NSF INCLUDES Planning Grant: Project Radial

NSF 包括规划拨款：Radial 项目

• 批准号: 2013080
• 负责人: Anja Fourie
• 金额: $ 10万
• 依托单位: Associated Universities, Inc.
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2020
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2020-09-01 至 2023-03-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2013080&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: NSF; INCLUDES; Planning; Grant; Project

This project will establish a collective impact initiative that will use radio astronomy research to advance the development of a diverse US STEM workforce. The National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) requires extensive high-throughput computing infrastructure and a skilled workforce, to develop innovative approaches in computing and data science, to manage and exploit the large and complex datasets produced by its radio telescopes. In-depth academic research has investigated the causes of the persistent under-representation of minorities in the US STEM sector. The needs of the NRAO, and the findings of the research, inspired initial meetings between the NRAO and minority-serving institutions (MSIs). At these meetings, it was agreed that both astronomy and diversity could benefit from a network of multi-institutional, cross-disciplinary partners, to commit complementary expertise and resources. The Radial Alliance, consisting of ten MSIs and NRAO, will seek to provide these ten MSIs with high-throughput computing processing infrastructure and support; data sets from the NRAO’s Very Large Array Sky Survey; and an open access, interactive undergraduate and graduate curriculum, to train under-represented minority students in astronomy, computing and data science. This innovative approach will be supported by a “cradle to career” development program, including an interactive K-12 curriculum for schools surrounding the MSIs; undergraduate research experiences and a mentorship program for students; a professional development program for students, educators and faculty; affirmative spaces on the MSI campuses; and an outreach program targeted at students’ families and communities. The goal of this planning grant is to complete initiation and planning phases for the Radial Alliance. The initiation phase will finalize a clear business case, shared vision, mission and goals for the Radial Alliance and will consist of a front-end evaluation, including a literature review, direct needs assessments, and resources audit. This will inform a development lab during which Radial partner MSIs, other partners, beneficiaries and invited subject experts will meet in-person to finalize these elements and co-design the objectives, key activities, and metrics of the Radial Alliance. The planning phase will build organizational structure and a three-year plan for the Radial Alliance, including shared vision and goals, and plans for communication, evaluation, and sustainability.This planning grant is funded by NSF Inclusion across the Nation of Communities of Learners of Underrepresented Discoverers in Engineering and Science (NSF INCLUDES), a comprehensive national initiative to enhance U.S. leadership in discoveries and innovations by focusing on diversity, inclusion and broadening participation in STEM at scale.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.

该项目将建立一个集体影响倡议，将利用射电天文学研究来推动多元化的美国STEM劳动力的发展。国家射电天文台（NRAO）需要广泛的高吞吐量计算基础设施和熟练的劳动力，以开发计算和数据科学的创新方法，管理和利用其射电望远镜产生的大型复杂数据集。深入的学术研究调查了少数民族在美国STEM部门持续代表性不足的原因。NRAO的需求和研究结果激发了NRAO和少数群体服务机构之间的初步会议。在这些会议上，与会者一致认为，天文学和多样性都可以受益于一个多机构、跨学科伙伴网络，以提供互补的专门知识和资源。Radial Alliance由10个MSIs和NRAO组成，将寻求为这10个MSIs提供高吞吐量计算处理基础设施和支持;来自NRAO超大阵列巡天的数据集;以及开放访问，交互式本科和研究生课程，以培训天文学，计算和数据科学方面的少数民族学生。这一创新方法将得到“从摇篮到职业”发展计划的支持，包括为MSI周围的学校提供互动式K-12课程;本科生研究经验和学生导师计划;为学生，教育工作者和教师提供专业发展计划; MSI校园的肯定空间;以及针对学生家庭和社区的外展计划。这项规划赠款的目标是完成辐射联盟的启动和规划阶段。启动阶段将最终确定一个明确的业务案例、共同愿景、径向联盟的使命和目标，并将包括一个前端评估，包括文献审查、直接需求评估和资源审计。这将为开发实验室提供信息，在此期间，Radial合作伙伴MSI、其他合作伙伴、受益人和受邀的主题专家将亲自会面，以最终确定这些要素，并共同设计Radial联盟的目标、关键活动和指标。规划阶段将为辐射联盟建立组织结构和三年计划，包括共同的愿景和目标，以及沟通，评估和可持续性计划。该规划拨款由NSF在工程和科学领域代表性不足的发现者的学习者社区的全国包容性资助。（NSF INCLUDES）是一项全面的国家倡议，旨在通过关注多样性来加强美国在发现和创新方面的领导地位，该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为值得通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估来支持。