Collaborative Proposal: REU Site: North Carolina A&T State University and Elon University Joint Summer REU in Mathematical Biology

North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University, Greensboro NC

Investigators

Abstract

The North Carolina A&T State University and Elon University Joint REU in Mathematical Biology is a 10-week residential summer program in which 10 undergraduate participants will conduct research on a variety of topics within the field of mathematical biology in small groups of two to three students. A team of faculty members from both host institutions will be involved with the planning and execution of the REU program and the location of the program will alternate between the host institutions. The primary objective of the program is to provide students an opportunity to conduct and present research with a diverse group of peers. Students will be recruited from a variety of institutions, including those with similar demographics to the host institutions. A heavy emphasis will be placed on recruiting students from underrepresented minorities, women, and individuals whose home institution have limited research opportunities in STEM (including community colleges and advanced high schools). At the conclusion of the summer program, each participant will have produced an oral presentation, a poster, and a manuscript. Participants will be encouraged to present their research at regional and national conferences, and to submit their manuscripts for publication in appropriate peer-reviewed journals. Each year, participants in this REU program will conduct research at the interface of mathematics and biology under the guidance of a group of dedicated faculty mentors. Research topics are drawn from a variety of fields, including pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, epidemiological and ecological modeling, and biostatistics. A variety of modeling techniques will be employed, including differential equations modeling, agent-based modeling, stochastic equations, and regression analysis. Through participation in the REU program, participants will improve their oral and written communication skills, gain exposure to higher level proof-based mathematical topics, learn how to use software that is commonly used in mathematical research (such as MATLAB, LaTeX, and R), and participate in a variety of workshops aimed at career preparation and professional development. Through participation in the REU, students will have regular meetings with a faculty research mentor and a graduate assistant mentor. Students will give a weekly "work in progress" presentation, and twice a week, they will attend a mathematical proof course. Participation in the REU program will help students to be better prepared for graduate school or a career in the mathematical sciences. Results from the research conducted as a part of the program, and experiences from the planning and execution of the program will be disseminated through conference presentations and peer-reviewed publications. 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.