Carlos Christopher Goller

Mentoring is crucial to faculty development; however, not all instructors have access to supportive structures. The Promoting Active Learning and Mentoring (PALM) network facilitated one-on-one faculty mentoring within a structured learning community to encourage active learning. Prior work ( n = 7, only Fellows) created three personas that characterized the range of different Fellows and their motivations for joining the PALM network. Following recruitment from the entire PALM network ( n = 120), both Fellows and Mentors were interviewed ( n = 38) about their interest in joining PALM and their experience in this professional development network. After coding each transcript, we identified three personas: Neil the Novice (limited active learning exposure, lacks role models), Bryn the Budding Expert (experienced implementing active learning, seeking more nuanced approaches, and networking), and Elena the Expert (experienced implementing active learning, integrated into networks, and wants to mentor). Interestingly, features of the previously identified persona, Issa the Isolated (a sense of isolation and a need for external support and validation), were observed in conjunction with two of the three personas—Neil the Novice and Bryn the Budding Expert—but did not form a separate persona. Some individuals reported progression to new personas as a result of participating in PALM. Our findings highlight the importance of supportive networks in helping faculty become more confident instructors. This qualitative analysis of persona development can be used to inform mentoring and other professional development initiatives.

STEM educators have long sought ways to increase students’ opportunities to develop laboratory based knowledge and skills, regardless of their level of access to a physical laboratory. Therefore, o...

Researchers frequently navigate complex power dynamics in research environments, requiring explicit ethical reasoning skills and structured training in ethical/responsible conduct of research (E/RCR). Although federal agencies require E/RCR training for mentored research trainees, such training is often missing from course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs), limiting students’ preparation for ethical challenges in STEM contexts. To address this gap, we integrated an online argument-mapping course, the Thinker Course (formerly known as How We Argue or thinkARGUMENTS ), offered via student or institutional licenses, together with a free instructional module, Essays (formerly known as How We Evaluate ). These resources have historically been used independently in philosophy, communication, and ethics courses, but not in combination within a STEM research setting. Our course combined these tools with ethical case studies on mentoring, collaboration, authorship, and sustainability challenges, enabling students to practice structured analysis of arguments while evaluating realistic dilemmas in biotechnology. Over the course of five semesters, qualitative reflections, rubric-scored case studies, and pre-/post-surveys showed gains in students’ ability to identify ethical dilemmas, analyze competing arguments, and articulate concerns about power dynamics. Students also reported increased confidence in navigating ethically complex collaborative scenarios. This study presents a novel integration of two complementary reasoning systems—argument mapping ( Thinker ) and scientific evaluation ( Essays )—within an undergraduate biotechnology CURE. The approach offers a portable, structured model for strengthening ethical reasoning and argumentation skills across STEM curricula. *

Formal undergraduate research experiences (UREs) have provided students with authentic research experiences in ecology for decades, but accessibility to these resources is inherently limited, as evidenced during the COVID‐19 pandemic. Moreover, UREs often do not reflect the diversity of locations of current ecological publications. Open online educational resources (OERs) can address the need for more accessible resources, but they usually rely on the curation of static content and can be functionally restricted by a lack of pedagogical instructions. The OCELOTS network (Online Content for Experiential Learning of Tropical Systems) addresses these gaps by shifting the OER model from static curation to a dynamic, scalable ‘ incubator matrix ’ . Rather than serving as a passive repository for disconnected teaching files, OCELOTS acts as a structured workshop and collaborative peer review network where active researchers translate their own peer‐reviewed primary literature into modular, narrative‐driven OER case studies, hereafter referred to as ‘modules’. A combination of factors contributes to OCELOTS' novelty. (a) Researchers who published the study are part of the module‐creating team. (b) Modules are place‐based and globally networked and designed for any type of instructional setting. (c) Peer review is conducted through a living collaborative model rather than a static editorial review. (d) Embedded real‐time data tools use applications that incorporate actual field datasets collected by the module authors. (e) Instructors publish implementation plans and teaching notes for using modules in undergraduate courses. (f) The design is explicitly decolonial in its multilingual accessibility. We summarize the various ways in which 29 OCELOTS modules, representing the work of 68 authors in various tropical field sites in 12 countries, have been created, implemented, adapted, and disseminated. We reflect on how this network has enabled these activities that portray a range of scientific content, processes, and methods in an immersive way. Moving beyond the limitations of standard static text portals, the OCELOTS network presents a highly transferable methodological framework. It demonstrates how global research coordination networks can actively create, review, and implement high‐quality interactive open materials that democratize complex biological data across diverse institutional types around the world.

The Partnership for Undergraduate Life Sciences Education (PULSE) functions as a kinship-centered community of practice (CoP) where reciprocal obligation, shared problem-solving, and mutual aid convert collegial ties into rewarding resources (mentoring, voice, feedback, tools). PULSE’s Dynamic Governance cultivates kinship-based reciprocity, converting community ties into rewarding personal experiences in the traditionally siloed academy. In Social Exchange terms, reciprocity norms sustain ongoing contribution. In Job Demands-Resources terms, these resources drive engagement and buffer burnout. The result is faculty who remain continuously engaged educators even in demanding departmental climates. Here, we share the experiences of onboarding new PULSE Fellows and how the PULSE community’s structure and kinship supported efficient integration and rewarding contributions to the organization. These resources enhance engagement, buffer burnout, and reduce turnover intentions, reframing integration as co-evolution between faculty and institutions rather than competition today. The PULSE kinship-centered CoP can serve as a model for other organizations and collaborations in higher education to foster relationships that are a source of personal and professional value and motivation.

To facilitate its goal of fostering department transformation, the Partnership for Undergraduate Life Sciences Education (PULSE) organizes some of its work into five geographic regions and leverages the expertise of the PULSE Fellows in each region. This article examines how these Regional Networks have driven department-level changes through outreach activities, use of the PULSE Rubrics as a diagnostic tool to help departments to advance the Vision and Change recommendations, and implementation of the PULSE framework to address local needs and challenges. We present impact data through Regional Network activities and identify commonalities in successes and challenges across all the geographic regions. Through reports from the Northeast, Southeast, Southwest, Northwest, and Midwest Great Plains, we highlight each Regional Network’s accomplishments in influencing the adoption of PULSE strategies to implement the Vision and Change recommendations to transform departments.

Seminar-style honors courses provide an opportunity for participants to share perspectives and learn from different disciplines. Seminars on current topics challenge students to identify reliable information and work with others to understand and form opinions on transdisciplinary issues. When a textbook is not accessible to all or the subject matter is constantly evolving, students can research topics and create case studies that their peers can learn from. The Honors Outbreak course at NC State engages students in co-creating Open Educational Resources (OER) case studies describing recent public health outbreaks. Students familiarize themselves with the outbreak's source and impact through asynchronous activities. Groups are tasked with writing sections of an outbreak investigation. All students work on concept maps, graphics, and questions. Students work together to fact-check the content and format it as an engaging case study for the Learn Gala site. Students revise the text and glossaries, improving the case studies and creating critical thinking questions for learners. Future cohorts develop new case studies and use the existing ones. These resources are openly licensed, making them available for others to benefit from. This framework can be adapted for a variety of topics, highlighting how honors seminars can engage scholars in the creation of knowledge and in the peer-review process to produce high-quality open educational resources. Importantly, the process empowers students to become researchers, authors, reviewers, and critical evaluators of information. These skills, along with teamwork and collaboration, help prepare honors scholars to navigate and contribute to the deluge of information.

Delftia spp. occur in diverse environmental and host-associated settings, but their small-molecule capabilities are not uniform across the genus. In this Minireview, we use a strain-resolved “small-molecule chassis” framework to examine cases in which exported, low-molecular-weight metabolites can be linked to extracellular phenotypes. We focus on two anchor systems: delftibactin, a siderophore-like nonribosomal peptide metallophore associated with Au(III) detoxification and gold biomineralization in Delftia acidovorans , and harmane, a β-carboline linked to inhibition of early Plasmodium development by Delftia tsuruhatensis TC1 in mosquitoes. These systems do not represent the same level of mechanistic resolution, with delftibactin providing the tighter genotype→metabolite→phenotype chain and TC1 spanning both a harmane-linked mosquito phenotype and a less resolved low-molecular-weight supernatant phenotype in sand flies. Comparative genomics further supports the idea that these activities are strain- and lineage-specific rather than genus-wide. We argue that the small-molecule chassis framework is most useful not as a blanket label for Delftia , but as a way to identify which strains justify deeper mechanistic study and cautious translation.

DNA from microbial communities can be sequenced and assembled to gain insight into the microbes that may be present in unique environments. Powerful computational tools, combined with more accessible sequencing technologies, have enabled metagenome-assembled genome (MAG) analysis in course-based settings. However, the computational methods and assumptions surrounding the creation of MAGs, as well as their application in understanding microbes in biomes, are often complex and intimidating to new users. The metagenomics course we designed enrolls undergraduate and graduate students in a half-semester lab experience. We hypothesized that collaborative annotation of specific bioinformatics research articles, paired with student application of tools using guided case studies on the powerful KBase bioinformatics web platform, would enhance learning of key MAG concepts. Student learning outcomes on conceptual quizzes, as well as learner perceptions of the assignment and confidence in using KBase and other bioinformatics tools, were analyzed. Assessments and surveys of student perceptions were collected over several semesters using consistent assignments, readings, and KBase narratives. Learning gains were identified for specific MAG analysis concepts and data interpretation. Nevertheless, misconceptions continue, and confidence in bioinformatics approaches varies. Additional exploration of qualitative data may suggest concepts to reinforce and resources to support learners. Combining KBase, collaborative annotation of primary literature, guided case studies, and aligned assessments effectively promotes students' conceptual and mechanistic understanding of MAGs and the assumptions underlying their creation and use.

The 2011 report Vision and Change: A Call to Action ( V&C ) resulted from a national effort to rethink biology curriculum. V&C outlines core concepts and core competencies for biology undergraduates and promotes evidence-based pedagogy, undergraduate research, and inclusive practices. However, it is unclear how much biology educators know about V&C and what motivates educators’ development of their teaching philosophy and practices. We leveraged the Promoting Active Learning and Mentoring (PALM) Network, a group that introduced evidence-based instructional practices (EBIPs) to instructors through mentoring, journal clubs, and a community of practice, to investigate how much V&C has influenced educator knowledge and motivation. Through focus groups, 16 mentors and 22 fellows were asked about their motivations to join PALM, familiarity with V&C , how they learned about V&C , and how PALM and/or V&C shaped the development of their teaching philosophies and strategies. We found that the teaching philosophies and practices of these educators align strongly with V&C principles. V&C provided expectancy (established value), while PALM contributed to greater instructor self-efficacy in EBIPs, overall resulting in reformed teaching philosophies and practices. This model highlights the importance of mentorship and community to successfully drive biology education reform.