Engendering the Spirit of Gadugi at the Food-Energy-Water Nexus

该奖项全部或部分由2021年美国救援计划法案（公法117-2）资助。为了满足人类技术前沿未来的劳动力需求，需要能够有效发现和解决问题的专业人士。传统的研究生培养方法在培养创新者应对新兴社会挑战方面受到限制。在这些模型中，专家往往定义要解决的问题，剥夺了学生在识别问题时的批判性学习机会。相反，该项目将调查研究生教育的潜在变革模式，使学生通过沉浸式，跨学科和跨文化的经验创新的中心。学生将接受培训，通过以研究生为中心的文艺复兴铸造教育模式（RFM）的适应来识别和解决问题。这种模式已经在本科阶段得到了证明，可以有效地培养全面的“T形”专业人员，他们具有很强的问题识别和解决问题的能力，并辅以广泛的协作和跨学科特征。学生将学习应用他们的培训，因为他们合作寻找和解决在阿巴拉契亚，美洲原住民和其他农村社区，这是在田纳西理工大学（TTU）的使命的中心的粮食-能源-水关系的挑战。该项目将直接支持20名学生（8名博士; 12名硕士）作为NRT学员，并提供津贴。将包括不少于60名额外的研究生学员，沿着本科生和K-12学生。四个目标将指导该项目的实施。首先是修改和调整RFM作为一个跨学科，研究生水平的STEM教育模式。第二是建立研究生一级的组织外联、支持和能力，以执行和维持区域财务机制。第三是与研究生一起实施和测试该模型，第四是支持和指导学生从教育过渡到独立研究和早期STEM职业途径。这一培训模式的关键要素包括：有机会融入伙伴社区，以查明问题，并通过文化培训课程为这种经验做好准备;提供指导，确保查明的问题和制定的基于研究的解决方案符合社区需求。学员将由一组研究人员共同指导，共同提供技术和社会文化专业知识，每个学员将完成与其学位课程目标一致的学习计划，在FEW nexus接受研究方法和研究方面的广泛和指导培训，以及职业培训和实习机会。NSF研究培训生（NRT）该计划旨在鼓励为STEM研究生教育培训开发和实施大胆的，新的潜在变革模式。该计划致力于通过创新的、基于证据的、与不断变化的劳动力和研究需求相一致的综合培训模式，在高优先级的跨学科或融合研究领域对STEM研究生进行有效培训。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力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 is funded in whole or in part under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law 117-2).To address the future workforce needs at the Human-Technology Frontier, professionals are needed who are effective at both finding and solving problems. Traditional approaches to graduate student training are constrained in preparing innovators for emerging societal challenges. In these models, experts often define the problems to be solved, depriving students of critical learning opportunities in problem identification. Instead, this project will investigate a potentially transformative model of graduate education that makes students the center of innovation through immersive, interdisciplinary, and cross-cultural experiences. Students will be trained to identify and solve problems through a graduate-student-focused adaptation of the Renaissance Foundry educational Model (RFM). This model has been previously demonstrated at the undergraduate level for effective development of holistic, "T-shaped" professionals with strong problem identification and problem-solving skills in depth, complemented by broad collaborative and interdisciplinary traits. Students will learn to apply their training as they collaboratively find and address challenges at the food-energy-water nexus in Appalachian, Native American, and other rural communities, which are at the center of the mission of Tennessee Tech University (TTU). The project will directly support 20 students (8 PhD; 12 MS) as NRT trainees with stipends. No fewer than 60 additional graduate student trainees will be included, along with undergraduate and K-12 students. Four objectives will guide the implementation of this project. First is to modify and adapt the RFM as an interdisciplinary, graduate-level STEM educational model. Second is to build graduate level organizational outreach, supports, and capacities to implement and sustain the RFM. Third is to implement and test the model with graduate students, and fourth is to support and mentor students' transition from education to independent research and early STEM career pathways. Key elements of this training model include opportunities for immersion in partnering communities for problem identification as well as preparation for such experiences through a cultural training course; and guidance in ensuring that the problems identified and the research-based solutions developed are aligned with community needs. Trainees will be co-mentored by a team of researchers collectively providing technical and socio-cultural expertise, and each trainee will complete a program of study consistent with their degree program objectives, receive extensive and guided training in research methods and research at the FEW nexus, as well as career training and opportunities for internship experiences.The NSF Research Traineeship (NRT) Program is designed to encourage the development and implementation of bold, new potentially transformative models for STEM graduate education training. The program is dedicated to effective training of STEM graduate students in high priority interdisciplinary or convergent research areas through comprehensive traineeship models that are innovative, evidence-based, and aligned with changing workforce and research needs.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.