Performing Department
(N/A)
Non Technical Summary
In science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields, Indigenous people are the least represented population. Recent studies have shown that summer undergraduate research programs, including summer internships in STEM fields help attract Indigenous students. This project will support Indigenous undergraduate students for summer internships at Cornell AgriTech. The internship program will recruit four undergraduate student interns ("Summer Scholars") per year, for four years (a total of 16 students). The long-term goal of this project is to increase the number of Indigenous students in graduate programs in agricultural plant and food sciences and in the plant agricultural workforce. More broadly, the goal is to enhance the capacity of future generations to use agroecological strategies coupled with Indigenous knowledge to reduce environmental impact and increase food security. The goals of this grant align with the project goals of the NIFA New Beginning for Tribal Studens program. As stated in the RFA, a one goal of the NBTS program is to provide support for activities that would increase the retenetion and graduation rate of Indigenous students. The research projects have been designed to engage students in hands-on science, with projects that focus on issues that are critical for the future of sustainable agriculture. Mentoring and professional development is tailored for connections with Indigenous communities. Building on the infrastructure of the current program will enable the Indigenous Summer Scholars to be part of a larger cohort, while also having connections to Indigenous communities in New York, for a positive and engaging experience.
Animal Health Component
75%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
25%
Applied
75%
Developmental
0%
Goals / Objectives
A major goal of this project is to increase graduation rates for Native students. In science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields, Indigenous people are the least represented population. Recent studies have shown that summer undergraduate research programs, including summer internships in STEM fields help attract Indigenous students. This project will support Indigenous undergraduate students for summer internships at Cornell AgriTech. The internship program will recruit four undergraduate student interns ("Summer Scholars") per year, for four years (a total of 16 students). More broadly, the goal is to enhance the capacity of future generations to use agroecological strategies coupled with Indigenous knowledge to reduce environmental impact and increase food security. The research projects have been designed to engage students in hands-on science, with projects that focus on issues that are critical for the future of sustainable agriculture. Mentoring and professional development is tailored for connections with Indigenous communities, as well as Indigenous faculty. Building on the infrastructure of the current undergraduate internship program at Cornell AgriTech will enable the Indigenous Summer Scholars to be part of a larger cohort, while also having a specialized program with connections to Indigenous communities in New York, for a positive and engaging experience.
Project Methods
Methods - student recruitment, selection and retentionRecruiting: Recruiting tools, including a video short, brochure, and website, will be prepared describing Cornell AgriTech, and the Agroecology Indigenous Student Summer Scholar program. These materials will be widely distributed through AIISP, and our partners at the Intertribal Agricultural Council (Tina Square), and United South and Eastern Tribes (Lea Zeise). Jessica Crouse, a member of the New York Tribal Conservation Advisory Council (NYTCAC) has offered to help promote the Summer Scholars program through the Council. NYTCAC consists of tribal nation professionals in the fields of agriculture, environment, conservation, and fish & wildlife. We will also partner with the American Phytopathological Society, Entomological Society of America, and American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America and Soil Science Society of America to promote the Summer Scholars program at the annual SACNAS (Society for Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science) meeting.Application Process: Prospective Summer Scholars will indicate their top three preferred research projects during the online application process from a list provided by faculty involved in the program (http://www.scholars.pppmb.cals.cornell.edu/). Projects will represent an aspect of on-going study in each laboratory related to agricultural plant and food science that is scaled to be accomplished in the nine-week period of the summer internship.Selection: Students will be selected based on written applications, transcripts and letters of reference. Criteria for selection will include qualification, motivation, enthusiasm and aptitude for the chosen field, evidence of a strong work ethic, communication skills, organizational skills, and interest to pursue graduate studies in agriculture and related disciplines. Review of applications will be conducted by the PD and co-PDs. Faculty mentors will then reach out to applicants for interviews and will communicate their decisions back to PD Smart. All application review notes and comments will be archived as part of the data management plan.Retention: Since the Summer Scholar program started in 2009, there have not been retention problems. This has been due largely to our strong foundation of mentoring, atmosphere of inclusion, and high-quality research, education, and extension experiences. If a student did decide to leave, they would be asked to return a pro-rated amount of their stipend, which the program would use to fund an Indigenous student the following year.Methods - mentoringIndigenous Scholars will be advised by three levels of mentors, who will each engage in specific activities to ensure the success of each scholar.Faculty Mentors: Each fall, the Cornell AgriTech Summer Scholars Program identifies the faculty who will participate as Faculty Mentors, and they prepare project overview descriptions that are presented on the recruiting website. The Faculty Mentor will provide overall research project guidance, ensure that sufficient resources are in place to complete the project, advise on troubleshooting and mitigation of pitfalls in research activities, and actively engage in professional development and career planning activities with the Scholar. One area we will focus on is mentoring Scholars to master research and soft skills to enhance their research self-efficacy and confidence in conducting research and communicating with stakeholders, as this has been shown to be linked to aspirations for research careers (Adedokun et al. 2014). Faculty and near-peer Primary Mentors will complete Cornell Cultural Humility Training (https://humility.cornell.edu/cultural-humility-training/ ) as well as cultural awareness training from Indigenous Concepts Consulting LLC https://www.indigenous-concepts.com/.Primary Mentor: The Primary Mentor will be a near-peer Ph.D. graduate student or post-doctoral scientist working in the lab of the Faculty Mentor who can provide their Scholar mentee day-to-day instruction on research techniques and activities, assist with data collection and analysis, and contribute specific details on the research tasks to be completed. Each Primary Mentor will only advise a single Scholar mentee. To ensure strong mentorship skills among our participating mentors, we will leverage Cornell's membership in the Center for the Integration of Research, Teaching and Learning (CIRTL) network, to provide mentorship training, in addition to the Cultural Humility training and Indigenous cultural awareness training described above. The center hosts an annual workshop series for graduate student and postdoc mentors for training opportunities on topics such as principles of good mentorship, setting mentee expectations, handling tricky mentor-mentee situations, creating an inclusive research setting, and supporting mentee professional development.Indigenous mentor and Farm visits: The Indigenous Mentor is a Cornell faculty member that is a Citizen of Navajo Nation. He will work with the students and provide cultural awareness and help overcome barriers to the student's success. Additionally, students will interact with and visit Indigenous farms that are run by members of a NY/Northeast Indigenous community, including but not limited to the Akwesasne Nation, Seneca Nation of Indians, St. Regis Mohawk, Cayuga Nation, Onondaga Nation, Oneida Nation. Partners at the Intertribal Agriculture Council, or United South and Eastern Tribes, who can provide context and integration with the activities and cultural norms of that community will also be engaged in the program.Operational plan for mentoring. Our operational guidelines for mentorship will follow those described by Chow-Garcia et al. (2022) to ensure student-centered deliverables and support for Indigenous identity:Faculty Mentors make contact (via email or phone) in May to engage Scholars in active science by leading with the project goal, rather than background reading.When Scholars arrive, Faculty Mentor will complete a Mentor-Mentee contract which reveals the Scholar's interests and reasons for pursuing research, outlines a plan to quickly build research skills, sets clear project objectives, milestones, and dates for progress review, and establishes a schedule for mentorship interactions.Faculty Mentors will establish the graduate student Primary Mentor near-peer relationship and engage Scholars with other members of the lab/department to build a sense of belonging and team. In weekly discussions, all Mentors will advise on experimental design, techniques, data collection and analysis, and how their project fits into a larger context with Scholars.Indigenous Mentors will establish a relationship and meeting schedule with Scholars to reflect on how the project supports Indigenous identity and conforms with their own cultural norms and traditions, as well as career aspirations and potential to serve their community.All Mentors will ensure that Scholars are actively engaged in regularly scheduled Professional Development opportunities and discuss those in light of the Scholar's career interests and commitment to future mentorship.Mentors will guide Scholars in creating a poster to present at our 'Summer Scholars Poster Session and Celebration' on the last day of the program.