1

Catalyzing Connections in the Sciences

“The collection of facts is [just] the starting point....Only when an explanation...melts separate ideas

together in the fire of thoughtful synthesis [do we satisfy] the seeking spirit.” Hans Reichenbach

Introduction

Great achievements in science rarely occur in isolation. Today more than ever, we face vast

amounts of information, and crucial questions require diverse expertise. Scientists of the future must

acquire skills beyond the traditional confines of one field and collaborate effectively in teams whose

membership spans multiple backgrounds. For students and faculty in the sciences, realizing a synthesis

that “satisfies the seeking spirit” often hinges on making connections—among individuals, disciplines,

institutions, and ideas.

Pacific Lutheran University seeks funding from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Undergraduate Science Education Program to catalyze these new connections, at PLU and beyond. In

choosing this approach to energizing research, teaching, and learning in the sciences, we are building on

the most distinctive element of PLU culture: deep concern for educating the whole person and nurturing a

learning community. We are also building on our mission “to educate students for lives of thoughtful

inquiry, service, leadership and care...for other persons, for the community and for the earth.”

Our current long-range plan, PLU 2010, commits to undergraduate research as one of three

especially effective ways to meet the goals of this mission and further academic distinction. This

commitment builds on the formal Natural Sciences Undergraduate Research (UR) program that began in

1995 with support from the M. J. Murdock Charitable Trust and is now partially funded through an

endowment. In addition to work on research projects, UR students meet as a group weekly to develop

communication skills and interact with researchers from other departments. This program has been highly

successful, but limited in number and types of projects, as well as in initial student preparedness.

The UR program is a natural core around which to organize improvements in all components of

science education here. With Hughes funding for Student Research, targeted new UR positions will

2

create a more diverse research group and increase opportunities for collaboration. Faculty will work

together across departments, designing new course modules that will stimulate pursuit of knowledge in

other disciplines. These modules will change the Curriculum to help students understand the

interconnectedness of knowledge in different fields, and apply their understanding to solving problems

in novel ways. A new interdisciplinary research course will help students internalize how science is

done, compare methodologies, and prepare for summer UR positions. Equipment acquisitions will

further incorporation of research-based inquiry and engagement with learning in laboratories and

senior capstones. Outreach to other institutions and laboratories will expand opportunities for students

and faculty to participate in a broader research community and experience different research

cultures. Commitment to these activities is high, with 40 percent of science faculty participating this

summer in their planning. We anticipate even greater participation in activities supported by a Hughes

grant.

We will build on a tradition of collaboration and the strength of a faculty highly dedicated to

innovative teaching based on findings from pedagogical research. The Catalyzing Connections program

will draw from a common philosophy and implement manageable, realistic changes that can be readily

integrated, developed, and sustained, transforming the system more profoundly than could a single

dramatic change. In-depth Assessment by our Social Sciences faculty will guide evolution of the program.

PLU cherishes its emphasis on curricular integration and active learning, and senior

administrators strongly support philosophies and activities proposed. The Provost is actively involved in

discussing the intended outcomes and is fully committed to supporting them by giving high priority to

rewarding efforts to innovate and by reallocating existing resources and seeking new ones. The VP

Development/University Relations leads efforts to raise the remainder of our $2 million UR endowment.

The VP Finance/Operations is active in grant-writing and overseeing equipment and capital spending

plans. For PLU, Catalyzing Connections in the Sciences is a logical next step in the evolution of a

mission-based, learning-centered undergraduate program.

3

Student Research and Broadening Access to Science

The Natural Sciences Division (NSCI) has a strong foundation in undergraduate research (UR).

We are building on a UR endowment that, with other institutional funds, supports five faculty and 10

students each summer. These teams, along with several faculty-student teams supported by individual

grants, form a small but cohesive research community. UR students work with mentors on substantive

projects intended to contribute to publication. They participate in every part of research, including

literature searches, experimental design, data collection, equipment and procedure design and trouble-

shooting, data collection/analysis, and result presentation. In the coordinated program, they attend weekly

seminars that promote interactions and oral presentation skills, write abstracts, and present at the annual

Murdock College Science Research Conference. Some present at discipline-specific conferences and co-

author papers.

The UR experience is tied to the curriculum through senior capstones. These are substantial

projects that culminate and advance the program of an academic major. They are guided by faculty but

driven by independent student inquiry. The end product is presented to an open audience (often at our

annual Academic Festival) and is critically evaluated by faculty in the student’s field. This university

graduation requirement, in place since 1997, may be satisfied by either library or laboratory/field

research. An inquiry-rich undergraduate experience will encourage more seniors to design capstone

projects based on laboratory and field research.

With steady funding and infrastructure for a core UR program in place, we begin a targeted

expansion to improve research productivity and student learning. The impact of this expansion will

extend far beyond the UR group, as student research projects are exhibited in a display case, abstracts are

posted online, UR talks are given to the university community, and UR students interact with many others

during the academic year.

4

Academic year research positions for veteran and beginning UR students

One drawback of the summer program has been the steep learning curve. Several weeks are spent

getting oriented, leaving less time for actual research. Related difficulties have been maintaining

coherence between summers, engaging students sooner, and capturing UR students’ progress to benefit

other students.

To address these issues, we will provide academic-year research positions for two veteran UR

students and two less-experienced assistants. UR students and assistants will apply to a committee of

mentors before fall, to continue summer projects or design their own. Selected students will continue

throughout the academic year.

Both students in each pair will benefit from meaningful jobs related to their professional goals.

For veteran students, extended projects will facilitate research-based senior capstones. Training assistants

will foster mentoring skills and help assimilate knowledge. The assistant will speed progress, perhaps

increasing faculty-student publications. For assistants, low-pressure work will help build confidence as

task complexity increases. Assistants will see techniques, problem-solving, and independent learning

modeled by veteran students, and practice repeatedly. They may begin to see themselves as scientists,

apply scientific methods to other areas of their lives, and understand science-related social issues. If

chosen for summer UR, they will be ready to do more meaningful work.

Although the veteran student will assume primary responsibility for the assistant, faculty will

mentor the pair. This will keep faculty connected to their research and reduce the time needed for start-up

when summer begins. Faculty and students have shown strong enthusiasm for the veteran/assistant

positions. The idea has been tested over the years on short projects, and this fall will be piloted through a

continuing microbiology project.

Expanding UR participation

5

We will add four student UR positions to encourage greater participation from our Mathematics

and our Computer Science and Computer Engineering (CSCE) departments, as well as from faculty

across the division who do pedagogical research. Funds for three currently funded student positions are

also requested, to cover PLU’s support for two new faculty mentors needed for the four added students.

Projects in Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and Geosciences have strongly predominated for several

reasons. First, the Murdock Trust formally supported UR only in those departments. Second, our

Mathematics and CSCE departments have been housed distantly and with inadequate student-faculty

research space, leading to unintentional isolation. Third, some faculty from those disciplines are interested

in pedagogical research and software development, projects not clearly encouraged previously.

All these factors are now shifting. The UR program may now include the entire division as we

leverage the track record established during the period of Trust support to obtain external grants to cover

the gap between our consistent funding base and our vision for the program. By 2005, a new building will

house Mathematics and CSCE immediately adjacent to the other science departments. The ample space

for student-faculty research included in the building’s design, plus funding for targeted positions, will

allow faculty from Mathematics and CSCE to offer UR projects. Their increased participation will benefit

the entire UR group, as students and faculty hear about each other’s projects at the weekly meetings and

gain insight into other fields. Coupled with our new cross-disciplinary course modules, increased

diversity and inclusiveness in our UR program will enhance cross-disciplinary understanding and

collaboration.

Writing Workshop

An optional one-week writing workshop following summer research will address students’ need

to communicate research results effectively. The workshop will offer an unusual chance for science

students to have an intensive focus on scientific writing not offered by either English or science classes.

Immediately following UR, students will have the theoretical knowledge, concrete experience, and

6

concentrated time needed for productive writing. In an informal summer 2003 survey, nine out of 11 UR

students said they would like to attend a writing workshop.

Students in the workshop will produce research reports for disseminating results, recruiting UR

students, and contributing to papers, grant proposals, and applications. They will analyze and assimilate

their research experience, increasing their understanding of effective writing strategies and scientific

writing conventions (and their preparation for capstone reports).

Students learn to write by writing—and by analyzing the writing of experts, participating in

structured peer review, and internalizing the art of revision. This workshop will engage students in these

activities and provide exercises in organization, sentence and paragraph structure, concision, coherence,

flow, and emphasis. A unique feature will be use of Calibrated Peer Review, “an Internet-based

instructional tool that teaches students to articulate ideas coherently and to critically evaluate both their

peers’ and their own work.” The workshop instructor has a biology and scientific writing background,

teaches a writing course with a genetic engineering theme that uses CPR, and coordinates the UR

program. Faculty mentors will ensure scientific accuracy of reports.

Northwest UR Partnership

PLU and other small schools share the distinction of producing a large percentage of graduate

school attendees, perhaps because of the close student-faculty interactions possible. But a related

challenge is faculty isolation and limited UR projects. The new NSF pilot program for Undergraduate

Research Centers (in chemistry only) addresses these issues, calling for expanding UR collaborations

among institutions to broaden opportunities and enhance research capacity and culture.

PLU is uniquely situated among Northwest PUIs to initiate a similar pilot program that includes

all our science departments. Having worked aggressively to build stable funding, we now have a firmly

grounded core summer UR program. With well-developed administrative procedures and a reliable UR

tradition, we can reach out to other schools in our region also working to institutionalize UR. By sharing

UR resources we can increase opportunities for students and faculty at all collaborating schools. The

7

partnership will be a natural extension of our commonalities: our Northwest location, our liberal arts

traditions, and our participation in the Murdock College Science Research Conference (held each year at a

different school to showcase the region’s UR projects). PLU will be the hub institution for five partner

schools: Central Washington University, Pacific University, Seattle Pacific University, Walla Walla

College, and Whitworth College. Components of the association will be UR student exchanges, increased

faculty collaborations, and a shared UR and teaching website.

The UR exchange will fund two PLU students each summer to join research teams at partner

schools, and two partner-school students to join PLU teams. We will begin as a pilot program, ideally

expanding with future funding so all students may apply to all projects and so more projects are available.

Partner schools have expressed strong support for the potential collaborations. One school formally

invited all partners to use its island research station; a PLU faculty member already sees opportunities for

microbiology research there and is encouraging a student application for related CUR funding.

Selection for the UR exchange will conform to procedures already established for our UR

program. Using guidelines developed by a UR Task Force in 2002, the division’s Chairs Council selects

faculty through an application that describes the research and the students’ roles. Partner-school faculty

will complete the same application, applying for student funding only. Partner-school projects (plus PLU

projects funded by our program and independent grants) will be advertised at PLU, and vice-versa.

Students will complete an application, indicating two preferred projects and including a faculty member’s

endorsement if applying off-campus. With partner-school faculty, PLU faculty who provided

endorsements will select PLU students for partner-school positions. Funded PLU faculty will choose

students for PLU positions. PLU’s UR coordinator will handle logistics, working with personnel at

partner schools.

In addition to the UR exchange, the partnership will stimulate and support collaborations among

faculty and administrators at all schools. Ideas include collaborating on research, sharing laboratory

exercises, developing course modules, exchanging guest speakers in courses, and sharing procedures for

managing UR programs and grants.

8

As a venue for sharing resources and initiating collaborations, we will develop and maintain a

website. We will post available research projects (with links to descriptions and homepages) and student

abstracts and reports. Shared resources will include lists (of other off-campus research opportunities,

student research journals, and UR grant opportunities) and guidelines (for talks and posters). A forum will

facilitate sharing of ideas. We believe the excitement generated by these novel connections will also lead

to ideas not yet foreseen. The pilot program will provide fertile ground for exploring the potential of

expanded research and learning communities.

Other UR connections

To further catalyze connections in the sciences, we will fund student-faculty teams to collaborate

with third parties as opportunities arise. Examples include travel to other research sites, time on

instruments, field trips, training, conference attendance, and hosting an expert for workshops. These

experiences will help students bring textual knowledge to life and situate their research in a broader

context. Faculty here have established relationships with federal laboratories (PNNL, NIST), industry

contacts (Amgen, ICOS, Zymogenetics), university laboratories, and alumni that could help arrange these

experiences. The coordinator will help identify resources and post them on the UR website.

Sustainability

The enhancements to our UR program are carefully targeted to address current limitations and

help increase inquiry and appreciation of multidisciplinary approaches. Strengthening our UR program is

also clearly tied to the university’s commitment to undergraduate research. PLU’s president has

committed to support our UR program at the current level and expand our UR endowment to $2 million.

Because of such institution-wide commitment, we believe we can build the financial base to support

continuing improvements.

Ongoing UR efforts will provide leverage to faculty and students for additional grants. Four

faculty submitted proposals recently to NIH, NSF, Research Corporation, and the Murdock Trust, and a

9

Chemistry UR mentor was awarded a third NSF-RUI, which will fund 10 students over three years. New

types of projects such as pedagogical research and connections with Social Sciences may reveal new

funding avenues. These connections and increased visibility through a UR website may attract new

donors. Faculty from departments that have participated most in UR now have a track record with which

to secure outside grants. We anticipate four faculty-student teams each year funded this way in the future.

These individuals could count as part of our overall program, freeing support for extra positions proposed

here. Divisional composition will change over the next decade, as many faculty retire. Emphasis on UR

will influence hiring decisions, and new faculty will be more likely to participate in UR and seek outside

grants.

To help sustain the NW UR partnership, PLU students may be funded for off-campus research

through the restructuring described above. Participating schools may write joint proposals to fund a true

colloquium, in which all students could apply to all projects. Since partner schools are investing in their

own UR programs, some will devise ways to support this partnership if it proves valuable. Chemistry

departments could apply to the NSF-URC program, which may expand to include other departments.

Faculty collaborations between institutions will be mostly self-sustaining, with travel funds provided by

schools. Once established, the website will be maintained by PLU’s UR website staff.

The writing workshop will be sustained through the UR endowment or other grant funding.

Alternatively, it could count as part of capstone work, or become a PLU course offering in the summer or

January-term. Some responsibility for administrative components will be distributed among the dean,

chairs, and interested faculty and will count as service to the university, replacing other activities.

Faculty Development

To support grant activities, we will provide focused opportunities for faculty development

through module-development funds, workshops, a seminar, and travel funds.

Module Development Funds

10

Each summer, three pairs of faculty from different departments will be funded to develop

multidisciplinary modules for courses. The modules will bring topics from one discipline to a course in

another field (described further under Curriculum). While each module will have a unique budget,

funding may cover training and travel costs, student assistance, and faculty summer stipends. Faculty

have submitted descriptions of many potential modules, including microorganisms’ roles in

biogeochemical cycles, statistics using case studies, modeling embryonic development, database

searching and bioinformatics, electrical properties of excitable cells, nanotechnology for health science

research, use of biological systems to synthesize proteins, computer simulations in proteomics, error

analysis as an application of differentials, and computer scripts for GIS.

The Division’s Chairs Council or designees will select faculty in early spring for summer module

development funds, based on applications giving backgrounds and roles of collaborators, courses for

module use, module content and rationale, and proposed budget. Once developed, modules and their

creators will be resources to other faculty. Small internal grants (Center for Teaching and Learning,

Regency Advancement Awards) may support further module development; a precedent is Regency

support given to develop a biostatistics course.

Module Development Workshop

To stimulate division-wide interest in module development and to guide teams, we will offer two

week-long summer workshops led by outside experts in multidisciplinary collaborations.

January-Term Research Course Workshop

A new January-term research course is described under Curriculum. PLU science faculty will

organize and lead one-week summer workshops to plan this multidisciplinary effort. Chemistry faculty

already teach a Research Methods course in that department, and many of our faculty have participated in

multidisciplinary course development. Faculty who will teach the course, including those from

Humanities and Social Sciences, will participate. In summer 2004, they will draft a new course proposal

11

for PLU Educational Policies Committee review. The summer 2006 workshop will prepare additional

faculty to help teach the course. Those teaching Research Methods will cross-train each other to allow

greater staffing flexibility and enlarge the skill set of each participant. Once the course is developed and

faculty are cross-trained, no further funding will be needed.

Collaboration Seminar

The multiple strands of Hughes grant activities will be tied together with Collaboration Seminars,

which will fit into existing traditions. Each fall, we will invite an outside expert to hold a three-hour

session at our annual university-wide Fall Conference, inviting faculty from all areas. The Hughes

director will review grant goals and activities, and the outside facilitator will lead discussions on relevant

topics, such as interdisciplinary work, UR programs, or increasing inquiry in courses. During the

academic year, one-hour follow-up seminars will be held during established Division Meeting times.

Faculty, staff, and students funded by Hughes will plan and attend these seminars, and others will be

enticed by interesting presentations and discussions. Participants will present the work they have done

under grant funding, such as module and courseware development, inter-institution collaborations, writing

workshop activities, mentoring of Preparing Future Faculty graduate students, participation in GCAT, and

using new equipment to increase inquiry in labs. We anticipate that these discussions will influence

curricular developments, the UR program, and Hughes program administration as well. New

collaborations will be solicited for work on problems that cross traditional boundaries, such as

bioinformatics and geographic information system databases. The group will discuss what is working,

what is not, and what should happen next. Seminar information will be included in the NW UR website.

Seminars at the end of each semester will help us assess our progress toward meeting program goals.

Sustaining the seminar after Hughes support will be easy, since the format fits into existing meeting

structure.

Travel Funds

12

Faculty travel is described in the Student Research section and under Module Development.

Curriculum and Equipment

Shared goals for improving student learning have emerged over years of divisional discussion.

Faculty from all departments won funding from the Murdock Trust and the W.M. Keck and Kresge

foundations for division-wide programs. In 1999 all departments participated in a two-day follow up to a

CUR workshop, each drafting a mission statement. In 2002 a UR Task Force spearheaded division-wide

discussion of fostering research readiness, and biweekly Division Meetings have focused on our UR

program, pedagogical research, and teaching techniques. The science building itself is designed to foster

collaborations between departments, with all offices encircling an open common space.

NSCI faculty who will contribute to curriculum development are involved in professional

organizations (as president of National Association of Geoscience Teachers, for example) and attend

teaching workshops (supported by university travel funds). Some innovations are supported through

grants (described under Increasing Inquiry), and some through associations with educational groups (such

as Special Interest Groups in Computer Science Education). Several faculty (Craig Fryhle with Graham

Solomons, Organic Chemistry, for example) are coauthors of major texts. With our emphasis on

catalyzing connections, more experienced curriculum developers will mentor less experienced faculty,

helping bring their ideas to fruition.

Modules

Recognizing that contemporary science requires teamwork involving different perspectives,

faculty have embraced the idea of developing multidisciplinary modules for existing courses. Instructors

will collaborate with a faculty expert from another field to present accurate, relevant material that could

not otherwise have been included in a course—sometimes material not yet included in discipline-based

texts. Each module will be unique; it may require one class session, a week, or a large portion of a course.

Either the course’s instructor or the collaborator may teach the module. Teaching responsibilities will be

13

orchestrated among the six faculty funded each year, so that none is overburdened and each course is

covered. Enthusiasm for this idea has arisen from several realizations: it will help students increase and

integrate problem-solving skills; see concrete applications of a discipline’s concepts; and understand

relationships among courses, disciplines, and their own vocation. In addition, faculty will enjoy the

interactions with colleagues and benefit from keeping current with how other disciplines intersect with

theirs. They will be stimulated to seek and apply knowledge from other fields to their own teaching and

research. We anticipate wide participation under the impetus of grant funding and associated workshops

and seminars. As a library of modules is developed, the need for financial support will decrease

significantly.

Cross-departmental module development is a logical extension of an NSF-CCLI grant recently

awarded to our Mathematics Department. The grant’s principal investigators completed an extensive

needs analysis that included interviews of 18 faculty representing every NSCI department. Many

interviewees indicated that students must be better prepared to apply mathematical skills in their

disciplines. Under the CCLI, modules will be designed to strengthen understanding of the relationship

between calculus and computer science. For example, one module will study relative growth rates of

functions representing time taken to execute computer algorithms. CCLI faculty will also create modules

bridging Mathematics and Physics.

January-term course

PLU has a 4-1-4 academic calendar; fall and spring semesters sandwich a one-month January-term.

Although we offer J-term science courses for non-majors, few are offered for majors. A new, four-credit

J-term course for all science students will increase student understanding of how science is done and

prepare them for possible UR positions. We have enthusiastic support from the Dean of the School of

Education for including sections for students interested in K-12 science education. The morning portion,

Introduction to Scientific Research, will include literature searches, research records, conventions of

scientific writing, statistical tests, science ethics, and ways of knowing in various disciplines. This portion

14

will be team-taught by faculty from across NSCI and potentially from outside NSCI, to introduce the

larger context of diverse approaches to scholarly work.

Afternoons will be devoted to Research Methods. Faculty from all laboratory science departments

will teach one-week blocks of laboratory and field techniques, such as biochemical, molecular, or

environmental methods. Students will choose three blocks and do directed independent inquiry the fourth

week, using techniques just learned.

This course takes advantage of our 4-1-4 academic calendar, which we have not done fully before.

There is great (and typically unmet) demand for J-term courses, so we will have a large pool of

prospective students. Also, the intense one-month format allows students to concentrate their energy on

one course. Earlier introduction to research will help students be more productive if they participate in

summer UR, and the course will prepare students better for upper division courses.

Offered primarily for sophomores, the new course will bridge classes and research, lower and

upper division, and coursework and capstone. Most science majors will have just completed their

foundation courses and will be likely candidates for the following summer’s UR program. The course

could drive evolution of upper-division courses: students will have new skills and expectations, and

faculty will respond with more inquiry-based laboratories.

At a 2003 NSF workshop exploring the concept of undergraduate research centers, participants

proposed a curriculum to enhance UR productivity including research methods years one-two and

investigative research years three-four. Our proposed J-term course matches that recommendation.

Developing the course will require significant faculty collaboration, which we will accomplish

through summer workshops. Several faculty will teach each course; a biologist may teach molecular

techniques for a week, and a philosopher may teach ethics for one three-hour block, and so on. We

anticipate offering two sections each J-term during the developmental phase. Because the teaching

responsibilities will be an overload, we request two course releases/year. The released time will be

“banked” by faculty who help teach the multiple-instructor course. We anticipate that departments will

revise their curricula over time, modifying upper-division offerings to make room for the new course,

15

especially if it becomes a requirement for majors. Thus, once the course has been developed, it should be

sustainable.

Increasing inquiry

Faculty have been working to increase inquiry in courses for some time, such as through an NSF-

ILI for biology laboratory equipment allowing independent projects and a Chemistry NSF-CCLI allowing

student use of modern equipment for semester-long projects based on current journal articles. Within two

years, conventional laboratories will be eliminated from Advanced Cell Biology and Developmental

Biology, and a stand-alone inquiry-based laboratory course will be introduced. Chemistry has

incorporated research-rich activities into an Organic Special Projects course.

Through Hughes funding inquiry activities will be increased in several ways, allowing students to

creatively construct, not merely confirm, knowledge. In Molecular Biology, Microbiology, and the new J-

term research course, we will introduce microarrays, joining the Genomics Consortium for Active

Teaching (GCAT). GCAT provides gene chips, a chip reader, reduced-price reagents, and sharing of

expertise. Students currently use a DNA sequencer purchased through a collaborative NSF grant to

generate and analyze novel data. With GCAT, students design and perform experiments to isolate RNA

for analysis on species-specific chips. Arrays are sent to a centralized scanner and data returned to PLU

overnight. Two faculty members will be trained in microarray technology and incorporate it into courses.

They will train other faculty, who may introduce microarrays into other courses and UR. Reducing the

isolation that encourages overuse of “safe” exercises, GCAT will provide hands-on experience with a

powerful, current technology.

Inquiry will also be increased by providing advanced students opportunities to assist in courseware

and laboratory development. This will both improve courses for all students and increase independent

learning and engagement for the student developer. For example, to graphically demonstrate derivatives

and slope, a Mathematics faculty member recently developed a computer program that a CSCE student

could further develop to illustrate other concepts. A biology student could adapt a protocol to identify an

16

unknown bacterial strain using PCR, sequencing, and GenBank. Students could also help develop

modules, allowing faculty to gain a sense of student skills required. To sustain these opportunities,

departments will gradually reallocate their student help budgets, and university allocations may shift in

response to this technique’s demonstrated effectiveness.

Equipment

Requested equipment will allow us to fully exploit opportunities presented by our existing

curriculum and Catalyzing Connections curricular innovations. Additionally, new equipment will expand

our current capabilities by extending ways in which existing equipment can be used, often permitting

multidisciplinary applications.

Through the new J-term research course and increased emphasis on independent work, our

students will participate in an inquiry-rich undergraduate experience. Modern equipment will permit

exposure to contemporary techniques, important so that students are well prepared for employment or

graduate education. The foundation established in coursework will influence the nature and quality of

senior capstones and UR. Drawing on their experiences, more seniors will choose to do laboratory and

field-based projects rather than library research. Similarly, UR projects will take on new dimensions as

faculty can plan investigations that require sophisticated equipment for experimental procedures and

analysis.

Selected examples illustrate how requested equipment will permit full and meaningful

implementation of Catalyzing Connections.

Phosphorimager: Provides a contemporary approach to visualization and quantification of

radioactivity; short exposure times permit use of Southern and Northern blots in the J-term course, other

laboratories, and UR.

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) computers and other equipment: Allow application and

interpretation of a new fundamental literacy in geology, biology, and environmental studies. Use of GIS

17

to make maps will enhance connections among these disciplines, permit expanded mapping applications,

foster collaboration with community partners on local issues, and increase UR opportunities.

Multi-angle light scattering detector for an existing liquid chromatography system: Allows

chemistry and biology students to study molecular weight and thermodynamic properties of

macromolecules, and expands student polymer research opportunities in one of our most active UR

programs: the Chemistry mentor was just awarded a third NSF-RUI grant, which will support 10 UR

students over three years.

Isoelectric focusing system for two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis: Coupled

with a newly-acquired MALDI-mass spectrometer, introduces students in the J-term research course and

several existing courses to the fundamentals of proteomics, a major focus of biological research in the

post-genomic era.

Outreach

The need for universities to train graduate students for future careers as faculty members is gaining

attention, spurred by undergraduates who are dissatisfied with TA’s, employers of new Ph.D.’s, and

graduate students themselves. The University of Washington, just one hour from PLU, is beginning a

Graduate Certificate in Professional Development: Preparing Future Faculty (PFF) program to address

this need, building on a 1994 national initiative. By participating in PFF, we will strengthen our

connections with UW and serve the teaching profession while strengthening our own programs. Through

PFF our faculty will mentor advanced doctoral students, helping them explore teaching, research, and

service aspects of a faculty career. PFF students will come to PLU for one-two terms. During the

academic year, they will observe classes, help design lectures or labs, and teach a few sessions, with

mentor observation and evaluation. In the summer, they may join faculty-student UR teams. They will

18

also observe a service activity (such as a committee meeting) and perform a service (such as helping with

journal club).

The connection is important to both institutions. The UW Graduate School has been planning the

program for several years, and is in the final stages of approval, with enrollment to open for fall 2004.

Establishing PFF partnerships with local schools is critical. Helping meet the clear need for better faculty

preparation is connected to our mission, educating for lives of inquiry and service, and will be rewarding

both personally and professionally. Our faculty look forward to association with advanced graduate

students, who will reduce disciplinary isolation, introduce current research techniques, stimulate

reflection, and help foster additional relationships with UW faculty. In some cases, PFF students will help

with teaching and mentoring loads associated with the proposed J-term course and expanded summer UR

teams. In the longer run, PLU’s participation in PFF may increase the applicant pool for faculty positions

here.

We have discussed PLU’s involvement with PFF carefully with the program’s director and

associate director. Almost all PFF students will have completed their graduate coursework and will be

selected based on career interests, GPA, and previous experience. Participants will be well prepared and

motivated for their work at PLU and will devote the time needed for a successful internship. There will

likely be a good match between the number of potential participants from both schools. The program will

be flexible, and several plans for logistics seem feasible. After an intensive three-week pre-autumn

seminar at the UW to lay the groundwork for partner-school internships, PFF students will meet with

PLU mentors to arrange an activity plan and schedule. Fall interns may stay to help design and teach part

of the one-week technique blocks planned for our J-term research course. Those here in the summer may

help mentor UR students, especially for three-student teams. They may also develop activities for the UR

program or work with a mentor teaching a summer class. UW is enthusiastic about the growing

partnership with PLU and has incorporated it as a fundamental element in their PFF Certificate

programming, while several PLU science faculty are already eager to begin as mentors.

Another outreach activity, the NW UR Partnership, is described under Student Research.

19

Administration

The changes initiated through Hughes support will be integrated throughout many divisional

activities. Coherent administration will help ensure maximum involvement and effectiveness and

encourage thoughtful evolution of activities as modifications seem warranted and new possibilities arise.

Therefore, a director/coordinator team will (respectively) provide oversight and manage details of Hughes

grant activities, following the administration structure of our current UR program. The core

administration team will involve faculty, staff, administrators, students, and outreach participants in

planning and decision-making to the greatest extent possible, including open discussion of important

grant-related policies and procedures. The tradition of such involvement is already well established.

The director, Dr. Tom Carlson, was chair of Biology for nine years and is now dean of Natural

Sciences. He has shown tireless devotion to students and is a legendary advisor, winning PLU’s 2002

Faculty Excellence Award in Advising (and a national award) and advising students through the Health

Sciences Committee for 25 years. Single-handedly establishing a Mentoring Award for PLU faculty, he

encourages similar devotion to students in others. As a strong advocate for UR, he has been a volunteer

mentor in the program three times, provided UR opportunities through three PLU Regency Advancement

Awards, and contributed magnanimously to the UR endowment and a Biology UR Fund he established.

Three students from his lab have won Goldwater Scholarships, and six have earned NSF or Howard

Hughes fellowships. Dr. Carlson’s interest in multidisciplinary work has led to team-developed courses

with Chemistry and English faculty and participation in Writing Across the Curriculum workshops and

regional meetings. His course development experience has included two J-term inquiry courses for

advanced biology students and implementation of an NSF-ILI grant he co-authored supporting

investigative laboratories. Outreach activities include annual classes for “I’m Going to College” day,

work with fifth-grade gifted students in Project Excel, and presentations in Advanced Placement biology

courses.

20

We believe the most effective coordinator will have a background in science, writing, and higher

education administration as well as significant experience working with faculty and grants. The division’s

current UR coordinator has this background and has been directly involved in the UR program’s

development. This work has been in addition to other divisional responsibilities as administrative

associate. PLU will fund a new assistant position to manage the more routine divisional tasks. The current

UR-coordinator/associate will move into a 3/4 time Hughes coordinator position, with the remaining 1/4

time devoted to a new position supporting university-wide grant activities. This synergistic arrangement

will maximize our current expertise and help faculty focus on teaching innovations and grants. For the

coordinator, the university-wide perspective will be useful in tying Hughes activities to the work of other

PLU schools and divisions and to the university’s mission. An even greater focus on grants activities will

augment the coordinator’s ability to identify UR grants resources and assist in grant writing. PLU

commits to continuing the position after Hughes funding ends.

Administration of Hughes activities will fit in with administrative structures already established,

such as our Chairs Council and semi-weekly Division Meetings. Administration of our expanded UR

program will follow the pattern already established for our core program, as described under Student

Research. In conference with the Hughes director, the coordinator will manage communications and

procedures, as well as website development, writing, and maintenance. Faculty mentors and chairs will

select UR participants. Faculty will plan the J-term and Module Development workshops, with

coordinator assistance. Many of our faculty are interested in pedagogical innovations and will be

enthusiastic about bringing expert facilitators to campus. The overarching Collaboration Seminars, held

during regular Division Meeting times 3-4 times/year, will allow Hughes grant faculty to communicate

about their achievements (and about improvements needed), help attract new faculty to grant efforts, and

instill a habit of discussion of collaborations. The Division’s Chairs Council or designees will select

faculty for module development funding as described earlier. The Hughes director will distribute funds

for faculty short-term visits to other resources on an as-needed basis. Students doing courseware or

laboratory development will be funded by a similar process. If there is strong competition for these funds,

21

we will develop an application process, which will include a mechanism for faculty participation in

decision-making. Some responsibilities here given to the director, coordinator, or chairs may be fulfilled

instead through faculty committees if grant participants express a need for different mechanisms.

The Hughes coordinator will serve as a liaison between the UW Graduate School and PLU faculty

interested in mentoring PFF students, publicizing the program and recruiting participants. The coordinator

will also research avenues for disseminating results of grant activities, help faculty prepare materials for

dissemination, assist the assessment team with tracking faculty and students, and help find further grant

support to sustain initiated activities.

Assessment and Dissemination

Faculty-student research teams from PLU’s Social Sciences Division will design and implement a

comprehensive formative and summative assessment plan using quantitative and qualitative measures.

Each summer, one team will join our UR program, bringing new awareness of different research

perspectives to participants and further informing pedagogical research. Planned assessments are listed

under program objectives below.

Foster interdisciplinary connections through modules

Formative surveys address perceptions of effectiveness (student questions: preparedness, module

relevancy, post-module appreciation for multidisciplinary approaches; faculty questions: effectiveness of

module development/presentation in fostering cross-departmental collaboration, faculty learning).

Summative assessment investigates student ability to synthesize and analyze material across disciplines

through coursework performance.

Increase student understanding of how science is done and improve preparedness for research positions

through J-Term Research Introduction/Methods course

22

Formative assessment uses focus groups throughout the course to identify changes in student

appreciation for science’s role. Summative evaluation includes course documentation, faculty

involvement, and assessment of course effect on student preparation for UR and upper-division courses.

Increase independence and mentoring skills of experienced UR students and provide earlier introduction

to research for beginners through academic year veteran/beginner UR pairs

Formative assessment surveys beginning student attitudes toward veteran mentor (comfort with

soliciting help, accessibility of research skills) and veteran attitudes toward mentoring (comfort with

status, understanding of learning). Summative evaluation documents opportunities for, and utilization of,

student research-mentoring positions, student authorship and presentations, and faculty success at

maintaining research groups.

Expand and diversify UR program by adding positions for underrepresented departments and

pedagogical research and supporting NW UR exchange

Formative assessment includes pre- and post-research student/faculty surveys. Summative

evaluation documents number of students/faculty from each department who apply for positions, and

quality of capstones from UR students versus those from non-UR students.

Increase student inquiry and engagement by joining GCAT and supporting advanced student

development of courseware and laboratories

Formative surveys and focus groups assess perceived impact on student inquiry, independent

investigation, and engagement. Paired tasks/questions determine courseware’s effect on learning.

Summative evaluation details GCAT participation: learning experiences provided, ease of use, lab

restructuring, evidence of increased independent investigation. Instructors will survey students to

determine effectiveness and utilization of student-produced courseware.

23

In addition to the PLU-based assessment described above, we will participate in the HHMI-

funded online UR survey by Sarah Elgin (Washington University-St. Louis) and David Lopatto (Grinnell

College).

Disseminating results achieved under Hughes funding is a high priority. The director and

coordinator will explore traditional and novel opportunities and ensure that participants are encouraged

and supported. Accomplishments will be shared locally through the Hughes UR website, Collaboration

and departmental seminars, divisional and campus newsletters, and NSCI’s annual Academic Festival.

Collaborating schools will share accomplishments similarly. Traditional dissemination avenues in the

sciences (oral, poster, panel, and workshop presentations at regional/national conferences; publication in

peer-reviewed and online education journals; digital libraries) will be pursued (a quick survey of faculty

yielded over 50 possibilities). A new resource for sharing CSCE modules is the Consortium for

Computing Sciences Northwest Regional Conference and website; our CSCE department has been

instrumental in establishing this group over the last few years. In addition, we will share results in venues

outside the sciences, such as:

PFF: AACU conference, UW information/roundtable presentations, alumni talks, articles

Writing Workshop: Written Communication, Association of Teachers of Technical Writing,

Calibrated Peer Review assignment library

Assessment: Western Psychological Association meetings