Fort Valley State University, a HBCU and an 1890 Land-grant institution has an average student enrollment of 2,100 over the past five years. About 92 percent of enrolled and graduating students are African American minorities. Minorities are under represented in the fields of sciences, technology, engineering and mathematics. This under representation of African Americans is more severe in certain sciences, such as Entomology, where out of 5,000 registered members of the Entomological Society of America only 32 are African Americans.
Entomology, the study of insects, is very important due to the impact of insects on agriculture and public health. In the U.S. insect activities, and human activities aimed at reducing insect population is estimated at an annual cost of about $50 billion.
This project works to strengthen both the teaching and training of students in Entomology by integrating advances in Chemical Ecology of Insects, and Insect Pathology in the Entomology program at FVSU. We are focusing on chemical ecology and insect pathology because these are emerging technologies within entomology that bring with them certain important and basic skills such as in microbiology, biotechnology, biochemistry and chemistry. This is introduced through several objectives: (1) Enrich the academic preparations of Entomology students by developing course reforms that include laboratory experiences (2) Enhance quality research experience for Entomology students at FVSU that help students get accepted into graduate programs (3) Institute integrated pest management activities that arms students with the skills they need to secure employment in agriculture or pest control industry.
