REU Site: RUI: Creating Interdisciplinary Research Opportunities for Phosphorus Sustainability (CROPS)

该项目汇集了来自威斯康星大学斯托特分校的一群充满活力和创造力的教师，创建了一个为期8周的跨学科REU网站，目标是第一代和代表性不足的少数民族学生。学生和教师参与了一个整体的学徒式的培训模式与研究磷污染在一个高度影响威斯康星州流域的总体主题。该小组研究了包容性决策，农民之间的社交网络，响应政策的实施，经济影响，土地利用对磷径流的影响，补救策略和沉积物地质年代学。将数据纳入经济上可持续的磷利用综合战略。学生和教师参与专业发展规划，跨学科数据共享和原创研究活动，旨在增强学生的能力并为科学事业做好准备。最终，这种对人力资本的投资将有助于培养出一支受过跨学科和协作思维培训的劳动力队伍，这是解决21世纪世纪问题所必需的。智力价值：这项工作通过改善学生的学习和发展，以应对研究经验，创造创新的方法来管理跨学科研究中学生和教师的培训和专业发展，并了解导致磷污染的复杂过程，同时制定可持续的解决方案，提供了显着的智力贡献。这些努力与UW-Stout正在进行的NSF资助的项目很好地吻合，以研究基于课堂的研究。研究成果通过学生演讲、同行评议文献、当地媒体和政策利益相关者广泛传播。更广泛的影响：拟议的项目预计将对学生、教师和社区产生持久的影响。PI团队在综合不同的研究项目集中在相同的实质性问题的努力，提高了他们的有效性，在协作解决问题，并在教学本科生跨学科的研究方法。该团队希望增加代表性不足的群体的保留和成功，以及他们对高级科学学位的追求。通过与公民领袖和政府监管机构分享成果，他们的新知识将影响公共政策、地方经济和区域水质。这将对美国社会科学和自然科学领域更具竞争力的劳动力队伍的发展，提高少数群体和女性在科学领域的参与度，改善社会科学和自然科学领域的本科教育产生重大影响。最重要的是，该项目将对公众的科学素养产生积极的影响。

This project brings together a dynamic and creative group of faculty from the University of Wisconsin-Stout to create an 8-week interdisciplinary REU site targeting first generation and underrepresented minority students. Students and faculty engage in a holistic apprentice-style training model with the overall theme of studying phosphorus pollution in a highly impacted Wisconsin watershed. The team studies inclusive decision-making, social networks among farmers, responsive policy implementation, economic impacts, land-use effects on phosphorus run-off, remediation strategies, and sediment geochronology. Data are integrated into a comprehensive strategy for economically sustainable phosphorus use. Students and faculty participate in professional development programming, interdisciplinary data sharing, and original research activities designed to empower and prepare students for sciencecareers. Ultimately, this investment in human capital will help produce a workforce trained in interdisciplinary and collaborative thinking necessary to solve 21st century problems.Intellectual Merit :This work offers significant intellectual contributions by improving student learning and development in response to research experiences, creating innovative approaches to manage the training and professional development of students and faculty in interdisciplinary research, and understanding the complex processes contributing to phosphorus pollution while developingsustainable solutions. These efforts dovetail nicely with an ongoing NSF-funded project at UW-Stout to study classroom-based research. The research results are broadly disseminated via student presentations, peer-reviewed literature, local media outlets, and policy stakeholders.Broader Impacts :The proposed project is ecpected to result in lasting impacts for students, faculty, and community alike. The PI-team's efforts at synthesizing different research projects centered on the same substantive problems have improved their effectiveness in collaborative problem solving and in teaching undergraduates an interdisciplinary approach to research. The team expects an increase the retention and success of underrepresented groups and their pursuit of advanced science degrees. By sharing results with civic leadersand government regulators, their new knowledge will impact public policy, the local economy, and regional water quality. This should have a significant impact on developing a more competitive workforce in the social and natural sciences in the US, increasing participation of underrepresented minority groups and women in the sciences, improving undergraduate education in the socialand natural sciences. Most importantly, this project whould have a positive impact on public scientific literacy.