FALL 2008 • Volume 29, Number 1

Kathy Hoke, Lisa Gentile, CURFocus of Richmond Early Involvement in Undergraduate Research at the

The University of Richmond (UR) is a private, liberal arts insti- Early Undergraduate Research Involvement tution of approximately 2,800 undergraduate students that in the Sciences is very focused on undergraduate research across its campus. In the sciences, early involvement in research has been sup- In the summer of 2008, there were 145 students involved in ported primarily by two major grants from the Howard undergraduate research in science and mathematics, 29 percent Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI, 2004-2008 and 2008-2012), of whom were funded internally and 71 percent of whom were supplemented with internal funds. Both of the university’s funded externally by various grants and awards (HHMI, Merck- HHMI grants have two mechanisms for supporting early under- AAAS, Beckman, NIH, NSF, ACS-PRF, etc). One of the distinctive graduate research experiences: a pre-freshman program and a features of our undergraduate-research program in these areas program for first- and second-year students. The pre-freshman is the number of students who get involved at early stages in program supports between five and 13 incoming students per their careers in significant interdisciplinary research projects. summer. It focuses on underrepresented groups, including stu- In general, the purpose of our undergraduate research program dents from the African American, Native American, Hispanic, is to cultivate further interest in STEM areas and increase the Alaskan Native, Native Hawaiian, or Pacific Islander communi- number of undergraduates, particularly among underrepresent- ties, as well as those who are first-generation college students, ed groups, who feel well prepared for graduate level research. those who are economically disadvantaged, and women in We also seek ways for our students to improve their oral and computer science or physics. The office of admissions identi- written communication skills, learn to be better scientists, and fies students who have expressed an interest in science from increase their self-confidence and ability to work indepen- these under-represented groups. These students spend 4.5 dently. That undergraduate research experiences lead to these weeks on campus the summer before their freshman year outcomes is well documented (see, for example, Guterman, doing research in a lab that has been matched with their inter- 2007; Lopatto, 2004; Russell, Hancock & McCullough, 2007; ests. They are housed in a single dorm with a resident advisor Seymour, Hunter, Laursen & DeAntoni, 2004; Wilson, 2006). (RA) (for liability reasons, students are housed in a dorm with a designated RA rather than in apartments with the majority of Involving first- and second-year students in research enhances research students). Not only do these pre-freshmen gain valu- these outcomes in several ways. Early engagement in science able research experience, they also meet each other as well as is important for retention (NRC, 1999), and undergraduate other research students and a research mentor before officially research can capture a student’s interest before she or he arriving for the fall of their freshman year, giving rise to an early decides to pursue other majors. When a first-year student support network. becomes involved in a research project and continues the work for multiple years, there is more time to make a sig- The second HHMI-supported program providing early under- nificant contribution to the field that culminates in presenta- graduate research experiences for our students is aimed at stu- tions at regional or national meetings and in peer-reviewed dents completing their freshman and sophomore years who are publications. Finally, there is more opportunity for students interested in an interdisciplinary research experience. Students to become integrated into a community of interdisciplinary are chosen for this program based on a competitive applica- scholars and to generally be immersed in the process of doing tion process and spend 10 weeks on campus doing research full science and mathematics. time in a lab of their choosing. All students from this program who choose to live on campus are housed in university apart- This article describes the financial support the University of ments with other summer-research students. In UR’s first HHMI Richmond has obtained for undergraduates’ early involve- grant, funding was provided for 10 such students per summer, ment in research, the programmatic features we have included while in the second, 24 students will be supported from a com- that specifically address the needs of first- and second-year bination of HHMI (14 students) and internal funds (10 students). students, and challenges we have faced. In addition, how we measure success is discussed.

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HHMI-funded fall Science Symposium. All science-research students are encouraged to participate in this symposium, which also features a keynote talk from a well-known interdis- ciplinary scientist. Students who have been supported for summer-research opportunities by either of these HHMI programs are then eligible to feed into other externally funded programs as juniors and seniors. For example, one student was funded to do research the summers after his freshman and sopho- more years by HHMI. The summer after his junior year he was funded by UR’s interdisciplinary Merck-AAAS scholars program, all while working with the same mentor. He has co-authored 2008 HHMI first-and second-year research students two peer-reviewed publications and will start graduate school in biochemistry following graduation. Another student was For all of these students, funding is provided by HHMI for lab similarly funded by HHMI and is currently, in his junior year, supplies ($1,250 per year per student) and travel to professional funded by UR’s Beckman scholar’s program. He has had two meetings to make presentations ($750 year per student). peer-reviewed publications and is planning to attend graduate For the students in this program, we focus on broadening their school in chemistry. perspectives, forming a supportive community (see below) and providing opportunities for them to communicate their results. We designed a New Collaborations Seminar Series in which Early Undergraduate Research Involvement HHMI-funded students and their mentors choose an interdis- in Mathematics ciplinary scientist to invite to campus and give a seminar. For Richmond’s mathematics department has a long history of these seminars, the HHMI students are encouraged to interact engaging undergraduates in research; however, the initial sum- informally with the seminar speaker (they take them to break- mer experiences were somewhat frustrating. Although the fast) and then to attend their talks. By having different students typical research student would be completing his or her third and mentors select the speakers, we ensure that a wide variety year, too much of the 10-week experience was spent simply of interdisciplinary topics are introduced to the students. For familiarizing students with the mathematics necessary for the 2007-08 academic year, the following interdisciplinary the research. The faculty in mathematics sought to change speakers spoke on campus: Jose Onuchic (Center for Theoretical this experience. They observed that the science programs Biological Physics and Department of Physics, University of San were recruiting research students earlier and keeping them Diego); Liisa Galea (Behavioral Neuroendocrinology, University longer, which led to the idea of the LURE program—the Long of British Columbia); Sue Mooberry (Southwest Foundation for Term Undergraduate Research Experience. Specifically, LURE Biomedical Research); Adrian Roitberg (Computational Nano- recruits first- and second-year students and pairs them with and Bio-Physical Chemistry, ); Chris Miller faculty members who serve as mentors throughout a two-year (Biochemistry, Brandeis University); Linda McGown, (Center research experience. Through closely supervised research and for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies, Rensselaer independent study activities spanning two summers (10-weeks Polytechnic Institute); Danielle Liubicich (Department of each) and two academic years, students experience all the Integrative Biology, University of California-Berkeley); and steps in a research project, from background reading to the Jeanne Nerbonne (Department of Developmental Biology, professional presentation of results. Washington University School of Medicine). In 2004, the mathematics faculty submitted an unsuccessful To build communication skills and to continue broadening proposal to NSF for the LURE program through NSF’s Workforce their scientific perspectives, HHMI-funded students present in the Mathematical Sciences program; the main criticism of either an oral or poster presentation of their research at the the proposal was its limited impact. The math faculty decided

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to form a consortium of schools running parallel programs, and NSF funded the new proposal in 2006. Now in its second year, it is a collaborative effort among Central Michigan University, Sam Houston State University, Coppin State University, Olin College, and UR (two comprehensive , a historically black university, a gender-balanced engineering college, and a selective , respectively). Prior to LURE, the number of students doing mathematics research in a particular summer had oscillated between zero and 10, and only a handful of faculty members were involved. The LURE program involves all mathematics faculty members at our university, who rotate in and out over a four-year period; they mentor between 15 and 20 students each summer. Each One of the University of Richmond mathematics research teams faculty member commits to being engaged for two consecu- tive years, during which time they lead a group of three to four Recruitment and Community-Building students working on a single problem. The expectations of Activities the faculty mentor during this two-year period are significant; In both our mathematics and our science programs, involving therefore (in contrast to the science program) each mentor is first- and second-year students, recruitment, and community paid a summer stipend in both summers he or she is involved. building are important. Students are recruited into the sci- The program was designed to mimic the science model, partic- ence program via multiple routes. During the academic year, ularly the strong mentoring aspect that comes with recruiting faculty present an overview of their research in a Research students early into labs and working with them over a period Introduction seminar series. Students in first-year science and of two to three years. Community-building within and among math courses are encouraged, and often required, to attend a groups is therefore essential. Realizing this after the first sum- certain number of these seminars. Faculty at UR, in general, are mer, the principal investigators made a successful request to very pro-active about talking about their research and recruit- NSF for supplementary funding to add a student assistant at ing students into their programs. In fact, before students even each of the five participating schools. In the second summer, arrive on campus to start their first year, they hear about UR hired a rising senior with strong research skills and an innate undergraduate research at on-campus events such as scholar’s ability for building community to work with all of the math interviews, recruiting weekends, etc. In addition, some depart- research groups and serve as liaison among the groups. ments include a research component as part of their early The mathematics students get ample opportunity to hone coursework. The mathematicians take a similar approach, mak- their oral communication skills. At the end of the summer, ing announcements in all introductory mathematics classes all mentors and students from each of the five participating and writing letters to all incoming students who scored well schools come together for a conference, to meet each other on the Calculus Advanced Placement exam. and present their results. In addition, all UR groups meet each In both programs students submit an application that includes Friday afternoon during the summer, with one person from transcripts (for grades as well as course history) and a statement each group giving a presentation. At these sessions, the stu- of interest. The science students select a mentor (who writes dents also learn how to listen to and respond to mathematics a letter of recommendation) and write a short proposal. The talks. The students relish the opportunity to question their mathematics students, on the other hand, rank their choice of colleagues and report that they try to anticipate the questions projects from a list generated by the faculty members involved, likely to be asked when preparing their talks. but they are ultimately assigned to a group. These students provide a letter of recommendation from one of their math

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instructors. For both programs, a faculty committee makes the beyond background material to problems over which students final selection. could feel some ownership was critical to the student’s feeling The faculty members in both the sciences and math provide the summer was successful. The issue that the mathematicians many community-building activities for involved students. For faced then was how to find suitable problems for first-year example, during the summer of 2007, research students went students. As in the sciences, faculty members are better able whitewater rafting, attended a Richmond Braves baseball game to use their time efficiently when students work on problems and fireworks extravaganza on July 4th, and went to Busch related to the faculty member’s research; the most satisfied Gardens. Each Thursday all the math groups ate lunch together, mentors in the first summer found good problems within their picking restaurants off campus. Very popular with the math own research areas. group were student/faculty game nights and a field trip to the National Security Agency. At the end of the summer, all science Assessment and math research students get together over lunch, while vol- Our goals for our undergraduate-research program include unteers give informal presentations of summer results. both tangible goals (to attract and retain more students in the STEM areas and to increase the number of students who Challenges enter graduate programs in these areas) and less tangible ones There are challenges specific to working with students early in (to improve oral and written communication skills, to train their college careers, many of which revolve around their lack students on how to become better scientists, and to increase of formal course training in required areas. In both the sciences student’s self-confidence and ability to work independently). and mathematics, close mentoring is vital. Each mentor must We measure the effectiveness of our early-research programs bring his or her students up to a level at which they can under- towards meeting the more tangible goals by measuring the stand the problems in the relevant area. Since the students in number of students who participate in these programs who the sciences are all working in different disciplines, individual continue studying sciences, continue doing research, make pre- faculty members are left to devise strategies to give them the sentations at regional and national meetings, co-author peer- necessary background to contribute in meaningful ways to reviewed publications, and continue on to graduate school. As their research, which can range widely from projects involv- a first measure of success, the pre-freshman program is attract- ing theoretical computational chemistry to those involving ing an increasing number of students from underrepresented ecological field studies. Many different strategies have been groups who continue doing research. In the first year of the devised for this, ranging from group meetings (some groups program, fewer than 50 percent continued to be involved in alternate meetings on data and meetings on theory), to form- research in their freshman year, while by the third summer, 92 ing research teams (composed of pre-freshman, early research percent continued to be involved in their labs during the aca- students, as well as more advanced research students), to tak- demic year and 70 percent continued doing research full time ing students to smaller local meetings. during the summer after their freshman year. A similar situation exists with the math students. Because they Of the 33 students who participated in the first three years of are not too far past the introductory mathematics curriculum, our HHMI-funded research program for first- and second-year much of the first summer is spent on background material students, 27 participated in research for at least two summers, needed to understand the research group’s area. For example, and all continued as STEM majors. Of the 11 students in the the students in the mathematical biology group needed to program who have graduated, six entered PhD or MD/PhD learn more about differential equations, and the students programs, one will do research on a Fulbright Fellowship, two in the coding theory group needed to learn more abstract went to medical school, and two are working for a year while algebra. The goal in the first summer is to not simply teach applying to medical school. Twenty-four of the 33 students this material but to introduce open-ended problems and self- have made 47 presentations at national and regional meetings directed learning. Preliminary results from assessment focus and published five peer-reviewed papers. groups at the end of the first summer indicated that getting

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To measure progress towards the less tangible goals, surveys Conclusions are used. For the science students, we use both a national In summary, it is both possible and enjoyable to do meaning- and local survey. The Survey of Undergraduate Research ful research in science and mathematics with students early Experiences II (SURE-II) (http://web.grinnell.edu/sureii/), cre- in their college careers. The success of these experiences ated by Dr. David Lopatto of Grinnell College and funded by requires funding, close faculty mentoring, and programmatic HHMI, is administered at a large cohort of colleges and uni- features to address each student’s level of coursework. Four versities to collect quantitative data on the benefits of under- years into the science program at UR, increases in the number graduate research. We also administer a local online survey, of underrepresented groups (from the pre-freshman program) Perceptions of the Science Program, to all students enrolled in participating in multi-year research projects have us excited any science class. Partly based on a survey developed by Carol about the potential for future increases in the number of these Anne M. Kardash and Michael L. Wallace of the Department students attending graduate programs and pursuing careers in of Educational and Counseling Psychology at the University STEM areas. Just two years into the mathematics program, we of Missouri-Columbia (Kardash, Wallace, 2001), this survey have achieved our goal of setting up a mathematics program also contains items created exclusively for the University of that more closely models the successful early-involvement Richmond. It is designed to assess all aspects of our science science program, and we continue to collect data to see if we program, but contains several questions that pertain directly to get the same benefits. As data from multiple years becomes undergraduate research. The value of this survey data is that it available, we will be interested to see whether early involve- allows us to compare our program to national benchmarks and ment in research translates into more science and mathematics provides qualitative support for observations we make using students choosing to pursue higher education in these areas. the counts of student retention in science. References In the mathematics program, Dr. David Lopatto helped us Committee on Undergraduate Science Education, National develop an assessment plan that would include comparisons Research Council. Transforming to the science approach we are modeling, as well as evaluate in Science, Mathematics, Engineering, and Technology. the value of research with first- and second-year students. We Washington, DC: National Academy Press; 1999. are using the following to supplement the numbers we are col- Guterman, L. What Good is Undergraduate Research, Anyway. lecting on retention and post-graduate work in mathematics: Chronic Higher Ed. 2007;(50):A12. • A student survey at time of application Kardash CA, Wallace M. The Perceptions of Science Classes • A survey at the beginning of summer research Survey: What Undergraduate Science Reform Efforts Really Need to Address. J Edu Psychol. 2001(93):199-210. • The SURE survey, with supplementary questions, at the August LURE conference Lopatto D. Survey of Undergraduate Research Experiences (SURE): First Findings. Cell Biol Educ. 2004;3:270-277. • Student and mentor focus groups at the August LURE conference Russell SH, Hancock MP, McCullough J. Benefits of Undergraduate Research Experiences. Science. 2007;316:548-549. • An exit survey for students who complete the two-year project or who end the program before the end of the Seymour E, Hunter AB, Laursen S, DeAntoni T. Establishing the two-year period benefits of research experiences for undergraduate: first find- ings from a three-year study. Sci Educ. 2004;88:495-594. It is too early to draw conclusions, but it is interesting to note that whereas the early science students focused on the Wilson R. A Hothouse for Female Scientists. Chronic Higher benefits of gaining skills in science, the first- and second-year Ed.. 2006;52:A13. mathematics students appear to be more focused on the less tangible benefits.

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Kathy Hoke University of Richmond 28 Westhampton Way Richmond, VA 23173 [email protected] Kathy Hoke is Associate Dean of Arts & Sciences for Research Support and associate professor of mathematics at the University of Richmond. She is director of the university’s HHMI grant, overseeing its components in undergraduate research, curriculum development, and outreach. She is also co-PI on the university’s LURE grant from NSF.

Lisa Gentile University of Richmond 28 Westhampton Way Richmond, VA 23173 [email protected] Lisa Gentile is an associate professor of chemistry. She is the direc- tor of University of Richmond’s Merck-AAAS summer undergradu- ate research program and is involved in the university’s HHMI- funded activities. Lisa’s research program, with undergraduates as well as high school students and teachers, focuses on the structure, function, and thermodynamics of proteins involved in disease. She has been supported by NIH, NSF, and ACS-PRF.

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