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INVESTIGATOR: Jones, Y. K.

PERFORMING INSTITUTION:
ALCORN STATE UNIVERSITY
ALCORN STATE, MISSISSIPPI 39096

ASU CENTER FOR SUSTAINABILITY

NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY: This project proposes to establish the Alcorn State University Center for Sustainability (ASUCS ). ASUCS will be a multidisciplinary center that embraces the three core pillars of the University--teaching, research, and community service and engagement with an coordinated emphasis on sustainability education, research, and outreach as a theme across science, technology, engineering, agriculture and applied sciences, and mathematics STE(A)M disciplines. The Center will strive to enhance knowledge in surrounding communities of sustainable practices, stimulate student interest in STE(A)M careers, improve student learning outcomes in STE(A)M, and produce globally competitive leaders in sustainability. It is anticipated that this will increase the number of graduates who work in Mississippi communities as innovators in the FANH sciences and serve as change agents in their communities. The foci of the pilot launch for the center are: 1) providing professional development and training for faculty and extension personnel, 2) creating and upgrading courses that incorporate high impact student centered learning practices, modern instructional delivery techniques, and sustainability themes, 3) upgrading technology and equipment for instruction, 4) implementing a student development program, 5) providing opportunities for K-12 teacher development in STE(A)M 6) conducting STE(A)M activities in K-12 schools, 7) engaging in coordinated student recruiting activities, and 8) engaging in community outreach activities.

OBJECTIVES: The overall goals of this proposed project are to improve the quality of instructional delivery to improve student learning and engage in outreach activities to broaden awareness of sustainability. This will be accomplished through establishing the multidisciplinary Center for Sustainability Education and Outreach. The center will implement faculty and staff development, curriculum and course upgrades, modernization of instructional delivery, student development, K-12 outreach, community outreach, and new strategies for student recruitment activities.The specific objectives are:Objective #1: Train a corps of faculty who are abreast of sustainability issues in context of their respective disciplines to deliver modern student centered pedagogy and instruction.Objective #2: Train a corps of extension specialists who are abreast of sustainability issues and modern avenues of information disseminationObjective #3: Upgrade courses in STE(A)M to integrate sustainability and high impact learning practices to improve mastery of course conceptsObjective #4: Upgrade instructional delivery technology for formal and informal training uses by faculty and extension specialistsObjective #5: Upgrade teaching equipment for STE(A)M coursesObjective #6: Provide service learning, experiential learning and undergraduate research, and leadership development opportunities for studentsObjective #7: Provide professional development opportunities for K-12 teachers in STE(A)MObjective #8: Dispatch mobile STE(A)M laboratory to stimulate K-12 and parent interest in STE(A)MObjective #9: Conduct Community engagement activities to broaden awareness of sustainability and practicesObjective #10: Enhance recruiting efforts targeted in Mississippi's top agriculture producing counties.Objective #11: Provide resources to seed sustainability themed research projects