Increasing Underrepresented Minorities in STEM: The 48th NOBCChE Annual Conference (Virtual)

该奖项将支持本科生、研究生和博士后参加2021年全国黑人化学家和化学工程师专业发展组织（NOBCChE）会议的全国年会。该奖项由数学和物理科学局（MPS）的化学和材料研究部、生物科学局（BIO）的分子和细胞生物科学部以及工程局（ENG）的化学、生物工程和运输系统部共同资助。NOBCChE会议已成为招募科学、技术、工程和数学（STEM）领域的全球领导者，并在更广泛的科学界创造包容性环境的重要会议。由于新型冠状病毒感染症（COVID-19）大流行，NOBCChE会议将于今年以虚拟方式举行。该奖项将为从STEM服务不足的人群中选出的参与者提供注册支持。此外，该奖项还将为参与者参与开发一个强大的在线平台。该奖项将为参与者提供四个主要关注领域的机会：1)STEM技术和专业发展；2)与STEM专业人士交流和指导的机会；3)接触STEM领域著名的少数族裔榜样；4) STEM职业发展机会。学生参与者将与来自工业界、政府和学术界的同行和专业人士进行互动，以发展合作，并探索攻读化学、化学工程和相关学科研究生学位的机会。NOBCChE 2021还将通过在虚拟环境中举办这次STEM会议，并在会前和会后提供对知识产权知识库的数字访问，为支持学生参与的最佳实践提供知识。会议还将有助于丰富学生与会者的技术、专业和领导技能，以及与其他高级领导一起在会议规划和执行委员会工作的学生。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并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，被认为值得支持。

This award will support the participation of undergraduate students, graduate students, and postdoctoral fellows at the national annual meeting for the National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers (NOBCChE) conference in 2021. This award is jointly funded by Divisions of Chemistry and Materials Research, both in the Mathematical and Physical Sciences (MPS) Directorate, the Division of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences in the Biological Sciences (BIO) Directorate, and the Division of Chemical, Bioengineering, and Transport Systems in the Engineering (ENG) Directorate. The NOBCChE meeting has become an important conference to recruit diverse global leaders in the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields and to create an inclusive environment in the broader scientific community. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the NOBCChE conference will be held virtually this year. This award will provide the registration support to selected participants from populations that have been underserved in STEM. In addition, this award will enable the development of a robust online platform for participant engagement. This award will provide opportunities for participants to engage in four major areas of focus: 1) STEM technical and professional development; 2) networking and mentorship opportunities with STEM professionals; 3) exposure to prestigious minority role models in STEM; and 4) STEM career advancement opportunities. Student participants will interact with peers and professionals from industry, government, and academia to develop collaborations and to explore opportunities to pursue graduate degrees in the chemistry, chemical engineering and related disciplines. NOBCChE 2021 will also contribute to the knowledge of best practices for supporting student engagement via hosting this STEM meeting in a virtual environment and providing digital access to a repository of intellectual property pre- and post-conference. The meeting will also serve to enrich the technical, professional, and leadership skill sets of student attendees and students working on committees with other senior leaders on conference planning and execution.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.