REU Site: University of Maryland Eastern Shore Research Experience for Undergraduates in Marine and Estuarine Science

University Of Maryland Eastern Shore, Princess Anne MD

Investigators

Abstract

This REU Site award to the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, located in Princess Anne, MD, will support the training of 8 students for 10 weeks during the summers of 2024-2026. It is anticipated that a total of 24 students, primarily from schools with limited research opportunities or from an under-represented group, will be trained in the program. The program will target rising sophomores and rising juniors. Students will conduct mentored research in laboratory and/or field settings focusing on the ecology of coastal rivers, lagoons and estuaries in Maryland. Students will learn how research is conducted, contribute to faculty research projects, and many will present the results of their work at scientific conferences. Assessment of this program will be done through an online tool. Students should apply to the REU site using NSF ETAP (Education and Training Application). The intellectual focus of the REU program is on marine and estuarine science. Students will be mentored by scientists in the Departments of Natural Sciences, and Food and Agricultural Sciences. They will have opportunities to work on a variety of research projects, such as eutrophication effects on benthic macroinvertebrates, climate change effects on coastal forests, assessment of sewage contamination in coastal lagoons using fecal sterols, and abundance, distribution and movement of horseshoe crabs in dead-end canals of Maryland Coastal Bays. The program will provide rigorous education via faculty mentorship on research; weekly workshops, discussions and seminars on valuable science topics; field trips that provide an educationally enriching experience; a final research report; and oral and poster presentations by the students at the end of program symposium. Professional development activities will include training in GIS and scientific ethics/responsible conduct of research. Program assessment will occur by administering questionnaires to students. Students will be selected by the project PIs based on their application materials that will include a standard on-line application and cumulative grade point average, essays describing their research interests and career goals, two letters of recommendation, and official academic transcripts. More information about the program is available by contacting the PI Dr. Paulinus Chigbu or the co-PI Dr. Margaret Sexton. This project is jointly funded by the Division of Biological Infrastructure in the Directorate of Biological Sciences, and the Historically Black Colleges and Universities - Undergraduate Program (HBCU-UP). 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.