Progress 09/15/07 to 09/14/11
Outputs
OUTPUTS: This project's objectives were to 1) to increase student awareness of the field of agricultural bioinformatics, 2) to establish an online bioinformatics resource center, and 3) to ensure that access to the resources and training necessary to train the next generation of scientists are available. The duration of this project brought significant measureable outcomes for each objective. Towards objective 1, three annual summer workshops were held from 2009-11. Of the 132 total attendees, 97 were students. Of the students, 62.8% were undergraduates, 28.8% graduate students, and 8.2% described themselves as "HS/other." According to an assessment questionnaire distributed post-workshop, 97% of students found it to be "very helpful" or "exceeded expectations". Of 47 participants in the second workshop, only 2 identified themselves as being from the high school level. Towards objectives 2 and 3, an online bioinformatics resource center was developed and used extensively for the workshops. An evaluation committee met in 2011 for a review of the project and identified the lack of participation from students and educators from secondary schools as a primary area where the project could be improved. PARTICIPANTS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period. TARGET AUDIENCES: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Not relevant to this project.
Impacts
The annual workshops introduced >100 students and educators to bioinformatic tools and resources that are integral to modern data-driven agriculture research in the genomics era. In addition the bioinformatics resource center (gene.vsu.edu) makes many of these resources available free of charge. It remains popular and is annually utilized by several classes on campus. It continues to have tremendous impact upon the training of future members of the agriculture workforce. The resource center is a significant asset for the university and is available to be further developed for future projects.
Publications
- No publications reported this period
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Progress 09/15/09 to 09/14/10
Outputs
This project's objectives have been 1) to increase student awareness of the field of agricultural bioinformatics, 2) to establish an online bioinformatics resource center, and 3) to ensure access to resources and training necessary to train the next generation of scientists. The second annual summer workshop was held on May 14th 2010. An assessment questionnaire was distributed and the results were of great interest. Of 47 participants in the second workshop, only 2 identified themselves as being from the high school level. This marks a clear trend towards participation for the workshops consisting mainly of postsecondary attendees. The evaluation committee met for an annual review of the project and identified the lack of participation from students and educators from secondary schools as a primary area where the project could be improved. The computer server has been developed and the bioinformatics applications were made available for free to all applicants (gene.vsu.edu). Many attendees asserted the application as being very important to them. Recruiting posters for the workshop and flyers advertising the program were printed and mailed to 38 schools from Virginia and neighboring states. PRODUCTS: This project has produced recruiting posters and flyers, graphical designs for webpages and posters, a series of web pages. OUTCOMES: Three workshop sessions with all supplemental materials were designed and implemented (Introduction to Bioinformatics, Introduction to Biological Database Design, and Incorporating a Bioinformatics Lesson Plan into Your Classroom). DISSEMINATION ACTIVITIES: We have developed recruiting posters and webpage portal for advertising of bioinformatics-related events at VSU and applying to the annual workshop. A "Bioinformatics Kit" including handouts, datasheets, and sample Lesson plans will be disseminated to educators at the workshop. FUTURE INITIATIVES: Development of the webpages and computer server-based resource portal is expected to be ongoing throughout the duration of this project. A final evaluation by the assessment committee will be scheduled for June 2011.
Impacts
Attendance nearly doubled at this year's annual workshop. In addition, enrollment in Dr. Harris' BIOL450 Introduction to Bioinformatics class reached the maximum (25 students) for the first time this year.
Publications
- No publications reported this period
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Progress 09/15/08 to 09/14/09
Outputs
The objectives of this research project are 1) to increase student awareness of the field of agricultural bioinformatics, 2) to establish an online bioinformatics resource center, and 3) to ensure that educators have the resources and training necessary to train the next generation of scientists. An annual bioinformatics workshop was developed and an initial workshop was held June 5-6, 2009. The workshop had four independent sessions, each session included a hands-on computer laboratory. Each registrant received free of charge a bioinformatics kit with instructional and reference materials related to each session. A keynote address was given by Dr. Robert N Corley. Registrants completed surveys at the end of the workshop that provided valuable feedback and will enhance the next workshop, currently scheduled for May 2010. A computer server housing an online bioinformatics resource center provided access to bioinformatics tools for the workshop and has been customized for use in several undergraduate and graduate courses. Promotional materials advertising the workshop and the department have been printed and mailed to 38 schools with proximity to the VSU campus. PRODUCTS: This project has resulted in the establishment of a bioinformatics web page which provides access to tools and instruction in multiple different kinds of computational resources, recruiting posters and flyers, graphical designs for web pages and posters, and web page prototypes. In addition the developers of each workshop session have provided reference and supporting materials that have been combined into a bioinformatics kit that was distributed to the workshop attendees. OUTCOMES: This project has resulted in an increased awareness of agricultural bioinformatics training and opportunities that are available at Virginia State University. One measurable outcome is the increased enrollment of students in the Introduction to Bioinformatics course. The course had to be cancelled last year due to low enrollment, but this year there are 8 students enrolled in the course. Three of the eight students currently enrolled in the course attended the Bioinformatics Workshop in June 2009. DISSEMINATION ACTIVITIES: Recruiting posters and promotional flyers were mailed to 38 colleges and universities advertising the workshop and other opportunities at the university and in our department. A web page dedicated to biotechnology-related events was developed and is available at http://sest.vsu.edu/biology/. The bioinformatics portal is available at http://gene.vsu.edu. A "Bioinformatics Kit" including handouts, reference materials and sample lesson plans was developed and given to each workshop participant. FUTURE INITIATIVES: A second annual Bioinformatics workshop will be held in May 2010. The 2010 workshop will build on the successes and strive to learn from the failures of the previous workshop based on the experiences of the organizers and feedback from the attendees. Development of the webpages and computer server-based resource portal is ongoing and is expected to continue throughout the duration of this project.
Impacts
Ongoing work from this project will allow Virginia State University to be better prepared to recruit and train students to meet the changing demands of the agriculture workforce. The field of Bioinformatics remains one of the fastest-growing in terms of demand and opportunity in agriculture, and job vacancies for bioinformatics specialists continue to grow in number with each passing year. The objectives of this project include raising awareness of agricultural bioinformatics and to increase the effectiveness of our training efforts at Virginia State University.
Publications
- No publications reported this period
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Progress 09/15/07 to 09/14/08
Outputs
The objectives of this research project are to increase student awareness of the field of agricultural bioinformatics, to establish an online bioinformatics resource center, and to ensure that educators have the resources and training necessary to train the next generation of scientists. An annual summer workshop is on schedule to be held in May 2009. The development of independent sessions for the workshop has been completed by the project director, co-PIs and collaborators in their specific areas of expertise. A 12-node cluster computer server was purchased and assembled to house an online bioinformatics resource center. The server is being developed and is scheduled to be online prior to the summer workshop. Undergraduate students from the VSU art department were contracted for an internship to develop graphical designs for the project. Their designs were incorporated in a recruiting poster that has been printed and mailed to 38 schools with proximity to the VSU campus. PRODUCTS: This project has to date produced recruiting posters and flyers, graphical designs for webpages and posters, webpage prototypes. In addition workshop sessions have been organized and developed by each of the PIs (Introduction to Bioinformatics, Introduction to Biological Database Design, and Incorporating a Bioinformatics Lesson Plan into Your Classroom). OUTCOMES: This project will increase the awareness of agricultural bioinformatics training and opportunities that are available at Virginia State University. It is anticipated that a result will be increased enrollment of students in the yearly bioinformatics course and into the agricultural biotechnology-based curriculum at VSU. DISSEMINATION ACTIVITIES: We have developed recruiting posters and webpage portal for advertising of bioinformatics-related events at VSU and applying to the annual workshop. A "Bioinformatics Kit" including handouts, datasheets, and sample Lesson plans will be disseminated to educators at the workshop. FUTURE INITIATIVES: An annual Bioinformatics workshop will be held in May 2009. The development of the webpages and computer server-based resource portal is expected to be ongoing throughout the duration of this project.
Impacts
Recent advances in technology and research have resulted in a growing demand for bioinformatics specialists, making them one of the most sought-after positions and fastest growing sectors in agricultural biotechnology. This work is building on concurrent development of the biotechnology curriculum at Virginia State University by enhancing the level of bioinformatics training. This work will allow Virginia State University to be better prepared to recruit and train students to meet the changing demands of the agriculture workforce.
Publications
- No publications reported this period
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