Diversity in Entomology – REEU Program
The Department of Entomology Research and Education Experiences for Undergraduates (REEU) program began in 2021 with support from the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), through the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI). The Entomology REEU program Diversity in Entomology has welcomed undergraduate students from Prairie View A&M University (PVAMU), Texas A&M University-Kingsville (TAMUK), Texas Southern University (TSU), and University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV), and accepts applications from students enrolled in any HSI (Hispanic Serving Institutions) and HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) university in Texas.
Deadline for application is midnight Friday March 22, 2024. Applications will be reviewed as they are received. Participants will be notified beginning Friday March 29.
The program length is 10 weeks beginning with the start of the 10-week summer semester, May 28, and ending August 6, 2024.
This program is supported by USDA-NIFA Grant 2021-67037-34655
Goals and Objectives
Our Goals
- Provide research experiences to improve critical and creative thinking, and communications skills of undergraduate students from Texas HSI and HBCU campuses, including PVAMU, TAMU Kingsville, Texas Southern University and UT Rio Grande Valley
- Train graduates with top, research and problem-solving skills for competitive graduate programs, and the agricultural, food, and renewable natural resources jobs markets through the above research experiences
Our Objectives
- Provide experiential learning opportunities through faculty-guided scientific research to academically qualified, underrepresented, undergraduate students from Texas HSI and HBCU campuses including, PVAMU, TAMU Kingsville, Texas Southern University, and UT Rio Grande Valley
- Train those students in the application of the scientific method, from research question formulation to presentation of experimental results to the scientific community
- Empower those students to successfully pursue STEM-intensive careers through hands-on participation in scientific research, engagement in creative and analytical thinking activities, and appreciation for the importance of diversity and inclusion for effective and efficient problem-solving practices
- Create a sustained, student community of practice of science, including: a) coaching sessions to reflect on and measure project impacts; b) virtual conferences where students will share their projects with students in other universities, and; c) a website to share those presentations and other project products.
Texas A&M project to create a more inclusive scientific community
The goal of this project is to provide top-tier research experiences that improve students’ problem-solving abilities, and critical and creative thinking and communications skills to prepare them for competitive graduate programs and/or jobs within agriculture and natural resources fields.
Interested in the program?
Contact one of our program directors to learn more about what it takes to be part of our next cohort of students.
