| NSF Org: |
EAR Division Of Earth Sciences |
| Recipient: |
|
| Initial Amendment Date: | April 28, 2014 |
| Latest Amendment Date: | April 28, 2014 |
| Award Number: | 1358938 |
| Award Instrument: | Standard Grant |
| Program Manager: |
Aisha Morris
armorris@nsf.gov (703)292-7081 EAR Division Of Earth Sciences GEO Directorate for Geosciences |
| Start Date: | May 1, 2014 |
| End Date: | April 30, 2019 (Estimated) |
| Total Intended Award Amount: | $385,000.00 |
| Total Awarded Amount to Date: | $385,000.00 |
| Funds Obligated to Date: |
|
| History of Investigator: |
|
| Recipient Sponsored Research Office: |
2601 WOLF VILLAGE WAY RALEIGH NC US 27695-0001 (919)515-2444 |
| Sponsor Congressional District: |
|
| Primary Place of Performance: |
NC US 27695-7214 |
| Primary Place of
Performance Congressional District: |
|
| Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): |
|
| Parent UEI: |
|
| NSF Program(s): | Integrat & Collab Ed & Rsearch |
| Primary Program Source: |
|
| Program Reference Code(s): |
|
| Program Element Code(s): |
|
| Award Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Fund Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Assistance Listing Number(s): | 47.050 |
ABSTRACT
Soils play a fundamental role in myriad global processes. The need to understand the flow of elements, energy, and water through soils is immense and widely accepted across the geosciences community. Yet, the number of scientists trained with specific soils expertise is rapidly declining. The BESST REU Site utilizes a diverse, multi-disciplinary team of scientists to deliver individualized student research experiences in state-of-the art soil science topics, synergized through unifying themes and team training opportunities. Specific objectives are to: i) recruit outstanding students without extensive previous experience in soil science, with an emphasis on those from under-represented groups; ii) train these students by providing a substantive research experience and exposure to broad opportunities in basic and environmental soil science; and iii) develop a pool of future professionals empowered to advance understanding of soils in the geoscience community. Activities are supported by a university with well-developed infrastructure for undergraduate student research, and hosted by a department with a long-standing tradition of international excellence. Student recruitment is pursued through departmental and university collaboration with undergraduate-serving institutions, HBCUs, and national undergraduate research organizations. The program is assessed by external experts to ensure that it is rigorously evaluated and didactic impact maximized. The intellectual merit of the REU Site lies in constructing a new and critically needed pipeline for the next generation of geoscience researchers, equipped to address wide-ranging basic and environmental research problems in soils. Broader impacts are derived from training a diverse group of students to engage in addressing important societal and ecological issues throughout their careers. The REU site seeks to develop a new paradigm for soil science, extending student recruitment and training beyond traditional foundations in agriculture, and transforming soil science into an integral part of the geoscience research community. Student research opportunities highlight relationships between human activities and terrestrial environments, which are central topics in modern soil science that are broadly applicable to many other sub-disciplines of the Earth and environmental sciences.
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.
Soils play a fundamental role in many global processes. The need to understand the flow of elements, energy, and water through soils is immense and widely accepted across the geosciences community. Yet, the number of scientists trained with specific soils expertise has been rapidly declining. The Basic and Environmental Soil Science Training (BESST) Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) Site utilized a diverse, multi-disciplinary team of scientists to deliver individualized student research experiences in state-of-the art soil science topics, synergized through unifying themes and team training opportunities. A main goal of the program was to develop a pipeline for the next generation of geoscience researchers, equipped to address wide-ranging basic and environmental research problems in soils. A diverse group of undergraduate students from a range of academic backgrounds was recruited from institutions across the U.S. for the program. Four student cohorts, including a total of 39 students, were trained through the involvement of more than 20 faculty mentors and associated staff scientists, post-doctoral scholars, and graduate students. Student research opportunities provided by the mentors highlighted relationships between human activities and terrestrial environments, which are central topics in modern soil science that are broadly applicable to many other sub-disciplines of the Earth and environmental sciences. Participants in the program reported increased knowledge of soil science careers and fields of study, and increased understanding of how their work contributes to the broader picture in soil science. Participants in the program also reported improved understanding of how to conduct a research project, and increased confidence in their ability to conduct research successfully and to succeed in graduate school.
Last Modified: 07/30/2019
Modified by: Joshua L Heitman
Please report errors in award information by writing to: awardsearch@nsf.gov.
