Preparing the Next Generation of Environmental Scientists through Research-based Coursework and Community Internships

波多黎各迫切需要一支更强大的环境劳动力队伍，这反映了美国各地在能源生产、食品种植和环境保护等多个部门的类似需求。此外，更多训练有素的专业人员可能会对该岛未来应对意外环境灾难的能力产生积极影响，这些灾难包括飓风、洪水、海岸侵蚀、珊瑚礁死亡和生物多样性减少等频率和强度增加。为了抓住这一机会，该项目--在改进的本科生STEM教育：拉美裔服务机构(HSI计划)的支持下--旨在提供经验，使本科生参与环境科学研究，并扩大这一关键的劳动力队伍。特别是，该项目针对的是本科生头两年的学生，众所周知，这对培养学生对该学科的积极看法和取得成功的学术成果至关重要。即将入学的新生将参加一个暑期研究项目，该项目将提供实践经验，以培养学生的兴奋感，并有助于更全面地了解未来的职业。在整个学习过程中，学生将参加四门内容丰富的课程，其中包含大量的实地考察内容，并将有机会参加面向社区的实习。拟议的课程和经验将嵌入常规的环境科学本科课程，从而丰富现有的学位要求，同时通过创造实践经验为学生提供创新的学术策略，以提高学生的记忆力。首先是创建每年一度的埃尔维德野外考察站(EVF)夏季研究体验，以吸引30名新生。二是设计环境分析培训课程，提高技术技能。第三是开发一个带薪实习计划，将环境科学本科生和当地雇主聚集在一起。一项纵向的准实验研究将被用来评估这一假设，即该计划中的治疗顺序将有助于提高环境科学学生的记忆力，增强内容知识，并扩大学生的技术技能。定量和定性方法将提供基于证据的数据，以确定项目组成部分是否对参与的学生在环境科学本科学习中的态度和坚持性存在个人和/或相加影响。预期的产品包括由学生制作的环境科学研究视频，演示技术并记录他们在项目中的经验，会议演示，期刊出版物，以及在波多黎各-里约热内卢大学与高中教师和顾问举行的会议和研讨会，以分享项目成果。此外，还将提供课程、教育资源和研究工具，供教师和研究人员共享。HSI计划旨在加强本科生STEM教育，扩大STEM的参与，并建设HSIS的能力。鉴于高等教育机构的不同性质和背景，实现这些目标需要创新的方法，以激励机构和社区的变革，并促进基础研究(I)关于学生参与式学习，(Ii)关于如何有效地多样化和增加对STEM的参与，以及(Iii)提高我们对如何建设高等教育机构能力的理解。HSI计划支持的项目也将从这些方法中获得如何实现这些目标的新知识。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

There is a critical need for a more robust environmental workforce in Puerto Rico that mirrors similar demands across the United States in multiple sectors, including energy generation, food cultivation, and environmental protection. Additionally, a larger cohort of well-prepared professionals could positively impact the island’s future ability to respond to unexpected environmental catastrophes including increased frequency and intensity of hurricanes, flooding, coastal erosion, coral reef mortality, and reduced biodiversity. To address this opportunity, this project - with support from the Improving Undergraduate STEM Education: Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSI Program) - aims to provide experiences that will engage undergraduate students in the study of environmental science and lead to an expansion of this critical workforce. In particular, the project targets students during their first two years as undergraduates, which are known to be crucial in fostering positive student perceptions towards the discipline and successful academic outcomes. Incoming freshman will participate in a summer research project that will provide hands-on experiences to build excitement and contribute to a more thorough understanding of future careers. Throughout their course of study, students will engage in four content-rich courses with substantial field work components and will have opportunities to participate in community-facing internships. The proposed courses and experiences will be embedded in the regular environmental science undergraduate curriculum, thereby enriching the current degree requirements while providing innovative academic strategies for students through practical experiences created with the purpose of improving student retention.The proposed project has three main objectives. First is to create annual El Verde Field Station (EVFS) Summer Research experiences to attract 30 incoming freshmen. Second is to design an Environmental Analysis Training curriculum to improve technical skills. And third is to develop a paid internship program to bring environmental science undergraduates and local employers together. A longitudinal, quasi-experimental study will be employed to evaluate the hypothesis that the treatment sequence in the program will contribute to improving environmental science student retention, enhancing content knowledge, and expanding students’ technical skills. Quantitative and qualitative approaches will provide evidence-based data to determine if there is an individual and/or additive effect of the project components on participant students’ attitudes and persistence in environmental science undergraduate studies. Expected products include student-generated environmental science research videos demonstrating techniques and documenting their experiences in the program, conference presentations, journal publications, and meetings and workshops at University of Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras with high school teachers and counselors to share project outcomes. Furthermore, curricula, educational resources, and research instruments will be available for sharing with teachers and researchers. The HSI Program aims to enhance undergraduate STEM education, broaden participation in STEM, and build capacity at HSIs. Achieving these aims, given the diverse nature and context of the HSIs, requires innovative approaches that incentivize institutional and community transformation and promote fundamental research (i) on engaged student learning, (ii) about what it takes to diversify and increase participation in STEM effectively, and (iii) that improves our understanding of how to build institutional capacity at HSIs. Projects supported by the HSI Program will also draw from these approaches to generate new knowledge on how to achieve these aims.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.