News

Expanding Access to Scientific Research Experiences for Undergraduates from Historically Underrepresented Groups

Las Cumbres Observatory is pleased to announce that it has received a grant from the National Science Foundation for the USA Sky Partners Program. LCO aims to expand its outreach to US undergraduates with the new program, building on the model of our hugely successful Global Sky Partners. Creating partnerships between undergraduate educational institutions, and providing them access to professional telescope facilities, provides an authentic research experience to students who do not have local resources. The ability to do science becomes part of their identity for students who complete the program.

The US-based program targets institutions that serve groups underrepresented in astronomy and without easy access to professional astronomical facilities. The students need no prior interest or experience in doing science. The observing experience utilizes the ten 0.4m telescopes in the Las Cumbres Observatory global robotic telescope network. The observatory scheduling is automated and with ten 0.4m telescopes dedicated almost entirely to education, students have a high success rate in obtaining observations, regardless of where they are physically located.

The materials developed are provided in both English and Spanish, which expands access to the program and reduces barriers for students to accomplish authentic scientific research. Undergraduates who participated early in the USA Sky Partners pilot program achieved successful results that were presented at a professional astronomy meeting.

LCO is partnering with scientists at three institutions to create and implement the USA Sky Partners. Together this team will bring the 8-week research course to students in the United States and Puerto Rico, with the goal of adding 30 community college and university faculty and their students to the program over the next three years.

• At the Río Piedras campus of the University of Puerto Rico, the USA Sky Partners will be led by Dr. Carmen Pantoja, the only woman in the Physics Department, and Dr. Mayra Lebrón, who was the first Puerto Rican hired as an astronomer at Arecibo Observatory. (The collapse of the Arecibo Observatory radio telescope has halted many of the activities that were done with the students such as field trips, workshops, and observing projects.) Dr. Pantoja and Dr. Lebrón created the Astrophysics Circle of Puerto Rico which is a research group in astrophysics at their campus. The students who participate in the USA Sky Partners program will present their results at the annual Puerto Rico Interdisciplinary Scientific Meeting.
• At Occidental College, Dr. Sabrina Stierwalt is the first astrophysicist ever hired and she is building an astronomy program in the physics department. The astronomy students have substantial interest in more research opportunities. Being part of the USA Sky Partners provides that access and is a powerful step in helping to grow the program.
• Dr. Rachel Freed is the President of the non-profit Institute for Student Astronomical Research (InStAR) in Sonoma, CA, and she has developed the materials utilized for previous implementations of astronomy research seminars. Dr. Freed leads the workshops for new faculty and students that join the USA Sky Partners and supports the assessment and evaluation of student results.

During the just completed pilot phase of the program the team updated the existing written and online materials, including a complete Spanish-language version, and created instructional videos for the university faculty implementing the program. These videos, combined with the instructional materials, make it possible for the Partners to lead future seminars themselves.

Dr. Lisa Storrie-Lombardi, LCO President and Observatory Director, is grateful to the NSF for supporting the growth of LCO’s impact in education. She said, “We are incredibly excited with this opportunity to strengthen the education infrastructure in astronomy and reach groups that are underrepresented in our field. The experience can spark an interest in science and strengthen the critical thinking skills learned in carrying out a scientific investigation.”