This award from the Division of Chemistry (CHE) supports a Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) site led by Nicole Bennett and Claudia Cartaya-Marin at Appalachian State University for three summers, commencing in 2010. The site will support ten students per summer in a ten week program. The majority of research projects focus on topics in chemistry of relevance to energy or the environment. Sample projects include: (1) the non-microbial production of fuel ethanol from renewable resources; (2) the study of the prevalence and concentration of anthropogenic endocrine disruptors in the environment; (3) the synthesis of biodiesel using recyclable catalysts; (4) the development of catalysts for the production of fuels (5) the development of sensors for the detection of pesticides and chemical warfare agents ; (6) the development of new materials for use in proton exchange membranes; (7) the development of more-easily recyclable polymer materials; and (8) the study of the radiative forcing in the southern Appalachians by atmospheric aerosols. In addition to conducting research during the summer, the students participating in this program will participate in a number of professional development activities, including workshops on ethics, proposal writing, graduate school preparation, and special topics in instrumentation.
Young scientists need exposure to modern research methods and tools as part of their training. This REU site aims to provide cutting-edge research training in chemical problems of relevance to issues of energy and the environment. Students will be recruited primarily from rural Appalachia, thus providing opportunities for research to a significant number of students who might not otherwise be reached. Recruiting partnerships will also be developed with regional minority-serving institutions. The diverse student cohort participating in research at this site will be well-prepared for graduate school, and eventual employment as part of the country's technical workforce.
(CHE #1004896) provided an ethnically and economically diverse pool of undergraduate students with "formal, funded research opportunities in energy and environmental chemistry while exposing them to the Five C’s [see below] that are central to a progressive education in the sciences". The ten-week, residential research experience occured during summer terms at Appalachian State University in 2011, 2012, and 2013. Applicants were drawn from Appalachian and neighboring North Carolina institutions of higher education, including thehistorically minority universities Winston-Salem State University, North Carolina A&T University, and UNC-Pembroke. The Appalachian Chemistry Research Experience in Energy and the Environment (ACREE) project had the following goals. - To provide students with a research experience that promotes critical thinking by introducing them to Bloom’s higher levels of reasoning (application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation). - To provide students with a research experience that has a context that is relevant to them by addressing emerging issues of local to global interest in environmental and energy sustainability. - To provide students with a research experience that crosses disciplines. - To provide students with a research experience that is collaborative by creating student and faculty research teams. - To provide students with a research experience that helps them to hone their written and oral communication skills by requiring them to write and present about their research. - Create a community of scholars that is composed of students from a range of economic, social, and ethnic backgrounds. Our major activities throughout this granting cycle were to annually host 10 students in a formal, funded summer research experience, teach a class for these students on instrumentation and professional development, provide training in scientific ethics, to conduct an external evaluation of the first two years of the program, and to make modifications in the third year in order to obtain renewal of funding. This program was also assessed in each of the three years by a trained statistician. Specific Objectives: Our goals were to provide students with a formal research experience that exposed them to the five C’s and to create a community of scholars composed of members from diverse backgrounds. Our specific objectives were to: 1. Recruit students from partner institutions with historically diverse populations 2. Hold regular group meetings with research students 3. Develop and teach a course on instrumentation that met weekly 4. Hold professional development activities within the course that developed students’ communication skills and emphasized preparation for graduate school Significant Results: Each REU had a comprehensive research experience in the areas of energy or the environment that enhanced their critical thinking skills and also allowed them to become members of the scientific community through presentations and interactions. Each student who participated in the REU created an original product in the form of a final paper and poster presentation. These students also presented their work at regional and national conferences. Our program was also reviewed favorably overall by the external evaluation committee. In each summer, our students completed six hours of ethics training, three hours of safety training (including passing our safety quiz), and numerous lectures on professional development. These activities included preparing a resume, writing a personal statement, preparing an effective research paper and presentation, proposal writing, and use of Google Docs and Endnote software. Our students have gone to numerous conferences at all levels, including state, regional and national conferences. In the last three years, we had 23 REUs attend national conferences – ACS, AGS, and NCUR. We had 12 REUs attend the Southeastern Regional Meeting of the American Chemical Society (SERMACS) and 13 students attend the State of North Carolina Undergraduate Research and Creativity Symposium (SNCURCS).
