/academics-research/colleges/college-arts-sciences/departments/natural-sciences/research-experience-for-underg/ or by contacting the PI, Dr. Anne Osano at aosano@bowiestate.edu.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.