UMEB: Undergraduate Mentoring in Wetland Science with a Focus on Underrepresented Groups

美国国家科学基金会将资助10名来自代表性不足群体的本科生参加湿地科学家协会（SWS）的年度会议。SWS于1980年成立，旨在促进和促进与湿地有关的信息交流。SWS的独特之处在于，它的成员来自学术界、政府和私人咨询部门，代表了湿地科学的各种观点。从代表性不足的群体中选出一组本科生参加年度科学会议，可以为每个学生提供一个视角，并接触到湿地科学的广度和深度，这是单个学术机构无法获得的。协会的年度会议包括至少四次为期四天的会议，以及全体会议和海报会议。由于SWS涵盖学术，政府和私人咨询部门，每个学生都可以根据自己对湿地科学的个人兴趣定制他们的日常活动。通过在年度会议上将本科生与研究生或教师导师配对，并提供专门针对本科生（包括来自代表性不足群体的学生）的研讨会和专题讨论会，SWS将促进积极参与和讨论，每一个都是推进科学和促进本科生科学家智力发展的关键组成部分。SWS认识到需要接触到代表性不足的群体，为个人成长和发展提供智力机会。参加科学会议往往可以提供智力火花，以及为未来建立联系的机会，鼓励本科生在获得学士学位后继续他们的专业教育。我们的目标是为代表性不足群体的本科生打开大门。每个学生参与者将被分配一名导师，他将以多种方式发挥作用，包括作为桥梁建设者，将每个学生介绍给专业兴趣与本科生一致的SWS成员。这里提出的活动将补充现有的SWS活动，包括“教教师”计划和新启动的人类多样性倡议。我们制定了各种策略（研讨会，专题讨论会，社交活动，实地考察，指导，跟进），以确保本科生将从为期一周的SWS年会体验中获得最大的收获。本项目由国家自然科学基金环境生物学本科生指导项目资助。

NSF funding will support the participation of 10 undergraduate students from underrepresented groups in annual meetings of the Society of Wetland Scientists (SWS). SWS was established in 1980 to allow and promote the exchange of information related to wetlands. SWS is unique among scientific societies in that its members, from the academic, government and private consulting sectors, represent a variety of perspectives on wetland science. Attendance of a select group of undergraduate students from underrepresented groups at an annual scientific meeting can provide each student with a perspective on, and exposure to, the breadth and depth of wetland science that cannot be obtained at a single academic home institution. The annual meeting of the Society includes at least four concurrent sessions over four days, along with plenary and poster sessions. Because SWS spans academic, government and private consulting sectors, individual students will be able to tailor their daily activities to their own personal interests in wetland science. By pairing undergraduate students with graduate student or faculty mentors at the annual meeting, and by providing workshops and symposia specifically geared toward undergraduate students (including those from underrepresented groups), SWS will foster active participation and discussion, each a key component of advancing science and promoting intellectual development of undergraduate student scientists.SWS recognizes the need to reach out to underrepresented groups to provide intellectual opportunities for personal growth and development. Attendance at a scientific meeting often can provide the intellectual spark, along with the opportunities to make contacts for the future, that encourage undergraduate students to continue their professional education beyond the Bachelor's degree level. Our goal is to open doors for undergraduate students in underrepresented groups. Each student participant will be assigned a mentor, who will function in many ways, including as a bridge-builder, introducing each student to SWS members whose professional interests are in line with those of the undergraduate student. The activities proposed here will complement existing SWS activities including its "Teach the Teachers" program and its newly launched Human Diversity Initiative. We have devised a variety of strategies (workshops, symposia, social events, field trips, mentoring, follow-up) to ensure that undergraduate students will get the most out of their week-long SWS annual meeting experience.This activity is funded by the National Science Foundation Undergraduate Mentoring in Environmental Biology (UMEB) Program.