Planning: sea-phages-tycs DCL: implementing course-based research in the biological sciences at a two-year college

Joliet Junior College received a $156,484 Project Grant award, effective July 15, 2025 through June 30, 2027, from the National Science Foundation's Division of Undergraduate Education under the STEM Education program (CFDA 47.076). The award funds implementation of the Science Education Alliance Phage Hunters Advancing Genomics and Evolutionary Science (SEA-PHAGES) initiative, a course-based research experience (CRE) program designed to increase STEM engagement and strengthen workforce readiness among two-year college students. The project delivers a two-semester discovery-based curriculum sequence that begins with isolating novel viruses from soil samples and progresses through microbiological techniques, genome annotation, and bioinformatics analyses.

The SEA-PHAGES curriculum is embedded within a two-semester laboratory research pathway that provides authentic research experiences to early-stage STEM students. Key deliverables include faculty professional development through the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI), faculty mentorship of student researchers, and comprehensive assessment and evaluation measures targeting student persistence, retention, degree-seeking perseverance, and transfer rates to four-year institutions. The project aims to develop scientific thinking and communication skills while contributing to broader undergraduate science education advancement through dissemination of findings via publication and presentation. Joliet Junior College participates in the HHMI's nationwide community of STEM faculty committed to advancing instructional practices and supporting students early in the STEM educational pathway.

Abstract

This project aims to serve the national interest by increasing persistence and strengthening workforce readiness of two-year college students through participation in a well-established course-based research experience (CRE) in molecular biology, bioinformatics and genomics. Joliet college has been selected to be part of the howard hughes medical institute's (hhmi) science education alliance phage hunters advancing genomics and evolutionary science (sea-phages) initiative, which provides a nationwide community of stem faculty to support the adaptation, implementation and assessment of authentic research experiences for students early in the stem pathway. The sea-phages curriculum is a two-semester discovery-based sequence that begins with isolating novel viruses from soil samples and progresses to the use of microbiological techniques, genome annotation, and bioinformatics analyses. Through this approach, the project offers a two-year college a meaningful opportunity to join a national community committed to advancing instructional practices and contributing to research that strengthens undergraduate science education more broadly. The objectives of this project are to increase student engagement in stem, develop scientific thinking and communication skills, and improve retention and transfer rates to four-year institutions. To achieve these objectives, the sea-phages curriculum is embedded in a two-semester science laboratory research pathway that engages students in authentic research. The project also includes faculty participation in professional development through hhmi and emphasizes faculty mentorship of student researchers. Assessment and evaluation approaches focus on measuring the project's impact on persistence, retention, degree-seeking perseverance and transfer outcomes. Dissemination efforts involve publication and presentation of project outcomes to the biology education community with emphasis on sharing results with two-year colleges from across the country. By generating new knowledge about how research experiences affect two-year college students, the project has the potential to serve as a model for preparing students to succeed in advanced stem coursework and, ultimately, in stem. The NSF iuse: innovation in two-year college stem education (ityc) program seeks to accelerate the impact of and advance knowledge about emerging and evidence-based practices in undergraduate stem education at two-year colleges. 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.- subawards are not planned for this award.