Karen Lozano, Ph.D - US grants

Major Research Instrumentation support will enhance the development of a research program at The University of Texas PanAm (UTPA) by acquiring a Torque Rheometer, a Dynamic Mechanical Rheometer and an Electrical and Thermal conductivity tester. This research program will contribute to fundamental understanding of nanoreinforced polymer composites for engineering applications. Project studies will focus on process-structure-property relationships for composites prepared by conventional plastic processing technologies. Studies will investigate reinforcement handling, dispersion, and reinforcement-matrix interactions. Effects of the nanoreinforcement on the morphological, mechanical, thermal, electrical, and rheological properties will be of significant importance for the development of multifunctional materials. Conventional manufacturing technologies such as extrusion, injection molding, and fiber drawing will be employed as well as advanced manufacturing technologies such as rapid prototyping.

UTPA, long respected as a teaching institution serving underrepresented minorities, is promoting faculty research that will encourage undergraduates to pursue careers in science and engineering and train graduate students as leaders in regional industries. Most of the polymer engineering projects will involve UTPA's undergraduates, 85 percent of whom are Hispanic and have had limited experience with technical research. The acquisition of the requested instruments will also increase research opportunities for faculty from science and engineering departments at UTPA. Finally, the instruments will foster collaborative research with small businesses as well as, training programs with the Rio Grande Valley's local manufacturing entities, an important segment of which is dedicated to the polymer industry.

: Development, Understanding, and Control of Aligned Nanofiber/Nanotube Polymer Composites for Engineering Applications.

This Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) award supports two main projects devised to shorten the gap between scientific understanding and engineering of nanofiber/nanotube reinforced polymer composites. The first project will focus on the enhancement of properties by nanofiber/tube alignment, where the composite can then be further processed with conventional composite manufacturing technologies providing for high performance structures. This project will be conducted along with studying the effects of the aligned nanofibers/tubes on the morphological, mechanical, thermal, and electrical properties of the developed composites. The second project will center on the study of the rheology involved in the system. The development of relationships between rheological properties (i.e. viscosity and relaxation modulus) and molecular structure, composition, temperature, time, and pressure will promote the understanding of the composite system and will relate it to process optimization. For the education component, the PI will develop and teach courses and labs in polymer engineering and polymer processing. A significant component of the education plan will be the supervision and mentoring of undergraduates at UTPA, 85 percent of whom are Hispanics, first generation college bound who have had limited experiences with scientific research. The opportunity to actively participate in cutting edge research will be an invaluable tool for our students and will foster the desire to continue in research careers. An outreach to middle school students exposing them to a "Magic and Science Show" is also part of the education component. It is designed to encourage and stimulate an interest in science, mathematics, engineering, and technology (SME&T) related courses.

The objective of this research is to investigate the effect of a thin conductive layer deposited on nanotube (NT) and nanofiber (NF) reinforced polymers. The approach will be to deposit a layer (50nm) of titanium carbide (TiC) on NT and NF polymer (polyethylene, polypropylene, and liquid crystal polymers) composites. Interfacial analysis and electrical studies (resistivity and electromagnetic attenuation) will be conducted. Preliminary observations indicate a significant increase in electrical conductivity upon coating the sample, to a value higher than that of both, the uncoated material and the TiC. This investigation will offer exciting insight into the interactions between conducting surface and conducting matrix. The study offers the possibility of being able to lower the percolation threshold of NT/NF polymer composites. In parallel, this investigation could provide a technological breakthrough for a new class of materials whose electrical conductivities can be tailored according to the desired application.
The University of Texas Pan American is a Hispanic Serving Institution with more than 85% Hispanic enrollment. NSF funding to Dr. Lozano has allowed the development of a strong research group (mainly undergraduates). The opportunity to work on cutting edge research has already motivated students to pursue advanced degrees, increasing the number of under-represented scientists. The collaborative effort will offer an exciting opportunity for UTPA students to participate in research at The Aerospace Corporation to gain valuable practical experience. Results derived from this research will promote insights into interfacial and electrical properties of a new class of materials providing tools for tailoring manufacturing techniques.

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT
The proposed experiment-based study will add to the understanding of the interplay between the nano- and micro-morphology of polymeric crystallization of carbon nanofiber (NF) and carbon nanotube (NT) reinforced polymer composites (NRPC). Studies will be conducted to elucidate how the interactions between the NF or NT and polymer matrix account for morphological changes therefore affecting specific macro- properties. The outstanding properties observed for NRPC have gained much attention and have prompted a need for more studies of their morphological behavior given the vast number of different utilized processes and potential applications that result in different nano-micro-structures. Reinforcements, and especially in the nanoscale can significantly alter the nano/micro morphology of the polymeric matrix and add up to the complexity of the existing microstructural studies. Nanoscale reinforcements present a challenging area given that due to the large total interfacial area, it is likely that the interface will be formed by unexpected structural conformations. These types of morphologies change material properties resulting in the need of new theories and/or interpretations for observed (or expected) macroscopic behavior. The composite properties depend strongly on the developed new morphology which given the outstanding electrical and thermal properties of the CNF and CNT is prone to be also altered by electromagnetic radiations and heat related applications. The results obtained from this grant, will advance the fundamental knowledge on principles of composite material behavior to promote reliability on exciting macro-properties for a vast number of potential applications.

NON-TECHNICAL ABSTRACT
Nano reinforced polymer composites (NRPC) have now been widely studied given their interesting properties and therefore potential high-technological applications. Given that the technology pathway is now moving into the manufacturing of tools and structures where the developed NRPC composite materials can be applied, it is imperative to understand the effect that differences in processing techniques and environmental related issues will have on the nano-microstructure and therefore on the reliability of the materials. This will promote a more systematic development for processing of materials with tailored properties for high technological applications that will impact the efficiency of systems and will provide enhanced performance, reliability, and safety. Prior funding to Dr. Lozano has allowed the development of a strong research group that has greatly enhanced UTPAs (non PhD institution, Hispanic population of >85%, located in the 4th fastest growing US region with 89% Hispanic population) research vision and has promoted student and faculty research development. Dr. Lozano has and will continue (with this grant) to promote high quality research, especially in areas of national importance such as engineering. She provides opportunities for undergraduates to conduct state of the art research in emerging technologies. Dr. Lozano is highly committed to the community and recognizes (and had witnessed) that the development of a successful engineer spreads out to all members of their family and therefore to the community in general. A high percentage of Dr. Lozanos research assistants (95% Hispanics) have enrolled in graduate programs increasing therefore the number of underrepresented minorities in the science and engineering fields.

The objective of this Nanoscale Interdisciplinary Research (NIRT) project is to establish an interdisciplinary research and education program in the area of nanomanufacturing for the fabrication of active photonics-on-chip where optical properties can be controlled either optically, magnetically or electro-optically. Several approaches will be combined to enable fabrication of photonic bandgap crystals and active photonic devices. Imprint lithography will be employed to create two-dimensional photonic crystals containing point defects for creation of the cavity of laser sources and line defects for planar waveguides. Three-dimensional photonic crystals will be fabricated through multi-beam holographic lithographic techniques in which all beams come from the same half-space. Two-photon stereolithography will then be used to fabricate defects inside the three-dimensional photonic crystal for optical processing. The two-dimensional and three-dimensional photonic bandgap crystals will be hybridized to form a photonic band gap heterostructure containing engineered defects, which enables active control of light generation, photon propagation, and photon signal processing in optical circuits.

If these technologies are successful, the economies and scaling of today's silicon electronics can be carried forward into tomorrow's silicon photonics. Overall, these technologies can make optical circuit manufacturing commercially feasible and contribute to the United States' global competitiveness in photonics technology. University of Texas-Pan American (UTPA) is a minority university which is second in the nation in the number of bachelor's degrees awarded to Hispanics. Through this collaborative project, UTPA professors and students can access the unique facilities at the University of Texas at Austin, one of the top-ranked and best-equipped Universities in Texas. The research will offer an excellent opportunity for Hispanic students to engage in multi-disciplinary research and to pursue advanced degrees, increasing the number of under-represented scientists.

This proposal was received in response to Nanoscale Science and Engineering initiative, NSF 05-610, category NIRT. One objective of this work is to provide science and technology enabling eventual commercial production of carbon nanotube yarns and sheets having close to the mechanical, electrical, and thermal transport properties of the component individual nanotubes. The approach taken is solid-state processing, since this is the only method that is applicable for the ultra-long nanotubes needed for realizing the spectacular inherent properties of individual nanotubes. Another objective is to add higher levels of hierarchal assembly that are optimized for active device applications. While applications focus will be on artificial muscles, project advances will benefit diverse applications demonstrated for these nanotube yarns or sheets: light emitting diodes, organic and electrochemical solar cells, polarized sheet incandescent light sources, cold electron emission displays and lamps, transparent conducting applique's, thermal electrochemical harvesting, and yarn supercapacitors. The last objective of developing a rational synthetic route to carbon nanotubes of one type, by crystal-based reactions that are an alternative to poorly controllable gas-phase-based nanotube growth processes, will increase fundamental understanding of crystal-controlled solid-state polymerization reactions, chemical transformations dominated by three-dimensional covalent connectivity, and enable bulk property characterizations for nanotubes of one type.
Nano@Border, NanoScout, NanoExplorer, and NanoInventor programs will benefit minorities, very young students, the retired and unemployed, as well as encourage people with quite different backgrounds to work together on interdisciplinary teams in frontier areas. Project funding will expand these educational activities, and bring women and Hispanics to work on the project. Our project collaborations with Raytheon, Lockheed Martin, Nokia, the NASA Ames Center for Nanotechnology, the Naval Undersea Warfare Center, Carbon Nanotechnologies Inc., Hyperion Catalysts International, Eeonyx Corporation, and other companies will both accelerate project progress, and help provide clear paths for commercialization of project discoveries.

This Nanotechnology Undergraduate Education (NUE) program entitled, "NUE: New Vision for Built Environment-Integration of Nanotechnology into Civil Engineering Undergraduate Curriculum," at Jackson State University, under the direction of Dr. Wei Zheng, will bring together a multidisciplinary and multiorganizational team from Jackson State University (JSU), an Historically Black University, the University of Texas-Pan American (UTPA), University of Oklahoma (UO), and include partnerships with industries and Canadian Institute of Research in Construction. The project goals include: introducing the application and cutting-edge research development of nanotechnology in civil engineering to undergraduates, updating the mainstream civil engineering curriculum, and developing new teaching strategies to achieve undergraduate educational outcomes.

Intellectual Merit: The project initiates original multi-disciplinary collaborative efforts to enhance the curriculum of Construction Materials with nanotechnology-enabling materials and devices. It will provide students basic understanding of the fundamental principals of nanotechnology and its application in civil engineering, and well prepare them to work with nanotechnology in the future.

Broader Impacts: The new course modules developed for the Construction Materials course will be integrated into other courses related to civil engineering. These modules will be implemented at the three participating universities and will be available for implementation nationwide. This project will help facilitate future collaboration to establish a new advanced joint curriculum of Structure Control for students in the civil engineering, mechanical engineering and technology department amoung participating universities and will help to strengthen the civil engineering program at both JSU and UTPA.

The proposal for this award was received in response to the Nanotechnology Undergraduate Education (NUE) Program Solicitation (NSF 06-538) and is being co-funded by the Directorate for Engineering (ENG), Division of Design and Manufacturing Innovation (DMI), the Division of Civil and Mechanical Systems (CMS), and the Division of Engineering Education and Centers (EEC).

This Partnership for Research and Education in Materials (PREM) creates a partnership between the University of Texas Pan American (UTPA) and the University of Minnesota (UMN) Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC) focused on the development of polymeric and nanoparticle based materials and devices. While this collaboration builds upon the growing research activity at UTPA, this PREM embodies the first science and engineering collaboration of this magnitude at UTPA. Research conducted in this partnership are in five thrusts: (1) the exploration of nanoparticle-based materials, such as laser-induced aggregation of nanocrystallites as well as nanoparticles-in-photonic crystal material systems, for applications to photovoltaic solar cells, (2) the development of soluble conjugated polymers for spin-processable, low cost, plastic light emitters as well as conjugated-polymer-in-photonic crystal system low-threshold lasers, (3) the functionalization of nanoporous materials for the application of mechanical-to-interfacial energy conversion, (4) the development of self-healing polymeric materials with block copolymers for smart flexible materials applications, and (5) the study of nanoreinforced polymeric composite-thin film and metal-thin film interfaces to improve the mechanical properties of these systems.

Materials science educational outreach is performed utilizing existing UTPA programs such as Upward Bound, GearUp and Tex-Prep programs. In addition to these outreach activities, this PREM also presents materials science sessions to K-12 students and participates in the Research Experience for Teachers (RET) program for science teachers hosted at the partner UMN MRSEC. Besides the education and outreach to the community in general, this PREM increases the participation of women STEM faculty members and promotes their retention in materials research as more than 57% of the UTPA participating faculty are women.

Technical Summary. The University of Texas Pan American (UTPA), long respected as a teaching institution serving underrepresented minorities, is undergoing a transition to enhance research on campus. The acquisition of the Environmental Scanning Electron Microscope will broaden the research scope of participants to address current and new scientific problems in novel and fresh directions. Specifically, the proposed equipment will support projects to advance processing, development and characterization of nanofibers/nanowires, development and characterization of smart materials, nanoreinforced materials (including polymer based nanocomposite materials obtained by dispersing nanoparticles with different functionalities within selected polymeric matrices) and functionalized nanoporous materials. Investigations on the chemical modifications of nanoparticles and their effect on the physical properties of nanoreinforced materials, on the effect of the orientation of nanofillers (including nanocomposites and nano laden fluids), and the diffusion processes and solubility of complex fluids, polymers, and nanoreinforced materials will be studied. The activities cover a wide spectrum of programs in Chemistry, Physics, and Mechanical, Electrical and Manufacturing Engineering.

Layman Summary. The University of Texas Pan American (UTPA), long respected as a teaching institution serving underrepresented minorities, is undergoing a transition that will enhance research on campus. UTPA is growing at a fast pace and the need to support and develop faculty research careers has intensified. It is well known that by providing state-of-the-art research opportunities and by significant mentoring and supervision to undergraduates (UG), it is possible to encourage them to pursue graduate school and/or better train them as leaders in industry. This grant will be a strong foundation in fostering multidisciplinary collaborations within UTPA and among other institutions. Current research efforts in the development and characterization of nanoreinforced composites, smart materials, and functionalized nanoporous materials, as well as the development of nonwoven nanofibers/nanowires mats (with potential applications as tissue scaffolds, wound dressing, filtration, selective permeability membranes, flexible batteries, and chemical and biological protective clothing to mention some) produced by a newly developed process are hindered by the lack of the requested Environmental Scanning Electron Microscopy (ESEM). Since UTPA is a non PhD granting institution, most of the projects will be carried out by UG and M.S. students, 85 percent of whom are Hispanic and have had limited opportunities to experience state of the art research. The ESEM will strengthen existent courses and several more will be developed as a result of this funding. The instrument will foster collaborative research with small businesses as well as, training programs with the Rio Grande Valley's local manufacturing entities, an important segment of which is dedicated to the polymer industry. The project includes an exciting activity for K-12 students called "How Small is SMALL."

This project will create a Top Achieving Scholars (TAS) program to provide 20 four-year scholarships and 12 three-year scholarship in three cohorts for academically talented and financially needy students in computer engineering, computer science, civil engineering, electrical engineering, manufacturing engineering, and mechanical engineering at The University of Texas-Pan American (UTPA). The goals of the project are to improve educational opportunities for students by coupling student preparation with mentoring, tutoring, and research opportunities; to achieve student academic success and research excellence while providing broad educational access; and to cultivate more Hispanic Engineers by, among other things, increasing retention of students to degree achievement. Proposed efforts include ten different activities and services in recruiting, mentoring and student leadership development. These activities and services will foster students' growth and interest in their fields of study. A unique and valuable aspect of the program is its effort to influence students who are not in the program. This includes providing constructive feedback to applicants who are not selected, and forming learning communities with both TAS and non-TAS students. The requirement that students prepare a professional plan or technical document to share with family and community will also extend the program's reach beyond the funded students. This project would have a direct positive impact on the participation in the STEM fields by Hispanic Americans since the institution is an HSI. This project could provide a model for other underrepresented groups such as African Americans, Native Americans and women in the STEM fields.

Researchers have developed a hand-held device that produces non-woven nanofiber (NF) mats in the absence of electrical forces. This device can do melt and solution spinning and since it does not require electric fields, it broadens the variety of materials that can be spun into NFs. The technology was recently introduced as a method that through centrifugal forces drives the material through a set of designed orifices within a spinneret. It may provide an opportunity to produce bioactive NF mats from different biomaterial solutions for wound dressings and hemorrhage control. The device has the ability to produce NFs from organic and inorganic solutions and melt for applications such as filtration, textiles, aerospace and aeronautics industries and additional applications as well. This project will look into further establishing a proof of concept for the technology.

The development of a portable device which can produce a high yield in seconds and does not need dielectric solutions or any applied electrostatic field in situations where soldier/civilian safety is crucial and has the potential to open new doors for hemostatic materials and systems. Materials produced by this device can be used for the healing of wounds and for the treatment of active deep wounds as well as active large surface and shallow wounds provides potential benefits to soldier and civilian trauma/surgery procedures.

****Non-Technical Abstract****
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) is a new institution resulting from the merger of the University of Texas Pan American (UTPA) and UT Brownsville (UTB). UTRGV will open its doors in September 2015 as an emerging research institution with a new medical school. UTRGV will open with over 30,000 students being 89% Hispanic. The proposed UTRGV-UMN PREM partnership will provide opportunities to develop research and education infrastructure. This PREM will directly impact over 140 students (20 M.S. and 120 B.S.) most of whom will be first generation college students from underrepresented groups. The state of the art proposed research, combined with the PIs experience in leading successful scholarly enterprises presents an opportunity to further develop basic knowledge and technology in materials science while strengthening the STEM workforce by equipping students with the necessary knowledge, skills and abilities to thrive. The PIs have a strong track record of working with UG students, and will mentor junior faculty to further improve student success through research projects. The PREM team will disseminate acquired knowledge in peer-reviewed journal articles, conference presentations, and multiple outreach activities to K-12 students and teachers.

****Technical Summary****
The PREM team will combine efforts from seven different departments within UTRGV and three from UMN to promote fundamental understanding and development of technology. Specifically, the selected subprojects are: (1) Magnetoelectric Effects in Perovskite Complex Metal Oxides; (2) Nonflammable, Ionic Liquid-Based Electrolytes for Safer Lithium-ion Batteries; (3) Synthesis of Conjugated Polymers for Photovoltaics and Electrolyte Gated Transistors; (4) Homeostasis of Cultured Mammalian Cells in a Nanofiber Environment Development of NFs for bio-related applications; and (5) Cellular Imaging Using Persistent Luminescent Spinel Nanoparticles. These projects will: (a) aim in the development of students with strong analytical skills, creativity/innovation, teamwork, leadership, and work ethics to become visionaries and entrepreneurs in the materials science workforce; (b) promote an exchange of faculty and students between UMN/UTRGV; (c) raise STEM awareness in K-12 students while increasing awareness of innovation and creative thinking among K-12 teachers; and (d) improve UTRGV's research, academic, and community infrastructure, to promote long term growth and sustainability.

As part of its overall strategy to enhance learning in informal environments, the Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) program funds innovative resources for use in a variety of settings. Many of the Hispanic children and families who live in the Rio Grande Valley lack opportunities to engage in inspirational and educational experiences introducing Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) concepts and related careers. The University of Texas, Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) will adapt and research the "Energy and U Show," which will introduce thousands of children and families to an exciting and dramatic that shows interconverting different forms of energy. The show will meld the excitement of chemical demonstrations and the natural connection between energy and STEM education in a fully produced, on-stage science extravaganza. A foundational philosophy of the show is that there is additional real value in getting children and youth onto a college campus. For many of its participants, this is their first time sitting in a seat at a university, the first opportunity for them to envision themselves in this environment. In partnership with the University of Minnesota, which originally developed the show, UTRGV will adapt the show, now presented in English, to a bilingual, culturally accessible format that is designed to Hispanic family audiences and student groups in learning about energy and related careers. Evaluation results demonstrate that the show has effectively engaged thousands of Minnesota students. The target audience will be upper elementary (4th-5th grade), middle school students, and their parents. This project will be led by UTRGV, nation's second-largest Hispanic Serving Institution, with a student enrollment of 28,000, of which over 90% are Hispanic and more than 60% are first-generation college students). In addition to the show, the project will include: (1) a manual to guide implementation of the program and related resources at different national or international venues; (2) educational resources for parents, teachers and school counselors introducing STEM careers and specific STEM college majors; (3) mentoring of UTRGV faculty in outreach activities; and (4) dissemination of the show to other campuses and venues.

The project will conduct ongoing research and evaluation guiding the adaptation of the show and investigation of factors contributing to positive educational impacts of the project, which will be carried out by a bilingual/bicultural researcher. Project research instruments will measure student level of engagement, interest and learning, as well as college interest, in surveys and analysis of data pre and post demonstration. The project will specifically investigate the impact of language on student impacts. Each component of this project will be studied to determine program intervention effectiveness (the scientific demonstration and language of the demonstration). To determine program effectiveness, a baseline of data before program implementation will be established concerning Hispanic students, their persistence, and perceptions of the environment. The project will measure parent perceptions of STEM careers for their children through pre and post demonstration surveys and focus groups. Student and parent research participants will be able to use surveys or respond to other research activities in the language of their choice. Project findings will contribute to the knowledge base concerning how linguistically and culturally adapted science shows and related resources adapted into can have positive impacts regarding the STEM knowledge and careers of students and parents from low-income and Hispanic communities.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) located in the southernmost region of Texas serves over 31,000 students, of whom 89% are Hispanic. UTRGV is 2nd in the nation in total Hispanic enrollment and 3rd in graduating Hispanics. The proposed Partnership for Research and Education in Materials (PREM) between UTRGV and the University of Minnesota (UMN) Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC) will focus particularly on retention and degree attainment of underrepresented minority undergraduates, as well as on building the graduate school pipeline where Hispanic students are even more underrepresented. The PREM pathway goals are to achieve a 5-year graduation rate of at least 85% for PREM undergraduate students and a graduate school enrollment rate of at least 30% for PREM alumni. This PREM aims to provide intensive research opportunities to at least 100 undergraduate students during the course of the award. Students will develop expertise in the broad areas of energy and smart materials while acquiring a strong set of multi-disciplinary skills in fundamental research. The participating students will carry out research at both academic institutions and will be mentored by faculty from several disciplines. Mentoring of junior and mid-career faculty will also be fostered. This PREM program will allow UTRGV to significantly accelerate its emergence as a focal center for materials research and develop a long-lasting collaborative partnership with UMN. The research results under the UTRGV-UMN PREM partnership will be disseminated in peer-reviewed journals and conferences, and to the public at large via a dedicated web portal and frequent presentations at local K-12 schools.

The UTRGV-UMN PREM will engage in compelling scientific materials research through a synergistic approach towards development of next-generation nanofiber (NF) systems that could impact a large number of important practical applications, including in the biomedical fields, filtration, electronics and energy related sectors. The team proposes to develop a suite of strategies to prescribe, tailor, design and control the mesostructures of fine fibers. UTRGV’s world leadership in force-spinning leverages its platform in NF process-structure-characterization, while design and characterization of nanoscale structures match a distinguishing strength of the UMN MRSEC. The team will produce tunable hierarchical structures with powerful property combinations. The proposed research is organized around two interdisciplinary research groups (IRG); the first will explore processing routes to control both fiber geometry and internal structure, and the second will adapt internally structured NFs for specific applications. The world-class instrument facilities at UMN will enable and catalyze the research efforts and will provide unique opportunities for cross-fertilization of ideas, mentoring, and multidisciplinary training. The collaborative teams will hold research-focus group meetings via real-time video teleconferencing and hold an annual symposium hosted by each institution, rotating yearly. This will foster a high-level of research activity and a well-orchestrated student-centered organizational environment. Ultimately, this research partnership will increase understanding of hierarchically designed NFs and will pave the way for novel systems with potential to facilitate decentralized energy production in the world.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

With support from the Improving Undergraduate STEM Education: Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSI Program), this Track 2: IEP aims to help freshman mechanical engineering students with their skills gap, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, to increase their chances for academic success and retention rates. The Freshman Year Innovator Experience will provide students with learning experience to develop critical self-transformation skills to help them face college’s academic challenges. Students will take two courses with parallel projects, in Introduction to Mechanical Engineering MECE 1101 they will work on a technical project: the redesign of a simple electric kitchen appliance while in Learning Frameworks (UNIV 1301) students will work on an academic project: the design of their academic pathways. Through adaptive expertise exercises, students will learn how to transfer engineering solving techniques as self-transformation skills from their technical project to their academic project. The outcomes of this project will include the coordinated curriculum development for both UNIV 1301 and MECE 1101 first-year courses, a summer professional development program for course instructors, and implementation and assessment of the coordinated courses. This work is important since it will equip students with critical skills to face academic challenges such as course planning, decision making, among others. This work will contribute a novel self-transformation approach where students apply technical knowledge to solve academic challenges. The project will broaden the participation of underrepresented student minorities in STEM at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, contributing to a diverse and prepared STEM workforce and encouraging them to pursue advanced degrees.<br/><br/>The goals of this project are: 1) increase the number of STEM degrees awarded to Hispanics, 2) broadening participation of females in STEM related fields, and 3) increase the persistence and self-efficacy in STEM fields amid COVID-19. The project hypothesizes that the Freshman Year Innovator Experience effectively contributes to the retention of underrepresented minority freshman mechanical engineering students, particularly female students, effectively contributing to an increase in their persistence and self-efficacy. The theoretical framework combines design innovation, design of academic pathways, and adaptive expertise for student self-transformation, and it will help undergraduate underrepresented minority students to develop valuable skills for academic success. The project will advance understanding of student self-transformation skills for academic success. The specific aims of the project include the development of the coordinated curricula for UNIV 1301 Learning Frameworks and MECE 1101 Introduction to Mechanical Engineering first-year courses, an instructors’ summer training program, implementation, assessment, and institutionalization of the activities. It is expected that participating students will improve their retention rates by 10% and that the implemented activities become institutionalized. This project will provide socioeconomic development opportunities to Rio Grande Valley students, many of whom are first-generation college students and are not yet fully aware of career opportunities in STEM fields. Furthermore, it will provide an evidence-based approach to be implemented at similar institutions across the nation. The HSI Program aims to enhance undergraduate STEM education and build capacity at HSIs. Projects supported by the HSI Program will also generate new knowledge on how to achieve these aims.<br/><br/>This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.