Muhlenberg College
AC-10: Support for Sustainability Research

Student sustainability research with a faculty mentor can occur during the academic year or as a fulltime research experience over the summer. A unit of student research can be applied towards sustainability related majors or minors. Student sustainability research conducted in approved study abroad programs such as The School for Field Studies routinely count for credit in Sustainability Studies, Biology, or Environmental Science. In the summer sustainability research program, students identify a faculty mentor and develop a brief research proposal for available funding (see list of funding sources under incentives below). In all of these opportunities students, play a primary role in the research well beyond that of an assistant often leading to publication and presentation. All summer research students participate in an annual college wide celebration of student research where students present their work in a poster session. There are grants for summer student sustainability research that include a $3200 stipend, course credit, and summer housing for an 8-week period. The Sustainability Studies Program can support student participation in sustainability related conferences.

Muhlenberg College sources of support for student sustainability research:
The David C. Rabold Fund for Interdisciplinary Research in Sustainability Studies

The Barry Weshnak ’66 and Carol Anne Cawley Weshnak Endowed Scholarship Fund in Sustainability Studies

The Wagoner Scholarship for environmental and sustainability research.

The John Ezra Trainer Award for any student who plans to carry out biological field investigations

Summer Seedbox Experience for Venture Development in Sustainable Food Systems (supported by a grant from VentureWell)

All faculty are eligible to apply to The Muhlenberg College Faculty Development and Scholarship Committee for support of summer research, sabbatical research, and travel for international research. The Sustainability Studies program offers additional support for faculty research in the area of sustainability including conference travel.

Muhlenberg College acknowledges interdisciplinary, trans-disciplinary, and multi-disciplinary research during faculty promotion and tenure decisions. We do not place more emphasis on sustainability research; but rather encourage faculty members to pursue research in whatever discipline they choose and will recognize all types of research that is conducted during faculty promotion and tenure decisions. This is greatly encouraged and recognized, but not required.

The Muhlenberg College Faculty Handbook (which is not a public document) refers to support of interdisciplinary, transdisciplinary, and multidisciplinary research during faculty promotion and/or tenure decisions as follows:

Section 3.5.2.1a: The scholarship of "application: is recognized as a particular form of scholarship where knowledge is applied to address consequential problems facing society and institutions
Section 3.5.2.1.d: the scholarship of :"integration" is recognized as a particular type of scholarship that includes integration across disciplines
Section 3.7.3 Evaluation for considering of Tenure & Promotion includes two sections related to evaluation of faculty in Interdisciplinary programs such that it will include in the process faculty or program directors from outside of the home department in a particular interdisciplinary program.

Muhlenberg College has ongoing library support for sustainability research. The library has dedicated staff, Rachel Hamelers, who provides library support for interdisciplinary work and sustainability studies. The library also posts a research guide for Sustainability Studies Subjects on its website: https://libraryguides.muhlenberg.edu/sustainability/

Featured student sustainability research at Muhlenberg College:
https://www.muhlenberg.edu/aboutus/polling/climateenvironmentsurveys/
https://www.muhlenberg.edu/news/2022/seedbox2022.html
https://www.muhlenberg.edu/news/2021/seniorresearchessustainablehygiene.html