HHMI-Sheridan Research Course Initiative

We are excited to announce a new Research Course branch of the Brown Learning Collaborative, a collaboration between the Sheridan Center and the HHMI funded initiative, "Innovation in Gateway STEM Courses".

The goal is to develop a series of programs for faculty, graduate students, and postdoctoral fellows that will support development of discovery-based research courses (often called "CUREs") in STEM and the social sciences.

Activities

• In Fall 2018, Sheridan and HHMI staff hosted a guest speaker series, as well as a Course Design Institute, which offered funding and support to develop or revise discovery-based research experiences in the context of a course.

• In Spring 2019, Sheridan and HHMI staff will co-taught a course to support undergraduate teaching assistants in these discovery-based research settings.

• Support for course implementation

• See this Sheridan Center Newsletter for more information

A timeline for the initiative can be found here:

To build this new initiative, we are working in collaboration with a planning committee.
This committee is comprised of the following Brown University faculty, students, and staff:

Oludurotimi Adetunji, Associate Dean for Undergraduate Research and Inclusive Science, Dean of the College

Geeta Chougule, HHMI Program Coordinator, Molecular Biology, Cell Biology, and Biochemistry

Kristina Cohen, HHMI Postdoctoral Research Associate, Molecular Biology, Cell Biology, and Biochemistry

Mark Johnson, HHMI Program Director, Associate Professor of Biology, Molecular Biology, Cell Biology, and Biochemistry

Stacey Lawrence, Assistant Director for STEM Initiatives, Sheridan Center for Teaching & Learning

Michelle Muzzio, Graduate Student, Chemistry, Sheridan Head TC

Julie Plaut, Director of Faculty Engagement and Research, Dean of the College

David Rand, Stephen T. Olney Professor of Natural History, Professor of Biology, Chair of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Bio Med Ecology & Evolutionary Biology

Jerome Robinson, Assistant Professor of Chemistry, Chemistry

Björn Sandstede, Royce Family Professor of Teaching Excellence, Director of the Data Science Initiative, Professor of Applied Mathematics, Applied Mathematics

Thomas Serre, Director for the Center for Computation and Visualization, Associate Professor of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences, Cognitive Linguistic & Psychological Sciences

Susan Short, Professor of Sociology, Director of Population Studies, Sociology

Christina Smith, Assistant Director for Undergraduate Instructional Development, Sheridan Center for Teaching & Learning

Katherine Smith, Associate Dean of Biology Undergraduate Education, Assistant Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Bio Med Medical Affairs

Ben Styler, Undergraduate Biology Concentrator

David Targan, Associate Dean Of The College For Science Education, Dean of the College

Daniel Weinreich, Interim Director of the Center for Computational Molecular Biology, Associate Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Bio Med Ecology & Evolutionary Biology

Mary Wright, Director of the Sheridan Center for Teaching and Learning, Dean of the College

Rashid Zia,Dean of the College, Associate Professor of Engineering, Associate Professor of Physics, Provost's Office
 

Why research courses?

Students who participate in CUREs experience gains in research skill, self-efficacy, scientific identity, and ability to persist in science that are comparable to the gains made by students who participate in traditional research experiences
(Brownell et al, 2015; Brownell SE, Hekmat-Scafe DS, Singla V, Chandler Seawell P, Conklin Imam JF, Eddy SL, Stearns T, Cyert MS. 2015. Corwin, Graham & Dolan, 2015; Flaherty, Walker, Forrester & Ben‐David, 2017).
In addition, CURE courses make research experiences more inclusive (Bangera, Brownell & Hatfull, 2014) and more accessible to students from diverse backgrounds.

Multiple opportunities to engage in research

These courses will join research courses that have already been developed with HHMI support:

• Plant Inquiry (BIOL 0440)
  • Alison DeLong, Associate Professor, MCB
  • Mark Johnson, Associate Professor, MCB
• Introductory Biochemistry Laboratory ( BIOL 02850)
  • Kristina Cohen, HHMI Postdoctoral Fellow
  • Sarah Taylor, Instructional Coordinator/Science Learning Specialist, BioMed
  • Yiannis Sawa, Investigator in MCB
  • Gerald Jogl, Associate Professor, MCB
• Advanced Fluid Mechanics (ENGN 1860)
  • Daniel Harris, Assistant Professor of Engineering
  • Kristy Schlueter-Kuck, Postdoctoral Research Associate in Engineering
• Open-Source Big Data Neuroscience Lab (NEUR 1630)
  • Alexander Fleischmann, Endowed Professorship in Brain Science, Associate Professor of Neuroscience
  • Monica Linden, Senior Lecturer in Neuroscience
• Characterizing the Aging Process Using Caenorhabditis elegans and Reverse Genetics
  • Joslyn Mills-Bonal, Postdoctoral Research Associate in Molecular Biology, Cell Biology and Biochemistry
  • Louis Lapierre, Assistant Professor of Molecular Biology, Cell Biology and Biochemistry
• Life under water in the Anthropocene (CLPS 1195)
  • Ruth Colville, Professor of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences
  • Andrea Simmons, Professor of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences
• Experimental analysis of vision for action and vision for perception: Are there separate mechanisms?
  • Fulvio Domini, Professor of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences
• Antibiotic Drug Discovery: Identifying Novel Soil Microbes to Combat Antibiotic Resistance (TBD )
  • Toni-Marie Achilli, Lecturer in Molecular Pharmacology, Physiology and Biotechnology
• Inorganic Chemistry (CHEM 0500)
  • Eric Victor, Lecturer in Chemistry
• Conservation in the Genomics Age (BIOL 1515/2015)
  • Tyler Assistant Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and Environment and Society