LAS Departments

CALL FOR PROJECTS

URSI is designed to enrich undergraduate teaching and learning by providing talented students with meaningful investigative or creative experiences in their major discipline in partnership with a faculty member of that discipline.  A meaningful project will include:  a research hypothesis, appropriate data collection, and developed conclusions.  The goals of URSI are:

1. To develop "a sense of inquiry" on behalf of student participants;
2. To provide investigational, "open-ended experiences" for students in order to build their independence and confidence;
3. To provide an academic, employment opportunity for students in the summer;
4. To attract talented students into professional careers as college professors;
5. To provide MWSU faculty with a collaborative, professional development opportunity in the summer.

We expect to be able to fund up to eight faculty/student research teams during the summer of 2006.  Students must have a MWSU GPA of 3.0 to be eligible.  Students selected for this project will receive a $500 stipend.

URSI proposals are hereby requested from faculty/student teams from each of the academic departments of the Colleges of Liberal Arts & Sciences and Professional Studies.  These proposals will undergo a "blind review" of a committee selected by the College Deans.  The following evaluative criteria will be used:

1. The overall scholarly attributes of the project.
2. Significance and involvement of the student scholar.
3. Overall design of the project.
4. Is the project capable of being realistically accomplished in the time-frame designated (i.e., Summer '06)?
5. Does the proposal include, as one of its objectives, the presentation or publication of the work in a suitable professional forum or journal as applicable?

The due date for receipt of all faculty/student team proposals in the appropriate Dean's office is April 14, 2006.  Following the review of these documents, teams will receive notification of the outcome no later than May 1.

Please include the following in your application:

• Title of your project
• Student’s Name
• Student’s G Code
• Student’s local & permanent address
• Student’s telephone number
• Student’s e-mail address
• A Copy of the student’s transcript
• Faculty Member’s Name
• Faculty Member’s G Code