This grant is an extension of the Principal Investigator's expiring UBM grant of the same title which is a collaboration among the Departments of Biology, Mathematics and Statistics at Texas A&M University (TAMU) to develop a multidisciplinary, undergraduate program in mathematical biology in which students participate in research projects at the interface of the mathematical and biological sciences. The proposed expansion has as its primary goals adding mathematical ecology to the scientific scope of the project and increasing the representation of African American students to the UBM cohort. To achieve these goals, the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences (WFSC) is added to the existing TAMU UBM collaboration, and Prairie View A&M University (PVAMU), a Historical Black College and University (HBCU) with a 90% African American enrollment within the Texas A&M University System, is added as a UBM partner institution.
An overarching goal of the proposed UBM program is the creation of a permanent undergraduate academic culture at the interface of the biological and mathematical sciences that promotes and facilitates undergraduate student participation in cutting edge scientific research, and that fosters the desire and academic preparedness of undergraduate students for graduate study and eventual scientific careers in the participating disciplines. Cutting edge research in the life sciences is increasingly dependent upon cutting edge mathematical and statistical methodologies. The proposed UBM program is intended to prepare next generation scientists, mathematicians and statisticians to meet these challenges, and an essential element in meeting this goal is developing a diverse scientific talent pool inclusive of historically underrepresented groups in the biological and mathematical sciences.
