This REU Site award to Colorado State University, located in Fort Collins, Colorado, will support the training of 10 students for 10 weeks during the summers of 2018-2020. The program scientific focus is in the area of molecular life sciences. Participants present their research findings orally, by poster, and in a written final report. Experiential challenges supplement educational visits to government labs and biotech companies and participation in science communication panels, ethics and professional development workshops. The success of the program is assessed through surveys, focus group discussions and the CIMER REU Common Assessment tool. Participants should have completed freshman biology and chemistry. Participants must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents and registered as undergraduate students. Students from underrepresented groups or those attending colleges with limited research opportunities are strongly encouraged to apply. Applications are evaluated by the Program Director, the Co-Director and faculty mentors. Student application is evaluated holistically based on GPA, courses completed, personal statement, and letters of reference.
It is anticipated that a total of 30 students, primarily from schools with limited research opportunities, will be trained in the program. The REU site goal is to train undergraduates in research while advancing discovery and understanding. This REU site strives to broaden the participation of members of underrepresented groups (minority students, particularly from four year colleges with limited research opportunities). Society will benefit from a greater number of better-trained molecular bioscience researchers and educator role models, particularly from underrepresented groups. Students will learn how research is conducted, and many will present the results of their work at scientific conferences.
A common web-based assessment tool used by all REU Site programs funded by the Division of Biological Infrastructure will be used to determine the effectiveness of the training program. Students will be tracked after participation in the program to determine their career paths. Students will be asked to respond to an automatic email sent via the NSF reporting system. More information about the program is available by visiting www.bmb.colostate.edu/undergraduates/reu/program-description/, or by contacting the PI (Dr. Paul Laybourn at paul.laybourn@colostate.edu) or the co-PI (Dr. Thomas Santangelo at Thomas.santangelo@colostate.edu).
