Beginnings: Experiential Learning on Digital Agriculture and Plant Phenotyping Technologies (DAPPT)

该项目旨在通过解决满足食品、农业和自然资源部门日益增长的需求所需的STEM毕业生短缺问题，为国家利益服务。由于有关作物健康和环境的实时数据有可能彻底改变农业，因此迫切需要优先考虑STEM教育，培养能够推动数字农业和表型技术创新的熟练劳动力。该项目的主要目标是提供数字农业和植物表型技术（DAPPT）的沉浸式学习机会，特别关注社区大学生。FAMU和UNL由佛罗里达农工大学（FAMU）、内布拉斯加大学林肯分校（UNL）和普渡大学（PU）等三所机构合作开展，将通过为参加STEM项目或副学士项目的学生提供现场体验式学习活动，专注于吸引历史上代表性不足和服务不足的群体和社区大学生。PU将通过关于精密农业先进技术的研讨会，将项目的覆盖范围扩大到工业工人和种植者。该项目的综合方法包括每年在佛罗里达州、内布拉斯加州和印第安纳州建立三个参与者群组，合作伙伴为群组访问和培训提供便利。通过全面的体验式学习活动，包括暑期实习、研讨会、实地考察、基于学期的研究和开发实习，DAPPT项目旨在为参与者提供必要的技能、知识和专业能力，以追求数字农业和植物表型技术的职业生涯。该项目由传统黑人学院和大学本科项目（HBCU-UP）共同资助，该项目为加强hbcu的STEM本科教育和研究提供奖励。该项目与由NSF TIP和EDU董事会资助的NSF ExLENT计划保持一致，因为它旨在为来自不同专业和教育背景的个人提供体验式学习机会，以增加他们对新兴技术领域职业道路的兴趣和机会。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 project aims to serve the national interest by addressing the shortfall in STEM graduates required to meet the growing demands of the food, agriculture, and natural resources sectors. With the potential to revolutionize agriculture through real-time data on crop health and environment, there is a critical need to prioritize STEM education and cultivate a skilled workforce capable of driving innovation in digital agriculture and phenotyping technologies. The primary objective of this project is to provide immersive learning opportunities in digital agriculture and plant phenotyping technologies (DAPPT), with a particular focus on community college students. Collaboratively undertaken by three institutions including Florida A&M University (FAMU), the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL), and Purdue University (PU), FAMU and UNL will focus on engaging historically underrepresented and underserved groups and community college students by offering on-site field experiential learning activities to those enrolled in STEM programs or associate degree programs, and PU will expand the reach of the project to encompass industry workers and growers through workshops on advanced technologies for precision agriculture. The project's comprehensive approach involves the creation of three participant cohorts annually in Florida, Nebraska, and Indiana, with the partners facilitating travel for cohort visits and training sessions. Through a well-rounded combination of experiential learning activities, including summer internships, workshops, field visits, semester-based research and development internships, the DAPPT project aims to equip participants with the requisite skills, knowledge, and professional competencies essential for pursuing a career in digital agriculture and plant phenotyping technologies. This project is co-funded by the Historically Black Colleges and Universities Undergraduate Program (HBCU-UP), which provides awards to strengthen STEM undergraduate education and research at HBCUs. This project aligns with the NSF ExLENT Program, funded by the NSF TIP and EDU Directorates, as it seeks to support experiential learning opportunities for individuals from diverse professional and educational backgrounds to increase their interest in, and their access to, career pathways in emerging technology fields.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.