The Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR) congratulates its 2022 Campus-Wide Award for Undergraduate Research Accomplishments (AURA) recipient Norwich University (NU) (Northfield, VT). This award recognizes institutions with exemplary programs that provide high-quality research experiences for undergraduates.
Now in its eighth year, the AURA award draws on CUR’s Characteristics of Excellence in Undergraduate Research (COEUR), which outlines criteria for exceptional undergraduate research, scholarship, and creative activity programs. For AURA recognition, campuses must demonstrate depth and breadth in their undergraduate research initiatives and evidence of continual innovation.
“Norwich University’s steadfast commitment to undergraduate research is reflected through much more than just their campus culture,” said Lindsay Currie, CUR’s executive officer. “They demonstrate a dedication to the professional growth of students and faculty across all disciplines, commitment to ensuring diverse populations have opportunities for success through grants, and the power of a mission driven institution.”
As a primarily undergraduate institution, NU’s 200-year-old mission centralizes leadership and experiential learning, putting undergraduate research at the heart of this campus’ culture. Continuing this theme through data, 70% of faculty mentor undergraduate research, with a promising 98% of faculty interested in getting involved with mentoring student researchers. NU also prides themselves in their diverse undergraduate population with 30.5% minority and 17.5% first generation rates. To allow their program to continue to grow and excel, NU strives to make their program accessible to all interested students by offering high funding rates for student grants, no minimum GPA requirements, flexible timelines for summer research, the ability to revise and resubmit promising proposals, a competitive salary that supports economic considerations, and events that include both classroom and independent research opportunities. In fact, NU has awarded 261 travel grants totaling around $200,000 since 2003.
Dr. Karen Gaines, Provost and Dean of the Faculty at Norwich University explained, “Norwich University is known for fostering future leaders and has been teaching students to “act as well as to think” for over 200 years. Our Undergraduate Research Program focuses on experiential learning so that students, alongside faculty mentors, can put the skills learned in the classroom into action to solve our pressing global challenges and expand humanity’s knowledge of our world. We are humbled to receive national recognition for the program we have built over the past twenty years. We are proud that our program embodies the core Norwich values of service, leadership, and collaboration and provides opportunities for students to engage in research and creative work across all academic disciplines.”
“Participating in undergraduate research transforms the way students view themselves, their academic field, and the generation of knowledge,” states Dr. Allison Neal, Undergraduate Research Program Director at Norwich University. “We are dedicated to making undergraduate research central to the Norwich experience and accessible to all of our students. We are incredibly grateful to the Council on Undergraduate Research for recognizing our program, and we hope that the increased prominence and visibility this award gives our program will help us build and strengthen our program’s offerings, increase the number of students served, and continue to provide transformative experiences for our developing student scholars.”
CUR congratulates Norwich University on its exemplary implementation of various programs advocating for undergraduate research and the success of its students, faculty, mentors, and administrators. Please join CUR and the undergraduate research community in celebrating their achievements on June 13, 2023, from 2:00-3:30PM ET. Details on RSVPs will be released in the coming weeks.
