9353467 LaDelle Olion The project includes four historically black public universities (North Carolina Central University (NCCU), Elizabeth City State University (ECSU), Fayetteville State University (FSU) and Winston- Salem University (WSSU), a public university enrolling a substantial number of Native Americans and blacks (Pembroke State University (PSU), and a public liberal arts university emphasizing undergraduate research (University of North Carolina at Asheville (UNCA). These institutions, as members of The University of North Carolina system have entered into a consortium (North Carolina Consortium for Undergraduate Research (NCCUR)) to promote the development of institutions-wide undergraduate research programs, to enhance research activities, and to implement the Seizing Opportunities for Advancing Research Scholars (SOARS) Program. The SOARS Program initially will involve twelve (12) undergraduate students from the six campuses in research projects distributed among six (6) Undergraduate Research Groups (URGs) directed by faculty researchers selected by the six Consortium institutions. The research projects available in the 6 URGs are widely diversified, and all have some form of collaboration with major research universities in the State of North Carolina.
