Performing Department
Biology
Non Technical Summary
The US Mexico border in the Lower Rio Grande Valley (LRGV) presents a unique opportunity to develop a STEM-related workforce through various professional opportunities in food and agriculture. In particular, the deep south region of Texas represents one of the most productive agriculture and ranching areas in the state and also boasts the busiest agricultural land ports in the country. This agricultural bounty also presents some challenges that threaten agricultural and natural security--challenges that require scientific and technological capacity, and a diverse and qualified workforce. In response to both these opportunities and challenges, we propose the development of a one-of-a-kind externship program for undergraduate students enrolled at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV). We leverage the resources and mission of variouspartners including from private industry (Texas International Produce Association (TIPA); Pharr International Bridge), government (USDA-ARS; USDA-APHIS; US Customs and Border Protection (CBP); US Fish and Wildlife Service), working with UTRGV to accomplish this mission. Mexico brings in a huge amount of produce traffic, primarily mediated through the private bridges in the valley (e.g., Pharr International Bridge). Roughly 15,000 produce semi-trucks per week move produce through one of these bridges, and according to our industry partners, one of the limiting factors is a shortage of a skilled workforce whose primary purpose is to identify and confirm that each shipment meets food safety standards as required by governmental regulations. Students will work with scientists and agriculture professionals and develop working knowledge, skills, and attributes to help forge a pathway to careers in agriculture and food. UTRGV will serve as a hub for this internship program, leveraging our newest programs, degree plans and faculty hires in agriculture, natural resources, and food security. In the last two years, UTRGV successfully hired more than ten faculty members with expertise in agricultural-related sciences (four faculty on this proposal). Through this project, the PDs will supervise and mentor at least 35 students with academic mentorship complemented with practical, experiential learning in the form of externships. Enrolled students will work as paid externs (supported through this program) under the direct supervision with identified counterparts (i.e. USDA Entomologists, CBP Agricultural Specialists, US Fish, and Wildlife Ecologists, etc). Over the course of 5 years, we will train 35 undergraduate students through six months long externships with one of these partner agencies and will critically evaluate the program both externally and internally. Students will envision their career opportunities while acquiring the hands-on skills required to excel in agriculture, food, and sustainability. This one-of-a-kind merging of classroom theory with practical skill sets will, therefore, enable our private-university-government partnership to establish a pipeline for STEM students interested in this job sector. The final outcome will be a trained workforce to meet a critical shortfall in qualified job candidates while addressing local issues of national importance.
Animal Health Component
0%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
0%
Applied
100%
Developmental
0%
Goals / Objectives
As a premier federally designated Hispanic Serving Institution, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) will meet this challenge by targeting well-qualified students who will be encouraged to complement relevant course work in the Department of Biology and the School for Earth, Environmental, and Marine Sciences with paid research externships with faculty in collaboration with government and industry partners through this program. At the conclusion of their participation in this program, students will be poised to enter the workforce in either the private or public sector, addressing workforce shortages in border food traffic by providing real-time evaluation of food shipments at the international bridges, profiling of native and invasive insect pest populations affecting local farmers- two key examples. Students enrolled in this program will work under the direct supervision of identified counterparts (i.e. UTRGV PD and Co-PDs, USDA Entomologists, US Fish and Wildlife Service, Texas Plant and Soil Lab, Customs and Border Protection Agricultural Specialists, Texas International Produce Association, and others. More specifically, the objectives of this project are to (1) Support and train 35 (7 students/ year X 5 years) outstanding undergraduate scholars from the interdisciplinary B.S. programs in Biology and Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems through externships; (2) Promote undergraduate student success within the food and agricultural sciences through professional mentorship and experiential learning with an emphasis on community engagement and impact, and leadership training and development; (3) Provide graduates with the academic training and hands-on experience needed to meet the demand for highly qualified personnel entering the food, agricultural, or social workforces; (4) Use the project as a pipeline to attract more undergraduates into graduate education in fields relevant to NIFA priority areas, including food security, sustainable agriculture, climate change resilience, and natural resource conservation, and (5) Collect and analyze data from all parties involved to design assessment and evaluation models for similar programs for local and nationwide reach.
Project Methods
i. Recruitment and selection of studentsThe internship application will encourage students from minority and underservedcommunities. As discussed above, UTRGV is home to students of which 90% are of Hispanicorigin. Seven students will be chosen each year starting the first year, with a new cohort of sevenmore fellows each year for the next five years to bring the total to 40. Dr. Kariyat, the PD willchair the committee overseen by the Dean of College of Sciences. Top priority will be given tostudents with interest in agricultural sciences, and who possess leadership qualities and potentialfor academic success. Successful candidates will embark on a semester-long externship withone of the partnering agencies, after completing a combination of the necessary core course workfine-tuned for the internship of choice. This include (Entomology (BIOL 4415) Lecture and lab;Plant Physiology (BIOL 4405) lecture and lab, General Microbiology (BIOL3401) Lecture andlab, Plant Pathology (BIOL 4408) lecture and lab, Weed Ecology (lecture and lab),Undergraduate Ecology (BIOL3409) Agroecology (BIOL4429), Soil Biology (EEMS), and FoodScience (EEMS 4360).ii. Academic advising research training, and mentoringThe selected students will undergo a semester-long externship in parallel with classworkand degree plan activities (20 hours a week). Our faculty members will provide individualacademic mentorship, while they will gain experiential learning through externship and researchactivities with the different partner agencies. For example, The PD will mentor students who takeup externships as Agricultural specialists at Pharr Bridge; Dr. Soti with Texas Plant and Soil lab;Dr. Christoffersen will mentor US Fish and Wildlife Service externships, and Dr. Yemmireddywith J&D produce and TIPA. Experiential learning objectives will be accomplished throughacademic courses, research projects, fieldwork and extension activities, in addition to equipmentand laboratory training, in parallel to the externships. These trainings include lab and fieldsafety training, training on public engagement in the sciences, and annual training onNavigating USAjobs. The details of these activities are in table 1 based on communication withthe partnering agencies.iii. Experiential learning: hands-on research, extension, and other activitiesThe students will work on a specific topic identified by the key stakeholders (USDA,Pharr Bridge, TPS, and TIPA), however, the broad focus will be on hands-on learning of foodsafety standards as required by governmental regulations at the Pharr International Bridge or pestpopulation profiling at USDA-APHIS-PPQ. Specifically, these externship opportunities willtrain students to be specialists in 5 main areas that include (1)Agricultural Specialist (Pharr Bridge): prevent the entry of potentially harmful pests orpathogens, (2) Food Regulation Specialist (Pharr Bridge): expert knowledge of food safetyregulations, (3) Plant-Pathogen Specialist (USDA-PPQ): assessing the status of and remediatingplant pathogenic infection, (4) Invasive Species Management Specialist (USDA-ARS): invasiveplant identification, scouting, and biocontrol activities, and (5) Analytical Plant & SoilChemistry Specialist (Texas Plant and Soil Lab): assessing mineral nutrients of plant and soil. Inaddition, graduating students will take these skills and our industry liaison, TexasInternational Produce Association (TIPA, ~250 companies) will assist them in identifyingpossible employment opportunities with one of the associated industry stakeholders(growers, shippers, importers, distributors, and material and service providers). Thefederal governmental partner USFWS operates the South Texas Refuge Complex HabitatRestoration & Reforestation Program. This program offers a comprehensive seed-to-out plantingthe operation, the largest of its kind in Texas. Students will work alongside USFWS personnel (seeletter of support from K. Wahl-Villareal) involved in operations improvement focusing onenhancing seed storage inventory, and best practices for plant propagation. Students in bothproject types get exposed to a broad range of experiential learning spanning topics as diverse asplant reproduction ecology, identification, and treatment of nutrient deficiencies, plantpropagation techniques, and overall nursery operations & management.USFWS - South Texas Refuge Complex Habitat Restoration & Reforestation ProgramLocation: Santa Ana NWROperations support: Seed collection,germination, plant propagation & out plantingUSFWS - South Texas Refuge Complex Habitat Restoration & Reforestation ProgramLocation: Santa Ana NWROperations improvement: Identifying best practices for germination & seedling survivalFresh produce industry (UTRGV-Industry Collaboration)Location: Edinburg, TX Microbiological safety and quality of fresh produceProject: Addressing critical issues in postharvest supply chainTIPA-Fresh produce industry- UTRGV collaborationLocation: Edinburg, TXProject: Education & training needs assessment for the produce industry stakeholders to effectively implement the FDA's FSMA Produce Safety Rule requirementsTexas Plant and Soil Lab (TPSLab)Location: Edinburg, TXProject: Conducting and understanding a soil analysis: process and analyze soil samples for soilproperties necessary for successful plant productionCustoms and Border Protection (CBP)Location: Pharr, TXProject: Training alongside Agricultural specialists at Pharr International Bridge in pest and disease detection in fresh produce.USDA-ARS Livestock Insect Research LabLocation: Moore Air Field, Edinburg, TexasProject: Developing methodologies for integrated pest management of cattle fever tick