Research Project
10194888
PROJECT SUMMARY The COVID-19 pandemic presents a unique set of challenges for STEM education and authentic, in- person, undergraduate research. There is a need for quality training resources and experiences for undergraduate students that can be accessed virtually. Texas Tech University (TTU) will undertake a three-pronged approach to providing these resources while leveraging the increased, societal interest in biomedical science. This approach will complement the current, NIH-funded Plains Bridges to the Baccalaureate (PBB) Program and enhance the recruitment and support of diverse undergraduate students in biomedical-science-related majors. TTU will capitalize on successful models from other institutions to engage a broad audience in connecting quantitative and scientific reasoning with current events. The approach will focus on the 1) development and delivery of an open- enrollment, seminar course, ?The Science & Math of COVID-19?; 2) development of virtual PBB research training modules, ?PBB Scholar Virtual Laboratory?; and 3) development of a free, public, online resource hub, ?TTU Virtual Lab Methods Repository.? The Science & Math of COVID-19 seminar course will help to spark interest in the biomedical sciences while improving student quantitative and computational skills; lectures from this seminar will be made available to PBB participants via the program?s Blackboard ?course? where program materials are hosted. The PBB Scholar Virtual Laboratory will provide enhanced research training for PBB participants and will eventually be freely available online as a part of the TTU Virtual Lab Methods Repository. These training modules will provide a strong preparation for TTU students to then register for an upper-level course-based undergraduate research experience (CURE). Therefore, the supplement to the PBB program at TTU will result in an enhanced biomedical research training environment at TTU and beyond.
