Building a cohort of PUI faculty to use NEON soil respiration data in undergraduate classes

Background/Question/Methods

The scholarship and research trajectory of PUI faculty is often fundamentally different when compared to faculty at research-focused institutions. The so-called teacher-scholar model includes basic research as well as the scholarship of teaching and learning. However, the teacher-scholar model also presents multiple challenges for PUI faculty. First, PUI faculty are typically hired with the assumption of being “the” local expert in a research area and thus have fewer proximate colleagues with whom to collaborate. Second, the high instructional load for PUI faculty prohibits academic year travel, often necessary to build strong cross-disciplinary relationships. Finally, PUI faculty often have limited funds for overhead and research equipment with limited time to develop new skills in cutting-edge instrumentation or analysis techniques. In spite of these challenges, STEM faculty at PUIs are a potentially underutilized resource for advancing macrosystems and other ecology research. One way to encourage the engagement of this population is through the development of peer collaborative networks, which have been shown to be a key element of success for PUI faculty.

Results/Conclusions

We developed a model for collaborative engagement of PUI faculty with the NSF Macrosystems program and NEON, initially focused on collaborative and sustaining collaboration between two PUI faculty. With this framework, we’ve developed, validated, and disseminated (through GitHub) a preliminary soil respiration data product using core NEON measurements. In the final year of this NSF-funded project (tentatively academic year 2022-2023) we will recruit PUI faculty to engage in a faculty mentoring cohort that will sustain their scholarship trajectory in macrosystems science. Participating faculty will: (1) join together in a mentoring cohort to refine and pilot education modules in NEON-based macrosystems science for undergraduate students; (2) contribute to the validation of the NEON soil respiration data product, thus building their technical skills in instrumentation, data analysis, and facility with NEON sites and data products; and (3) develop their intercultural competency skills, increasing their ability to mentor undergraduate researchers from underrepresented backgrounds. To enable (2), each participating faculty member will receive soil respiration instrumentation (including training) valued at nearly $10,000. Our aim with this cohort is to take relevant NEON instrumentation protocols and data collection processes and package them for introductory undergraduate biology or ecology classes.