{"id":40950,"date":"2018-08-31T09:35:51","date_gmt":"2018-08-31T13:35:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/research\/?p=40950"},"modified":"2018-12-07T09:06:49","modified_gmt":"2018-12-07T14:06:49","slug":"undergraduates-gain-hands-on-maine-marine-experience","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/research\/2018\/08\/31\/undergraduates-gain-hands-on-maine-marine-experience\/","title":{"rendered":"Undergraduates gain hands-on Maine marine experience"},"content":{"rendered":"

Student researchers collaborate between campuses \u2013 and beyond<\/h2>\n

The Interdisciplinary Undergraduate Research Collaborative<\/a> (IURC) has funded nine projects in 2018. These projects involve teams of two or more faculty members from different disciplines who mentor undergraduate researchers.<\/p>\n

The goal is to enhance research through collaborative work and to prepare students to become successful professionals and lifelong learners as they experience invaluable experience learning outside the classroom.<\/p>\n

One project taking the ultimate interdisciplinary approach is \u201cCoastal ecosystem science for Maine\u2019s marine economy and coastal communities,\u201d led by principal investigator Heather Leslie, director of the UMaine Darling Marine Center and Libra Associate Professor in the School of Marine Sciences.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want students to experience research as it comes together, and to learn to ask questions that integrate different knowledge domains and the perspectives of individuals inside and outside of the academy,\u201d Leslie says.<\/p>\n

Leslie co-founded the SEA Fellows Program<\/a> two years ago with Brian Beal, professor of marine sciences at the University of Maine at Machias (UMM). Their joint vision was the beginning of what is now a multi-institutional collaborative supported by the UMS Research Reinvestment Fund<\/a> (RRF)\u00a0through the IURC.<\/p>\n

\"Heather
Heather Leslie leads a discussion during a SEA Fellows event<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Interdisciplinary research collaboratives catalyze research-industry partnerships<\/h2>\n

SEA Fellows builds on growing connections among marine scientists at multiple University of Maine System campuses, and includes faculty with expertise in biogeochemistry, ecology, physiology, oceanography and interdisciplinary conservation science.<\/p>\n

Faculty mentors engaged in the project, in addition to Leslie and Beal, include Damian Brady, Kristina Cammen, Paul Rawson and Jeremy Rich from the UMaine School of Marine Sciences, and Rachel Lashley-Rasher from the Department of Biological Sciences at University of Southern Maine (USM).<\/p>\n

This summer, undergraduate researchers on the project worked around the state. Their projects focused on different dimensions of coastal ecosystem research\u00a0with the goal of advancing knowledge of how coastal ecosystems work and contributing to sustainable use and conservation of these valuable systems.<\/p>\n

In addition to collecting ocean data (Katie Raffier) and exploring the potential for developing a new fishery for the invasive European green crab (Emma Ober),\u00a02018 SEA Fellows studied: culture methods of the Atlantic razor clam (Brianna Desoto and Jessica Lindsay); changing seal populations in Maine water (Emma Newcomb); and microbial and shellfish ecology in the Damariscotta River Estuary and other coastal Maine waters (Dory Freeman and Maggie MacMahon).<\/p>\n

Undergraduates receive support, gain knowledge through interdisciplinary, team-based experience<\/h2>\n

Cammen says undergraduate participants learned how to better\u00a0communicate across disciplines and with diverse stakeholder groups by working as an interdisciplinary team.<\/p>\n

The students\u2019 work culminated at the SEA Fellows Science Symposium<\/a> Aug. 7 at the Darling Marine Center. Students presented research posters and engaged with more than 80 attendees, including industry professionals, resource managers and interested citizens.<\/p>\n\n\t\t