REU Site: FIRE: Facilitating Inclusive Research Experiences in Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science

这是一个为期三年的新提案，名为“REU网站：火灾：促进机械工程和材料科学的包容性研究经验”在匹兹堡大学。每年有10名学生将进行与机械工程和材料科学相关的研究。目标是确定和验证最佳实践，这将有助于解决URM学生就读研究生院的差距，并改变他们所在机构的文化。为了解决工程研究生院中有据可查的性别和种族差距，REU计划重点关注本科生和研究生院之间发生的管道中的“泄漏”。 该项目将开发有效的实践，以减少学生的障碍，建立在现有的STEM包容性研究基础上，并从以前的夏季研究项目中吸取经验教训。多个导师将被分配给每个学生。这一战略将创造一个令人鼓舞的专业环境。专业，技术和社交技能的互动研讨会将有助于为学生和导师建立持久的社交和专业网络。该项目将建立不同本科生的信心，技能和网络，并在教师和REU学生之间培养更具包容性的文化，因为他们追求研究生。这是一个为期三年的新建议，为REU网站名为“REU网站：火灾：促进包容性的研究经验，在机械工程和材料科学”在匹兹堡大学。每年有10名学生将进行与机械工程和材料科学相关的研究。两个互补的策略将应用于扩大在ME/MSE研究生院的代表性：1）建立信心，技能，和不同的本科生的网络; 2）培养教师和研究生之间更具包容性的文化。该计划的计划是通过REU每年招收10名不同的本科生，并将这些学生与匹兹堡大学内部资助的学生配对。该计划还将直接包括教职员工，研究生作为技术导师和本科生作为同行导师，从而促进部门内的大部分变化。该计划将制定有效的做法，以减少这些学生的障碍，建立在现有的研究中，包括STEM，并从以前的夏季研究计划中吸取教训。每个学生多个协调和训练有素的导师将创造一个令人鼓舞的和专业的环境。专业，技术和社交技能的互动研讨会将有助于为学生和导师建立持久的社交和专业网络。这项工作将进一步发展和传播经验证的最佳做法，以解决本科生到研究生的管道“泄漏”，并最终增加机械工程师和材料科学家与研究生学位池的多样性，该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并被认为是值得通过使用基金会的学术价值和更广泛的影响评审标准。

This is a three-year new proposal for an REU Site titled, "REU Site: FIRE: Facilitating Inclusive Research Experiences in Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science” at the University of Pittsburgh. Ten students each year will conduct research related to mechanical engineering and material science. The goal is to determine and validate best practices that will help address gaps in URM students attending graduate school and change the culture at their institution. To address the well-documented gender- and race-gaps in engineering graduate school, this REU program focuses on the “leak” in the pipeline that occurs between undergraduate and graduate school. The project will develop validated practices for reducing barriers for students, building on existing research in STEM inclusion, and lessons learned from prior summer research programs. Multiple mentors will be assigned to each student. This strategy will create an encouraging and professional environment. Interactive workshops for professional, technical, and social skills will help build lasting social and professional networks for the students as well as the mentors. The project will build the confidence, skills, and networks of diverse undergraduates and foster a more inclusive culture among faculty and REU students as they pursue graduate studies.This is a three-year new proposal for an REU Site titled, "REU Site: FIRE: Facilitating Inclusive Research Experiences in Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science” at the University of Pittsburgh. Ten students each year will conduct research related to mechanical engineering and material science. Two complementary strategies will be applied to broaden representation in ME/MSE graduate school: 1) Build the confidence, skills, and networks of diverse undergraduates; 2) Foster a more inclusive culture among faculty and graduate students. The plan for the program is to recruit ten diverse undergraduate students per year through the REU and to pair these with an internally-funded cohort of students from the University of Pittsburgh. The program will also directly include faculty members, graduate students as technical mentors and undergraduate students as peer mentors, thus fostering change within a large segment of the department. The program will develop validated practices for reducing barriers for these students, building on existing research in STEM inclusion, and lessons learned from prior summer research programs. Multiple coordinated and trained mentors per student will create an encouraging and professional environment. Interactive workshops for professional, technical, and social skills will help build lasting social and professional networks for the students as well as the mentors. This work will further develop and disseminate validated best practices for addressing the undergraduate-to-graduate school pipeline “leaks” and, ultimately, increase the diversity in the pool of mechanical engineers and materials scientists with graduate degrees, for the purpose of fostering greater diversity of faculty in these programs.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.