The goal of this 5-year Faculty Development in the Space Sciences (FDSS) project is to enable a new faculty hire in the space sciences at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA). The UCLA has a long tradition of teaching and research excellence in the space sciences, as reflected in the quality of graduate student applicants, and numerous NSF, NASA and AGU awards/medals. However, there has been a continued reduction in its space science faculty, and budgetary issues from the state have prevented adequate renewal to date. A junior faculty member is urgently needed to maintain and grow the program in this most vigorous field. The new hire will be strongly encouraged and supported in integrating into the University program of education, outreach, and research, and in strengthening partnerships within the university and space science community commensurate with the new hire's field of specialization. Available resources include facilities and expertise in spacecraft and instrument development, computation/modeling, plasma laboratory, as well as established outreach activities and educational training. As part of this 5-year project, the new faculty hire will initiate an Inter-Departmental Program (IDP) that will streamline the Space Science graduate application process, consolidate the graduate education program, and develop an undergraduate education program that will be nominally offered as a free-standing minor in the PA department, and part of the IDP. Particular emphasis will be placed on fostering participation by women and traditionally underrepresented groups in the recruitment process.
The potential faculty hire at the UCLA will be expected to advance the state of scientific knowledge through her or his research activities performed within their research group, and collaboratively amongst the faculty and researchers at UCLA and more broadly in the space science community. There are numerous fundamental and applied plasma and physics problems that can be addressed uniquely using the natural plasma laboratory which is the Earth's space environment. A new faculty hire will also enhance the intellectual ecosystem within UCLA, cross-pollinating the educational system for undergraduates and non-majors, sparking new ideas and advancing knowledge within its own field and across different fields. The potential faculty hire at the UCLA will have broader impacts in terms of education, through teaching undergraduate and graduate classes in space physics, or related subjects at the UCLA, advancing the state of the art in education through innovative teaching approaches, and in educating the broader public through outreach events to the community and local schools. The research and EPO agenda of this 5-year project supports the Strategic Goals of the AGS Division in discovery, learning, diversity, and interdisciplinary research.
This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
