04/28/2008

Oyarzabal Establishes Summer Research Program for Minorities

AUBURN, Ala. — Omar Oyarzabal, poultry science assistant professor and chair of the AU College of Agriculture Diversity Committee, and mechanical engineering associate professor Jeffrey Fergus have landed a three-year, $210,078 National Science Foundation grant to establish a Research Experiences for Undergraduates Program at Auburn.

In each of the program’s three years, 10 undergraduate students from underrepresented minorities will come to Auburn to participate in 10-week hands-on summer research projects involving sensor and biosensor development. Eligible candidates must be enrolled in a degree program leading to a bachelor's or associate’s degree and should be interested in pursuing careers in science.

Each student will be assigned a faculty mentor and a sensor- or biosensor-related research project. In addition to their research, the students will participate in a number of seminars in their field of research as well as in the areas of tools for professional development and ethics in science. The program will cover all stipends and all room, board and travel expenses each participant incurs.

The 10 students selected as this first summer’s participants are from colleges and universities in California, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Maryland, New York and Oklahoma. They will be at AU from May 28 through Aug. 1.

Ten faculty members from the colleges of Agriculture, Engineering and Science and Mathematics will serve as mentors for the participants this summer.

The program gives priority to women, underrepresented minorities and first-generation college students from institutions serving minorities or from institutions with limited research opportunities.

A Web site detailing the program can be found at http://www.ag.auburn.edu/nsfbiosensors/.

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For immediate release

Office of Ag Communications & Marketing
Auburn University College of Agriculture
Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station
3 Comer Hall, Auburn University
Auburn, AL 36849

Contact: Jamie Creamer, 334-844-2783 or jcreamer@auburn.edu