REU Site: The National Summer Undergraduate Research Project

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This award is funded in whole or in part under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law 117-2).This REU Site award to the University of Arizona’s National Summer Undergraduate Research Project (NSURP), located in Tucson, AZ, will support the training of 35 students for eight weeks each summer during 2022 through 2024. NSURP is a virtual research program, so accepted students will participate remotely (i.e., not at an institution in a wet lab setting) and be matched to one of many laboratories around the country. Although there is no travel required for this program, only full-time participation, modest housing and meal support will be offered. It is anticipated that all selected students, those from underrepresented groups, will be trained in this program. Students will learn how research is conducted, and many will present the results of their work at scientific conferences. Given that this program focuses on microbiology and immunology, student training in these areas is of great national interest to workforce development. Further, this program will remain virtual for accessibility to those unable to travel in person, thus providing great benefit to marginalized individuals seeking careers in STEM fields. Assessment of the program will be done thru the online SALG URSSA tool. Students will be tracked after the program to determine their career paths.NSURP focuses on all fields within microbiology (host-microbe, environmental microbiology, public health, etc.) and immunology (computational, innate, humoral, cancer). Due to the virtual and national participation, NSURP encompasses various departments around the country. Participants will be required to attend weekly seminars, professional development talks, and ethics training, complete assessments promptly, and attend all events deemed necessary by the laboratory in which they are doing the work. Selection of students will be done by a an NSURP board based on the applicant answers (but not limited) to the following: what are your career goals, and why working remotely is necessary. More information, including a list and presentations of previous NSURP projects, can be found at https://nsurp.org. Additional details can be obtained by contacting the PI (Dr. Michael D. L. Johnson) or program administrator Ms. Holly Lopez at nsurp@arizona.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.