| NSF Org: |
OIA OIA-Office of Integrative Activities |
| Recipient: |
|
| Initial Amendment Date: | September 16, 2013 |
| Latest Amendment Date: | September 16, 2013 |
| Award Number: | 1348266 |
| Award Instrument: | Standard Grant |
| Program Manager: |
Chinonye Nnakwe
OIA OIA-Office of Integrative Activities O/D Office Of The Director |
| Start Date: | October 1, 2013 |
| End Date: | September 30, 2017 (Estimated) |
| Total Intended Award Amount: | $735,315.00 |
| Total Awarded Amount to Date: | $735,315.00 |
| Funds Obligated to Date: |
|
| History of Investigator: |
|
| Recipient Sponsored Research Office: |
5717 CORBETT HALL ORONO ME US 04469-5717 (207)581-1484 |
| Sponsor Congressional District: |
|
| Primary Place of Performance: |
ME US 04469-5717 |
| Primary Place of
Performance Congressional District: |
|
| Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): |
|
| Parent UEI: |
|
| NSF Program(s): | EPSCoR Research Infrastructure |
| Primary Program Source: |
|
| Program Reference Code(s): |
|
| Program Element Code(s): |
|
| Award Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Fund Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Assistance Listing Number(s): | 47.083 |
ABSTRACT
This three-year project focuses on the problem of storm water pollution which is a significant issue in Maine. It seeks to engage high school students, particularly female, Native Americans, African Americans, and students from rural schools in Maine, in meaningful research and engineering education in the area of storm water management and environmental pollution mitigation. In this project, the high school student participants work with their teachers and the University of Maine faculty and students, alongside local communities as well as representatives from private, non-profit, and governmental organizations. This project also supports the purchase of permanent laboratory equipment such as spectrophotometers and water quality sensor packages for high school laboratories.
Intellectual Merit
The project participants plan to: (1) build a sensor network for water quality evaluation along a section of the Penjajawoc stream going through forested/residential/industrial parts of Bangor, Maine; (2) collect real-time data on water quality from the sensors and laboratory analysis of water samples; (3) use computer modeling for data analysis; and (4) produce water quality maps for local water ways. A five-day Storm Water Institute, offered annually at the University of Maine, prepares the participants to work on participatory citizen science projects related to storm water management. Anticipated results include increased student interest in STEM education and careers, in particular about environmental science and engineering, through their involvement in this project-based hands-on experience on topics that are of societal relevance.
Broader Impacts
The project plans to engage 180 students and 45 teachers from schools and members of the public, including Native American communities from the Bangor, Auburn, and Portland areas of Maine. At least 75% of the students are female and from groups underrepresented or underserved in STEM including students with disabilities. It is expected that at least 50% of the student participants will later apply to and be accepted into a STEM-related post-secondary degree program. The model of empowering underrepresented minority students, teachers, and communities by engaging them in environmentally relevant problems and engineering solutions is potentially transferrable and scalable nationwide.
PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH
Note:
When clicking on a Digital Object Identifier (DOI) number, you will be taken to an external
site maintained by the publisher. Some full text articles may not yet be available without a
charge during the embargo (administrative interval).
Some links on this page may take you to non-federal websites. Their policies may differ from
this site.
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 SMART (Stormwater Management Research Team) program is a project-based educational model engaging female and underrepresented minority (URM) students, and diverse community groups in the engineering and science of stormwater. SMART was organized as a year-long program with an intensive summer institute for high school students and their teacher/mentors at the University of Maine (UMaine), followed by active experiential learning throughout the following school year. The summer institute trains students and teacher-mentors in using science and engineering skills and technology to research water quality in their local watershed. During the school year, students conduct research at local water bodies, engaging numerous areas of STEM: engineering design, data acquisition, data analysis and visualization, chemistry, environmental science, biology, and information technology. Students also connect with a diversity of STEM professionals in water and engineering within government, private firms and non-profits. The SMART program requires students to present their research publicly and engage in community outreach activities.
SMART-trained teachers integrate emerging engineering practices in sensor technology and stormwater management into existing STEM courses. All high school students in these courses--participating in the SMART program or not—benefit from the SMART project as an applied example.
Since 2014, the SMART project has seen many significant outcomes under program goals:
Goal 1 – Provide project based educational opportunities using emerging engineering technologies for high school students and teachers.
This project has trained over 200 students and 25 teachers from 20 schools in the science and engineering of stormwater, providing 3-4 CEU credits/year for teachers. Each year, the project has supported a 3-5 day overnight experience for teachers and students at the UMaine campus and provided annual stipends to both teachers and students for completing training and year-long research projects on local stormwater issues.
Students have measured over 4000 water quality parameters at over 30 sites in Maine and entered data into a common online database, analyzing trends and forming stormwater research projects. Over 30 students have presented their research at regional and/or national science competitions, and several received noteworthy awards, including a first place in the national Intel Science Talent Search, 2016. Veteran SMART students have contributed to the long-term impact of the program by creating publicly available instructional videos on technical components, and by assisting new students during the June institutes.
Goal 2 – Promote interest in STEM education and careers for females and minorities.
SMART has engaged a high number of URM-in-STEM students in a low-diversity state: annually 75-84% of SMART student participants have self-identified as female or racial minority. Results obtained from student and teacher surveys elucidate several trends in STEM education. Notably, URM and/or female students indicated low confidence in performing science and engineering tasks, but their confidence in taking STEM courses increased after participating in SMART. URM and females also expressed that relationships with mentors, team interaction, and awareness of how stormwater affects their community were factors that increased their interest in pursuing a STEM major or career. A majority of teacher participants indicated that opportunities for meaningful professional development and collaborative work in the context of teaching engineering and mentoring underserved students in STEM are scarce. Most found that this program helped increase their knowledge of stormwater impacts and helped improve student confidence in STEM skills.
Goal 3 – Increase awareness and knowledge of the problem of stormwater, and find solutions by connecting and empowering diverse community entities.
The SMART Program has facilitated the activities of school research teams through acquisition and distribution of water quality measuring equipment and by connecting students and teachers with scientific resources and mentors. The annual summer institutes brought scientists and engineers from university, government, community and private entities to connect with the students in the context of stormwater management and the need for solutions to stormwater problems. UMaine graduate students taught wireless technologies in the context of water quality data acquisition. The program has attracted additional funding from several local companies, institutions and individuals, that helped fund and/or provided resources for program operation and student research.
Goal 4 – Improve enrollment, especially female and minority, in post-secondary education in STEM fields.
Forty-one percent of SMART students have been accepted or enrolled in a STEM degree program, of approximately 125 college-eligible current and former SMART students. Of these students, 20% declared majors in engineering, including chemical engineering, electrical engineering; others declared majors include biology, computer science, marine biology, and physics - 84% of these STEM students are either female or URM.
The outcomes of this project have been documented in two peer reviewed conference papers and two pending journal papers, and a web site at www.umaine.edu/smart. Instructional tools and materials are available at the site. This project also resulted in an NSF INCLUDES Launch Pilot award (#1649346) and is currently being scaled up in nine states.
Last Modified: 11/03/2017
Modified by: Mohamad T Musavi
Please report errors in award information by writing to: awardsearch@nsf.gov.
