| NSF Org: |
RISE Div of Res, Innovation, Synergies, & Edu |
| Recipient: |
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| Initial Amendment Date: | September 7, 2016 |
| Latest Amendment Date: | September 7, 2016 |
| Award Number: | 1600545 |
| Award Instrument: | Standard Grant |
| Program Manager: |
Brandon Jones
mbjones@nsf.gov (703)292-4713 RISE Div of Res, Innovation, Synergies, & Edu GEO Directorate For Geosciences |
| Start Date: | October 1, 2016 |
| End Date: | March 31, 2020 (Estimated) |
| Total Intended Award Amount: | $16,548.00 |
| Total Awarded Amount to Date: | $16,548.00 |
| Funds Obligated to Date: |
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| History of Investigator: |
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| Recipient Sponsored Research Office: |
11 W JONES ST RALEIGH NC US 27601-1029 (919)707-9847 |
| Sponsor Congressional District: |
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| Primary Place of Performance: |
NC US 27601-1029 |
| Primary Place of Performance Congressional District: |
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| Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): |
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| Parent UEI: |
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| NSF Program(s): | IUSE |
| Primary Program Source: |
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| Program Reference Code(s): |
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| Program Element Code(s): |
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| Award Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Fund Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Assistance Listing Number(s): | 47.050 |
ABSTRACT
Promoting student involvement in the geosciences is of utmost priority for geoscience educators at all levels, as the broader community is experiencing mass retirement and a shortage of qualified individuals to replace them in the workforce. The geoscience community is also struggling to diversify its workforce. Much research demonstrates that undergraduate geology students who are exposed to geoscience research early in their education are much more likely to pursue geoscience careers than their peers who did not have this exposure. Wake Technical Community College (Wake Tech) is addressing these issues by providing its diverse population of introductory geology students with paid summer geoscience research opportunities at partner institutions: North Carolina State University (NCSU) and the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences (NCMNS). Students who participate in the summer internships also are being integrated in an ongoing program of mentoring and professional socialization through multiple opportunities to present their research projects to various audiences, including at professional meetings, to other undergraduates, to high school students, and to the public. The project is creating broader impacts beyond the immediate research experiences for students in the program, because of the potential of outreach by a more diverse group of students for attracting additional students from underrepresented groups as they consider their own choice of major.
Wake Tech, located in Raleigh, North Carolina, has a large and flourishing introductory geology program consisting of diverse freshman and sophomore students who are looking to transfer to four-year institutions. This project is working to: 1) increase the number of students, including those from groups underrepresented in geosciences, transferring from community college to geoscience programs at four-year colleges and universities; 2) provide three cohorts of 12 Wake Tech students with engaging, cutting-edge geoscience summer research internship experiences at partner institutions (NCSU and NCMNS); 3) demonstrate the effectiveness of early research experiences for community college students; and 4) engage more than 1300 Wake Tech geoscience students each year in a greater number of inquiry investigations based on current NCSU/NCMNS geoscience research. Students completing the summer research internship are also involved with promoting a better understanding of geoscience careers and issues among the broader population of Wake County through participation in the Wake Tech Student Chapter of the Association of Environmental and Engineering Geologists (AEG) and outreach to local high schools, Wake Tech students, and NCMNS visitors. The strong partnership between Wake Tech, NCSU, and the NCMNS ensures the highest quality of research experiences and mentoring with careful attention to mentoring students from their initial interest through acceptance in a four-year college geoscience program.
PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH
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PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT
Disclaimer
This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.
The NC Museum of Natural Sciences (NCMNS) partnered with Wake Technical Community College to provide outstanding summer research experiences for undergraduate students in the field of paleontology. As a result of this project, students from historically underrepresented populations in the geosciences, enrolled in 2-year colleges, received hands-on training in conducting and presenting scientific research as lead investigators. The students were mentored through project design, data collection, data analysis, data interpretation, scientific writing, and production and presentation of posters for presentation at professional international conferences. Students enrolled in the program participated in an extensive methodological training short course (17.5 hrs) and received formalized training in biological statistics, advanced 3D visualization (computed tomography, photogrammetry), histology, graphic design, and archival specimen conservation including molding, casting, and fossil preparation. During their internships students also participated in rigorous field work in remote areas to strengthen their confidence and increase their leadership skills. As part of the scientific expedition team, student trainees learned proper techniques in survey, excavation, paleontological and geological data collection in the field, and regulations associated with the collection of scientific data on public lands. During their internships, students worked closely with existing undergraduate, graduate students, and postdoctoral researchers at NCMNS, in order to provide peer-to-peer mentoring and transitional role models. Participating postdoctoral researchers and graduate students received hands-on teaching and mentoring experiences, extending the impact.
Independent research projects completed during this project have advanced scientific knowledge about the evolution of vertebrates during the Cretaceous across western North America. A direct outcome of this award is the discovery and documentation of new skeletal and ichnological fossil materials from poorly studied mid-Cretaceous rock formations. These include new records of dinosaur and turtle tracks, and a new ichnotaxon referable to the giant crocodylian Deinosuchus, from the early Late Cretaceous in the southern Western Interior Basin. Newly discovered tracks and sedimentological data inform us about the paleoenvironment of North America during the Cretaceous, including providing information about changing sea-levels in response to global temperature changes and regional tectonic activity. Research on skeletal materials focused on newly collected remains of turtles that provide an increased understanding of turtle diversity and evolution within the Western Interior Basin, including stratigraphic range extensions that have important ramifications for global biogeography, extirpation of endemic lineages, and faunal turnover related to the interchange of animals across northern landmasses of North America and Asia during the Cretaceous. Research conducted under this award has also advanced our knowledge of the evolution of vertebrate herbivory. Participating students investigated tooth growth and microstructure for representative members of herbivorous dinosaur clades. These data on the ancestral rates of tooth formation times and replacement rates, help to fill in important gaps leading to the evolution of sophisticated tooth batteries in herbivorous dinosaurs.
Finally, a key project outcome was science communication and public engagement training early in the academic pathway. Students received training by participating in live-streamed video chat sessions with NCMNS visitors during their fieldwork and writing about their experiences for public audiences. Finally, all research conducted by the undergraduate students supported by this grant including 3D model processing and manipulation, morphological descriptions, and data analysis, was undertaken on display to the NCMNS ~1 million annual visitors. The purposeful exposure of students from underrepresented populations engaged in active geoscience research to public audiences serves to deconstruct stereotypes and broadly advance STEM participation in youth.
Last Modified: 08/19/2020
Modified by: Lindsay Zanno
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Geology undergraduate Katie Berry collects data from a newly discovered set of dinosaur tracks in New Mexico 2017.Lindsay ZannoCopyrightedLindsay ZannoK Berry NSF GEOPATH 2017
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