REU Site: Biochemical, Environmental, and MOlecular Research in Engineering (BEMORE)

在工程（BEMORE）REU网站在马里兰州巴尔的摩县（UMBC）的大学的生物化学，环境和分子研究将准备学生解决知识差距，开发新技术，并带来独特的视角在生化和环境系统的接口复杂的问题。特别是，BEMORE REU网站奖将支持每年10名本科生在2022年至2024年的夏季进行为期10周的研究培训和专业发展。创新的REU网站结构涉及五个跨学科团队，包括两名教师导师（来自不同部门），两名REU学生和两名同行导师（来自不同专业）。BEMORE教师开发的跨学科项目将解决抗生素耐药性，可持续塑料替代品，智能聚合物，城市空气质量和生物传感器的重大挑战。除了促进科学的进步，这些项目还促进了国家的健康，繁荣和福利。为了扩大应对这些重大生物环境挑战所需的新声音和观点，该团队将招募由（至少）50%的女性或非二元学生和（至少）50%来自代表性不足的少数民族的学生组成的群体。学生通过BEMORE REU网站获得的专业研究培训将使他们能够在研究生院或劳动力中追求先进的跨学科课题。可持续发展和公共卫生的巨大挑战需要科学家和工程师之间加强合作，但本科生很少接受与其他学科合作的培训。为了纠正这种情况，BEMORE REU网站将（1）让学生参与跨学科项目，以解决生物化学和环境工程与科学界面的重大挑战，（2）培训学生基础工具，尖端技术和科学概念，以解决上述挑战，（3）教育学生有效地与自己领域的研究人员沟通，（4）通过研究成果、网络活动以及来自教师导师、同伴导师和其他REU学生的定期反馈，支持学生的专业发展。学生将通过学生与学生和学生与教师的多层次互动，在项目期间建立跨学科的研究能力。在为期三年的BEMORE REU网站中，该团队的目标是促进30名REU学生的（至少）60次会议/会议演讲，并与REU学生共同作者在高影响力期刊上发表（至少）10篇同行评议的出版物。形成性和总结性评估将被用来评估学生的成果，并确保学生将"更"准备应对最艰巨的挑战，21世纪世纪。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并已被认为是值得通过评估使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准的支持。

The Biochemical, Environmental, and MOlecular Research in Engineering (BEMORE) REU Site at the University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC) will prepare students to address knowledge gaps, develop new technologies, and bring unique perspectives to complex problems at the interface of biochemical and environmental systems. In particular, the BEMORE REU Site award will support 10 undergraduate students per year for 10 weeks of research training and professional development in the summers of 2022-2024. The innovative REU Site structure involves five interdisciplinary teams of two faculty mentors (from different departments), two REU students, and two peer mentors (from different majors). The interdisciplinary projects developed by BEMORE faculty will address grand challenges in antibiotic resistance, sustainable plastic replacements, smart polymers, urban air quality, and bio-based sensors. In addition to promoting the progress of science, these projects advance national health, prosperity, and welfare. To amplify the new voices and perspectives needed to address these grand bio-environmental challenges, the team will recruit cohorts consisting of (at least) 50% female or non-binary students and (at least) 50% students from underrepresented minorities. The professional research training that students receive through the BEMORE REU Site will enable them to pursue advanced interdisciplinary topics in graduate school or the workforce.Grand challenges in sustainable development and public health require improved cooperation between scientists and engineers, but undergraduate students are rarely trained to work with collaborators from other disciplines. To remedy this situation, the BEMORE REU Site will (1) engage students in interdisciplinary projects that address grand challenges at the interface of biochemical and environmental engineering and science, (2) train students in the foundational tools, cutting-edge techniques, and scientific concepts needed to address the aforementioned challenges, (3) educate students to effectively communicate with researchers in their own field, scientists in other disciplines, and the general public, and (4) support students’ professional development through research outcomes, networking activities, and regular feedback from faculty mentors, peer mentors, and other REU students. Students will build interdisciplinary research competencies during the project through multiple levels of student-student and student-faculty interaction. In the three-year BEMORE REU Site, the team aims to facilitate (at least) 60 conference/meeting presentations from the 30 REU students and generate (at least) 10 peer-reviewed publications with REU student co-authors in high-impact journals. Formative and summative assessments will be used to evaluate student outcomes and ensure that students will “be more” prepared to tackle the most daunting challenges of the 21st century.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.