Non Technical Summary
The Department of Forest Resources at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College (ABAC) seeks a regular grant to support an education project aimed at building internal capacity to teach current innovative technology (Priority 1 for USDA Science and Research Strategy) of adopting drone technology for remote sensing in its Natural Resource Management baccalaureate degree program (Discipline Code C). This project aligns with the funding program's purpose of expanding the capacity to conduct education in renewable resources and will address four of the six education need areas identified by the NIFA RFA: 1) curriculum design and materials development, 2) scientific instrumentation, 3) experiential learning, and 4) professional development for faculty members. Proposed course improvements and creation have experiential learning opportunities in the form of outdoor labs and a field-based internship program at ABAC's school forest. The project will provide faculty and students with modern equipment and software for instruction to support outdoor labs. Professional development for faculty members through formal training and conference attendance is included to enhance subject matter expertise in technology applications, including operation and maintenance of drones. The enhanced capacity will address a critical need for technology content, a gap identified in ABAC's current natural resources curriculum with the help of stakeholders. Expected project outputs include enhanced teaching capacity, an independent evaluation of instruction effectiveness on student learning outcomes, environmental benefits due to more efficient monitoring of conditions, and ultimately improved outcomes for graduates, including higher starting pay and greater employer satisfaction.

Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)	Subject of Investigation (SOI)	Field of Science (FOS)	Percent
123	0699	1070	80%
135	0899	1070	20%

Knowledge Area
135 - Aquatic and Terrestrial Wildlife; 123 - Management and Sustainability of Forest Resources;

Subject Of Investigation
0899 - Wildlife and natural fisheries, general/other; 0699 - Trees, forests, and forest products, general;

Field Of Science
1070 - Ecology;

Goals / Objectives
Our overall objective for this proposal is to build the capacity of the natural resource management program (forestry and wildlife) to offer hands-on training and skills in remote sensing and drone technologies.Specific objectives are to:Better educate students and provide hands-on experiential learning with current equipment and technology used by landowners and foresters in the field.Improve the operational capacity for the school forest to enhance forest health monitoring, provide training on technology applications in forest management to interns, and establish meaningful outreach opportunities to the local community and natural resource managers.Provide professional development to faculty and staff to enhance course content creation and improve the quality of instruction.

Project Methods
The project implementation is discussed in the three main tasks: Curriculum design, materials development, and course instruction; improve ABAC forest capacity and internship program; and training and professional development.Task 1 Curriculum design, materials development, and course instruction:To improve the curriculum and prepare students to learn content in remote sensing and drone operation, three thematic areas have been identified: math and logic, forest biology, and field measurements. Knowledge in each of these areas will be delivered gradually through specific courses that are required for the degree in natural resources management at ABAC. Delivery of specific knowledge material is graduated between first, second, and third years of study. Additional topics and class activities will be introduced at various stages to refocus content delivery to achieve the goals of the proposed project.Math and logicwill be attained in three required courses that are offered in the first year of study: College Algebra, Trigonometry, and Introduction to Forest Measurements. The FRSC 1900 Introduction to Forest Measurements will be enhanced to include specific topics in remote sensing and drone applications in natural resources. Foundational knowledge inforest biologyis necessary for students to understand biological and ecological factors influencing tree and forest growth. This knowledge is critical in interpreting responses and changes observed in trees from remote sensing data. The content will be delivered in the required courses for the major offered in the first and second year of study including Silviculture, Forest Soils, and Forest Entomology and Pathology.Content in courses for thefield measurementsthematic area will be enhanced to include topics in theory and applications of remote sensing. The courses identified for this theme are Forest Mapping and Orienteering, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and Forest Mensuration.These courses are offered in the second year of study and will provide introductory content to build a body of knowledge that will ensure a smooth transition to a new higher-level technology course focusing on remote sensing applications and drone technologies.The new technology applications course will be offered in the third year of study and will cover knowledge and skills in remote sensing applications including acquisition, processing, and use of data obtained by satellites, aircraft, and drones. Outdoor labs will introduce students to working with drones, planning field projects, and collection and processing of data from drone mounted sensors. Computer based labs will be used to train students in data processing and analysis to generate meaningful information and reports for management intervention. This kind of training will require purchase of new equipment such as basic and advanced sensors for data collection, light drone platforms for teaching basic drone operations and data collection, commercial drone platforms for teaching advanced operations and data collection, and software for teaching data processing techniques.Task 2 Improve ABAC's forest capacity and internship program:ABAC has an approximately 1000-acre forest property in three tracts of land located within 10 miles of the Tifton campus. The forest is used primarily for education and is available for teaching and outreach. The forest also has equipped classrooms ideal for onsite teaching and subsequent outdoor activities and is adequately equipped for core natural resources courses but lacks capacity to train on drone operation despite its ideal location. Improved capacity for the forest will enable the manager and staff to utilize current technology to monitor forest health and conduct timber inventories with less costs while also providing learning opportunities for ABAC students through internships. To achieve this goal, the forest will require a commercial drone for advanced mapping and six light drones for outdoor drone operation teaching labs.The proposed project will leverage existing staff experience to offer an internship program that will benefit students each year. The project will fund two student interns during the last year of the project. The students will learn forest operations including general management, harvesting, inventories, roads maintenance, prescribed fire management, operation of machinery, and drones, and forest health monitoring among other topics. Students will apply the remote sensing and drone technologies from the project to integrate the knowledge learnt in the courses to actual management operations at the school forest.Task 3 Training and professional development:Remote sensing and drone technologies are new and still under active development and advancement. Faculty and staff of the forest resources program at ABAC will attend formal short courses, workshops, and conferences to update their knowledge to be current and learn the use of new and emerging technology.Faculty and staff responsible for implementing the field labs and field forest operations will attend a formal short course leading to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) part 107 remote pilot certification in operation of UAVs. The training is expected to prepare them to be effective in the operation and maintenance of drones as well as teaching students.Faculty participating in the project implementation will attend at least one technology focused conference each year. Two students will be selected and facilitated to accompany faculty to the regional technology conferences. Conferences offer an opportunity to learn about new and emerging trends in technology applications and provide opportunities to network.Project EvaluationThe project team will work with Dr. Marcus Johnson on project evaluation. Dr. Marcus Johnson is the Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs (Teaching, Learning, and Student Engagement) at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College. In association with this position, he is also the Director of Faculty Development and the Director of the Center for Teaching and Learning. The evaluation will inform the project team about the effectiveness of proposed methods in achieving the intended objectives.At the completion of Task 1: Curriculum design, materials development, and course instruction, we expect to have an improved curriculum that incorporates course material focused on training in the application of remote sensing and drone technologies. Course syllabi, tests, classroom activities, and labs for identified courses will reflect additional topics covered. The program of study for the degree major will also be updated to show inclusion of the new course in technology applications. Curriculum improvement to enhance student learning will be assessed for both knowledge acquisition from course enhancements and skills gained from outdoor hands-on activity labs developed by the grant's capacity improvement.At the completion of the task 2: Improve ABAC Forest capacity and internship program, the ABAC's forest will have the capacity to use current technology in management and teaching. Students will also have an opportunity to participate in the enhanced internship program. Evaluation of this task will assess availability of drone platforms and software to students, field operations, teaching at the ABAC's forest site, record of use of the equipment for management and teaching, and the number of student interns.At the completion of Task 3: Training and professional development, the department will have four people trained and licensed to operate commercial drones. Faculty will also have current and updated teaching materials that match current knowledge and technology. Evaluation of this task will consider the number of faculty and staff trained, number of conferences attended, number of students who attended technology focused conferences, number of staff and faculty with certifications.