The CUR Education Division announces the 2021 recipients of its Student-Faculty Collaborative Research Awards and its Course (Re)Design Awards. The Collaborative Research Awards of $250 each support faculty-student projects that have potential for an impact on student continuing engagement in research and inquiry in education-related fields and for an impact on professional practice. The Course (Re)Design Awards of $500 each are presented to faculty members in education who seek to integrate undergraduate research into a course, either designing a new, research-infused course or redesigning an existing course to include a substantial undergraduate research component.
Student-Faculty Collaborative Research Awardees
D’Artagnan Kilgore (Idaho State University; mentor: JongHun Sung). The project will investigate running forms in collegiate cross-country runners, comparing individuals with a history of running-related injuries and those without such a history. The study’s data may assist coaches in teaching a better running form to novice runners.
Claire Conner (Boise State University; mentor: Lisa Beymer). The project aims to understand how virtual education may have affected the quality of instruction of preschool students during the COVID-19 pandemic and how the in-home setting for services during the pandemic may have changed parent-teacher collaboration.
Course (Re)Design Awardees
Lisa Beymer (Boise State University). The course Exceptionality in the Schools (ESP 250) will be redesigned to incorporate a guided research project on equity, access, or inclusion of P–12 students with disabilities and provide undergraduates in the course with faculty and current or past undergraduate researchers as mentors. A white paper on the process will be prepared for discussion among education faculty and for presentation at conferences or similar venues.
Anne Katz (Georgia Southern University). The course Early Language and Literacy Development (READ 3231) will be redesigned to provide an opportunity for preservice students to grow as literacy educators, build relationships with and enhance the learning of local students, and participate in a research project to build their problem-solving skills and promote literacy in middle school students.
Founded in 1978, the Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR) focuses on providing high-quality and collaborative undergraduate research, scholarly, and creative activity. Among the many activities and networking opportunities that CUR provides, the organization also offers support for the professional growth of faculty and administrators through expert-designed institutes, conferences, and a wide-range of volunteer positions. The CUR community, made up of nearly 700 institutions and 13,000 individuals, continues to provide a platform for discussion and other resources related to mentoring, connecting, and creating relationships centered around undergraduate research. CUR’s advocacy efforts are also a large portion of its work as they strive to strengthen support for undergraduate research. Its continued growth in connections with representatives, private foundations, government agencies, and campuses world-wide provides value to its members and gives voice to undergraduate research. CUR is committed to inclusivity and diversity in all of its activities and our community.
CUR focuses on giving a voice to undergraduate research with learning through doing. It provides connections to a multitude of campuses and government agencies, all while promoting networking and professional growth to its community.