Source: FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY submitted to
INNOVATIVE CURRICULUM FOR AGRICULTURE TRAINING AND CAREER FOR HISPANICS (ICATCH)
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
TERMINATED
Funding Source
OTHER GRANTS
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
1009820
Grant No.
2016-38422-25549
Project No.
FLAW-2016-03476
Proposal No.
2016-03476
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Program Code
NJ
Project Start Date
Sep 1, 2016
Project End Date
Aug 31, 2021
Grant Year
2019
Project Director
Bhat, M.
Recipient Organization
FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY
(N/A)
MIAMI,FL 33199
Performing Department
Earth and Environment
Non Technical Summary
This project is a consortium of Florida International University (FIU), Universidad Interamericana de Puerto Rico, Miami Dade College-North, St. Thomas University, and Miami Dade College-Homestead for training Hispanic students (50 undergraduates, four masters and one doctoral student) in agricultural, plants and natural resources sciences for career placement in USDA and other federal agencies. The project will enrich the Agri-Science Major at FIU; develop curricula in five collaborating institutions with Challenge-Based Learning designs; pipeline Associate degree students from the two-year to 4-year college; offer internship, community engagement, international learning, and career placement programs; and offer a K-12 school outreach program.
Animal Health Component
20%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
(N/A)
Developmental
(N/A)
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
1010110100020%
1110210107020%
1361099102010%
2051099301040%
6015299209010%
Knowledge Area
601 - Economics of Agricultural Production and Farm Management; 136 - Conservation of Biological Diversity; 111 - Conservation and Efficient Use of Water; 205 - Plant Management Systems; 101 - Appraisal of Soil Resources;

Subject Of Investigation
5299 - Agricultural supplies, general/other; 1099 - Tropical/subtropical fruit, general/other; 0110 - Soil; 0210 - Water resources;

Field Of Science
2090 - Statistics, econometrics, and biometrics; 1070 - Ecology; 1000 - Biochemistry and biophysics; 3010 - Economics; 1020 - Physiology;
Goals / Objectives
The main goals are to develop an innovative curriculum in agricultural sciences across five Hispanic Serving Colleges and Universities in Florida and Puerto Rico and to prepare over 50 undergraduates, four masers and one doctoral students for USDA or related jobs or higher education. In order to accomplish these goals, the project will: (a) strengthen a newly implemented Agri-Science major with four new agri-science courses, and infusion of Challenge-Based Learning into existing curricula; (b) pipeline students from 2-year to 4-year agri-science programs; (c) advance students to USDA and related jobs or higher education; and (d) provide international and domestic career and experiential learning opportunities..
Project Methods
The project will (a) enrich a newly established Agri-Science Major, and enrich the existing environmental/biological/food sciences degree curricula in five collaborating institutions with Challenge-Based Learning designs; (b) pipeline at least 8 Associate degree students from the two-year MDC-H to 4-year FIU; (c) integrate social media networking and web-based learning tools into the proposed agriculture curriculum; (d) offer aggressive programs of internship, community engagement, leadership development, international learning, and career placement programs; and (e) offer a K-12 school outreach program. The project will draw from a team of experienced faculty, administrative staff and graduate students for training and mentoring students, recruiting under-represented students, maintaining live teaching labs on campuses, advising students on career, internships, higher education and professional exeprience. Students will showcase their internship work and do networking across partnering institutions at the annual research symposium, book club and social media. Students also attend national conferences each year and undergodomestic and international travel experience.

Progress 09/01/16 to 08/31/21

Outputs
Target Audience:Hispanic students enrolled in Associate, Bachelor, Master, and Doctoral degree programs in food, agriculture and environmntal science areas at Florida International University, Inter-American University, St Thomas University and Miami Dade College, North and Homestead campusses Changes/Problems:The biggest challenge faced by institutional collaborators during the final year of iCATCH was pandemic and associated difficulties with travel and internship placement. Several USDA internships remained unfilled during 2020-21 academic year. Some of the professional development activities including workshops and symposia conducted as virtual events without giving students an opportunity to interact professionally and socially. As elaborated above, the entire approach to student engagement has been modified to appropriately meet the needs of each student. As in past years, the consortium also experienced challenges in having students placed in USDA internships through the Pathways system. Once again, no students obtained a pathway internship. At a recent roundtable meeting hosted by Secretary Tom Vilsack, FIU President Mark Rosenberg had an opportunity to share some of our thoughts on how USDA can help pipeline grant-funded Hispanic students into USDA and its mission critical jobs and internships. We have continued to address this issue, including hosting several professional development workshops on federal resume building, navigating the USAJOBS system, coaching students on interview skills and application process, and encouraging students to apply to multiple opportunities at a time. One of our collaborators, MDCN, also had difficulty with obtaining the proper invoices, and spending allotted budget on student activities since they were not able to engage students due to various COVID restrictions. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?During the reporting year, students of iCATCH participated in at least 46 professional development events, technical workshops, and experiential learning opportunities (32 FIU, six STU, and eight IAU). IAU Professional development experiences included building resume, through preparing posters, conducting lab research, computational chemistry, application of electromagnetic induction in soils, etc. STU provided Life Sciences South Florida Symposium, molecular biology techniques series workshop, statistical techniques workshop, scientific, research marketing event, and a community service series referred to as The Big Event. At FIU, students had the opportunity to participate in the annual FIU Agroecology Symposium, Internship Day, Faces of Agriculture- USDA informative session, The American Society for Horticultural Science (ASHS)Annual Conference, Farming with Soil Life Short Course - Climate Change & Soil Health, UF South Florida Virtual Leadership Series with UF TREC, etc. Informative session via zoom onSouth Florida's biodiversity "Bringing Nature Back: The Agroecology of Place, Plants, and People, Introduction to horses and horse ownership workshop, vegetative propagation of plants workshop, goat farming workshop, IPM workshop, soil compost workshop, produce safety workshop, Deering Estate Project, MANRRS Regional Cluster, NASDA Summer Policy Conference, SACNAS Stem Diversity Conference, Geneva Peace Week Conference, Organic Garden Restoration, 2021 Plant Science Symposium, FIU MANRRS chapter in collaboration with FDACS UF and FAMU MANRRS co-hosted the1stFlorida Department of Ag. and Consumer Services Leadership Summit. Several undergraduate students were encouraged to take advantage of various internship programs, which they completed successfully. One undergraduate student and two graduate students were able to publish their research. Multiple students were advised on their graduate program applications and made sure that they got into higher studies. At least one graduate student and multiple undergraduate students received job offers from USDA. In each of those cases we spent multiple hours coaching students on their application process, interview skills, and providing references. A finest example of the positive outcome of our effort is that a doctoral graduate received a full-time GS-12 job at USDA. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?The iCATCH students have presented in local, regional, and national events, sharing their research experiences in agriculture, environmental sciences, and biology. The opportunity for all students to present work they contributed to specific research or internship experiences is fundamental towards fomenting a sense of pride and long-lasting engagement in the area of agriculture. The opportunity to present to their peers and to the public imparts upon students a greater confidence in their communication skills. In addition to the annual Agroecology Symposium and conference participation, FIU organizes an annual Internship Presentation Day at the beginning of the fall semester during which time students present about their summer internships to their peers, while the experience is still fresh in their minds. iCATCH is becoming increasingly popular among students, area high schools, community colleges, farmers, and community organizations. Members of iCATCH have participated in about 68 different community engagement activities during the year. The COVID-19 pandemic has had far-reaching effects when it comes to community engagement. Some affiliated organizations and industry individuals, who typically offer students internships, professional development opportunities, and experiential learning experiences, have felt disproportionately negative effects. In response, in 2020 the members of iCATCH at FIU have established, managed, and contributed to a new "FIU COVID-19 Local Food System Response" Facebook group, with the express goal of lessening the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on the South Florida food supply chain by connecting consumers with impacted producers, providing updates on local farms, available produce, contact information, relief programs, online resources, and other forms of support. During the reporting year, the group has received overwhelming support from the community, growing to serve 377 members, and generating 3735 views, 277 posts, which have induced a combined 551 positive reactions. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?We have not only accomplished our targets for the entire grant, i.e., 100% of the recruitment target, but with a total of 167 students supported thus far, we have far surpassed the grant target of 56. We will continue to help those project-supported students who are still in school to apply for USDA jobs, keep them notified of job opportunities, give them training or advice on how to tailor resumes to specific openings, prepare them for the interview process, engage them in research and community activities, and encourage them to strive for higher education. About 31 grant-supported students have already gained valuable internship experience with the USDA during their academic careers (12 FIU + 5 STU + 12 IAU + 2 MDCN). 87 undergraduate students and seven graduate students have graduated during the five year period of the project. Students already identify themselves as a part of a larger learning community, having produced roughly 145 poster or oral presentations at national and regional conferences, meetings, and symposia, four students having published, a number of them taking part in local community engagement projects, and almost all of them conducting lab or organic garden training projects. We will continue to stress the importance of these activities, including training, internship, engagement and publishing, with the existing undergraduate and graduate students. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? We have not only accomplished our targets for the entire grant, i.e., 100% of the recruitment target, but with a total of 167 students supported thus far, we have far surpassed the grant target of 56. We will continue to help those project-supported students who are still in school to apply for USDA jobs, keep them notified of job opportunities, give them training or advice on how to tailor resumes to specific openings, prepare them for the interview process, engage them in research and community activities, and encourage them to strive for higher education. About 31 grant-supported students have already gained valuable internship experience with the USDA during their academic careers (12 FIU + 5 STU + 12 IAU + 2 MDCN). 87 undergraduate students and seven graduate students have graduated during the five year period of the project. Students already identify themselves as a part of a larger learning community, having produced roughly 145 poster or oral presentations at national and regional conferences, meetings, and symposia, four students having published, a number of them taking part in local community engagement projects, and almost all of them conducting lab or organic garden training projects. We will continue to stress the importance of these activities, including training, internship, engagement and publishing, with the existing undergraduate and graduate students. Changes/Problems The biggest challenge faced by institutional collaborators during the final year of iCATCH was pandemic and associated difficulties with travel and internship placement. Several USDA internships remained unfilled during 2020-21 academic year. Some of the professional development activities including workshops and symposia conducted as virtual events without giving students an opportunity to interact professionally and socially. As elaborated above, the entire approach to student engagement has been modified to appropriately meet the needs of each student. As in past years, the consortium also experienced challenges in having students placed in USDA internships through the Pathways system. Once again, no students obtained a pathway internship. At a recent roundtable meeting hosted by Secretary Tom Vilsack, FIU President Mark Rosenberg had an opportunity to share some of our thoughts on how USDA can help pipeline grant-funded Hispanic students into USDA and its mission critical jobs and internships. We have continued to address this issue, including hosting several professional development workshops on federal resume building, navigating the USAJOBS system, coaching students on interview skills and application process, and encouraging students to apply to multiple opportunities at a time. One of our collaborators, MDCN, also had difficulty with obtaining the proper invoices, and spending allotted budget on student activities since they were not able to engage students due to various COVID restrictions.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? (Objective 1) Recruitment of Hispanic students into iCATCH collaboration institutions [Florida International University (FIU), St. Thomas University (STU), Interamerican University of Puerto Rico (IAU), Miami Dade College North Campus (MDCN) and Miami Dade College Homestead Campus (MDCH)]--As of August 31st, 2021, the collaboration has recruited a total of 167 unique college or university students: 59 associate's, 95 bachelor's, seven master's, and six Ph.D. students, far exceeding our FIVE-year target of 56. Of the total 167, 94 (56.29%) have graduated, and 28 (16.77%) have dropped out of the program. We continue to serve the remaining 48 students, three of which have remained after graduating and started Ph.D programs at FIU. About 92.7% of all undergraduate recruits and90.9% of graduate recruits are Hispanic. Moreover, 61.11% of all students are female. (Objective 2) Develop student's scientific and career skills--Each institution has offered both experimental and experiential based opportunities in agriculture.Two FIU Graduate students and one faculty member attended a virtual event of the American Society for Horticultural Science Conference. FIU students attended the Farming with Soil Life Short Course (virtual)--Climate Change & Soil Health, Northeast Region. FIU students participated in the NASA MINDS competition. This is a multi-semester undergraduate level activity that supports NASA's Artemis mission and Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate. One FIU student participated in a program called Drones and Dogs where are able to detect the fungal disease 24 hours since it was introduced which lets the team have a 94% save rate of the tree. Three other FIU students participated in an oral history project, interviewing a third generation farmer who has recently gifted 30 acres of his tropical fruit orchard to FIU. Five STU students conducted research under their Summer Research program. Students also participated in a scientific research marketing event hosted by the STU marketing department, in which they were interviewed about their agroecological studies and professional growth outcomes. Through two years of continual research by several project students, an urban biomass analysis paper was recently submitted for peer review and publication. The project research initiatives resulted in STU receiving for the second year in a row the Insight into Diversity Magazine's2021Inspiring Programs in STEM Award. All IAU students worked on research projects and two participated as well. Two undergraduate IAU students presented their work at the American Chemical Society National Meeting held virtually. One MDCH student presented her research project and findings in the 2020 American Chemistry Society national convention. Several MDCH students also received several workshops on laboratory research skills. Many students completed a certificate highlighting the importance of ethics in research. Virtual workshops were held to provide students guidance on how to search for peer reviewed journals on the college's online library sources. (Objective 3) Broaden agriculture education through enhanced institutional collaboration--FIU iCATCH students who belong to the MANNRS (Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Related Sciences) club participated in events to network between minority agriculture and natural resources students and professionals from the academic institutions, government sector and industry. Students participated at the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture's Summer Policy conference. Students had the opportunity to listen to different states' agricultural commissioners and get insights on how agricultural policy is created. The FIU MANNRS president, an iCATCH recipient, co-organized the 2021 Plant Science Symposium, in collaboration with students and faculty of University of Florida and Florida A&M University. Another event he hosted was the1stFlorida Department of Ag. and Consumer Services Leadership Summit in collaboration with Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Affairs. Several students of MDCH participated in undergraduate research through iCATCH that subsequently participated in internships with University of Florida's research center's Tropical Research and Educational Center. The STU Summer Research Institute extended its agriculture education to students from Miami Dade College who participated in research projects on plant molecular biology, biomass evaluation of tree populations, quantitative forestry techniques, and statistical training. An FIU student participated in the Dogs and Drones project which aimed at detecting COVID-19 with the dogs. This breakthrough program has come at such an important time when a global pandemic is in dire need of technology to help mitigate the pandemic. A community service event, known as The Big Event, was hosted by STU, with one of the primary components of this program delivering the presentation of urban gardening initiatives at STU; a total of 40 students participated in revitalizations of the STU campus gardens. An iCATCH student was selected for the position of College of Science teaching and research assistant due to having obtained the first place in academic performance in the Cell and Molecular Biology Graduate Program. (Objective 4) Help place Hispanic/minority students in USDA and other agencies--iCATCH collaborators made considerable efforts to facilitate students' transition to the USDA and other agencies, and strongly encourage them to take advantage of professional development opportunities. Two FIU students had completed internships at the USDA Subtropical Horticultural Research Station two summers ago and one was subsequently hired as a Biological Aide. One student who did an internship at HUBB, a private farm, was offered a job and he is working on Climate Controlled Agriculture. Four former FIU project students are currently pursuing their master's or doctoral degree in Arizona, New Mexico, Virginia and Florida. Dr. Christina Brown, a former FIU doctoral student, received a full time position as Environmental Economist at USDA Economic Services. One STU student conducted an REU program at the University of Wisconsin at Madison. MDCH students were exposed to possible careers available at companies in the Homestead area. Individuals working at local agricultural companies, engineers from firms in the local area and even a veterinarian in the local community came to campus through our STEM speaker series to share information with students related to the companies they worked for and their jobs. One of the STU students was employed at Kirkman Road Veterinary Clinic and is now currently applying to Veterinary School. A previous student who was enrolled in the PhD Program in Genetics at University of Miami reached out for advice on transferring to Georgetown University in Washington DC. Overall, throughout the duration of the five year project, we have recruited 167 students with 84.43% Hispanic, 61.68% female, and a 83.23% retention rate. About 56.29% of students have either graduated from a four-year program or graduated with an associate's degree and transferred from a two-year to a four-year college. Another 28.74% of the students are continuing in bachelor's, master's or doctoral programs in partner institutions. For instance, several have started or are considering graduate school. One Ph.D. graduate did her Post-Doctoral Scholar work at University of Central Florida, published three papers from her dissertation, and now is working for USDA Economic Service. Several of the project-supported students have participated at national competitions. Furthermore, we have developed a strong institutional collaboration between five Hispanci-Serving Institutions in Florida and Peurto Rico for providing cost-effective agricultural education for minority students.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Under Review Year Published: 2021 Citation: Thiesen, T., Bhat, M. G., Liu, H., and Rovira, R. An Ecosystem Service Approach to Assessing Alternative Agro-Ecosystems in Urban Landscapes. Land, 2021 (under review).
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Acuna, A., D. Sugino-Souffront, and K. Jayachandran. Agranco Trials-Oxinova. Oral Presentation at the 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, November 20th, 2020.
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Carin Luna. Alumna Trades dance floor for farm fields. FIU Case News. December 1, 2020. https://casenews.fiu.edu/2020/12/01/alumna-trades-dance-floor-for-farm-fields/
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Charles N.A., Bhat M.G., Bhatta R, Hegde KM, Hegde GV. Multi-Criteria Hydro-Economic Decision Tool for Rejuvenating Community Irrigation Tanks in Rural India. Water. 2021; 13(11):1594. https://doi.org/10.3390/w13111594
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Brown, C., M. G. Bhat, and J. S. Rehage. Valuing Ecosystem Services under Climate Risk: A Case of Recreation in the Florida Everglades. Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management, 2020, 146(12): 04020089. DOI: 10.1061/(ASCE)WR.1943- 5452.0001290.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Herrera, B., Franck, A. R., & Rockwell, C. A. (2021). Sacred weeds: Common ritual plants from the urban bot�nicas of Miami-Dade County, Florida. Ethnobotany Research and Applications, 22. https://doi.org/10.32859/era.22.07.1-15
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Erica Garcia. Freshman helps train COVID-19 detector dogs on campus. FIU News. June 15, 2021. https://news.fiu.edu/2021/freshman-granted-opportunity-to-train-covid-19-detector-dogs-at-fiu
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Dr. Amir Khoddamzadeh and Ellen Garcia. National student publication says FIU best for making difference in climate crisis. FIU News. January 14, 2021. https://news.fiu.edu/2021/national-student-publication-says-fiu-best-for-making-difference-in-climate-crisis?utm_source=Newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=FIU%20News%20Newsletter
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Castillo, E., A. Freidenreich, and K. Jayachandran. Effects of Different Fertilizer Regimes on Beefsteak Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) Yield and Soil Composition in South Florida. Oral Presentation at the 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, November 20th, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Carrillo, A. Zoo Miami Horticulture Internship. Oral Presentation at the 2021 Internship Day at Florida International University, Miami, FL, September 10th, 2021
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Dalie, K., D. Sugino-Souffront, and E. Betancourt. Comparative Effects of Nutrient Solution Treatments in a Vertical Gardening System. Oral Presentation at the 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, November 20th, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Dalie, K. Hubb Agriculture at Redland Ahead 2021 Summer Internship Experience. Oral Presentation at the 2021 Internship Day at Florida International University, Miami, FL, September 10th, 2021
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: DelaRosa, K and R. Gudavalli. Mercury Speciation via Micro Column Extraction. Oral Presentation at the 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, November 20th, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Flores, J., Khoddamzadeh, A., and M. Patrick, G. Montgomery Botanical Center Conservation Horticulture Fellowship, Climate Change Adaptation and Saltwater Intrusion Ecophysiological Effects on Pseudophoenix sargentii, Roystonea regia, Sabal palmetto Lisa, and Thrinax radiata In South Florida. Oral Presentation at the 2021 Internship Day at Florida International University, Miami, FL, September 10th, 2021
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Frias, N. Working at the USDA-ARS Invasive Plant Research Lab. Oral Presentation at the 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, November 20th, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Garcia, E., and A. Khoddamzadeh. Conservation of South Florida Orchid Mycorrhiza. Oral Presentation at the 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, November 20th, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Martinez, H. Evelyns Property Summer Internship. Oral Presentation at the 2021 Internship Day at Florida International University, Miami, FL, September 10th, 2021
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Merolle, A. Reynolds, T., and Tobin, D. NSF-REU, University of Vermont in collaboration with Uganda, Summer Internship. Geographic, Socio-economic, and Cultural Factors Shaping Crop Diversity and Livelihood Outcomes in East Africa. Bean varietal selection among Ugandan smallholders: tradeoffs when adapting to climate change. Oral Presentation at the 2021 Internship Day at Florida International University, Miami, FL, September 10th, 2021.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Morgan, M. Slow Turtle Farm Summer Internship. Oral Presentation at the 2021 Internship Day at Florida International University, Miami, FL, September 10th, 2021
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Pola, L., Taibi-Briz, K., Ruiz, A., and Spence, S. Start-Now 2021 Costa Rica Training Trip. Oral Presentation at the 2021 Internship Day at Florida International University, Miami, FL, September 10th, 2021
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Salman, N., and Tucker Lima, J. Flower Color Variation in Attalea phalerata Palms. Oral Presentation at the 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, November 20th, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Taibi-Briz, K., K. Jayachandran, Perez, A., and K.G. Shetty. Studies on cellulolytic activity, ethanol tolerance, and silver compound sensitivity of Raffaelea lauricola. Oral Presentation at the 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, November 20th, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Zapsas, D., A. Freidenreich, and K. Jayachandran. Effects of pesticides on microbial communities within a mango orchard in South Florida. Oral Presentation at the 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, November 20th, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Cottiere, S., Pinkley, M., Cocepcion, A., Cendan, L., and Maul, D. Biomass comparison of Pinus elliotti, Quercus virginiana, and Casuarina equisetifolia. Oral Presentation at the St. Thomas University, Miami Gardens, Fl. Presented virtually at the LSSF Symposium in 2021.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Cottiere, S. Analysis of biomass in the urban forest within the St. Thomas University Campus. Oral Presentation at the 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, November 20th, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Alexandra Perez, Hernan Aranguren, Edgar Delgado, Micah Hill, Luis Alfredo Cendan, Antonio Mijail Perez and Dora Pilar Maul. Assessing the above-ground biomass and carbon stock of the St. Thomas University tree community. School of Science, St. Thomas University, Miami Gardens, 2021.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Alexandra Perez, Hernan Aranguren, Edgar Delgado, Luis Alfredo Cendan and Dora Pilar Maul. Establishing a baseline for the growth and development of rapid-cycling Brassica rapa. School of Science, St. Thomas University, Miami Gardens, 2021.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Andres Moas, Soto Marcelo, Chumpitaz Olga, Bahsas Ali, and Maria Pina. Phytochemical tests and antioxidant properties of ethanol/water extracts of several medicinal plants. School of Science, St. Thomas University, Miami Gardens, 2021.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Jasmine Estape, Soto Marcelo, Chumpitaz Olga, Bahsas Ali, and Maria Pina. Total phenolic content in Brazilian pepper tree and column fractionation of bark extracts. School of Science, St. Thomas University, Miami Gardens, 2021.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Luis Alfredo Cendan, Stevenson Cottiere, Micah Hill, Antonio Mijail Perez, and Dora Pilar Maul. A community analysis of the St. Thomas University urban forest invertebrate population. School of Science, St. Thomas University, Miami Gardens, 2021.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Diane Documet, Javier Amaya, Soto Marcelo, Chumpitaz Olga, Bahsas Ali, and Maria Pina. Mexican pepper leaf: thin layer chromatography analysis and antioxidant properties. School of Science, St. Thomas University, Miami Gardens, 2021.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Stevenson Cottiere, Matthew Pinkley, Amanda Concepcion, Luis Alfredo Cendan, Dora Pilar Maul and Antonio Mijail Perez. Aboveground Biomass and Carbon Stock in an Urban forest within the Saint Thomas University Campus. School of Science, St. Thomas University, Miami Gardens, 2021.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Stevenson Cottiere, Matthew Pinkley, Luis Alfredo Cendan, Dora Pilar Maul, and Antonio Mijail Perez. Arthropod Diversity in an Urban Forest. School of Science, St. Thomas University, Miami Gardens, 2021.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Stevenson Cottiere, Jonathan Lombardino, Cody Martin, Tanya Falbel, Briana Burton. Intrinsic factors affecting natural transformation in Bacillus sp. St. Thomas University, Miami Gardens, and University of Wisconsin, Madison, 2021.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Olivia Martinez, Soto Marcelo, Chumpitaz Olga, Bahsas Ali, and Maria Pina. Preliminary study of the antioxidant properties of Turnera ulmifolia (marilopez). School of Science, St. Thomas University, Miami Gardens, 2021.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Montiel, F. Chemometrics of Honey: A Course-based Undergraduate Research Experience (CURE) approach. Oral Presentation at the 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, November 20th, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Gonzalez, A. Transforming a traditional quantitative laboratory into a research-focused analytical laboratory. ACS National Meeting, 2021.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Sambolin, C.A., Gonzalez,A., and Dragoni,J. Effect of silver nanoparticles on the growth of isolated fungi from Premna spp. Oral Presentation at the 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, November 20th, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Ange?lica M. Santana-Orti?z, Dr. Angela Gonza?lez. Determination of the Presence of Microplastics in Mangrove in La Parguera, Puerto Rico. ACS National Meeting, April 2021.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Danilberto Gonza?lez-Orti?z, Dr. Angela Gonza?lez. Microplastic Profile at Depths of 6, 9 and 12 centimeters at El Tuque Beach in Ponce. ACS National Meeting, April 2021.


Progress 09/01/19 to 08/31/20

Outputs
Target Audience:Undergraduate and graduate students primarily belonging to mostly Hispanic origin at higher educational institutions in Florida and Puerto Rico, namely,Florida International University (FIU) (the lead institution), St Thomas University (STU), Inter-American University (IAU), Miami Dade College North (MDCN), and Miami Dade College Homestead (MDCH). Changes/Problems:The biggest challenge faced by institutional collaborators during the fourth year of iCATCH no doubt involved the COVID-19 pandemic and associated social distancing measures. Many signature events for the spring semester necessitated cancellation to adhere to institutional safety mandates and CDC guidelines and all signs indicate that this will remain an issue for the foreseeable future. Members of iCATCH were committed to organizing or participating in a number of large events that were cancelled, including but not limited to, the 2020 Farm Hop Tour, 2020 Agroecology Symposium, Society for Microbiology 2020 Conference, Florida Academy of Sciences Annual Meeting, Life Sciences South Florida Symposium, STU Undergraduate Research Symposium, ACS Spring 2020 National Meeting & Expo, 54th ACS Junior Technical Meeting, STEM Career Day at UPR, and Puerto Rico Chemist Collegiate Meeting. Projects originally planned for the 2020 STU Summer Research program included the barcoding of Florida endangered plants, medicinal plant protein analysis, expansion of prior urban forest biomass and carbon sequestration research, local urban forest invertebrate biodiversity analysis, and autonomous robot-based soil nutrient supplementation, however, these have been put on hold and STU summer engagement will now focus on research activities that can be completed remotely. As elaborated above, the entire approach to student engagement has been modified to appropriately meet the needs of each student. Another major issue inhibiting activities at IAU were the series of 11 earthquakes at magnitude five or greater that struck Puerto Rico between December and January. Although loss of human life was minimal, these earthquakes caused widespread devastation and hundreds of thousands of dollars of damage to infrastructure. The island had only started to recover by the time that COVID-19 was recognized as a serious issue. As in past years, the consortium also experienced challenges in having students placed in USDA internships through the Pathways system. Once again, no students obtained a pathway internship. We have tried various methods to address this issue, including hosting several professional development workshops on federal resume building, navigating the USAJOBS system, building Linkedin profiles, encouraging students to apply to multiple opportunities at a time, etc. Our relationships with local USDA agencies, private farms, and other educational research organizations have gone a long way in ensuring that students still receive internship and research experience valuable to future USDA careers. We also have yet another change of co-PD at MDCH, the fourth such change in four years. The current co-PD at MDCH, Dr. Niurka Goenaga, is working with the previous interim co-PD, Dr. Carlos Archbold, towards engaging their students in laboratory research and other professional development activities. FIU co-PD, Dr. Mahadev Bhat, and Agroecology Program Coordinator, Eric Betancourt, even gave an informational lecture about the project at MDCH with an iCATCH graduate who had successfully transitioned from the college to FIU. MDCH did see a large influx of applications to join the program in the weeks following, but the COVID-19 crisis severely inhibited communication and proper onboarding of these students. Overall, 11 MDCH students are known to have graduated and moved onto four-year programs. There has been tremendous difficulty with obtaining the proper invoices, discovering the appropriate avenue of payment for the services through the FIU Financial System, obtaining approvals, etc., that have hindered progress on payments, but efforts are being made to encumber the greatest amount of grant funds as possible before the end of summer. Note that most of our activities take place during the summer and these activities have been severely inhibited by the COVID-19 crisis. Invoices are at various stages of submission, approval, and disbursal and the efforts of smaller university collaborators have been somewhat impeded by smaller staff sizes in their financial departments. The spread of COVID-19 and subsequent quartine have had a significant detremental effect on budget spending for the spring and summer 2020 semester and it appears that the crisis will continue to inhibit for the immediate future to some degree. While our current amount of funds withdrawn from USDA may seem low, a substantial amount of grant funds will be obligated to support summer activities for current scholars. The largest part of our budget is typically spent during the summer semester as stipends for internships, travel, hands-on research mentoring, graduate student training, and other professional development experiences. Although in-person activities are currently prohibited, efforts are being made to engage students remotely. Since iCATCH students have been both financially and professionally impacted, PDs and grant coordinators are doing everything in their power to ensure that they are able to continue earning stipends. The circumstances of each student are being individually assessed to assign tasks that can be completed virtually and set expectations for summer activities and deliverables. When the status quo changes, assignments will be modified, and on-site activities will resume as permitted. Despite repercussions being felt by the recent earthquakes and COVID-19, IAU plans to spend at least $32,000 from their budget before the end of summer. As always, invoices from institutional collaborators are at various stages of submission, approval, and disbursal, meaning that amounts drawn may not exactly reflect actual expenditures to date. At MDCN, stipend guidelines were revised for year four of iCATCH to partially address this issue. Students there were encouraged to complete and submit hours for research, internship, and community engagement more regularly in order to process and disburse stipend checks on a monthly basis rather than as a lump sum. A larger portion of the overall budget has been committed to graduate student stipends as three more master's students were recruited and another master's student transitioned to a Ph.D. at FIU. Finally, more than $17,000 of the total budget has been allocated towards scientific instrumentation and PDs will meet soon to determine what equipment acquisitions will provide the greatest benefit for students. In spite of these efforts, we estimate that a large amount of the budget will remain unspent so we plan to apply for a no-cost extension because we are confident that the funds can be exhausted if afforded another year. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?During the reporting year, our program focused on emphasizing professional and technical training. The consortium offered in-class and online courses, an Environmental Studies: Agri-Science Major (FIU), Agroecology Certificate (FIU), workshops, lab courses, field visits, conference travel, and other research and educational training opportunities. Since its inception in 2015, 86 unique students have registered under the Agri-Science Major and 21 have already graduated. During active years of iCATCH, 79 unique students have been added to the Agroecology Certificate program and 63 have seen it through to completion. Excluding MDCH, about 97.37% of current year students engaged in research experiential learning activities (16/16 FIU + 11/11 IAU + 6/6 STU + 4/5 MDCN). Almost every student is currently participating in some form of experiential learning mentoring. We find that one of the most influential aspects in the students' success in the project is the experiential learning to which they are exposed. Students benefit greatly from internships, peer mentoring, research, and other professional development opportunities, and all students are able to take advantage of these opportunities within this program. Students report that the variety of experiential learning opportunities have improved their connection to the school and the surrounding community. Peer mentoring has built camaraderie and provided leadership, while experiential learning has exposed them to different paths that they may pursue after graduation. Participation in the project has helped students to visualize themselves in fields outside of medicine and engineering, which most students know. During the current grant year, members of iCATCH involved themselves in about 55 community engagement activities. Additionally, grant-supported students made 11 oral or poster presentations during year four at five different national and regional conferences, meetings, and symposia. All students engaging in research have been encouraged to present at conferences and symposia. Conferences allow students to network with USDA agencies, graduate schools, industry representatives, and students of other colleges and universities. Throughout the year, members of iCATCH participated in at least 38 professional development events, technical workshops, and experiential learning opportunities (27 FIU, five STU, seven IAU, and one MDCN). Professional development experiences included the following: a PGIM Agricultural Division Opportunities Session, M@P Information Session, USFS Opportunities Session, Homestead Eco Fair 2020, NASA Career Day, Los Alamos National Laboratories Internship Orientation, USSEE Tenth Biennial Conference, 2019 Thanksgiving Professional Networking Function, USDA HSI Project Directors Meeting, AAHHE 15th Annual National Conference, FIU Department of Earth & Environment 2020 Graduate Research Symposium, 2019 STU Summer Research Institute Symposium, 42nd ACS Senior Technical Meeting, Annual MDC STEAM Expo, workshops on Building Your Resume, Job Readiness, Ten Commandments of Cover Letters, and various other career fairs. Unfortunately, the spread of COVID-19 prompted the cancellation of many large events for which students were preparing to participate, including the 2020 Farm Hop Tour, 2020 Agroecology Symposium, 35th MANRRS Annual Career Fair and Training Conference, American Society for Microbiology 2020 Conference, Florida Academy of Sciences Annual Meeting, Life Sciences South Florida Symposium, STU Undergraduate Research Symposium, ACS Spring 2020 National Meeting & Expo, 54th ACS Junior Technical Meeting, STEM Career Day at UPR, and Puerto Rico Chemist Collegiate Meeting. The annual Agroecology Symposium is our most important signature event as it provides a locally organized platform in which all grant-supported students are invited to present their research free of charge and engage with industry and academic professionals. The 2020 Agroecology Symposium was cancelled within two weeks of the scheduled date, which was particularly devastating as iCATCH students were set to give three oral presentations (one FIU and two STU) and 14 poster presentations (ten FIU + four STU). Although denied the opportunity to present to a large audience, students still completed and turned in the research posters as a product of their work. Technical workshops were conducted for Propagation, Air Layering and Pruning, Vegetative Asexual Propagation: Grafting, Bee Day, Garden Improvement, Sunset with the Bees Beekeeping Demonstration, Goat Rearing, Harvesting, Composting, Introduction to Pollinators, Beeswax Candle Making, Beekeeping 101, Food Forest and Balcony Gardens, Hive Maintenance, and Biofertilizers. FIU safety precautions related to the COVID-19 pandemic necessitated the cancellation of workshops on Organic Garden Drip Irrigation Installation, Seed Saving and Propagation, Insect Houses, Bonsais, and Palm Pike Apiary Setup Day. Field trips were organized to visit Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Pine Island Nursery, and Montgomery Botanical Center. Seven iCATCH students (five FIU and two STU) participated in a ten-day international study abroad experience visiting labs and research sites associated with the International Center for Tropical Agriculture and local agricultural operations in Cali, Colombia. Four STU students took part in an international educational research trip visiting regional agriculture institutions and engaging with local researchers and horticulturalists in Nicaragua. Seven members of iCATCH at STU participated in a conservation population survey for the endangered Lakela's mint in a protected sanctuary in Fort Pierce, Florida. FIU Agroecology Program coordinator, Eric Betancourt, offers students one-on-one certificate advising, research mentoring, resume development, interview preparation, connections with internship and job opportunities, and writes countless letters of recommendation. STU co-PD, Dr. Dora P. Maul, regularly mentors iCATCH students on STEM careers in plant sciences, internship opportunities, and graduate school applications. Students at MDCN write a reflection paper after attending workshops to hone their writing skills. Their students are also encouraged to approach grant coordinator, Martha Casero, for any further guidance regarding their educational pathway, STEM careers, internship opportunities, courses, etc. During the upcoming summer, some of the 46 students remaining in the program will complete virtual internships, while the majority will participate in remote research under the supervision of individually assigned faculty, staff, and graduate student mentors. Students will also be notified and encouraged to participate in relevant online courses and webinars that work towards their professional development. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?The iCATCH students have presented in local, regional, and national events, sharing their research experiences in agriculture, environmental sciences, and biology. The opportunity for all students to present work they contributed to specific research or internship experiences is fundamental towards fomenting a sense of pride and long-lasting engagement in the area of agriculture. Presentations are among the most difficult of activities for most of our students. However, after they are done, they feel that they accomplished a great step in their career. Most students funded during the fourth year have completed at least one presentation through the project. The opportunity to present to their peers and to the public imparts upon students a greater confidence in their communication skills. In addition to the annual Agroecology Symposium and conference participation, FIU organizes an annual Internship Presentation Day at the beginning of the fall semester during which time students present about their summer internships to their peers, while the experience is still fresh in their minds. iCATCH is becoming increasingly popular among students, area high schools, community colleges, farmers, and community organizations. Members of iCATCH have participated in about 55 different community engagement activities during the year. The program has worked to provide K-12 and general community outreach through school visits, tours, presentations, and educational activities. The FIU iCATCH program never failed to meet recruitment targets for the Agroecology High School Student Summer Internship Program. IAU students collaborated with the Puerto Rico Section of ACS to perform agriculture-related demonstrations for 50 children and 100 adults who attended their booth and learned about how plants get nutrients, how to preserve the soils, and USDA mission. The COVID-19 pandemic has had far-reaching effects when it comes to community engagement. Some affiliated organizations and industry individuals, who typically offer students internships, professional development opportunities, and experiential learning experiences, have felt disproportionately negative effects. In response, members of iCATCH at FIU have established, managed, and contributed to a new "FIU COVID-19 Local Food System Response" Facebook group, with the express goal of lessening the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on the South Florida food supply chain by connecting consumers with impacted producers, providing updates on local farms, available produce, contact information, relief programs, online resources, and other forms of support. Within the first month, the group has received overwhelming support from the community, growing to serve 277 members, and generating 66 posts, which have induced a combined 462 positive reactions and 151 post shares to member pages. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?We have not only accomplished our targets for the fourth year, i.e., 100% of the fourth-year recruitment target, but with a total of 134 students supported thus far, we have far surpassed the four-year target of 56. We will continue to help our students to apply for USDA jobs, keep them notified of job opportunities, give them training or advice on how to tailor resumes to specific openings, prepare them for the interview process, engage them in research and community activities, and encourage them to strive for higher education. About 31 grant-supported students have already gained valuable internship experience with the USDA during their academic careers (12 FIU + 5 STU + 12 IAU + 2 MDCN). 62 undergraduate students and six graduate students have graduated during the first four years of the project. Students already identify themselves as a part of a larger learning community, having produced at least 131 poster or oral presentations at national and regional conferences, meetings, and symposia, two students having published, a number of them taking part in local community engagement projects, and almost all of them conducting lab or organic garden training projects. Once travel restrictions have been lifted, we will enable students to travel and present their research at local and national symposia and conferences. We plan to continue to engage students in the above professional and academic activities in the coming years and continue our recruitment efforts despite having already met our four-year recruitment target. For the immediate future, we will continue engaging students remotely with the approaches detailed above until it has been deemed safe to resume hands-on activities. We plan to apply for a one-year no-cost extension of the grant in order to better make use of leftover funds.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? (Objective 1) Recruitment of Hispanic students into iCATCH collaboration institutions [Florida International University (FIU), St. Thomas University (STU), Interamerican University of Puerto Rico (IAU), Miami Dade College North Campus (MDCN) and Miami Dade College Homestead Campus (MDCH)]--As of May 1st, 2020, the collaboration has recruited a total of 134 unique college or university students: 40 associate's, 83 bachelor's, seven master's, and four Ph.D. students, far exceeding our FOUR-year target of 56. Of the total 134, 68 (50.75%) have graduated or will graduate before the end of the 2019-2020 grant year, and 22 (16.42%) have dropped out of the program. We continue to serve the remaining 46 students, two of which have remained after graduating and started Ph.D programs at FIU. About 89% of all undergraduate recruits and 90.9% of graduate recruits are Hispanic. Moreover, 61.94% of all students are female. (Objective 2) Develop student's scientific and career skills--Each institution has offered both experimental and experiential based opportunities in agriculture-related fields. At FIU, all grant-supported students engaged in a massive project that involved redesigning the campus Organic Garden, building 27 raised beds (one meeting accessibility standards set through the Americans with Disabilities Act), constructing numerous nursery benches, restocking seeds, and acquiring and installing 26 trees for the food forest. FIU students made presentations at several conferences and symposia, where multiple awards were conferred. One graduate student was awarded 1st Place for Outstanding Thesis in the Caminos Thesis Competition in Food and Agricultural Sciences at the 15th Annual American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education (AAHHE) National Conference. Another graduate student was awarded 2nd Place in MS Poster Presentations at the FIU Department of Earth & Environment 2020 Graduate Research Symposium. A ten-day international study abroad experience in agriculture and natural resource conservation was organized for seven eligible iCATCH students (five FIU and two STU) in Cali, Colombia, visiting the International Center for Tropical Agriculture as well as the CENICANA Sugarcane Research Center, and Hacienda Balsora sustainable sugarcane farm. The 2019 STU Summer Research program engaged six iCATCH students in research projects, all of whom participated in poster presentations at the corresponding 2019 STU Summer Research Institute Symposium. Four STU students took part in an international educational research trip to Nicaragua, conducting population surveys and morphological measurements on local endangered mollusk species and visiting regional agriculture institutions. All IAU students worked on research projects and two participated in the 42nd American Chemical Society (ACS) Senior Technical Meeting. IAU students also performed voluntary work at national and state forests, conservation areas, or agricultural extensions. At MDCN, iCATCH students have been actively engaged in weekly maintenance of the School of Science garden, where they seed, water, and harvest produce for donation to the campus's Food Pantry. Two students started research projects under the guidance of MDCN biology faculty members and two other students began research projects with scientists at the UF/IFAS Tropical Research and Education Center. MDCH students' scientific and writing skills have been enhanced by participation in the undergraduate research program where they are required to document the progress of their scholarly activities and turn in a project report. (Objective 3) Broaden agriculture education through enhanced institutional collaboration--Our collaboration aimed to recruit eight students during the first two years from the local two-year college, MDCH, and pipeline them into a four-year college. As of the fourth year, MDCH has recruited 37 students into the program; of those, 11 students have transferred to universities such as FIU (four), MDCN (three), University of Miami (two), or University of Florida (two) into four-year programs in Sustainability and the Environment (FIU), Biological Sciences (MDCN and Univ of Miami), Marine Science (UM), Engineering (FIU and UF), Marketing (FIU), and Psychology (FIU). Further, seven high school students completed a six-week long summer internship at FIU in the summer of 2019. This internship provided interns with experiential learning opportunities in agricultural and environmental sciences via lab and garden activities as well as several field trips to local farms and agricultural and plant research stations. FIU undergraduate students, graduate students, and faculty members served as judges at the Florida FFA District Leadership Development Contest and at the 66th Annual South Florida Regional Science and Engineering Fair. Members of iCATCH at FIU also participated in more than 15 outreach events. STU students served as judges in the City of Miami Gardens Science Fair, engaging with students and assessing their research and presentation skills. IAU students performed agriculture-related demonstrations for adults and children at a public plaza as a collaboration with the Puerto Rico Section of the ACS to celebrate National Chemistry Week. MDCN students served as judges and participated in education and community engagement at the Annual Children's Holiday event and the Annual MDC STEAM Expo, which drew an attendance of over 10,000 people. MDCH iCATCH students were advised and completed courses that are transferable and part of desired curriculum pathways to make an easy transition into four-year degree programs. (Objective 4) Help place Hispanic/minority students in USDA and other agencies--iCATCH collaborators make considerable efforts to facilitate students' transition to the USDA and other agencies, and strongly encourage them to take advantage of professional development opportunities. All FIU students have completed agriculture-related internships during each summer. One FIU Hispanic student graduated and works as a Program Technician at the USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA), Florida City. Another Hispanic student graduated and works as a Biological Science Technician for the USDA ARS Subtropical Horticulture Research Station; two other Hispanic students completed internships at the same station last summer and one was subsequently hired as a Biological Aide. One former student currently works as an Environmental Specialist for the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Division of Plant Industry. One graduate works for the University of Arizona (UArizona) Cooperative Extension Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program and is completing the Master Gardener's Program. One master's graduate became an Environmental Scientist for Geosyntec Consultants. Three students completed experiential learning internships at farms, one at Yerba Buena Farm in Jamaica, and two others locally at St. Simon's Farm. From STU, one student recently accepted a research position with the USDA ARS Subtropical Horticulture Research Station, and another graduate accepted a laboratory position with UM. From IAU, all graduated iCATCH participants are either working in industry or continued to graduate school. One student interned with the USFWS Salt Flats Conservation Program at Cabo Rojo National Wildlife Refuge, another interned with the Bat Conservation Program at Julio Enrique Monagas National Park, four interned at the University of Puerto Rico (UPR)-Mayagüez Agricultural Experiment Station, and one interned with Nutritional Services at Hospital La Concepción. Two of MDCN students interned with the UF/IFAS Tropical Research and Education Center, while one graduate is working for the USDA. MDCH students are required to make presentations at the end of the year.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Berthold, D.E., N. Jungman, N. Engene, K. Jayachandran, M. Gantar, H.D. Laughinghouse, and K.G. Shetty. "Omega-7 producing alkaliphilic diatom Fistulifera sp. (Bacillariophyceae) from Lake Okeechobee, Florida." Algae. 2020; 35(1): 91-106.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Accepted Year Published: 2020 Citation: Brown, C., M. G. Bhat, and J. S. Rehage. Valuing Ecosystem Services under Climate Risk: A Case of Recreation in the Florida Everglades. Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management, 2020 (Resubmitted).
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Under Review Year Published: 2020 Citation: Freidenreich, F., B. Harris, E. Betancourt, M.S. Reis, S. Dattamudi, and K. Jayachandran. Effects of Fire on Plant and Soil Dynamics in a Managed Pine Rockland Ecosystem. Agricultural & Environmental Letters, 2020 (under review).
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Garcia, C., S. Dattamudi, S. Chanda, and K. Jayachandran. Effect of Salinity Stress and Microbial Inoculations on Glomalin Production and Plant Growth Parameters of Snap Bean (Phaseolus vulgaris). Agronomy. 2019; 9(9):545.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Kleiman, B., A. Primoli, S. Koptur, and K. Jayachandran. Weeds, Pollinators, and Parasitoids - Using Weeds for Insect Manipulation in Agriculture. Journal of Research in Weed Science. 2020; 3(3):382-390.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Bhat, M.G., A. Freidenreich, K. Jayachandran, and K.G. Shetty. Applying Agroecological Principles to Urban Food Production. Oral Presentation at the United States Society for Ecological Economics Tenths Biennial Conference Joint Meeting with the Ecological Society of America, Louisville, KY, August 13th, 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Brown, C.E. and M.G. Bhat. Valuing freshwater ecosystem services: A missing peace in the restoration and climate change debate on the Florida Everglades. Oral Presentation at the United States Society for Ecological Economics Tenths Biennial Conference Joint Meeting with the Ecological Society of America, Louisville, KY, August 14th, 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Charles, N., M.G. Bhat, R. Bhatta, K.M. Hegde, G.V. Hegde, and P.R. Bhat. Ecological-economic evaluation of water resources in Karnataka, India for rural agriculture. Oral Presentation at the United States Society for Ecological Economics Tenths Biennial Conference Joint Meeting with the Ecological Society of America, Louisville, KY, August 14th, 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Dominguez, J. Exploring the Potential of Endophytes and Medicinal Plants as Sources of Antimicrobials to Control Citrus Greening, Oral Presentation at the American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education (AAHHE) 15th Annual National Conference, Costa Mesa, CA, March 7th, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Freidenreich A. and K. Jayachandran. Sustainable Nutrient Management for Tropical Fruit Production. Oral Presentation at 2019 ASA-CSSA-SSSA International Annual Meeting in San Antonio, TX, November 10th-13th, 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Torres, S. Observations on koala browsing behavior to inform on more sustainable food forage. Oral Presentation at the Conservation and Research Lecture Series at Zoo Miami, Miami, FL, October 22nd, 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Vorseth, C.C., A. Stainback, and M.G. Bhat. Deliberative multi-criteria analysis of restoration alternatives for the Greater Everglades Ecosystem. Oral Presentation at the United States Society for Ecological Economics Tenths Biennial Conference Joint Meeting with the Ecological Society of America, Louisville, KY, August 14th, 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Gaffar, S., C. Riquelme, and K. Jayachandran. Effect of Different Biochars on Plant Growth, Soil Microbes and Enzyme Activity. Poster Presented at 2019 ASA-CSSA-SSSA International Annual Meeting in San Antonio, TX, November 10th-13th, 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Garcia, E., J. Downing, and A. Khoddamzadeh. Conservation of South Florida Orchid Mycorrhiza. Poster Presented at the Department of Earth & Environment 2020 Graduate Research Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 6th, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Kleiman, B. and K. Jayachandran. How do weeds affect insects in mango farms? Poster Presented at the Department of Earth & Environment 2020 Graduate Research Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 6th, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Mullin, A., J. Downing, and A. Khoddamzadeh. In-vitro micropropagation of native, endangered orchids. Poster Presented at the Department of Earth & Environment 2020 Graduate Research Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 6th, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Sugino-Souffront, D., K. Jayachandran, D. Salazar-Amoretti, and A. Khoddamzadeh. Influence of Vermicompost Tea on Secondary Metabolite Production in Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) Poster Presented at the Department of Earth & Environment 2020 Graduate Research Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 6th, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Rodriguez, B. Effect of environmental stressors on the essential oil quality and quantity of spearmint (Mentha spicata). Oral Presentation Scheduled for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Acuna, A., D. Sugino-Souffront, and K. Jayachandran. Lacinato Kale Growth in a Vertical Farming System Compared to Conventional Farming Practices. Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Bacarossi, B. and K. Jayachandran. Agroecological management with cover crops in the FIU Organic Garden food forest. Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Belfer, S., J. Downing, and A. Khoddamzadeh. Screening Media for Native Floridian and Puerto Rican Fern Spore Germination. Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Castillo, E., A. Freidenreich, and K. Jayachandran. Effects of Different Fertilizer Regimes on Beefsteak Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) Yield and Soil Composition in South Florida. Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Dalie, K., D. Sugino-Souffront, and E. Betancourt. Comparative Effects of Nutrient Solution Treatments in a Vertical Gardening System. Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Del Carmen Ona, M. and M.G. Bhat. Farmers Market Access As a Measure of Food Insecurity: Miami-Dade County (MDC). Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Dominguez, J., K. Jayachandran, E. Stover, J. Krystel, M.G. Bhat, and K.G. Shetty. Endophytes and Medicinal Plants as Sources of Antimicrobials to Control Citrus Greening. Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled American Society for Microbiology 2020 Conference, Chicago, IL, June 19th, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Frias, N., D. Sugino-Souffront, and K. Jayachandran. Effects on Antioxidant Production in Red and Blue Light Spectrums in Spinach. Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Gaffar, S., C. Riquelme, and K. Jayachandran. Effect of Different Biochars on Plant Growth, Soil Microbes and Enzyme Activity. Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Gaffar, S., C. Riquelme, and K. Jayachandran. Effect of Different Biochars on Plant Growth, Soil Microbes and Enzyme Activity. Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled Graduate Student Appreciation Week Scholarly Forum at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 30th, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Garcia, E., J. Downing, and A. Khoddamzadeh. Conservation of South Florida Orchid Mycorrhiza. Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Garcia, M. and J. Prats. Arduino platform development board irrigation system versus manual watering for urban gardening applications Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Kleiman, B. and K. Jayachandran. How do weeds affect insects in mango farms? Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Kleiman, B. and K. Jayachandran. How do weeds affect insects in mango farms? Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled Graduate Student Appreciation Week Scholarly Forum at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 30th, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Lewin, K., B. Herrera, D. Salazar-Amoretti, K. Jayachandran, and A. Khoddamzadeh. Ethnomedicinal properties of mountain soursop (Annona montana). Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Malagon, A., A. Franck, and K. Jayachandran. Changes in Hardwood Hammocks Due to Agricultural Development in the Redland. Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Mullin, A., J. Downing, and A. Khoddamzadeh. In-vitro micropropagation of native, endangered orchids. Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Perez-Leyva, A., A. Primoli, S. Koptur, K. Jayachandran, D. Salazar Amoretti, S. Eddy, and D. Carrillo. Native Plants Enhance Arthropod-mediated Ecosystem Services in Conventional and Organic Agro-ecosystems. Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Riquelme, C., S. Gaffar, and K. Jayachandran. Effect of different biochars on plant growth parameters. Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Rodriguez, B., M. Tiedeman, S. Chanda, K. Jayachandran, and J. Sasson. Effect of environmental stressors on the essential oil quality and quantity of spearmint (Mentha spicata). Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Sugino-Souffront, D., K. Jayachandran, D. Salazar-Amoretti, and A. Khoddamzadeh. Influence of Vermicompost Tea on Secondary Metabolite Production in Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Taibi-Briz, K., K. Jayachandran, and K.G. Shetty. Studies on cellulolytic activity, ethanol tolerance, and silver compound sensitivity of Raffaelea lauricola. Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Torres, S., J. Dominguez, K. Jayachandran, and K.G. Shetty. Screening endophytes with known antibacterial properties for potential antifungal properties. Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Zapsas, D., A. Freidenreich, and K. Jayachandran. Effects of pesticides on microbial communities within a mango orchard in South Florida Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Ruiz, L.C., D.P. Maul, and L. de Lorenzo. Analysis of transcription factor in vivo targets on Arabidopsis thaliana using bioinformatics approaches. Oral Presentation at the Summer Research Institute Symposium at St. Thomas University, Miami Gardens, FL, October 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Ruiz, L.C. D.P. Maul, and L. de Lorenzo. Analysis of transcription factor in vivo targets on Arabidopsis thaliana using bioinformatics approaches. Poster Presentation at the Summer Research Institute Symposium at St. Thomas University, Miami Gardens, FL, October 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Cottiere, S. M. Pinkley, L.A. Cendan, D.P. Maul, and A.M. Perez. Biomass comparison of Pinus elliottii, Quercus virginiana, and Casuarina equisetifolia. Poster Presentation at the Summer Research Institute Symposium at St. Thomas University, Miami Gardens, FL, October 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Concepcion, A.P., L.A. Cendan, and D.P. Maul. Effect of organic fertilizers on the growth of Malabar spinach (Basella alba). Poster Presentation at the Summer Research Institute Symposium at St. Thomas University, Miami Gardens, FL, October 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Herrera, C., A. Pineda, and D.P. Maul. DNA Amplification and Fingerprinting in Dry Commercial Herbal Teas. Poster Presentation at the Summer Research Institute Symposium at St. Thomas University, Miami Gardens, FL, October 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Concepcion, A. Tropical Ecology, Agroecology, and Conservation Biology in Nicaragua. Oral Presentation Scheduled for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Cottiere, S. Biomass comparison of three hardwood species as an indicator of CO2 storage. Oral Presentation Scheduled for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Ruiz, L.C., D.P. Maul, and L. de Lorenzo. Analysis of transcription factor in vivo targets on Arabidopsis thaliana using bioinformatics approaches. Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Cottiere, S., M. Pinkley, L.A. Cendan, D.P. Maul, and A.M. Perez. Biomass comparison of Pinus elliottii, Quercus virginiana, and Casuarina equisetifolia. Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Concepcion, A.P., L.A. Cendan, and D.P. Maul. Effect of organic fertilizers on the growth of Malabar spinach (Basella alba). Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Herrera, C. A. Pineda, and D.P. Maul. DNA Amplification and Fingerprinting in Dry Commercial Herbal Teas. Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Theses/Dissertations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Brown, CE. "Essays on Economic Valuation of Water Resources." Doctoral Dissertation Defense at Florida International University, Miami, FL, June 20th, 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Tiedeman, M. and K. Jayachandran. Soil microbiological diversity as a tool for assessing restoration success in pine rocklands. Poster Presentation Prepared for Canceled 2020 Agroecology Symposium at Florida International University, Miami, FL, March 23rd, 2020.
  • Type: Theses/Dissertations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Charles, N. "Assessment of watersheds for sustainable agriculture in Karnataka, India." Masters Thesis Defense at Florida International University, Miami, FL, June 25th, 2019.


Progress 09/01/18 to 08/31/19

Outputs
Target Audience:Undergraduate (associate degree and 4-year) and graduate students primarily belonging to Hispanic origin in Florida and Puerto Rico. Changes/Problems:We are still having a challenge within the consortium with finding USDA internships through the pathways system for students. No one obtained a pathway internship this year just as in year 1 through 3. We have tried various methods to address thisissue, including hosting several professional development workshops on federal resume building, navigating the USAJOBS system, branding and logo development, building Linkedin profiles, encouraging students to apply to multiple opportunities at a time, etc. We supplement the above defficiency with opportunities at local USDA agencies (unpaid), private farms, and other educational research organizations. We also have a change of staff and co-Project Director at our HSI partnership collaborators, MDCN and MDCH. The respective institutions are working towards engaging AS students into lab research and other professional development activities. We have requested for re-allocation of sum funds during year 4 (in 4th year continuation proposal) from MDCN to two other collaborating institutions, STU and IAU, which we think can better utilize funds for recruiting more Hispanic undergraduate and graduate students.The vast majority of our third-year grant fund is already obligated and by the year end (August), we will have encumbered most of the budget. There has been tremendous difficulty with obtaining the proper invoices, discovering the appropriate avenue of payment for the services through the FIU Financial System, obtaining approvals, etc. that have hindered progress on payments, but the total amount will be encumbered before the end of summer as well. Note that most of our activities, as in year 3, take place this summer. The invoices from the collaborators are at various stages of submission, approval, and disbursal. The efforts ofsmaller university collaborators continue to besomewhat impeded by smaller staff sizes in their financial departments and frequent changes in the project staff.Most of their budget has been used towards students in the form of stipends, activities, trips,tuition, and research. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?During the reporting year, our program focused on emphasizing professional and technical training. The consortium offered in-class and online courses, agri-science major (FIU), Agroecology Certificates, workshops, lab courses, field visits, conference travel, and other research and educational training opportunities. About 63% of current year students engaged in research experiential learning activities (16/19 FIU + 2/11 IAU + 8/8 STU + 3/8 MDCN). Nearly all of the students are currently participating in some form of experiential learning mentoring. We find that one of the most influential aspects in the students' success in the project is the experiential learning to which they are exposed. The students benefit greatly through internships, peer mentoring, undertaking research, and others; all of our students are able to take advantage of these opportunities in this program. Students report the variety of experiential learning opportunities have improved their connection to the school and the surrounding community. Peer mentoring has built camaraderie and provided leadership. Experiential learning activities have shown them different paths that they may follow after graduation. Their participation in the project is helping them to visualize themselves in other opportunities besides medicine and engineering, which most students know. Program participants have involved themselves in about 60 community engagement activities. In addition, the program students made at least 45 poster or oral presentations during year 3 at 14 different national and regional conferences and symposia. Almost all of the students had opportunity to take part in the same workshops or conferences. These conferences allowed students to network with students of other colleges and universities, USDA agencies, graduate schools and industry representatives. Throughout the year, members of iCATCH conducted or participated in at least 27 in-person professional development experiences and technical workshops (19 FIU + 3 STU + 4 IAU + 1 MDCH). Professional development experiences included: workshops on Agriculture Entrepreneurship and How to Prepare a Poster, the 2018 MANRRS Region II & III Cluster Meeting, 34th MANRRS Annual Career Fair and Training Conference, 2018 AFA Leaders Conference, an AFA Director of Collegiate Relations Informational Visit, and various other career fairs. Technical workshops included Introduction to Permaculture, Seed Starting and Transplants, Planting and Preparation, Pruning and Air Layering, Bee Houses, Certified Beekeeping, Composting, Asexual Propagation, Seed Saving, Pollinators and Beekeeping 101, Companion Planting and IPM, Garden Revival, Grounds Beautification, 2019 South Florida Bee College, Protein Extraction, Quantification and Identification, and Safe Food Handling. FIU Agroecology Program coordinator, Eric Betancourt, offers students one-on-one certificate advising, research mentoring, resume development, interview preparation, connections with internship and job opportunities, and writes countless letters of recommendation. STU co-PD, Dr. Dora P. Maul, regularly mentors iCATCH students on STEM careers in plant sciences, internship opportunities, and graduate school applications. Students at MDC-N write a reflection paper after attending workshops to hone their writing skills. Their students are also encouraged to approach the co-PD, Dr. Pablo R. Sacasa, for any further guidance regarding their educational pathway, STEM careers, internship opportunities, courses, etc. Additionally, we work with both undergraduate and graduate students to develop technical and analytical writing skills. Undergraduate students had to develop their posters and develop written reports on their research project. We encourage graduate students to write manuscript for journals. The PhD student at FIU Earth System Sciences had published one paperprevious year and submitted another manuscript to a journal during the reporting period. A master's student at FIU worked at the USDA ARS Ft Pierce Lab and conducted a ground-breaking research on citrus greening, with the help of USDA research scientist. The student has decided to come back for PhD next year and continue this research. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?The iCATCH students have presented in local, regional, and national events, sharing their research experiences in agriculture, environmental sciences, and biology. The opportunity for all our students to present their work in their specific research or internship experience is fundamental towards fomenting a sense of pride and long-lasting engagement in the area of agriculture. Presentations are among the most difficult of activities for most of our students. However, after they are done, they feel that they accomplished a great step in their career. The vast majority of students funded during the third year have completed at least one presentation through the project. The opportunity to present to their peers and to the public imparts upon students a greater confidence in their communication skills. In addition to the annual Agroecology Symposium and conference participation, FIU organizes an annual Internship Presentation Day at the beginning of the fall semester during which time students present about their summer internships to their peers while the experience is still fresh in their minds. The iCATCH Program is becoming increasingly popular among students, area high schools and community colleges, farmers and community organizations. iCATCH students have participated in about 60 different community engagement activities during the year. The program has worked to provide K-12 and general community outreach through school visits, tours, presentations, and educational activities. The FIU iCATCH program has never failed to meet recruitment targets for the Agroecology High School Student Summer Internship Program. IAU students collaborated with the American Chemical Society Puerto Rico Section to perform agriculture related demos for 50 children and 100 adults who attended their booth and learned about how plants get nutrients, how to preserve the soils, and USDA mission. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?We have not only accomplished our targets for the third year, i.e., 100% of the third-year recruitment target, but with a total of 102 students supported thus far, we have actually far surpassed the four-year target of 56. We will continue to help our students to apply for USDA jobs, keep them notified of job opportunities, give them training or advice on how to tailor resumes to specific openings, prepare them for the interview process, engage them in research and engagement activities, and encourage them for higher education. About 25 students have gained valuable internship experience with the USDA already. 46 undergraduate students and one graduate student have graduated during the first three years of the project. Students already identify themselves as a part of a larger learning community, having produced more than 120 poster or oral presentations at national and regional conferences, two students having published, a number of them taking part in local community engagement projects, and almost all of them. One of master's students is completing her master's thesis in summer 2019 and she will continue with her PhD at FIU under the project support. This work is a result of research conducted at USDA ARS research lab.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Objective 1- Recruitment of Hispanic students into iCATCH collaboration institutions [Florida International University (FIU), St. ThomasUniversity (STU), Inter-American University (IAU), Miami Dade College North (MDCN) and Miami Dade College Homestead (MDCH)]--As of May 29th, 2019, the collaboration has recruited a total of 101 unique students: 67 bachelors, 26 associate, five masters, and three Ph.D. students. We have exceeded our FOUR-year target of 56. Of the total 101, 47 (46.53%) have already graduated and 17 (16.83%) have dropped out of the program. We currently serve the remaining 37 students. 90.3% of all undergraduate recruits and 87.5% of graduate recruits are Hispanic. 59.41% of the students are female. Objective 2 - Develop student's scientific and career skills: Each institution has offered both experimental and experiential based opportunities in ag-related fields. Most students either assisted in research projects or developed their own project under the guidance of a faculty mentor or graduate student. Efforts include the following: FIU students were enrolled in a variety of agri-science courses including Introduction to Horticulture, Modern Crop Production, Sustainable Agriculture, Agroecology, Soils and Ecosystems, Integrated Pest Management, and Farm Economics and Management. FIU undergraduate students also engaged in on-campus undergraduate research projects and weekly organic garden workday (six hours weekly) and conducted challenge-based community engagement projects. Several workshops were conducted at FIU or the local area for the benefit of iCATCH students, including workshops on Introduction to Permaculture, Seed Starting and Transplants, Pruning and Air Layering, Certified Beekeeping, Composting, Asexual Propagation, Companion Planting and IPM, Garden Revival, Grounds Beautification, and 2019 South Florida Bee College. Furthermore, students engaged in bioinformatics peer-mentoring and developed data analysis protocols. Team-based challenge projects were continued, this time with students researching and cultivating unconventional crops, resulting in three successful new crops now established in the campus organic garden. Students work at STU includedon soil substrate experiment,portable hydroponics,water filtration and hyacinth and water lettuce. A newcourse in Ecology was developed starting in Spring 2019, with iCATCH involved in the preparation for lab experiments and tours of the STU urban forest. IAU students have participated in professional development workshops for Agriculture Entrepreneurship and MDCH students' scientific and writing skills have been enhanced by participation in the undergraduate research program where they are required to document the progress of their scholarly activities. Faculty from the MDCN School of Science are actively promoting iCATCH by discussing the benefits of the program in each of the courses they lecture. Currently, three of the faculty are involved in aquaculture and teaching about its advantages for sustainable crop production. MDCN students are highly involved in maintaining the grounds and educating visiting schools on the importance of maintaining a healthy, well-balanced life-style. Students presented their findings at the School of Science Research Symposium and the 34th MANRRS Annual Career Fair and Training Conference in Overland Park Kansas in April. The first doctoral students who was supported under this grant project at FIU is scheduled to defend her dissertation in June 2019; she has already published her work in an international journal and secured a post-doctoral research associate at a public university. Objective 3 - Broaden agriculture education through enhanced institutional collaboration: Our collaboration aimed to recruit 8 students during the first two years from the local 2-year college, MDCH, and pipeline them into a four-year college. As of the third year, MDCH has recruited 23 students into the program; of those, nine students have transferred to FIU (1), MDCN (5), UM (1), UF (1), or other (1) into 4-year programs in Environmental Studies (FIU), Biology (MDCN), Environmental Science (UF), or Chemistry (UM). The remaining students continue to take appropriate courses transferable to 4-year colleges like FIU or MDCN Campus. These students are expected to make smooth transitions into one of those four-year programs.Further, eight high school students completed a six-week long summer internship at FIU in the summers of 2017, with another eight in 2018. Eight more interns are about begin their internship in June 2019. This internship provided interns with experiential learning opportunities in agricultural and environmental sciences via lab and garden activities as well as several field trips to local farms and agricultural and plant research stations. Objective 4 - Help place Hispanic/minority students in USDA and other agencies:- One FIU Hispanic student graduated and started working full time at USDA FSA, Florida City. Three FIU students have taken on the role of the Organic Garden Manager in separate consecutive semesters. One student currently works for the Florida State Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services. Two students graduated and now work full-time and perform research at the University of Florida Tropical Research and Education Center, while yet another student works there part-time. One student founded a non-profit organization dedicated to composting and establishing gardens in schools. One undergraduate student from FIU transitioned into the Soil and Water Sciences Ph.D. program at University of Florida in Fall, 2018 with full scholarship. One graduated student works full-time as a Senior Microbiologist Technician for Oxygen Development. Another graduated student has been promoted to Lab QA/QC Department Head for Pro-Lab. From STU, four Hispanic female students graduated this year, with one having been accepted at the University of Miami for a Ph.D. program. From IAU, all iCATCH participants that graduated are either working in industry or continued to graduate school with three students moving on to masters programs in Chemistry, Chemistry Education, and Plant Biotechnology. From MDCH, all students participated in mentoring programs or presentations by industry representatives to build knowledge which will help them find success in acquiring internships and jobs. In order to engage in professional development and networking, iCATCH students participated or will participate in more than 30 posters or oral presentations at conferences, meetings, and symposia. Of the 37 students remaining in the program, during the upcoming summer, most will either conduct internships with the USDA (at Beltsville, Miami, San German, Davie City, or other places), Fairchild Tropical Botanical Garden (Million Orchid STEM Lab), Zoo Miami, Amelia Earhart Park, Yerba Buena, St. Simon's Farm, Flat Salt Conservation Program, a State Forest in Puerto Rico, the US Fish and Wildlife Service, or perform on-campus research projects.

Publications

  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Acuna, A. and N. Frias. Analyzing profit and growth of cilantro plants in distinct growing practices. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Oral presentation. Miami, FL. 2019.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Freidenreich, A., G. Barraza, K. Jayachandran, and A. Khoddamzadeh. "Precision agriculture application for sustainable nitrogen management of Justicia brandegeana using optical sensor technology." Agriculture, 9 (5), 2019, pp. 98.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Brown, C.E. Valuing Ecosystem services under climate risk: A case of recreation in the Florida Everglades. International Society for Ecological Economics. Oral presentation. Puebla, Mexico. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Brown, C.E. Valuing Everglades recreational fisheries. Department of Earth & Environment 2019 Graduate Research Symposium. Florida International University. Oral presentation. Miami, FL. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Brown, C.E. Valuing Freshwater Ecosystem Services: A Missing Peace in the Restoration and Climate Change Debate on the Florida Everglades. Southern Economic Association. Oral presentation. Washington, D.C. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Brown, C.E. and M. Bhat. Linking recreational ecosystem service benefits with freshwater management in the Everglades. Greater Everglades Ecosystem Restoration. Oral presentation. Coral Springs, FL. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Calzadilla, D., T. Fall, and Z. Brym. Application of cover crops as environmental indicators in diverse agroecosystems. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Poster presentation. Miami, FL. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Charles, N. Evaluation of water resources in Karnataka, India for rural agriculture using remote sensing and GIS techniques. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Oral presentation. Miami, FL. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Charles, N. Multi-criteria decision analysis for sustainable planning and management of irrigation tanks (Keres) in Karnataka, India. Department of Earth & Environment 2019 Graduate Research Symposium. Florida International University. Oral presentation. Miami, FL. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Acuna, A., N. Frias, D. Sugino-Souffront, and K. Jayachandran. Analyzing cilantro growth using different farming practices. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Poster presentation. Miami, FL. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Charles, N. and M. Bhat. Multi-criteria analysis for sustainable planning and management of irrigation tanks (keres) in Karnataka, India. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Poster presentation. Miami, FL. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Charles, N., M. Bhat, K. Hegde, R. Bhatta, G.V. Hegde, and P. Bhat. Ecological-economic analysis of watersheds for sustainable agriculture in Karnataka, India. American Water Resources Association 2019 Spring Specialty Conference. Oral presentation. Omaha, NE. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Charles, N., M. Bhat, K. Hegde, R. Bhatta, G.V. Hegde, and P. Bhat. Ecological-economic evaluation of water resources in Karnataka, India for rural agriculture." Annual Meeting for the Ecological Society of America. Oral presentation. Louisville, KY. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Charles, N., M. Bhat, K. Hegde, R. Bhatta, G.V. Hegde, and P. Bhat. Ecological-economic analysis of watersheds for sustainable agriculture in Karnataka, India. 15th Congress of the International Society for Ecological Economics. Oral presentation. Puebla, Mexico. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Dominguez, J. Isolation of antimicrobial-producing endophytic microorganisms as potential biocontrol agents for citrus greening. Department of Earth & Environment 2019 Graduate Research Symposium. Florida International University. Oral presentation. Miami, FL. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Dominguez, J., K. Jayachandran, M. Bhat, and K. Shetty. Isolation of antimicrobial-producing endophytic microorganisms as potential biocontrol agents for citrus greening. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Poster presentation. Miami, FL. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Herrera, B. Sacred weeds: A cross-cultural analysis of the bot�nica plants of Miami, Florida. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Oral presentation. Miami, FL. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Herrera, B., C. Rockwell, and A. Franck. Sacred weeds: A cross-cultural analysis of the bot�nica plants of Miami, Florida. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Poster presentation. Miami, FL. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Mangru, A., K. Jayachandran, and K. Shetty. Isolation and characterization of antagonistic endophytes for the biocontrol of Raffaelea lauricola, causal agent of laurel wilt of avocado. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Poster presentation. Miami, FL. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Perez-Leyva, A. Evaluating the effects of blue and red light on the growth of plants in indoor gardening systems. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Oral presentation. Miami, FL. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Perez-Leyva, A., E. Betancourt, and K. Jayachandran. Evaluating the effects of blue and red light on the growth of plants in indoor gardening systems. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Poster presentation. Miami, FL. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Riera, D. Bridge assembly, and brick building: Developing diversity across professional societies. Society of Wetland Scientist Annual Conference. Oral presentation. Baltimore, Maryland. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Riera, D., and R. Alverez. The socio-ecological impacts and opportunities behind cultivating agricultural resiliency. Greenlatinos Summit. Oral presentation. Albany, New York. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Riera, D., S. Munguia, and V. Lougheed. Building diverse communities in the SWaMMP. Society of Wetland Scientist Annual Conference. Oral presentation. Denver, Colorado. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Torres, S., B. Schaffer, and A. Vargas. Effects of flooding and soil-applied solid oxygen fertilizers on physiology and growth of papaya plants. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Poster presentation. Miami, FL. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Torres, S., B. Schaffer, and A. Vargas. Effects of flooding and soil-applied solid oxygen fertilizers on physiology and growth of papaya plants. Conference for Undergraduate Research. Florida International University. Poster presentation. Miami, FL. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Torres, S., B. Schaffer, and A. Vargas. Effects of flooding and soil-applied solid oxygen fertilizers on physiology and growth of papaya plants. USDA HSI National Project Directors Meeting. Poster presentation. Costa Mesa, CA. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Concepcion, A.P., L.A. Cendan, and D.P. Maul. Allelopathy in Casuarina equisetifolia and Pinus elliottii. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Poster presentation. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Concepcion, A.P., L.A. Cendan, and D.P. Maul. Allelopathy in Casuarina equisetifolia and Pinus elliottii. Florida Academy of Sciences Annual Meeting. Florida Institute of Technology. Poster Presentation. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Lobato, A.G., and D.P. Maul. DNA fingerprinting, barcoding and generating phylogenetic trees of medicinal plants. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Oral presentation. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Lobato, A.G., Y. Zarut, and D.P. Maul. DNA fingerprinting using restriction enzymes analysis of chloroplastic regions in plants. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Poster presentation. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Petit, R., S. Gutierrez, A. Peterson, M. Di Santi, G. Cotto-Gonzalez, J. Brown, C. Planchart, M.C. Polanco, V. Trokhymchuk, V. Nazaire, V.R. Forster, C. Parrales, A. Valls, D.P. Maul, L. Fernandez-Torres, M. Pina, and A. Tapanes-Castillo. Screening medicinal plant extracts for inhibitors of breast cancer cell migration. American Chemical Society National Meeting: Chemistry for New Frontiers. Poster presentation. Orlando. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Gutierrez, S., R. Petit, A. Peterson, M. Di Santi, J. Brown, C. Planchart, M.C. Polanco, V. Trokhymchuk, V. Nazaire, A. Valls, D. P. Maul, L. Fernandez-Torres, M. Pina, A. Tapanes-Castillo. Schinus terebinthifolius extracts inhibit breast cancer cell migration in vitro. Summer Research Institute Symposium. St. Thomas University. Poster presentation. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Pineda A., L.A. Cendan, and D.P. Maul. Do earthworm diets affect nutrient content in vermicompost-based fertilizers? Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Poster presentation. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Pineda A., L.A. Cendan, and D.P. Maul. Do earthworm diets affect nutrient content in vermicompost-based fertilizers? Florida Academy of Sciences Annual Meeting. Florida Institute of Technology. Poster presentation. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Ruiz, L. and D.P. Maul. Fingerprinting for the identification of medicinal plants. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Poster presentation. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Ruiz, L. and D.P. Maul. Fingerprinting for the identification of medicinal plants. Florida Academy of Sciences Annual Meeting. Florida Institute of Technology. Poster presentation. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Rosario, S. and D.P. Maul. Adventitious root formation for propagation of two medicinal plants with 1-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA). Summer Research Institute Symposium. St. Thomas University. Poster presentation. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Wilson, T., S. Rosario, and D.P. Maul. Antioxidant properties of porter weed/verbena (Stachytharpheta jamaicensis). Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Poster presentation. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Wilson, T., S. Rosario, and D.P. Maul. Antioxidant properties of porter weed/verbena (Stachytharpheta jamaicensis). Florida Academy of Sciences Annual Meeting. Florida Institute of Technology. Poster presentation. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Zarut, Y., C. Gorbea, A. Ibarra, D. Livingstone, and D.P. Maul. Using MAS to increase yield of the Theobroma cacao tree in Indonesia. Summer Research Institute Symposium. St. Thomas University. Poster presentation. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Jusino-Jusino, E., A. Gonz�lez-Mederos, A. Navarro, and V. Gonz�lez. Comparison of water quality and geomorphology change of estuaries of natural reserve the of the Nature Reserve Ca�o Boquilla in Mayag�ez-A�asco, Puerto Rico. ACS National Meeting. Poster presentation. Orlando, FL. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Feliciano, I. and A. Vazquez. Presence of miceliar fungi at Cabo Rojo Salt Flats. Departmental Poster Festival. Poster presentation. San Germ�n, PR. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Calzado, O., and S. Ritter. Influence of salinity on vegetable seed germination. Miami Dade College STEAM Expo. Poster presentation. Miami, FL. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Parrales, C., and J. Pulido. Application of neem oil and palm frond extracts for pest management in urban aquaponics system. Miami Dade College STEAM Expo. Poster presentation. Miami, FL. 2019.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Vento, P., and B. Freeman. Fruit data collection and ASPVD testing. Miami Dade College STEAM Expo. Poster presentation. Miami, FL. 2019.


Progress 09/01/17 to 08/31/18

Outputs
Target Audience:Undergraduate (Associate degree and 4-year) and graduate students primarily belonging to Hispanic origin in Florida and Puerto Rico. Changes/Problems:Perhaps the biggest challenge within the consortium is having students placed in USDA internships through the pathways system. No one obtained a pathway internship this year just as in year 1. We have tried various methods to address this issue, including hosting several professional development workshops on federal resume building, navigating the USAJOBS system, branding and logo development, building Linkedin profiles, encouraging students to apply to multiple opportunities at a time, etc. Our relationships with local USDA agencies, private farms, and other educational research organizations have gone a long way in ensuring that students still receive internship and research experience valuable to future USDA careers. We also have a change of co-Project Director at our HSI partnership collaborator, MDCH. The new co-PD at MDCH is working towards engaging AS students into lab research and other professional development activities. Five of their students have no graduated and moved onto four year program at MDCN or FIU. The vast majority of our second year grant fund is already obligated and by the year end (August), we will have encumbered most of the budget. A large portion ($36,000) is still set to be paid to IDRA for the first two years of grant meta-evaluation. There has been tremendous difficulty with obtaining the proper invoices, discovering the appropriate avenue of payment for the services through the FIU Financial System, obtaining approvals, etc. that have hindered progress on payments but the total amount will be encumbered before the end of summer as well. Note that most of our activities, as in year 1, take place this summer. The invoices from the collaborators are at various stages of submission, approval, and disbursal. The efforts of smaller university collaborators have been somewhat impeded by smaller staff sizes in their financial departments. Hurricane María also presented a large challenge for IAU in regards to administrative work and students. They continue to struggle with faulty power supplies and internet connections but have still been able to reasonably reach project goals with great help from the students' engagement. Most of their budget has been used towards students in the form of stipends, activities, trips, tuition, and research. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?During the reporting year, our program focused on emphasizing professional and technical training. The consortium offered in-class and online courses, agri-science major (FIU), Agroecology Certificates, workshops, lab courses, field visits, conference travel, and other research and educational training opportunities. About 80% of current year students engaged in research experiential learning activities (14/17 FIU + 6/11 IAU + 8/8 STU + 12/14 MDCN). Nearly all of the students are currently participating in some form of experiential learning mentoring. We find that one of the most influential aspects in the students' success in the project is the experiential learning that they are exposed to. The students benefit greatly through internships, peer mentoring, undertaking research, and others; all of our students are able to take advantage of these opportunities in this program. Students report the variety of experiential learning opportunities have improved their connection to the school and the surrounding community. Peer mentoring has built camaraderie and provided leadership. Experiential learning activities have shown them different paths that they may follow after graduation. Their participation in the project is helping them to visualize themselves in other opportunities besides medicine and engineering, which most students know. The program students also have involved themselves in about 20 community engagement activities. In addition, the program students made about 40 poster or oral presentations during year 2 at 15 different national and regional conferences and symposia. Almost all of the students had opportunity to take part in the same workshops or conferences. These conferences allowed students to network with students of other colleges and universities, USDA agencies, graduate schools and industry representatives. Throughout the year, we also conducted 39 in-person professional technical workshops on campuses (21 FIU + 8 IAU + 5 STU + 5 MDCN). The topics covered in the professional workshops and symposia included: federal internship / resume building, grant writing, branding and logo development, applying to HACU national internships, building a Linkedin profile, transitioning from college student to scientist, English language, research etiquette, how to be change-maker, and how to engage with faculty on campus. Technical workshops and symposia included pruning, grafting, vertical gardening, use of plant growth hormones, plant identification, vermiculture, food forests, care of bonsais, raised beds and hügelkultur, biochar, Western blot, DNA/RNA, and sustainable soil creation. Students at MDC-N write a reflection paper after attending these workshops to hone their writing skills. Their student are also encouraged to approach the grant coordinator, Ms. Namrata Patel and/or grant director Dr. Pablo R. Sacasa for any further guidance regarding their educational pathway, STEM careers, internship opportunities, courses, etc. Students are also encouraged and sent to present their research findings at national level conferences during the past year. These opportunities have allowed those beneficiaries to have first-hand learning and networking experiences from their peers at bigger audience. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?The iCATCH students have presented in local, regional, and national events sharing their research experiences in agriculture, environmental sciences, and biology. The opportunity for all our students to present their work in their specific research or internship experience is fundamental towards fomenting a sense of pride and long-lasting engagement in the area of agriculture. Presentations are among the most difficult of activities for most of our students. However, after they are done, they feel that they accomplished a great step in their career. 75% of students funded during the second year have completed at least one presentation through the project. The opportunity to present to their peers and to the public imparts upon students a greater confidence in their communication skills. In addition to the annual Agroecology Symposium and conference participation, FIU instituted a new annual Internship Presentation Day at the beginning of the fall semester during which time students would be offered the opportunity to present about their summer internships to their peers while the experience is still fresh in their minds. The iCATCH Program is becoming increasingly popular among students, area high schools and community colleges, farmers and community organizations. iCATCH students have participated in about 20 different community engagement activities during the year. The program has worked to provide K-12 and general community outreach through school visits, tours, presentations, and educational activities. The FIU iCATCH program received a record high 15 complete application packages for students interested in participating in the 2018 Agroecology High School Student Summer Internship Program. IAU students twice carried out demonstrations at a public plaza in San Juan, Puerto Rico, while participating of the Chemistry Festival organized by Puerto Rico Section of the American Chemical Society. They performed demonstrations of water quality testing as well as seedling and bonsai preservation for adults and children alike reaching an estimated 150 people. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?We have not only accomplished our targets for the second year, i.e., 100% of the second year recruitment target, but with a total of 81 students supported thus far, we have actually far surpassed the four year target of 56. We will continue to help our students to apply for USDA jobs, keep them notified of job opportunities, give them training or advice on how to tailor resumes to specific openings, prepare them for the interview process, engage them in research and engagement activities, and encourage them for higher education. About 22 students have gained valuable internship experience with the USDA already (originally reported 10 + 4 FIU year 2 + 5 IAU year 2 + 3 STU). 31 undergraduate students and one graduate student have graduated during the first two years of the project or will be graduating before the end of the summer. Students already identify themselves as a part of a larger learning community, with more than 30 students (12 FIU total + 6 IAU total + 7 MDCN year 1 + 5 STU year 1) having produced more than 75 poster or oral presentations at national and regional conferences, two students having published, a number of them taking part in local community engagement projects, and almost all of them conducting lab or organic garden training projects. We plan to continue to engage students in the above professional and academic activities in the coming years. We also plan to continue our recruitment efforts despite having already met our four year recruitment target.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? • Objective 1- Recruitment of Hispanic students into iCATCH collaboration institutions [Florida International University (FIU), St. Thomas University (STU), Inter-American University (IAU), Miami Dade College North (MDCN) and Miami Dade College Homestead (MDCH)]:- By August 31st, 2018, the collaboration will have recruited a total of 81 unique students: 58 bachelors, 17 associate, four masters, and two Ph.D. students. We have exceeded our FOUR year target of 56. Of the total 81, 32 (39.58%) will have already graduated by August 31st, 2018 and 11 (13.58%) have dropped out of the program. About 38 students will remain in the program at the beginning of the third year; we will be recruiting some more students at the undergraduate level to keep our total at any point in time around 50 students. About 88.0% of all undergraduate recruits and 83.3% of graduate recruits are Hispanic. 63.0% of the students are female. • Objective 2 - Develop student's scientific and career skills:- Each institution has offered both experimental and experiential based opportunities in ag-related fields. Most students either assisted in research projects or developed their own project under the guidance of a faculty mentor or graduate student. Efforts include the following: FIU students were enrolled in a variety of agri-science courses including Introduction to Horticulture, Modern Crop Production, Sustainable Agriculture, Agroecology, Soils and Ecosystems, Soil Microbiology, Integrated Pest Management, and Farm Economics and Management. FIU undergraduate students also engaged in on-campus undergraduate research projects and weekly organic garden workday (six hours weekly) and conducted challenge-based community engagement projects. Several workshops were conducted for the benefit of iCATCH students, including workshops on Internship / Resume Building, Food Forests, Beekeeping 101, Biochar Preparation and Use, Beneficial Insects, and the Three Sisters Method. All STU students were trained at the campus organic garden every week as well. Seven of their students conducted lab- and field-based research, with each project requiring statistical analysis and making either oral or poster presentations at various symposia, including the 9th Annual Undergraduate STU Summer Research Symposium, Florida Academy of Science 2018 Annual Conference at Barry University, and 6th Annual Life Sciences South Florida Undergraduate Research Symposium. IAU students participated in volunteering projects after Hurricane María hit the island of Puerto Rico. IAU students also have participated at professional and technical workshops, including HACU internship application workshop, Western blot workshop and Basic Laboratory Instrumentation workshop. MDCN students prepared and presented their project posters at Annual School of Science STEM symposium at Miami Dade College. Their research projects ranged from Assessment of potential beneficial and/or harmful effects on the bacteria from the manmade lake in MDCN campus, DNA barcoding of Sabal Palms, effects of salinity of food crops to preliminary observations of sulfur cycle bacteria. Three MDCN students are conducting their internship at Fairchild Tropical Garden learning and educating the community by participating in their STEM Lab about Million Orchid Project. Two students have secured their internship at local USDA station and working on Tropical Fruit research project. MDCH students continued to conduct undergraduate research in biochemistry lab on natural products synthesis. •Objective 3 - Broaden agriculture education through enhanced institutional collaboration:- Our collaboration aims to recruit 8 students during the first two years from the local 2-year college, MDCH, and pipeline into a four year colleges. MDCH has 15 students in the program; of those, six students have transferred to FIU (1) or MDCN (5) into 4-year programs in Environmental Studies (FIU) or Biology (MDCN). One student at MDCN graduated with AS degree and will move onto their four year program. Remaining students continue to take appropriate courses transferable to 4-year college like FIU or MDCN campus. These students are expected to make smooth transition into one of those four-year programs. Further, eight high school students will complete a six-week long summer internship at FIU in the summer 2018 FIU graduate students and faculty members served as judges at the Florida FFA District 12 Leadership Development Contest as well as at the South Florida Regional Science and Engineering Fair. STU students and faculty also engaged with local K-12 schools building gardens and conducting tours for school children. IAU students did agriculture related demos for kids and adult at a public plaza. This was a collaboration with the American Chemical Society Puerto Rico Section. MDC-N iCATCH students are providing tours of the palmetum and organic garden to feeder school students ranging from elementary to senior high school. Students are also assisting and/or tutoring during the lab presentations to these feeder school students and classmates to help them strengthen their interest and/or knowledge base on science and STEM careers. • Objective 4 - Help place Hispanic/minority students in USDA and other agencies:- While it is too early to report the progress regarding placement of graduates in long-term USDA positions, two of our Hispanic students started working at USDA FSA at Florida City and ARS Invasive Species Lab at Fort Lauderdale, Florida. One FIU student serves as the Organic Garden Manager. Two students intern and perform research at the University of Florida Tropical Research and Education Center. One student was employed by the Montgomery Botanical Center before graduating and accepting a full scholarship under the Soil and Water Sciences Ph.D. program at the University of Florida starting Fall, 2018. One student holds the Naturalist position at the FIU Office of Sustainability. One student actively helps to establish community gardens at local elementary schools with the Education Fund and also volunteers with Inhabit Earth for the preparation of the Overtown Community Farm. Most of the students in the program are currently conducting summer internships with the USDA (at Beltsville, Miami, San German, Fort Lauderdale, or other places), Naval Research Enterprise Internship Program (one student from IAU), Fairchild Tropical Botanical Garden (Million Orchid STEM Lab), or on-campus research projects. Thirty-two students will have graduated before the end of Summer 2018 and since the beginning of the program. Most of graduating students will be either looking to go for higher education or for jobs in agriculture-related sectors.

Publications

  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Rivera, J. Influence of soil media and companion planting on radish growth. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Miami, FL. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Sambol�n-P�rez, C.A. Effect of silver nanoparticles on the growth of isolated fungi from Permna spp. Research Poster Exhibition at Marquis Science Hall. Interamerican University of Puerto Rico, San Germ�n Campus. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Sambol�n-P�rez, C.A. Effect of silver nanoparticles on the growth of isolated fungi from Permna spp. 10th Symposium of Research students in Bioscience Area. Interamerican University of Puerto Rico, Barranquitas Campus. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Tav�rez-Hern�ndez, G. Photoresistant microbes presence in treated water. Research Poster Exhibition at Marquis Science Hall. Interamerican University of Puerto Rico, San Germ�n Campus. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Tav�rez-Hern�ndez, G. Photoresistant microbes presence in treated water. 37th Puerto Rico Interdisciplinary Scientific Meeting 52nd ACS Junior Technical Meeting. University of Turabo, PR. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Brown, C. E. Crop flood indemnity claims in South Florida. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Miami, FL. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Charles, N. Development of water resources in Karnataka, India. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Miami, FL. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Murch, B. Decomposition rates in banana (Musa spp.) circles: Implications for organic waste management in urban food forests. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Miami, FL. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Sambol�n-P�rez, C.A. Effect of silver nanoparticles on the growth of isolated fungi from Permna spp. 37th Puerto Rico Interdisciplinary Scientific Meeting 52nd ACS Junior Technical Meeting. University of Turabo, PR. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Silvestry-Padilla, P.N. Sunflower biodiesel production. 37th Puerto Rico Interdisciplinary Scientific Meeting 52nd ACS Junior Technical Meeting. University of Turabo, PR. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Zarut, Yanexis, Laynet Cornelio, Diana Martinez, Olga Patricia Ponce, Dora Pilar Maul. Differential Expression of Native Potatoes Genes in Response to Drought Conditions. PD Annual Meeting USDA-NIFA, Washington DC, March 2018
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Gorbea, Claudia A., Amanda Lobato, Reinaldo Sanchez-Arias, Dora Pilar Maul, Kevin Boswell, Cole Eason, and Jose V. Lopez, Jose V. Analysis of Microbial Communities Reflect Diel Vertical Migration in the Gulf of Mexico. 2017 Annual Meeting Florida Branch of the American Society for Microbiology Clearwater Beach, FL. October 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Wilson, Tiffani, F. Allen Dray Jr., and Dora Pilar Maul. Comparing Dioscorea bulbifera (Air Potato) Leaves vs. Bulbils as Ovipositional Substrates for Biotypes (China and Nepal) of the Asian Beetle Liloceris egena. 2018 AgroEcology Symposium, FIU, March 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Cotto-Gonzalez, Grecia and Dora P. Maul. Primer Design for Detection of Antioxidant Genes Ascorbate Peroxidase and Catalase in Spinacea oleracea, Camellia sinensis, and Daucus carota. 2018 AgroEcology Symposium, FIU, March 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Gutierrez,Susana, Paul T. Madeira, Ian M. Jones, J. Zizah Blair, Dora Pilar Maul. Using Molecular Gut-Content Analysis to Identify Predator Feeding on a Classical Biological Control Agent, Neomusotima conspurcatalis. 2018 AgroEcology Symposium, FIU, March 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Hernandez, C., Ojeda, C. and Fernandez, D. Preliminary Observations of Sulfur cycle bacteria. Florida International University Agroecology Symposium, Miami, FL, March 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Figueredo, D. and Leon, A. J. Chloroplast genome analysis through barcoding of Sabal Palms. School of Science STEM Research Symposium, Miami Dade College, Miami, FL, September 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Parrales, C., Martinez, E. and Pulido, J. E. Application of Neem Oil and Palm frond Extracts for pest management in urban hydroponics system. School of Science STEM Research Symposium, Miami Dade College, Miami, FL, September 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Bhat, M.G., K. Jayachandran, P. Maul, K. Shetty, A. Khoddamzadeh, and Betancourt, E. "Innovative Curriculum for Agriculture Training and Career for Hispanics." Oral Presentation at the USDA HSI National Project Directors Meeting, Washington, DC
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Hernandez, C., Ojeda, C. and Fernandez, D. Preliminary Observations of Sulfur cycle bacteria. Presented at 33rd MANNRS Annual Career Fair and Training Conference, Greensboro, NC, April 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Figueredo, D. and Leon, A. J. Analysis of Organelle genome through barcoding of Sabal Palms. Presented at 79th Annual Meeting of Association of Southeastern Biologists, Myrtle Beach, SC, March 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Dominguez, V. and Leon, A. J. Identifying the microbiota of man-made Miami Dade College-North Campus Lake. School of Science STEM Research Symposium, Miami Dade College, Miami, FL, September 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2018 Citation: Brown, C. E. and M.G. Bhat. A game-theoretic model of crop flood indemnity in South Florida. Agricultural & Applied Economics Association Annual Meeting. Washington, D.C. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Calzadilla, D., M. Tiedeman, A. Freidenreich, and K. Jayachandran. Occulation vs. tillage: Does cover crop termination method influence dynamic soil properties? Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Miami, FL. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Calzadilla, D., M. Tiedeman, A. Freidenreich, and K. Jayachandran. Occulation vs. tillage: Does cover crop termination method influence dynamic soil properties? American Association of Soil Sciences International Annual Meeting. Tampa, FL. 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: De Stefano, D., A. Khoddamzadeh, and J. Downing. In-vitro propagation of Florida's native orchid. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Miami, FL. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2018 Citation: De Stefano, D., A. Khoddamzadeh, and J. Downing. In-vitro propagation of Florida's native orchid. Florida Native Plant Societys 38th Annual Conference. Miami, FL. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Dominguez, J., K. Jayachandran, M.G. Bhat, and K.G. Shetty. Discovery and screening of potential antimicrobial compounds against Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Miami, FL. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Dominguez, J., K. Jayachandran, M.G. Bhat, and K.G. Shetty. Discovery and screening of potential antimicrobial compounds against Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus. USDA HSI National Project Directors conference. Washington, D.C. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Gonzalez, L., B. Brosi, C. Morozumi, and L. Xingwen. The effects of early snow-melt on the pollination and seed production of Delphinium nuttallianum. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Miami, FL. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Gonzalez, L., B. Brosi, C. Morozumi, and L. Xingwen. The effects of early snow-melt on the pollination and seed production of Delphinium nuttallianum. FIU McNair Scholars Research Conference. Florida International University. Miami, FL. 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Herrera, E., J. Downing, and J. Arce. Media selection for optimal growth of endemic South FL orchids. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Miami, FL. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Jusino-Jusino, E. Water quality evaluation the Ca�o Man�, Ca�o Boquilla and Ca�o La Puente estuaries of the Natural Reserve Ca�o Boquilla in Mayag�ez-A�asco, Puerto Rico. Research Poster Exhibition at Marquis Science Hall. Interamerican University of Puerto Rico, San Germ�n Campus. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Jusino-Jusino, E. Water quality evaluation the Ca�o Man�, Ca�o Boquilla and Ca�o La Puente estuaries of the Natural Reserve Ca�o Boquilla in Mayag�ez-A�asco, Puerto Rico. 37th Puerto Rico Interdisciplinary Scientific Meeting 52nd ACS Junior Technical Meeting. University of Turabo, PR. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Khadka, G., J. Dominguez, K. Jayachandran, and K.G. Shetty. Synergistic activity potential of Stevia rebaudiana whole leaf extract against environmental bacteria. American Society for Microbiology Microbe. Atlanta, GA. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Mangru, A., S.L. Goldstein, and F.A. Dray, Jr. Reproductive strategies of the Asian beetle Lilioceris egena (Weise). Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Miami, FL. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Mart�nez Bracero, G., P.N. Silvestry-Padilla, and A. Gonz�lez. Fund raising as a key component of a successful student chapter. ACS National Meeting. New Orleans, LA. 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Murch, B. and C. Rockwell. Decomposition rates in banana (Musa spp.) circles: Implications for organic waste management in urban food forests. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University. Miami, FL. 2018.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Brown, C., M. G. Bhat, J. S. Rehage, A. Mirchi, R. Boucek, V. Engel, P. Mozumder, D. Watkins, J. S. Ault, M. Sukop. Ecological-Economic Assessment of the Effects of Freshwater Flow in the Florida Everglades on Recreational Fisheries. Sciences of the Total Environment, 627 (15), 2018, pp. 480493.


Progress 09/01/16 to 08/31/17

Outputs
Target Audience:Undergraduate and graduate students primarily belonging to Hispanic origin in Florida and Puerto Rico. Changes/Problems:The main challenge within the consortium is having students placed in USDA internships through the pathways system. No one got the pathway internship this year. Two students received the HACU internship. We have tried various methods to address this issue, including having students apply to multiple opportunities at a time. We also have tried opportunities at private farms and other educational research organizations. In the past years of the USDA grants, we had the assistance of the former USDA HSI Liaison for Florida and Puerto Rico in Miami. That office is currently vacant. Having that position filled is critical to having continued relationship with USDA agencies for internship and job placements. We also have a change of co-Project Director at our HSI partnership collaborator, MDCH due to retirement. We had some delay in student recruitment and summer research activities at that institution, MDCH is in the process of finding a replacement and continuing the work. They also have met their first year recruitment target now. While our current amount of fund withdrawn from USDA may seem low, more than 80% of the first year grant fund is already obligated and by the year end (August), we will have encumbered most of the budget except for the meta-evaluation. Note that most of our activities, including internships, took place this summer. The invoices from the collaborators are at various stages of submission, approval, and disbursal.? What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?During the reporting year, our program focused on emphasizing professional and technical training. The consortium offered existing and new courses, colloquia, agri-science major (FIU), Agroecology Certificates, workshops, modules, field courses, and other research and educational training opportunities. About 63% of the students recruited have been engaged in research experiential learning activities. Altogether, 45 of our program students participated in 143 research projects or activities, i.e., almost three research projects per student. Nearly all of the students are currently participating in some form of experiential learning mentoring. We find that one of the most influential aspects in the students' success in the project is the experiential learning that they are exposed to. The students benefit greatly through internships, peer mentoring, undertaking research, and others; all of our students are able to take advantage of these opportunities in this program. Students report the variety of experiential learning opportunities have improved their connection to the school and the surrounding community. Peer mentoring has built camaraderie and provided leadership. Experiential learning activities has shown them different paths that they may follow after graduation. Their participation in the project is helping them to visualize themselves in other opportunities besides medicine and engineering, which most students know. The program students also have involved themselves in 13 community engagement activities. In addition, the program students made about 43 poster or oral presentations at ten different national and regional conferences and agenda. Almost all of the students had opportunity to take part in the same workshops or conferences. These conferences allowed students to network with students of other colleges and universities, USDA agencies, graduate schools and industry representatives. Throughout the year, we also conducted four online and 21 in-person professional technical workshops on campuses. The topics covered in the professional workshops and symposia included: business etiquette, resume building, internship application workshop, interviewing skills, and navigating the federal government. Technical workshops and symposia included tissue culture, pollinator insects, identification of plant diseases, plant propagation, and multiple topics on Soils. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?The iCATCH students have presented in local, regional, and national events sharing their research experiences in agriculture, environmental sciences, and biology. The opportunity for all our students to present their work in their specific research or internship experience is fundamental towards fomenting a senseof pride and long-lasting engagement in the area of agriculture. Presentations are among the most difficult of activities for most of our students. However, after they are done, they feel that they accomplished a great step in their career. 31% of our students so far have completed at least one presentation through the project and they now feel better about their communication skills. The iCATCH Program is becoming increasingly popular among students, area high schools and community colleges, farmers and community organizations. iCATCH students (205 students in all activities combined)) have participated in about 13 different community engagement activities during the year. The program has worked to provide K-12 and general community outreach through school visits, tours, presentations, and educational activities. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?We have reasonably accomplished our targets for the first year, i.e., 85% of the first year recruitment target. We will continue to help our students to apply for USDA jobs; give them training or advice on how to prepare job application, engage them in research and engagement activities, impart interview skills, and encourage them for higher education. About ten students were conducting internship in the USDA already. Two undergraduate and one master students have graduated during the year. After an initial period of four months of planning, publicity and the execution of subcontracts with four collaborators (Sept to December), the program was off to a good start; in the next six months (from January through June 2017), we have reached about 85% of year 1 undergraduate recruitment target and 100% graduate level target. Students already identify themselves as a part of a larger learning community, with more than 20 students having made 41 poster or oral presentations at national and regional conferences, two students having published, a number of them taking part in local community engagement projects, and almost all of them conducting lab or organic garden training projects. We plan to continue to engage students in the above professional and academic activities in the coming years. We also plan to complete our recruitment target in the second year.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? The overall goal of this project was to enable underrepresented students at five South Florida and Puerto Rican universities/colleges to develop scientific skills in biological, food and natural resource sciences and to find a career in USDA or related agencies, or to advance to higher education. Specifically our goal was to recruit and graduate 50 Hispanic undergraduate students, four masters' students and one doctoral student (total 55 students) in agriculture, plant and environmental sciences As a consortium, a total of 47students (= 8Associate + 35 bachelors + 3 masters+1 doctoral) have been recruited during the reporting year. Two undergraduate and one master's students have graduated or will graduate by the end of Summer 2017. 100% of the students are retained by the end of the first year. 95% of the students served are Hispanic. Thus, we have met 85% percent of our first year recruitment goal. Our second objective was to develop students' scientific and career skills in agriculture, plant and environmental sciences through a newly implemented agri-science major, curricular enrichment, and challenge-based learning. Each institution has offered both experimental and experiential based opportunities in ag-related fields. Each student supported under iCATCH is involved in either assisting in research projects or developing and executing his/her own project under the guidance of a faculty mentor. Efforts include the following: FIU students were enrolled in a variety of agri-science courses including Introduction to Horticulture, Modern Crop Production, Sustainable Agriculture, Agroecology, Soils and Ecosystem, and a new course, Farm Economics and Management. FIU undergraduate students also engaged in on-campus undergraduate research projects and weekly organic garden workday (six hours weekly). STU's Organic Garden continued to engage students in experiential learning, with students dedicating five to six hours per week of hands-on activities. STU students also developed a lab-based hands-on research project that required statistical data analysis and poster preparation. Two students spent extensive time on developing manuscripts on the microbiome analysis of arugula rhizospheres. Students were challenged to develop a team project on organic production at STU Organic Garden. IAU students carried out a demonstration at a public plaza in San Juan, Puerto Rico as a part of the Festival de Química organized by Puerto Rico Section of the American Chemical Society. Students of MDCN participated in three different workshops concerning business attire, research conduct, professional communication and greeting and interview etiquettes and techniques. MDCH students received training in techniques of natural product chemistry including organic synthesis of novel molecules. They also participated in guest lectures. The third objective was to broaden agriculture education through enhanced institutional collaboration. Our collaboration aims to recruit 8 students from the local 2-year college, MDCH, and pipeline into a four year college. We have recruited 6 students into the program who are expected to transfer to FIU in the next two years. Further, eight high school students are conducting a six-week long summer internship at FIU which provides interns with experiential learning opportunity in agricultural and environmental sciences. The internship also involves several field trips to local farms and agricultural and plant research stations. The fourth objective is to help place Hispanic/minority students in USDA and other agencies. It is too early to place students in USDA for jobs, but we have successfully reached out to local USDA agencies, USDA ARS Beltsville, local farms and businesses, and other non-governmental organizations. Of 43undergraduates, two students are conducting summer internships at HACU (Forest Service, Colorado and ARS, Fort Lauderdale), two internships at USDA Beltsville, two at USDA Invasive Species Lab, four at USDA Subtropical Horticultural Research Station (Miami), two at Nova University, one at a private farm at Punta Mona, Costa Rica, two at the Fairchild Tropical Botanical Garden, one at a local nursery, and the rest as undergraduate research interns at their respective institutions, local farms, or other organizations. In order to engage in professional development and networking, students participated and made 41 posters or oral presentations at USDA HSI Project Directors meeting at Albuquerque (February), FIU Agroecology Symposium (March), the Florida Academy of Science (March), Life Sciences South Florida Undergraduate Symposium (April), the American Society for Microbiology Florida Branch (November), STU Undergraduate Research symposium (April), American Chemical Society (April), Environmental Microbiology Symposium at University of Turabo, Mycology Symposium at San Germán (June), and American Society of Microbiology at New Orleans (June).

Publications

  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Bhat, M.G., E. Betancourt, and K. Jayachandran. Innovative Curriculum for Agricultural Training for Hispanics Students." Poster Presented at the USDA HSI National Project Directors Meeting, Albuquerque, New Mexico, February 2017
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Bhat, M.G., K. Jayachandran, K. Shetty, A. Khoddamzadeh and Eric Betancourt. FIU Agroecology Program: Innovative Curriculum for Student Academic and Career Success. Poster presented at the Inaugural Faculty Innovations for Student Success Showcase, Sponsored by FIU Faculty Senate and Office of the Provost, March 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Brown, C.E., M.G. Bhat, J. Rehage, R. Boucek, V. Engel, and M. Sukop. Integrating Economic and Biophysical Models for Ecosystem Services Valuation in the Florida Everglades. National Conference and Global Forum for Science, Policy, and the Environment. Washington, D.C. 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Brown, C.E., M.G. Bhat, J. Rehage, R. Boucek, V. Engel, and M. Sukop. Integrating Economic and Biophysical Models for Ecosystem Services Valuation in the Florida Everglades. South Florida Water, Sustainability, and Climate Project Investigator Meeting. Jupiter, FL. 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Submitted Year Published: 2017 Citation: Calera, J., L. Cendan, C. Vazquez, R. Karns, D.P. Maul, C. Easson, and J. Lopez. Microbiome Analysis of Arugula Rhizospheres in Plants Fertilized with Aqueous Vermicompost Solutions Florida Academy of Sciences Annual Conference. Florida Polytechnic University, Lakeland, FL. 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Calera, J., L. Cendan, C. Vazquez, R. Karns, D.P. Maul, C. Easson, and J. Lopez. Microbiome Analysis of Arugula Rhizospheres in Plants Fertilized with Aqueous Vermicompost Solutions Life Sciences South Florida 5th Annual Undergraduate Research Symposium. Palm Beach State College, West Palm Beach, FL. 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Cendan, L.A., C. Vazquez, and D.P. Maul. Contrasting Effects of Aqueous Vermicompost Extract Mixtures on Growth of Brassica oleracea Var. sabellica. Florida Academy of Sciences Annual Conference. Florida Polytechnic University, Lakeland, FL. 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Cendan, L.A., C. Vazquez, and D.P. Maul. Contrasting Effects of Aqueous Vermicompost Extract Mixtures on Growth of Brassica oleracea Var. sabellica. Life Sciences South Florida 5th Annual Undergraduate Research Symposium. Palm Beach State College, West Palm Beach, FL. 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Cendan, L.A., T. Wilson, C. Vazquez, and D. P. Maul. A Comparison of Liquid Organic Fertilizers in the Growth of Okinawan Spinach (Gynura bicolor), an Asian Medicinal Plant. Florida Academy of Sciences Annual Conference. Florida Polytechnic University, Lakeland, FL. 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Cendan, L.A., T. Wilson, C. Vazquez, and D. P. Maul. A Comparison of Liquid Organic Fertilizers in the Growth of Okinawan Spinach (Gynura bicolor), an Asian Medicinal Plant. Life Sciences South Florida 5th Annual Undergraduate Research Symposium. Palm Beach State College, West Palm Beach, FL. 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Cornelio, L., I. Perez, C. Vazquez, D. Martinez, O.P. Ponce, E. Murata, Y. Torres, L.N. Zuniga, G. Orjeda, D.P. Maul, and C. Merino. Comparing the Differential Expression of Selected Genes in Native Peruvian Potatoes in Response to Early and Late Drought Conditions. Florida Academy of Sciences Annual Conference. Florida Polytechnic University, Lakeland, FL. 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Cornelio, L., I. Perez, C. Vazquez, D. Martinez, O.P. Ponce, E. Murata, Y. Torres, L.N. Zuniga, G. Orjeda, D.P. Maul, and C. Merino. Comparing the Differential Expression of Selected Genes in Native Peruvian Potatoes in Response to Early and Late Drought Conditions. Life Sciences South Florida 5th Annual Undergraduate Research Symposium. Palm Beach State College, West Palm Beach, FL. 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Herrera, E., D. Johnson, and L.J. Scinto. Stormwater Treatment Area: Nutrient Analysis Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University, Miami, FL. 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Herrera, E., D. Johnson, and L.J. Scinto. Stormwater Treatment Area: Nutrient Analysis USDA Hispanic Serving Institutions Principal Investigators Meeting. Albuquerque, NM. 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Mangru, A. and F.A. Dray, Jr. Testing the Host Fidelity of the Asian Beetle Lilioceris egena (Weise). Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University, Miami, FL. 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Mangru, A. and F.A. Dray, Jr. Testing the Host Fidelity of the Asian Beetle Lilioceris egena (Weise). USDA Hispanic Serving Institutions Principal Investigators Meeting. Albuquerque, NM. 2017.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Russo, D., C. Balistreri, A. Tapanes-Castillo, D.P. Maul, M. Pina. Analysis of Oyster Plant (Tradescantia spathacea) Extracts via Maceration, Soxhlet Extraction, Thin Layer Chromatography and Cytotoxicity Assays. MOL2NET. 2016. http://sciforum.net/conference/mol2net-02/stureus-01.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Cendan, L.A., C. Vazquez, and D.P. Maul. Contrasting Effects of Vermiculture-based Fertilizers on Growth of Brassica oleracea var. sabellica. MOL2NET. 2. 2016. http://sciforum.net/conference/mol2net-02.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Riera, D., A.A. Khoddamzadeh, C. Lewis, and K. Jayachandran. Florida Cowhorn Orchid: An Alternative Ex-situ Conservation Method for the Endangered Cyrtopodium punctatum. Naples Orchid Society Annual Meeting. Naples, FL. 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Riera, D. Florida Cowhorn Orchid: An Alternative Ex-situ Conservation Method for the Endangered Cyrtopodium punctatum. Society of Wetland Scientists Annual Conference. San Juan, PR. 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Riera, D. In-Vitro Conservation of the Critically Threatened Floridian Orchids by Encapsulation-Dehydration  Florida Native Plant Society. , River Ranch, FL. 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Riera, D. Plant Chrysalis: Developing a Commercial Synthetic Seed Approach to Conserve the Exploited Florida Butterfly Orchid, Encyclia tampensis. Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Related Sciences Annual Conference. Pittsburgh, PA. 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Riera, D., A.A. Khoddamzadeh, C. Lewis, and K. Jayachandran. Florida Cowhorn Orchid: An Alternative Ex-situ Conservation Method for the Endangered Cyrtopodium punctatum. Florida Rare Task Force Conference. Naples, FL. 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Riera, D. Medium and Long-Term In-Vitro Conservation of South Florida Endangered Orchids. Florida Native Plant Society Miami-Dade Chapter. Pinecrest Gardens, FL. 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Riera, D. Orchid Synthetic Seed Technology: Conservation and Commercial Applications. Graduate Research Symposium Florida International University, Miami, FL. 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Riera, D. Orchid Synthetic Seed Technology: Conservation and Commercial Applications. Agroecology Symposium. Florida International University, Miami, FL. 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Riera, D. Orchid Synthetic Seed Technology: Conservation and Commercial Applications. Earth and Environment Symposium. Florida International University, Miami, FL. 2017.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Riera, D., A.A. Khoddamzadeh, C. Lewis, and K. Jayachandran. Ex-situ Conservation Strategy: Cryopreservation of Threatened Floridian Orchids by Encapsulation-Dehydration. International Tropical Botany and Pine Rockland Conference. Miami, FL. 2016.