NSF PR 98-54 - September 23, 1998
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Awards Cite Undergraduate College Plans to Integrate
Research and Education
Research and education are two sides of the same coin:
Discovery. The National Science Foundation (NSF) made
a down payment on the nation's future this week, announcing
ten new Awards for the Integration of Research and
Education (AIRE) to undergraduate schools located
nationwide.
Coastal Carolina University (Conway. S.C.), Colby
College (Waterville, Maine), Grinnell College (Grinnell,
Iowa), Harvey Mudd College (Claremont, Calif.), Hope
College (Holland, Mich.), Oberlin College (Oberlin,
Ohio), Occidental College (Los Angeles, Calif.), Reed
College (Portland, Ore.), Union College (Schenectady,
N.Y.) and Wellesley College (Wellesley, Mass.) will
receive $500,000 each over the next three years to
design and implement programs that extend initiatives
they have already undertaken to integrate research
and education.
"These institutions are strengthening the bonds between
research and education by designing and implementing
new ways to involve undergraduate students in the
process of discovery," Joseph Bordogna, NSF's acting
deputy director, said.
"These new awards help create a discovery-rich environment
where institutions and their students can benefit
from making research an essential component of college
curricula," Bordogna explained.
Baccalaureate institutions in the U.S. have a long
tradition of preparing undergraduate students for
diverse careers, especially in professions rooted
in science and engineering. Bordogna says that in
the future, these colleges will become an increasingly
critical asset to the nation - a key source in developing
a workforce essential to maintain national prosperity
in a complex, diverse economy.
AIRE recipients, according to program officials, have
excelled in providing undergraduates an experience
rooted in the process of discovery, and the award
reflects NSF's confidence that the colleges named
to receive the awards will be expanding and improving
their innovative programs.
Awardees are expected to provide undergraduates experiences
rooted in the process of discovery and to set the
stage for life-long inquiry and learning. These skills,
say program officials, are not only important for
scientists and engineers of the next century, but
also for an informed citizenry that will prosper from
their discoveries.
Another important element in the awards is the expected
sharing of information about the outcomes of integrated
research and education with other schools, institutions
and the general public. The resulting network is expected
to disseminate new knowledge and increase awareness
of the importance of science education in society
and to the economy.
Attachment: Summary of AIRE recipients
Attachment
NSF RECIPIENTS OF AWARDS FOR THE INTEGRATION OF RESEARCH
AND EDUCATION
Coastal Carolina University (CCU) has established
an outstanding record of faculty and student research
with campus-wide emphasis on inquiry-based learning
focused on undergraduate research programs. The institution
draws on its outreach to local schools to include
university students and faculty working with in-service
teachers and K-12 students.
Colby College, with its creation of a new interdisciplinary
curriculum, has redesigned courses to teach critical
thinking for both science and non-science majors.
Colby also proposes to hire Postdoctoral Teaching
Fellows to mentor undergraduates in independent research
in addition to work with their own faculty mentors.
Grinnell College has a history of implementing
successful mechanisms that foster an environment in
which students and teachers define problems and seek
solutions together. Grinnell's "New Science Project"
seeks to overcome barriers to success for ethnic minorities,
women and first-generation college students, and serves
as a national model for reforms in other institutions.
Harvey Mudd College has extended its Engineering
Clinic, a program in which teams of students practice
their profession by working on real problems for real
clients, to other scientific disciplines. The college
also produces "Future Watch," a half-hour weekly radio
and cable television broadcast to inform the public
on current issues in science, technology and the environment.
Hope College has structured a curriculum in
which students can extend the boundaries of their
departments to include other areas of study, expanding
science and mathematics to the social sciences, humanities
and arts. A Visiting Scholars Program will visit scientists
to work in an environment where research and education
are integrated on an undergraduate level.
Oberlin College is prepared to extend institutionalized,
discovery-rich initiatives into all levels of curriculum
for majors and general audiences. The college also
plans to establish the Committee for Integrating Research
and Teaching to find means with which to couple a
rigorous academic foundation with community awareness
and social responsibility.
Occidental College has developed a successful
effort to incorporate research into educational experiences
for a diverse student body in an urban setting - primarily
with K-12 schools in the Los Angeles area - and is
expanding these efforts. For example, the RV Vantuna,
an 85-foot oceanographic research vessel, will provide
a place for Occidental students to research alongside
students from Southern Californian high schools and
community colleges.
Reed College proposes to enhance its already
successful senior thesis program by establishing an
innovative Undergraduate Research Mentor Program focusing
on peer mentoring to help develop research skills
in students who are new to science.
Union College was the first liberal arts institution
to offer an engineering program. Their General Education
curriculum initiative in the late 1980s emphasized
discovery-based learning, Engineering faculty are
challenged to create a series of hands-on engineering
courses for non-engineering students.
Wellesley College has developed a comprehensive
program that promotes students to engage in research
experience from the very beginning of their college
careers to their most advanced independent projects.
With success achieved in the natural sciences, Wellesley
seeks to expand discovery-based learning more broadly
to the social sciences.
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