i-REU Site: The UF/France Research Exchange in Chemistry: Advancing Diversity Through International Engagement

本研究经验的本科生（REU）网站奖给佛罗里达，位于盖恩斯维尔，佛罗里达州的大学，支持12名学生在2023年至2025年的夏天11周的培训。该计划由化学部资助，旨在通过国际参与促进多样性。参与者前往法国，在四个合作伙伴网站之一从事合作密集的研究项目：索邦大学（巴黎），斯特拉斯堡大学，农业巴黎技术（兰斯）和图卢兹大学-保罗萨巴蒂尔。参与者还参加整个夏天的指导和专业发展活动，重点是科学传播，开发一个组合，以突出他们的实验室技能，并申请研究生课程和国家奖学金。通过沉浸在国际研究环境中，该网站培养学生的自信心和对化学全球方面的认识。该计划的目标是来自STEM代表性不足群体的本科生，对他们来说，国外的暑期研究将有助于引导他们进入研究生院和STEM职业生涯，从而扩大STEM的参与，增加STEM技术工人的多样性，以应对未来30-40年的全球科学挑战。这个国际REU计划是作为一个双向交流网站运行的，国内学生与每个合作伙伴网站的主机组相匹配，法国机构资助的学生被送往佛罗里达大学进行夏季研究。学生参加出发前的定向研讨会，然后每个学生都与一个活跃的研究小组相匹配，在化学的所有领域进行单独指导的研究项目。指导和专业发展活动包括在每周的虚拟会议中，并增加了一份在线期刊，旨在指导科学自我意识，并帮助开发一个突出其实验室技能的投资组合。为期3天的研讨会将所有参与者聚集在一起，参观位于Pomacle-Bazancourt的生物精炼厂，重点介绍绿色化学应用。返回美国后，学生们将在ACS全国会议上展示他们的研究成果，并与PI会面，就奖学金申请进行最后的指导。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 Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) site award to the University of Florida, located in Gainesville, FL, supports the training of 12 students for 11 weeks during the summers of 2023-2025. This program, funded by the Division of Chemistry, seeks to advance diversity through international engagement. Participants travel to France to engage in collaborative intensive research projects at one of four partner sites: Sorbonne University (Paris), University of Strasbourg, AgroParis Tech (Reims), and University of Toulouse – Paul Sabatier. Participants also take part in mentoring and professional development activities throughout the summer that focus on science communication, developing a portfolio to highlight their laboratory skills, and applying for graduate programs and national fellowships. Through immersion in an international research environment, this site develops students’ self-confidence and awareness of the global aspects of chemistry. The program targets undergraduate students from underrepresented groups in STEM, and for whom summer research abroad will help steer them towards graduate school and a career in STEM, thereby broadening participation in STEM and increasing the diversity of STEM skilled workers to match the global scientific challenges for the next 30-40 years. This international REU program is run as a bidirectional exchange site where domestic students are matched with host groups at each of the partner sites and French institution-funded students are sent to the University of Florida for summer research. Students participate in a pre-departure orientation workshop, then each student is matched with an active research group to conduct individually mentored research projects across all areas of chemistry. Mentoring and professional development activities are included in weekly virtual meetings with the addition of an online journal, introduced to guide scientific self-awareness and to help develop a portfolio highlighting their laboratory skills. A 3-day workshop brings all participants together for a visit to a biorefinery in Pomacle-Bazancourt highlighting green chemistry applications. Upon return to the US, students present their research outcomes at an ACS National Meeting, where they meet with the PIs for a final mentoring session on fellowship applications.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.