Collaborative Research: REU Site: MICRO-CCS: Microbial Interactions Create Research Opportunities for Community College Students

这个REU网站奖伊利诺伊大学厄巴纳-香槟分校和帕克兰学院，位于尚潘，IL，将支持10名学生的培训10周期间的夏天2024-2026。预计将有30名来自社区学院的学生接受该方案的培训。学生将参加帕克兰学院的研究训练靴子营，然后在伊利诺伊大学完成一个研究项目。该计划将为社区大学学生提供研究机会，科学培训和指导，目标是提高四年制大学的转学率和研究生院的入学率，以及提高学生在STEM职业道路上的保留率。学生将学习如何进行研究，许多人将在科学会议上展示他们的工作成果。该计划的评估将通过在线工具进行。学生将在课程结束后进行跟踪，以确定他们的职业道路。在课程中，参与者将完成有关食品，农业和环境科学中微生物相互作用的研究项目。来自两所学院的九个系的教师将担任教师导师，而研究生或博士后助理将提供日常指导。该计划包括在帕克兰学院举行的研究方向训练营，该训练营培养基本的实验室技能，并介绍大学研究，以及一个多部分的专业发展系列，其中包括有关从社区学院转移到四年制院校的信息。在课程结束时，参与者将在当地的研究研讨会上展示他们的研究成果。申请材料包括简历、个人陈述、非正式成绩单和一封推荐信。申请将于12月中旬至3月初通过NSF-ETAP门户网站（https：//etap.nsf.gov/）接受，并将由项目主任进行评估。参与者将根据项目适合度、之前几乎没有研究经验以及相关课程的完成情况进行选择。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力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 REU Site award to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Parkland College, located in Champaign, IL, will support the training of 10 students for 10 weeks during the summers of 2024-2026. It is anticipated that 30 students from community colleges will be trained in the program. Students will participate in a research training boot camp at Parkland College, followed by completing a research project at the University of Illinois. The program will provide research opportunities, scientific training, and mentoring for community college students with the goal of increasing transfer rates to four-year institutions and matriculation to graduate schools, as well as increasing student retention in STEM career pathways. Students will learn how research is conducted, and many will present the results of their work at scientific conferences. Assessment of this program will be done through an online tool. Students will be tracked after the program in order to determine their career paths.In the program, participants will complete research projects about microbial interactions in food, agriculture, and environmental sciences. Faculty representing nine departments from two colleges will serve as faculty mentors, while graduate students or postdoctoral associates will provide day-to-day mentoring. The program includes a Research Orientation Bootcamp held at Parkland College, which develops fundamental laboratory skills and provides an introduction to university research, and a multi-part professional development series that includes information about transferring from community colleges to four-year institutions. At the end of the program, participants will present their research results as poster presentations at a local research symposium. Application materials include a resume, personal statement, unofficial transcripts, and one reference letter. Applications will be accepted from mid-December through early March through the NSF-ETAP portal (https://etap.nsf.gov/) and will be evaluated by the program directors. Participants will be selected based on program fit, having little to no prior research experience, and completion of relevant coursework.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.