Grant Program Cont'd
For the 2009-2010 award period, a total of $50,000 is available and faculty may seek grants ranging up to $10,000. Consideration will be given to faculty for developing proposals to support the following areas:
- High Enrollment Courses: The ideal course will be online, expected to enroll 200 or more students, and provides qualified graduate students opportunities to work with teaching faculty to teach a course.
- Curriculum for Liberal Education: The ideal course will be online, provides qualified graduate students opportunities to work with teaching faculty to teach a course, supports cross-college initiatives, and supports courses in Area 4.
- First Year Experience: The ideal course will be offered in Summer Session II 2010 to incoming first year students, must be consistent with the University's Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP), be offered on campus or through a blended format, and incorporate the Common Book.
- Global Issues: The ideal course supports University Studies students' exploration and entrance into degree programs, includes cross-disciplinary approaches to problem solving, with an expectation of enrolling 50 or more students. Preference will be given to courses offered in Summer Session II 2010.
Grant proposal applications accepted through November 18, 2009.
SURF Symposium Cont'd
The SURF program was launched as a pilot program in coordination with the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the College of Natural Resources, and the College of Science. The program was designed to afford undergraduate students the opportunity to be exposed and engaged in the research process, while enrolled in the 2009 Virginia Tech summer sessions program. The three participating colleges identified research fellowship opportunities within their respective colleges, pairing the student to work under the guidance of a sponsoring faculty mentor.
Through this program initiative, students earned a stipend that paid up to a maximum of 30 hours per week of research work, allowing them the opportunity to make some money and become acquainted with the graduate school options available at Virginia Tech.
Several of the SURF fellows surmised that their research experiences helped to shape their decision about entering graduate school. Senior Danielle Hunter credited the support of her faculty mentor, Jim Tokuhisa, professor of horticulture, in addition to her research experience, for reinforcing her desire to pursue a master’s degree in food science.
The Office of Distance Learning and Summer Sessions would like to commend the 2009 SURF research fellows and their faculty mentors for their dedicated work and efforts in fostering a rich undergraduate summer research experience:
- Danielle Hunter of Ashburn, Va., a senior majoring in human nutrition, foods, and exercise in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, whose faculty mentor was Jim Tokuhisa;
- Tristan Leckie of Salem, Va., a senior majoring in biological sciences in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, whose faculty mentors were John Galbraith and John Fike;
- Allison Palmer of Lynchburg, Va., a senior majoring in agriculture and applied economics in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, whose faculty mentors were John Galbraith, John Fike, and Susan Day;
- Tuan Pham of Springfield, Va., a senior majoring in biological sciences in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, whose faculty mentors were Mohammad A Saghai-Maroof and Richard Veilleux;
- Jenny Poon of Lexington, S.C., a junior majoring in psychology in the College of Science, whose faculty mentors were Russell Jones and Thomas Ollendick;
- Matthew Stauffer of Greensboro, N.C., a junior majoring in biological systems engineering in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, whose faculty mentor was Justin Barone;
- Mark White of Hampton, Va., a senior majoring in food science and technology in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, whose faculty mentor was David Garner Burton Schmale III; and
- Kathryn Winters of Winchester, Va., a senior majoring in civil and environmental engineering in the the College of Engineering, whose faculty mentor was David Garner Burton Schmale III.