An OTS LSAMP Program for Native American, Pacific Islander, Hispanic American, and African American Students at two Research Stations in Costa Rica

Organization For Tropical Studies Inc

Investigators

Abstract

Abstract: LSAMP Broadening Participation Project: A REU Program for Native American, Pacific Islander, Hispanic American, and African American Students at Two Research Station in Costa Rica For the last decade, the Organization for Tropical Studies (OTS) has offered summer research experiences for LSAMP undergraduates at its Las Cruces Research Station and La Selva Research Station in Costa Rica. The programs combine research and career mentorship from researchers at the OTS field sites, along with home mentors from the students' LSAMP institutions, to ensure the integration of the experience into the student's academic career. OTS will enhance the programs by 1) recruiting students from tribal, HBCUs, and other small two-year LSAMP-affiliated institutions where application and participation rates have been lowest, 2) establishing a cultural component to the program through the addition of cultural mentors and other visiting scholars, 3) initiating science communication and outreach training for students in both programs, and 4) providing the opportunity for students to leverage their research accomplishments through travel awards to attend scientific conferences. Finally, OTS will disseminate the students' achievements through the sponsorship of a symposium and the publication of an anthology. These efforts will showcase the rich experiences and successes LSAMP students have shared as well as expand the impact of the program by communicating strategies, successes, and best practices. The goal of the OTS LSAMP program is to provide hands-on, mentored-research experiences to undergraduate students from groups most underrepresented in the sciences. Specifically, OTS will continue to invite Native Americans, Pacific Islanders, Hispanic American, and African American students to participate in Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) at the La Selva Research Station in Costa Rica's Caribbean lowland rainforest or the Las Cruces Research Station in southern Costa Rica (students self-select their preferred site). The scientific objectives of the LSAMP REU programs at Las Cruces and La Selva are to: 1) stimulate LSAMP students to pursue careers in biology and the environmental sciences; 2) establish a clear understanding of the scientific method; 3) clarify the importance of biological ecosystems, ecology as a science, and the role of science in conservation; and 4) increase student awareness of the ethical context of research in a local, regional as well as international setting. The Las Cruces and La Selva programs are eight-weeks in length and have evolved to provide LSAMP students with an ideal nurturing environment and scientific community for field research in tropical ecology. Both programs foster daily interactions among students and their researcher mentors. Both empower the students with ownership of their research projects and the confidence to live and work as scientists. In addition, through interactions with Costa Rican researchers, indigenous leaders, and community members, LSAMP students are exposed to different cultural and societal customs and norms as well as international perspectives. Most importantly, these programs require careful assembly of the students' on-campus mentors/faculty advisors who participate in the program and work with the students long after the summer program is over. Frequently, home mentors encourage the students to continue to present their work and even improve upon it during the school year. The active interaction of both research and on-campus mentors on the students' educational and career pathways can be significant and often have been transformational. An alumni survey of the decade-long program conducted in 2015 revealed that, as a direct result of the students' summer experience, 72% of the students gave an oral or poster presentation at a scientific conference, 19% co-authored a paper submitted to a scientific journal, and 13% co-authored a paper that was published in a scientific journal. The survey further documented that 24% had completed a two-year Associate's degree, 67% had completed a four-year a Bachelor's degree, 16% had completed a Master's degree, and 2% had completed a PhD., while two-thirds of alumni were still pursuing degrees in the life sciences or geosciences at the bachelor's level (24%), master's level (24%) or doctoral level (20%). Through the continuation of the OTS program, most-at-risk LSAMP students are receiving the knowledge, skills, confidence, desire, and understanding to build their aspirations into baccalaureate degrees in a STEM field, obtain graduate-level STEM degrees, and/or establish their careers in the biological or environmental sciences.