Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
ER-18: Sustainability Research Incentives

Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities (URCA) encourages, supports, and enables students to participate in research and creative activities at the undergraduate level. Students who are URCA Associates work one-on-one with faculty mentors to lead their own research projects or creative activities. The student Associates are the principal investigators in their projects. Past URCA projects have focused on research in sustainability including: Agricultural Composting, Midwestern Green Roofs, Gender Identity in LGBTQ Community, Gender Barriers, Invasive Species, Water Pollution, Minority Oppression, Gendered Workspaces and Gender Expectations, Handmade Paper, and Herbicide Treatments. SIUE's 380-acre nature preserve is a dedicated location for student and faculty research, lab projects, and class assignments.

SIUE's academic success is related to the innovative scholarly, creative and research activity of its faculty who effectively combine the best practices of teaching, scholarship and research. SIUE is taking a leadership role as a model comprehensive master's institution with faculty members committed to a teacher-scholar model. The Office of Research and Projects offers research support services, including internal funding opportunities, to faculty and graduate student. There have been two Mississippi Projects at SIUE, which are faculty development workshops. The summer 2011 Mississippi Project I was titled: "Green Curriculum, Green Campus, Green Community." The summer 2012 Mississippi Project II was called: "Sustainability in the Curriculum and Classroom." The workshop explored how faculty can meaningfully integrate sustainability into the classroom. The workshops started by taking a close look at SIUE and the larger St. Louis region, but participants were also invited to engage in local/global comparisons. Members of the campus and local community facilitated and catalyzed discussions of a green curriculum and its integration and role in the broader community.Sustainability Research examples are discussed and encouraged. The Excellence in Undergraduate Education program at Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville was established in 1986 for the purpose of funding innovative projects in undergraduate education. Since its initiation, the University has allocated nearly $10 Million to faculty, staff, and students through this program. The EUE program is administered through the Faculty Development Council of the Faculty Senate and the Office of the Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs.