REU Site: Microbial Friends and Foes: Towards a Synthesis of Interspecific Interactions

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This REU Site award to Cornell University, located in Ithaca, NY, will support the training of 12 students for 10 weeks during the summers of 2019-2021. The program focuses on host-microbe interactions and is hosted by the Cornell Institute of Host-Microbe Interactions and Disease. Students will be trained in concepts, research questions, and experimental approaches central to understanding microbial interactions with eukaryotic hosts. REU participants will obtain an immersive research experience through development, implementation and analysis of an independent research project, weekly seminars, and peer group discussions. Strong emphasis will be placed on the synthesis of concepts explaining microbial interactions across diverse systems. Orientation activities will include workshops devoted to research ethics, electronic database literacy, use of science citation software, and building science communication skills. Participants will receive mentoring in professional development focused on planning for graduate school. Recruitment will focus on students with limited access to research opportunities, and undergraduates from groups underrepresented in science are encouraged to apply. Applications will be collected through a web portal and participants will be selected in a two-step review process by the program selection committee and potential mentors. Acceptance will be based on academic record, research performance, and motivation for future outstanding research in biology. Assessment measures will include entry and exit interviews, student self-assesment, and the REU common assessment tool. It is anticipated that a total of 36 students, primarily from schools with limited research opportunities, will be trained. Students will learn how research is conducted by performing research which can be presented at scientific conferences or contribute to publications. Participants will gain knowledge and skills for applying to graduate school and careers in science.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. Career paths of participants will be tracked after the program. Students will be asked to respond to an automatic email sent via the NSF reporting system. More information about the program is available by visiting cihmid.cornell.edu/reu-mff, or by contacting the PIs (Dr. Teresa Pawlowska at tep8@cornell.edu and Dr. Tory Hendry at th572@cornell.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.