Source: COLORADO STATE UNIVERSITY submitted to NRP
RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES IN AGRICULTURAL BIOSECURITY: STRENGTHENING SCIENCE AND MANAGEMENT OF INVASIVE SPECIES
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
COMPLETE
Funding Source
OTHER GRANTS
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
0224088
Grant No.
2011-38420-20085
Cumulative Award Amt.
$234,000.00
Proposal No.
2010-03280
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Project Start Date
Dec 15, 2010
Project End Date
Dec 14, 2015
Grant Year
2011
Program Code
[KK]- National Needs Graduate Fellowships Program
Recipient Organization
COLORADO STATE UNIVERSITY
(N/A)
FORT COLLINS,CO 80523
Performing Department
Warner College of Natural Resources
Non Technical Summary
The Natural Resource Ecology Laboratory (NREL) proposes to recruit and retain three Doctoral fellows from groups under-represented in sciences into graduate degree programs in the targeted expertise shortage area (TESA) of Sciences for Agricultural Biosecurity. The relevant discipline includes agricultural biosecurity (Code X). The NNF-supported Fellows will build on the existing invasive species research and graduate training enterprises at the NREL and will also benefit from the development of new graduate programs in Ecosystem Science and Sustainability. Key features of our program include: 1) research opportunities in the US and abroad supervised by world-renowned scientists in biological invasions and agricultural biosecurity, 2) coursework aimed at improving content skills, communication skills, and process skills, 3) service learning and internship opportunities, 4) professional and career development assistance through the coordinated pipeline of programs and services aimed at increasing the recruitment, graduation, and matriculation of graduate students from groups under-represented in the sciences into productive science careers, and 5) a plan to sustain the program beyond the USDA funding. All aspects of the program will be evaluated by an external evaluator (R. Shaw, Metric Inc.). The proposed program is relevant to the NNF program goals and the USDA/CSREES Strategic Goals and Objectives by providing integrative research and academic activities across disciplines producing professionals well-versed in economics, and agricultural and social sciences, who can advance science and management of invasive species in agroecosystems. The program will also contribute nationally to the NNF goals by increasing the number of highly-trained scientists, particularly from under-represented groups, in the selected TESA and relevant disciplines.
Animal Health Component
100%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
100%
Developmental
(N/A)
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
90360993020100%
Knowledge Area
903 - Communication, Education, and Information Delivery;

Subject Of Investigation
6099 - People and communities, general/other;

Field Of Science
3020 - Education;
Goals / Objectives
Our following programmatic, student-centered, and institutional goals are informed by practices used by successful graduate programs at NREL, CSU, and other institutions. Programmatic Goals: Goal 1: Recruit three exceptional students from underrepresented groups to participate in the NREL- NNF Program; Goal 2: Provide students with a rich, multi-year research/academic program focused on invasive species science and management in agricultural biosecurity. Student-Centered Goals: Goal 3: Create a scholarly environment to promote interdisciplinary research skills and intellectual development in invasive species management and agricultural biosecurity; Goal 4: Provide an environment in which fellows research interdisciplinary questions and discuss solutions to improve invasive species science and management practices in agricultural biosecurity; Goal 5: Provide a professional development environment that addresses the personal and social needs of the fellows to enable them to pursue a career in sciences for agricultural biosecurity. Institutional Goals: Goal 6: Augment existing graduate offerings to include courses and emphasis in the area of Sciences for Agricultural Biosecurity that include invasive species research and management; Goal 7: Use new and existing student-oriented activities as a bridge to include faculty from other departments and colleges on campus, scientists employed by governmental and non-governmental laboratories in the region, and student peers and practitioners around the world; Goal 8: Enhance our existing infrastructure to recruit and train students from groups underrepresented in Sciences for Agricultural Biosecurity, specifically in invasive species science and management. Our objective is to recruit and retain three Doctoral fellows from groups under-represented in sciences into graduate degree programs in the targeted expertise shortage area (TESA) of Sciences for Agricultural Biosecurity, specifically to Strengthen Science and Management of Invasive Species. Our program is designed to provide integrative research and academic activities across disciplines to produce professionals well-versed in environmental, social, and economics, who can advance the science and management of invasive species. Expected outputs: Our proposed program will result in three highly-trained scientists, particularly from under-represented groups, in the field of Agricultural Biosecurity related to harmful invasive species (plants, pests and diseases). In order to ensure that each Fellow will receive the training that best matches her or his chosen career path, each Fellow will develop an NREL-NNF Advisory Committee comprised of their academic committee, plus government, industry, or NGO scientists to serve as their own, individualized career advisory panel.
Project Methods
We will design a recruitment plan to recruit outstanding Fellows to the NREL-NNF program and will target fellows from traditionally under-represented groups. We will utilize the resources and programs developed by the Graduate Center on Diversity and Access (GCDA) at CSU to recruit students from under-represented groups to the NREL-NNF program. Brochures, website information, and a presentation on the Agricultural Biosecurity program at CSU will be distributed through the CO-AMP alliance of educational institutions which the GCDA staff visit and email. Our selection strategy for selecting students will aim to identify the top three applicants from among the many applications we anticipate for the NREL-NNF program. The applicants' academic credentials, work experience, and personal accomplishments will be considered in order to select the top applicants and to choose students committed to pursuing a career in agricultural biosecurity. We will consider the overall GPA of applicants as a criterion for selection, but will also carefully review student's transcripts to identify which students have a record of outstanding analytical and communication skills. During the first summer of their tenure in the Program, NREL-NN Fellows will be required to complete a two to three month internship at another institution (experiential research). The experiential learning component of the Program will help us achieve Student-centered goals. The following assessments and outcomes will be used to determine whether or not students participating in the Program have acquired the necessary knowledge, skills, and interest in Agricultural Biosecurity: 1) assessment of student knowledge of major concepts and issues in Agricultural Biosecurity; 2) student self-assessment of the 14 research skills; 3) faculty mentor assessment of each student's 14 research skills; 4) ability to apply higher-order research skills; 5) ability to effectively communicate and defend a position with scientific information and evidence; 6) skills at documenting field and laboratory work; 7) success at working collaboratively; 8) interest and commitment to a career in agricultural biosecurity-related areas; 9) understanding of what agricultural biosecurity is as a discipline and how it benefits and contributes to society; and 10) development of a realistic graduate school and career plan with milestones. The Program's administrative team in collaboration with an evaluator will monitor and document how well the Program is moving toward its goals. Dissemination of impacts and results: The project leadership will work with the external evaluator to generate annual reports to the USDA on the graduate training program management and student achievement. We will also report our findings and best-practice outcomes to the CSU administration, the Colorado Department of Education, and the Colorado Commission for Higher Education with the intent of influencing policy decisions regarding graduate education. The leadership will prepare manuscripts of the best practices to be submitted and published as scholarly works in professional journals.

Progress 12/15/10 to 12/14/15

Outputs
Target Audience: - Historically under-represented groups (e.g., women, African-Americans, and other minorities) in the sciences for agricultural biosecurity. - Elementary and high school students. - Scientific community in agricultural sciences related to invasive species. - National Parks staff and staff from other state and federal agencies. Changes/Problems: We faced major problems due the lack of support for fellows beyond 3 years' of fellowship. The PIs supported fellows from their grants for the remaining part of Fellows' PhD programs. All three fellows will successfully defend their PhDs in 2015. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? This project provided following training and professional developement opportunities to the NIFA fellows: - Fellows were able to serve as Teaching Assitants for courses taught at Colorado State University. - Fellows participated in several experiential learning activities; for example, worked on NASA Develop project as interns, traveled to Ethiopia or other places (see additonal informaiton provided). - Fellows earned several awards and recognitions; for example see below- Ms. Amanda West received following awards: Robert L. Zimdahl Outstanding Graduate Student Award in Weed Science. Department of Bioagricultural Sciences and Pest Management, Colorado State University. 2014. $965.00 William M Brown Jr. Professional Development Award. Department of Bioagricultural Sciences and Pest Management, Colorado State University. 2014. $500.00 Travel Scholarship for Climate Boot Camp (Invited Fellow). One-week training hosted by NorthWest Climate Science Center (DOI/USGS/U. of Idaho/Oregon State U./U. of Washington). McCall, Idaho. July 28th-Aug. 2, 2013. Travel Scholarship for Next Generation Climate Data Products Workshop (Invited Presenter). Hosted by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), Boulder, CO. July 15-19, 2013. Research Grant, Colorado Mountain Club Foundation. 2013. $1,000.00 William M Brown Jr. Professional Development Award. Department of Bioagricultural Sciences and Pest Management, Colorado State University. 2012. $500.00 Travel Scholarship for Graduate Climate Conference, University of WA, Seattle. 2012 Travel Scholarship, Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, CSU 2012. $500.00 First Place Graduate Poster Award, Front Range Student Ecology Symposium, Colorado State University. 2012. Natural Resources and Ecology Laboratory Program of Research and Scholarly Excellence Award, Colorado State University. Spring 2012. $2,500.00 Natural Resources and Ecology Laboratory Program of Research and Scholarly Excellence Award, Colorado State University. Fall 2011. $2,500.00 --------------- Mr. Matthew Luizza received following awards: Instructor for invasive species science and collaborative conservation course for Colorado State University's School of Global Environmental Sustainability Pre-­?College Summer Sustainability Program (June, 2013 and June, 2014) Recipient of the "Best Student Poster Award" for the Sustainable African Ecosystems and Societies Under Global Change Symposium (April, 2014) Recipient of Colorado State University's James E. Ellis Memorial Scholarship (September, 2013-­? $750) Recipient of Colorado State University's Graduate Degree Program in Ecology Small Grants for Graduate Research Award (June, 2013-­? $2,500) Recipient of the NASA DEVELOP and Science Systems and Applications, Inc. national award for excellence in research and outstanding contributions to the NASA DEVELOP program (August, 2012) Graduate Student Fellow for Colorado State University's Center for Collaborative Conservation (March, 2012-­? $5,000 How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Through peer-reviewed researcharticles, and usingoral and poster presentations at professional meetings and variuos forums. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Following is a short list of accomplishments (please see attahced external evaluator's report for more details): - We recruited three exceptional NIFA fellows for PhD degrees in the field of Agriculture Biosecurity- Ms. Amanda West (woman), Mr. Tewodros Wakie (African-American man; born and raised in Ethiopia), and Matthew Luizza. - Each of the fellows published at least one peer-reviewed articles as alead author. - Fellows maitained high GPAs thoughout their PhD program. - All three fellows havecompleted their course work, and successfully passedtheir PhD qualifying programs. - All three fellowsmade numerous oral and poster presentation at professional meetings (see details below). -Each fellow has 2-3 manuscripts in review or at accepted stages. - The fellows wrote several technical reports (see information presented below). - PI Developed two new courses (see External Evaluator's report). - Fellows' Personal effectiveness, communication and Networking skills were enhanced (see External Evaluator's report). Attainment of Project Goals All project goals were achieved; goals of the project were exceeded. Here is a statement from External Evaluators' report (see attahced PDF for more details): "Clearly, the project was well-implemented and provided important financial, administrative and mentoring support to three Fellows in an integrated agricultural biosecurity program. Based on information collected during this summative evaluation, this project attained the programmatic, student- centered, and institutional goals. It has been a success. The ultimate measure of success will be the attainment by all three Fellows of the targeted PhD degree."

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Kumar, S., Graham, J., West, A.M., and Evangelista, P.H. (2014). Using district-level occurrences in MaxEnt for predicting the invasion potential of an exotic insect pest in India. Computers and Electronics in Agriculture, 103: 55-62.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: West, A.M., Kumar, S., Wakie, T., Brown, C.S., Stohlgren, T.J., Laituri, M., and Bromberg, J. (2015). Using high-resolution future climate scenarios to forecast Bromus tectorum invasion in Rocky Mountain National Park. PLoS ONE 10(2): e0117893.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Stohlgren TJ, Szalanski AL, Gaskin J, Young N, West A, Jarnevich CS, and Tripodi A (2014). From hybrid swarms to swarms of hybrids. Environment and Ecology Research 2: (8).
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: " Luizza, M.W., H. Young, C. Kuroiwa, P. Evangelista, A. Worede, R.W. Bussmann, & A. Weimer (2013). Local knowledge of plants and their uses among women in the Bale Mountains, Ethiopia. Ethnobotany Research and Applications 11: 315-�?339.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: " Mattor, K., M. Betsill, C. Huayhuaca, H. Huber-�?Stearns, T. Jedd, F. Sternlieb, P. Bixler, M. Luizza, & A.S. Cheng (2014). Transdisciplinary Research on Environmental Governance: A View from the Inside. Environmental Science and Policy 42: 90-�?100.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Under Review Year Published: 2015 Citation: West, A., P. Evangelista, C. Jarnevich, S. Kumar, A. Swallow, S. Chignell, & M. Luizza (In Review). More than NDVI: Incorporating multi-temporal spectral indices in iterative species distribution models for an invasive species in a post-�wildfire landscape. Forest Ecology and Management.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Under Review Year Published: 2014 Citation: " Luizza, M.W., T. Wakie, P. Evangelista, & C. Jarnevich (In Review). Integrating local pastoral knowledge, participatory mapping, and species distribution modeling for risk assessment of invasive rubber vine (Cryptostegia grandiflora) in Ethiopias Afar region. Ecology and Society.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Under Review Year Published: 2015 Citation: " Chignell, S., M. Luizza, S. Skach, P. Evangelista, & N. Young (In Review). Mapping wetlands with Landsat-�?8 across an elevation gradient: An application of globally available data with species distribution models in the Cache la Poudre Watershed, Colorado. Wetlands.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Wakie, T. T., Evangelista, P.H., Jarnevich, C.S., and Laituri M. 2014. Mapping Current and Potential Distribution of Non-Native Prosopis juliflora in the Afar Region of Ethiopia PLoS One 9:e112854. doi:112810.111371/journal.pone.0112854.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Kumar, S., Evangelista, P.H., Brown, C.S., Moore, J.C., Stohlgren, T.J., Graham, J.J., and Hanzlik, J.R. (2014). Recruiting and Retaining National Needs Fellows in the Area of Sciences for Agricultural Biosecurity. North American College Teacher Association (NACTA) Journal 58:66.


Progress 12/15/12 to 12/14/13

Outputs
Target Audience: - PI, Dr. Kumar developed and taught a course on "Niche Modeling" (Fall 2013). - Co-PI, Dr. Cynthia Brown developed and taughtfollowing courses: (1) Invasive Plants and Weeds: Ecosystems to Molecules (BSPM 528) in Spring 2013, (2)Advanced topics in Ecology (ECOL 571, Fall 2013); and (3)Sagebrushsteppe vulnerability to climate change (Fall 2013). - Co-PI, Dr. Tom Stohlgren developed and taughtfollowing course: Ecological skepticism and predictions (Spring 2013) - All PI/CO-PIs presented their research at national and international meetings in 2013. NIFA Fellows made following oral and poster presentations in 2013: - West, A.M. (2013). Wildland Fire, Invasive Species, and Climate Change in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado. Next Generation Climate Data Products Workshop at NCAR, Boulder, CO. July 15-19, 2013. - West, A.M. (2013). Current and Future Potential Bromus Tectorum Distribution in Rocky Mountain National Park. Department of Bioagricultural Sciences and Pest Management, Colorado State University. Departmental Seminar, Fort Collins, CO. Oct. 2. - West, A.M., S. Kumar, T. Wakie, C.S. Brown, T.J. Stohlgren, M. Laituri, and J. Bromberg (2013). Using High-Resolution Future Climate Scenarios for Predicting Climate Change Effects on Biological Invasions in Rocky Mountain National Park. Ecological Society of America Annual Conference, Portland, OR. Aug 7. - West, A., P. Evangelista, N. Young, C. Jarneviche and L. Carter (2013). Using Spatial Models with Remote Sensing to Map Invasive Species Distributions: A Case Study of Tamarix Along the Arkansas River, Colorado. American Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing. March 24-28, Baltimore, MD. - West, A.M. (2013). Invasive Plant Distribution as an Indicator of Climate Change in Rocky Mountain National Park. Front Range Student Ecology Symposium, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO. - Matt Luizza made oral presentation titled “The importance of 'place': Understanding women's knowledge of plant based ecosystem services along a rural-urban gradient; Bale Mountains, Ethiopia” at the International Symposium on Society and Resource Management (June 4-8, 2013, Estes Park, Colorado). - Matt Luizza made oral presentation titled “Sex and ecosystem services: Understanding valuation, scarcity and abundance of plant-derived services in the Bale Mountains of Ethiopia” as part of the Spring 2013 CCC Seminar and Discussion Series “Collaborative Conservation in Practice: Innovations in Communities around the World”. (April 23, 2013, Fort Collins, Colorado). - Matt Luizza presented paper titled “Assessing the Vulnerability of Ecosystem Services in the Southern Highlands of Ethiopia: Integrating Traditional Ecological Knowledge with Geospatial Mapping and Modeling” at the 2013 International Studies Association Annual Convention "The Politics of International Diffusion: Regional and Global Dimensions". (April 4-6, 2013, San Francisco, CA, USA). Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? - NIFA Fellow, Ms. Amanda West was a Teaching Assistant for an undergraduatecourse in Fall 2013. For more please see accomplishment section above. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? - PIs and NIFA Fellows made several poster and oral presentations at national and international meetings; - PIs developed and taught severalcourses at Colorado State University in Spring and Fall 2013; - Fellows achievements were reported at different forums. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? -Motivate NIFA Fellows to complete their PhD research within the fellowship time period. - Supervise and assist fellows in their research. - Continuously meet fellows and monitor their progress toward their degrees. - Assist fellows in submitting research proposalsin getting funds to support remaining part of their PhD research. - Assist fellows in publishing their research in peer-reviewed scientific journals. - Provide new experiential learning opportunities to fellows via NASA's DEVELOPE program and other projects lead by PIs.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? - PIs developed and taught several courses during Spring and Fall 2013. - PIs and Fellows held bi-weekly face-to-face meetings with NIFA Fellows and monitored their progress, - All NIFA Fellows maintained good everage GPAs (>3.5 out of 4.0). - NIFA Fellows were invloved in several on-campus and international activities. -NIFA Fellowsand PIs worked together and subnmittedfour manuscripts to peer-reviewed journals. - NIFA Fellows were involved in writing, reviewing and editing ofscientific reports and research papers. - NIFA Fellows assisted projectPIsin several invasive species projects and gainedresearch,education, and outreach experience. - NIFA Fellows, Ms. Amanda West and Mr.Matt Luizza passed their PhD Comprehensive exams (Candidacy exam). NIFA Fellows won following awards in 2013: - Amanda West won Travel Scholarship, Climate Boot Camp. Invited Fellow. One-week training hosted by NorthWest Climate Science Center (DOI/USGS/U. of Idaho/Oregon State U./U. of Washington). McCall, Idaho. July 28th-Aug. 2, 2013 - Amanda West won Travel Scholarship, Next Generation Climate Data Products Workshop. Hosted by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), Boulder, CO. July 15-19, 2013. - Amanda West won a small Research Grant from Colorado Mountain Club Foundation. 2013. - Matt Luizza won School of Global Environmental Sustainability (SoGES) Global Sustainability Leadership Fellowship (May, 2013-May, 2014) - Matt Luizza also won Center for Collaborative Conservation (CCC) Fellowship (March, 2012-September 2013). - Matt Luizza was recipient of Colorado State University's James E. Ellis Memorial Scholarship (September, 2013) - Matt Luizza was recipient of Colorado State University's Graduate Degree Program in Ecology Small Grants for Graduate Research Award (June, 2013)

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Under Review Year Published: 2013 Citation: Kumar, S., J. Graham, A. West and P. Evangelista (In Press). Predicting the invasion potential of an exotic mealybug Phenococcus solenopsis (Tinsley) (Hemiptera: Pseudoccidae) and its threat to cotton in India. For Frontiers of Earth Science.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Under Review Year Published: 2013 Citation: West, A.M., S. Kumar, T. Wakie, C.S. Brown, T.J. Stohlgren, M. Laituri, and J. Bromberg (In Review). Using high-resolution future climate scenarios for predicting invasions in National Parks.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Under Review Year Published: 2013 Citation: Luizza, M.W., Young, H., Kuroiwa, C., Evangelista, P., Worede, A., Bussmann, R.W., & Weimer, A. (In Review) Local knowledge of plants and their uses among women in the Bale Mountains, Ethiopia.Ethnobotany Research and Applications
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Under Review Year Published: 2013 Citation: Mattor, K., Betsill, M., Huayhuaca, C., Huber-Stearns, H., Jedd, T., Sternlieb, F., Bixler, P., Luizza, M., & Cheng, A.S. (In Review) Transdisciplinary Research on Environmental Governance: A View from the Inside. Environmental Science and Policy.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Under Review Year Published: 2013 Citation: Tewodros, Wakie, Evangelista, P., Jarnevich, C., and Laituri, M. (In Review). Mapping current and potential invasion of Prosopis juliflora in the Afar Region of Ethiopia. PLOS ONE


Progress 12/15/11 to 12/14/12

Outputs
OUTPUTS: Following accomplishments were made by the three USDA/NIFA/NNF fellows during Dec. 2011- Dec. 2012: 1.All 3 NIFA Fellows received excellent grades in Fall 2011 & Spring 2012 semesters (overall GPA>3.5). 2.Fellows signed up for professional societies memberships (e.g., Ecological Society of America, Society for Conservation GIS, Environmental Governance Working group). 3.Amanda West and Matthew Luizza presented posters at the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture Multicultural Scholars and National Needs Fellows Programs Project Directors Biannual Meeting; Navigating the Postsecondary STEM Pipeline (March 5-6, Washington, DC, USA). 4.Amanda West also presented at the Front Range Student Ecology Symposium, Colorado State University (Feb. 2012), Ecological Society of America Annual Meeting, Portland, OR (August 2012); AmericaView Fall Technical Meeting, EROS Data Center (USGS), Sioux Falls, SD (Sept. 2012), Graduate Climate Conference, University of Washington, Seattle, WA (Oct. 2012), and Association of Public Land Grant Universities, Denver, CO (Nov. 2012). Amanda West was awarded the best Poster Presentation award at the Front Range Student Ecology Symposium, Colorado State University (Feb. 2012). 5.Matthew Luizza also presented at 2012 Geoscience Alliance Conference: Home Places, Local Landscapes, Traditional Knowledge, and Modern Technologies (March 17-18, 2012, Pablo, Montana, USA); 2012 Lund Conference on Earth System Governance: Towards Just and Legitimate Earth System Governance- Addressing Inequalities conference (April 18-20, 2012, Lund University, Lund, Sweden); 2012 NASA DEVELOP Closeout, (July 26, 2012, NASA Headquarters, Washington, D.C.). 6. Tewodros Wakie attended Ecological Society of America Annual Meeting, Portland, OR (August 2012); and attended 3 training seminars at Wondo Genet College of Forestry, Ethiopia. 7.Tewodros Wakie completed a report entitled "Utilization Assessment of Prosopis juliflora in Afar Region, Ethiopia" (July 2012). 8.Matthew Luizza was awarded Center for Collaborative Conservation Fellowship (March 2012-September 2013). 9.Matthew Luizza was part of the Environmental Governance Working Group Intermountain West Initiative with Dr. Michele Betsill, Faculty at the Political Science Department, CSU. 10. Amanda West and Tewodros Wakie developed a tutorial and taught a session during Colorado State University's ISTeC (Information Science & Technology Center) High School Day (Nov. 2012). 11. All 3 fellows also worked as student interns in ColoradoView Project with Dr. Paul Evangelista. 12. NIFA Fellows participated in forest monitoring at the Fraser Experimental Forest, CO, in July 2012, as part of their NASA Develop Internship (Experiential Learning). PARTICIPANTS: Not relevant to this project. TARGET AUDIENCES: Not relevant to this project. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Not relevant to this project.

Impacts
Project evaluation results are coming up.

Publications

  • No publications reported this period


Progress 12/15/10 to 12/14/11

Outputs
OUTPUTS: Following accomplishments were made by the project directors and three USDA/NIFA/NNF fellows during Dec. 2010- Dec. 2011: Recruitment: We had widely advertised the USDA-NIFA-NNF fellowship opportunities at the Natural Resource Ecology Laboratory, Colorado State University. We prepared an advertisement and sent it around to all our professional contacts. We utilized the resources and programs developed by the Graduate Center on Diversity and Access (GCDA) at CSU to recruit students from the under-represented groups. We also distributed the advertisement through the CO-AMP alliance of educational institutions which the GCDA staff visit and email. We had also advertised in ECOLOG, a listserve maintained by the Ecological Society of America, and Society for Conservation GIS listserve. Our advertisement was also posted on the Weed Science Society of America (WSSA) website. We had received several inquiries about the fellowship from interested students from different parts of the United States. Ten candidates had submitted their complete applications. We had shortlisted four candidates (1 woman, 1 African-American man, and 2 White men) based on their GPA, GRE Scores, experience, and background in ecology, statistics and geospatial sciences. All candidates were invited for a Campus visit and project directors including other scientists/professors at NREL/CSU interviewed the candidates and interacted with them during formal meetings and Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner (May 2011). We finally recruited 3 exceptional NIFA fellows for PhD degrees in the field of Agriculture Biosecurity- Ms. Amanda West (woman), Mr. Tewodros Wakie (African-American man; born and raised in Ethiopia), and Matthew Luizza. Fellows started their PhD programs in Fall 2011. PARTICIPANTS: Not relevant to this project. TARGET AUDIENCES: Not relevant to this project. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Not relevant to this project.

Impacts
Fall 2011 semester: - All 3 fellows signed up for courses in ecology, geographical information system (GIS), statistics, and interdisciplinary seminars in ecology. - They selected their major advisors after several meetings with project directors and potential advisors/faculty members. - Fellows were introduced to SAHM (Software for Assisted Habitat Modeling) and VisTrails modeling system. - Amanda West performed a review for an international peer-reviewed journal, and helped Dr. Kumar with analyses for a cotton mealybug paper. - Tewodros Wakie helped Dr. Paul Evangelista (Co-PD) with Inventory of Ethiopian Topographic Maps, Compilation of Bale, Ethiopia, Plant List, and Munessa Shashemene and Bale (Ethiopia) forest cover change study, and Hanto controlled hunting area map preparation. - Matthew Luizza worked with Dr. Evangelista on ColoradoView project and helped in US Fish & Wildlife LCC Maxent Modeling.

Publications

  • No publications reported this period