The award from the Chemistry Division supports an Undergraduate Research Center (URC) planning grant. The PI is Donald V. Visco assisted by co-PI Jeffrey Boles. The Tennessee Regional Undergraduate Research Center will be established with this planning grant. It will include 13 community colleges, Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Tennessee Technological University (TTU). As a pilot test, students from Volunteer State Community College (VSCC) will work on a research project. A project team will consist of a VSCC student, a TTU student, a TTU graduate student and a professorial team of TTU faculty or TTU and VSCC faculty. The VSCC student will work weekly at TTU over two semesters and spend 8 weeks at TTU working on the project over the summer. Projects will expose the students to research of contemporary interest using modern tools and methods. Discussion of relevant issues will take place with the community colleges via a Summit Meeting on the TTU campus.
