ORGANIZATION FOR TROPICAL STUDIES
Call for Research Mentors:
2017 NSF REU/ROA Programs, La Selva and Las Cruces Biological Stations
The Organization for Tropical Studies (OTS) is looking for mentors for the
Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) and Research Opportunity Award for
community college faculty (ROA) programs, funded by the National Science
Foundation (NSF), at La Selva and Las Cruces Biological Stations in Costa Rica.
In summer 2017, two nine-week REU programs will be conducted simultaneously,
one at La Selva (with field trips focusing on environmental issues) and one at
Las Cruces (with field trips focusing on culture and global health). Each
program will include a total of 23 participants from a combination of applicant
pools: NSF REU students (10, at La Selva only), LSAMP-NSF (Louis Stokes
Alliance for Minority Participation) students (10 at La Selva, 20 at Las
Cruces), and, at each site, 3 ROA participants (community college faculty in
need of field research and mentoring experience). Each site will have a
specific coordinator, a TA and a group of mentors.
The objective of these programs is to provide an introduction to tropical
ecosystems and their environmental and cultural issues, as well as a quality
research experience, for skilled and enthusiastic undergraduates and community
college faculty representing a range of ethnic backgrounds.
Specific goals for the program include:
- Encourage interest in field research and tropical ecology.
- Establish a clear understanding of the scientific method.
- Introduce students to tropical ecosystems.
- Facilitate academic group environments that allow students to develop the
communication skills needed to succeed in the sciences
- Increase student awareness of the ethical and cultural issues important when
doing research.
- Improve students' understanding of career opportunities in biology and
environmental science
- Facilitate student exposure to an international community network of
researchers and local public to encourage their global awareness as scientists
- Encourage participation of underrepresented minority students in STEM fields.
Both programs are open to U.S. students enrolled at non-R1 institutions who are
underrepresented minorities (African Americans, Hispanic Americans, American
Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, and Native Pacific Islanders).
Selected participants will be in residence at La Selva or Las Cruces Research
Stations for 9 weeks (June 7-August 9, 2017). Each student will have a home
mentor - a trusted advisor from the student's home institution, selected by the
student - as well as a research mentor, selected by OTS. Three-day workshops
for both home mentors and research mentors will be conducted from June 3-6 at
La Selva and Las Cruces.
ROA (community college faculty) will be selected from among the 2015/2016 home
mentors. These participants will conduct independent research under a research
mentor's guidance while also learning mentoring skills from their mentors.
Each research mentor will be responsible for supervising two participants'
independent research projects at La Selva or Las Cruces (either two
undergraduate students, or one undergraduate and an ROA). Research mentors must
be at the research station for a minimum of five weeks while the program is in
session and one week to participate in a workshop with home mentors. Mentors do
not receive honoraria, but NSF funds will cover flights to and from Costa Rica
and six weeks of station fees, which include the mentor workshop. REU/ROA
participants' expenses, as well as a small budget for lab or field equipment,
are covered by the program.
Ideal mentor applications will demonstrate the following:
- Previous research experience at La Selva and/or Las Cruces Biological Station
in Costa Rica
- Experience mentoring undergraduates and working with students in the field
- Presentation of a potential project design that can be completed in 6 weeks
and tests a novel and solid hypothesis
- Potential to be a strong science role model with the ability to attract
students to begin lifelong careers in STEM fields and develop enthusiasm for
their field
- Desire to contribute to a cohort-based and well-rounded program that includes
not only independent student research under the guidance of an experienced
mentor but also statistics, communication skills, field safety, ethics
training, and/or other workshops
- Strong record of publication and/or grant-writing
Interested researchers should send a letter of interest and a short summary (no
more than 250 words) of 2 potential student research project(s). The topics
mentioned in the summary will be used on the OTS website so that applicants can
select their preferred mentors/projects in their applications. Please be aware
that mentors will be expected to be onstation June 2-July 14 (La Selva) or May
31-July 14 (Las Cruces); mentors must be also willing and able to mentor
students - via skype/email if not in person - until the end of the program
(August 7). Students typically require extra attention during the final two
weeks of the program as they analyze and write up their data.
The letter of interest should include
- dates/timeframes when you might be on site during the summer
- your preference for working at La Selva or Las Cruces
- whether you would be willing to work with an ROA participant and an REU, or
whether you would prefer two REU students.
For researchers who have not previously served as mentors in the La Selva OTS
REU, Las Cruces NAPIRE, please also provide a copy of your curriculum vitae and
a statement of mentoring philosophy and experience. To allow sufficient time
for appropriate matches between mentors and accepted participants, please send
this information by no later than November 15, 2016. Applications should be
emailed to
adriana.baltod...@tropicalstudies.org<mailto:adriana.baltod...@tropicalstudies.org>.
Important information to know before you apply:
1. Students will have no more than 6 weeks for data collection in the 9-week
program, so please consider projects that can be easily completed within this
time.
2. When possible, REU/ROA research projects should be independent to the degree
that there is a potential for publication with the student as the first author
on the paper. The REUs/ROAs should feel some ownership for their projects (or
their part of a larger project) and should not be acting as mere research
assistants.
Adriana Baltodano-Fuentes
Organization for Tropical Studies
Undergraduate Program Coordinator - Costa Rica
(506) 2524 0607 ext. 1520
Skype: adriana.baltodano_otscro /
www.tropicalstudies.org<http://www.tropicalstudies.org/>
