FRESNO STATE HSI (FRESH) PROGRAM IN THE APPLICATIONS OF METABOLOMICS OF AGRICULTURAL BIOTECHNOLOGY

A comprehensive educational and research training program, FREesno State HSI (FRESH), is proposed between the colleges of Science and Agriculture. The FRESH program will mentor and assist students in completing B.S/M.S in the chemical and agricultural sciences to achieve their research-oriented career goals. This proposal will build on a central research theme, agricultural biotechnology, where students trained in the fundamentals of chemistry and biochemistry will undertake high-impact research projects that are vital to the local agricultural industry. The FRESH program leverages the established research infrastructures on campus, including the Research Infrastructure in Minority Institutions (RIMI), and the NSF-MRI-funded high-field nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometer. The team has an established track record in research education. It will create a highly interactive training program to empower underrepresented students with practical aspects of NMR-based metabolomics in agricultural biotechnology and build careers addressing the NIFA priority areas. The undergraduates will benefit from laboratory sessions following the concept of "Course-based Undergraduate Research Experiences" (CUREs), while graduate students will undertake hypothesis-driven thesis research. With financial support for five students each year, the FRESH program will lay the essential groundwork required to face the rigors of agricultural industries or graduate school education in a highly competitive atmosphere. Pedagogical and scientific results will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications, conference presentations, undergraduate/graduate courses, community, and public outreach. The long-term FRESH program will be part of a firm foundation for our students in the Central Valley to establish careers as independent investigators and assume leadership positions in American Science.