Through participation in the National Weather Center Research Experiences for Undergraduates program, forty undergraduate students over a four-year period will participate in a unique career exploration experience. Each student will collaborate with scientists to conduct research and live the life of a scientist through: attending lectures, participating in workshops to build skills and knowledge relevant to the job, learning and practicing a variety of research methods, and presenting their research in both written and oral formats. Recruitment will seek a wide range of competitive applications from undergraduate students who are capable, but have not had an opportunity to participate in research.
Intellectual Merit: Participants will contribute knowledge and understanding in basic science as well as applied research. Past research results have been used for training, emergency management operations, and risk planning. This program has matured sufficiently that participants produce at least three formal publications each year. The PI has a proven track record of successful leadership and continual enhancement of this REU program and the community supporting it has successfully conducted such programs since 1987. This REU program has proven to effectively nurture the next generation of scientists. New ideas of a learning contract and entrepreneurial team activity will improve participants' metacognitive research skills and prepare them for changing career opportunities. This REU site contributes to NSF's goal to create an internationally competitive, globally engaged public, private, and academic scientific workforce.
Broader Impacts: Past participants report experiencing scientific discovery while learning skills they report as invaluable to later graduate school and career experiences. The scientific workforce is more diverse because of this program, with 60 percent of prior participants being female and 10-20 percent members of racial and ethnic groups underrepresented in atmospheric sciences. This program will continue to maintain an emphasis in recruiting underrepresented minorities. Finally, this effort will increase collaborative efforts between the academic, public, and private sectors.
The National Weather Center Research Experiences for Undergraduates collaborated with the unique cluster of federal, state, university, and private sector institutions in Norman, Oklahoma, to conduct our program. Over the four years of this grant 45 bright undergraduate students from across the US worked directly with, and lived the varying lives of the scientists found in these sectors. They learned and practiced skills relevant not only for a productive research career, but useful for any career, including computing skills, critical thinking, ability to accurately and fairly synthesize ideas from multiple sources, public speaking, and clear, concise writing. Innovative learning methods were explored for their applicability to learning and exploring research careers. Participants formed a strong cohort each year, exploring the state of Oklahoma and nearby regions on their downtime, and forming friendships that continue to this day. Participants in this REU contributed a great deal to the knowledge and understanding of weather and climate phenomenon, and the intersection of weather and climate with society. Research topics ranged widely, covering the spectrum of work being done in Norman, Oklahoma. Our research topics serve many functions: build upon a line of research to fill in gaps in understanding, work directly on a funded science grant, allow a scientist to explore a new area, and identify and demonstrate problems that are not well understood. This program has resulted in more than 14 formal publications, 53 professional conference presentations, and 51 student conference presentations. This is a wonderful result for the sciences, but the program also has a significant impact on the lives of those who participate. They begin to realize their potential, see the broad range of careers available to them, and have a tremendous sense of accomplishment in completing and presenting their research project.
