Recipient Organization
UNIV OF ARKANSAS
(N/A)
PINE BLUFF,AR 71601
Performing Department
(N/A)
Non Technical Summary
Currently, three 1890 Institutions offer bachelor's or graduate degrees in Aquaculture and Fisheries. These are UAPB, DSU, and KYSU. Though aquaculture is the fastest-growing segment in agriculture, minority groups are significantly underrepresented in this field. This project will create a collaborative partnership between UAPB, DSU, and KYSU to provide our students with funding and support for experiential learning in Aquaculture and Extension. It will also create a partnership between our 1890 Institutions and Auburn University, The University of Southern Mississippi, and The University of Hawaii at Hilo for collaboration on teaching, research, and extension. In year one, students from UAPB, DSU, and KYSU will travel to AU in the summer for two weeks. They will engage in an intensive experiential learning experience hosted by AU. Similarly, students will travel to USM and UH in years two and three to engage in similar learning experiences. After that, the students will be allowed to intern for six to eight weeks at the host institutions or home institutions. In the fall of each year, students will attend webinars and workshops for continued learning and attend a local aquaculture meeting within their State. In the spring of each year, throughout this project, the students will travel to the annual World Aquaculture Society meeting and present posters or oral presentations on their summer internships. Assessment data will be collected on student learning outcomes and collaborative partnerships throughout the project. The data will be analyzed and submitted to USDA on annual progress reports and the final project report.
Animal Health Component
(N/A)
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
(N/A)
Developmental
(N/A)
Goals / Objectives
The overall goal of this project is to build capacity at UAPB, DSU, and KSU to develope students into Aquaculture, Fisheries and Extension professionals, by providing them with in-house training, experiential learning, paid internships and collaborative learning oppertunities within the 1890 system and some specialized aquaculture and fisheries programs outside the confines of the 1890 system.Objective 1: Provide general training and hands-on opportunities via short-term training in a research-intensive institution (A.U., U.H. at Hilo, GCRL of University of Mississippi) before the summer research experience in a lab chosen by the cohortObjective 2: Provide long-term hands-on training opportunities via research experiences for undergraduate and graduate students (REUG) in host institutionsObjective 3: Partner with cooperative extension and outreach experts in host institutions to mentor and train a student in outreach and cooperative extension during the REUG Program activities and directly involve them in ongoing outreach and extension activities with publicObjective 4: Provide professional development opportunities to enhance participating cohorts' skillsets in communication, writing, reading, and presenting via their attendance at the community outreach events, workshops, conferences, symposiums, USAS webinars, and conferences specialized training and certification programs.
Project Methods
The student short-term learning component of this project will take place at Auburn University, the University of Southern Mississippi's GCRL facility, and the University of Hawaii at Hilo.Four students will be recruited during the spring of each year from each 1890 Land-Grant Institution; UAPB, DSU, and KYSU. The students will be given an orientation to prepare them for that year's experiential learning program. The students and program leaders will travel to the learning sites in May or June. The students will engage in learning activities for two weeks. Two graduate students from each learning site will also be recruited to assist and engage with our students and participate in networking and layered learning/mentoring. At the conclusion of the experiential learning period, our students will be offered opportunities for internships and continued engagement in research and extension at UAPB, DSU, KYSU, or at the experiential learning host institution for six to eight weeks. In the fall, UAPB, DSU, and KYSU will host a guest speaker or a webinar, and the students will attend a local aquaculture or extension workshop and a local aquaculture meeting. The following spring, the students will attend an aquaculture training session or workshop and the Annual World Aquaculture Society's Aquaculture America Meeting which is generally hosted in late February of each year. Throughout the program timeline, students will have opportunities to present their research outcomes and experiences during the meetings, conferences, and workshops participating at the State Fair, 4-H Youth training, and other extension program efforts in their respective states. The Program Director and Co-Directors will also attend the USDA Project Directors' Meeting