REU Site: Human Impacts on the Colorado Plateau: Placed Based Research and Training.

Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff AZ

Investigators

Abstract

This REU Site award to Northern Arizona University, located in Flagstaff, AZ, will support the training of 8 students for 10 weeks during the summers of 2015- 2017. Research is organized around a theme of placed-based research on human impacts on the environment on the Colorado Plateau. Expert mentors come from Biology, Forestry, and Environmental Sciences. Mentoring that begins with multidimensional interactions of peers and faculty helps students to feel that they are a fully-integrated part of the research endeavor and allows them to see a pathway from community college to a scientific career. Program elements include a research experience, and a field station-based introduction to environmental science research, group activities with a focus on responsible conduct of science and supporting Tribal and Community College students in becoming scientists. The core of recruiting is via site visits and relationship development between the PIs and faculty at the students' home institutions, supplemented by emailed flyers and a website. Application forms, essays, and reference letters are accepted in the winter and evaluated by the Co-PIs with priority given to students from tribal and community colleges who come highly recommended by their faculty and indicate a good match to the program in their essay. It is anticipated that a total of 8 students, primarily from schools with limited research opportunities, will be trained in the program. Students will learn how research is conducted, and many will present the results of their work at scientific conferences. Our program will contribute to more Native American and Hispanic students continuing their studies at 4-year and graduate-degree granting institutions. A common web-based assessment tool used by all REU programs funded by the Division of Biological Infrastructure (Directorate for Biological Sciences) will be used to determine the effectiveness of the training program. Program evaluation also includes independent interviews of students and mentors and tracking and support for future success. Students are required to be tracked after the program and must respond to an automatic email sent via the NSF reporting system. More information is available by visiting http://nau.edu/Merriam-Powell/Research-Experience/, or by contacting the PI (Dr. Whipple at Amy.Whipple@nau.edu) or the co-PI (Dr. Martinez at Theodore.Martinez@nau.edu).