This Chemistry Division award supports a Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) site at Duquesne University for the summers of 2007-2009. The program director is Jeffrey D. Evanseck, assisted by co-PI, Jeffry D. Madura. Ten sophomore or junior undergraduates will participate in a ten-week program, which integrates computational and experimental research into broad scientific themes such as nanotechnology, homeland security, advanced instrumentation, pharmaceuticals, forensic sciences and chemical biology. Each student will work with an experimental faculty mentor in the laboratory and consult with a theoretical faculty liaison to integrate a computational component into their study. The program incorporates workshops on computational methods, weekly seminars, and student participation in a regional undergraduate research symposium. Recruitment will target underrepresented students as well as students from institutions with limited research opportunities. Research experiences will be expanded to include faculty members from the Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (LSAMP) and primarily undergraduate institutions (PUIs). Faculty from Duquesne University, Florida Memorial College, Jackson State University, State University of New York at New Paltz and Prairie View A&M University will serve as student mentors. Integrating LSAMP/PUI faculty into Duquesne's research environment will greatly facilitate undergraduate research at the LSAMP/PUI institutions, resulting in a year round collaborative research experience for the student participants. This site is supported by the Department of Defense in partnership with the NSF REU program.
