CLARKSTON, Ga.—In each of the past eight years, Dr. Mark Graves has dedicated a chunk of his summer to help provide transformative opportunities for students at Georgia State University’s Perimeter College.

Graves, assistant professor of biology and assistant department chair for Life and Earth Sciences, began volunteering in 2013 as a faculty research adviser for the college’s three-week Summer Bridge initiative, which is funded by the National​ Science Foundation’s Peach State Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (PSLSAMP) program. The program provides STEM students (those studying science, technology, engineering and math) at two-year colleges like Perimeter with research skills needed to apply for Research Undergraduate Experience (REU) programs at four-year institutions and in research labs.

“I always volunteer to assist as a research adviser, as I know this program is life-changing for our students,” Graves said.

The 2020 Summer Bridge program required even greater commitment and creativity when the coronavirus pandemic threatened to sideline this year’s session, Graves said. He and fellow research advisers developed an alternate plan that used remote animal behavioral video analysis, environmental studies, Google Earth and social media to enable students to receive instruction and develop research skills outside the traditional classroom and laboratory. (Along with Graves, associate professors of biology Diane Lahaise and Dr. Mark Hollier and engineering assistant professor Dr. Andrew Kim, served as research advisers to 11 students in the program.)

Graves co-supervised three projects focused on songbirds and their feeding, foraging, habitat and nesting activities. Below, he writes about his passion for participating in Summer Bridge and how he and others overcame challenges related to the worldwide health crisis to make this year’s program possible.

How difficult was it to come up with a remote research project?
Initially, the research advisers met and discussed what a remote project might be like. Although we had reservations about it, we knew it was an important opportunity for our students. The stakes were high, as this was the first time we’ve done remote research with students. We needed to ensure we had an interesting project with ample data for analysis, as students would not be able to meet in person or go out into the ‘field’ for research. We knew we had plenty of data we’ve been collecting in our animal behavior studies for the last four years and interesting questions to address with that data.

Our next concern was ensuring students had a comparable experience to the normal Summer Bridge. We chose not to have the students visit the study sites but gave them videos and photos to connect them with the research. A major part of field research is being in the field, but a significant amount of work is done “in the lab,” which in this case was at each student’s home.

Finally, we wanted to ensure the skills they learned would be broadly useful beyond the field of biology, so we used data analysis and technology as the cornerstone of the projects. We’ve been collecting data for years and, like in other Summer Bridge projects, we wanted the students to think critically about the data and try to draw meaningful conclusions. Similar to our usual in-person Summer Bridge projects, this project naturally evolved, which was exciting for the students and my colleagues working on the project.

How did you keep the research scholars engaged? 

Our research scholars were highly motivated and dedicated students, so engagement in virtual space was never a challenge. I thought it might be difficult to keep them engaged, but this group was especially self-motivated. They always arrived to (virtual) meetings on time and worked on their projects beyond the daily meeting times.

We opted to keep them engaged by starting each morning meeting with a briefing. This is similar to what they might experience in graduate school if they work in a research laboratory. In the morning meetings, the group meets to discuss the research project(s), question(s), methods, and/or interesting data collected. Each team member would contribute to the discussion and critical analysis of the project and data. We wanted the engagement to include honing their presentation skills daily by being active participants in the briefing and debriefing sessions. They learned science is a team sport, with each member supporting the others, and that kept them engaged much like they would have been in a face-to-face environment.

What is your personal interest in research and the Summer Bridge program? 

I was initially interested in volunteering as a research adviser for the Summer Bridge program as I knew Perimeter College students have limited opportunities to engage in scientific research projects. More importantly, I knew this opportunity for students would open a lot of doors that the students never knew existed or might never think to look for on their own. It is impressive that a three-week, intensive program, coupled with the one-on-one attention they receive through PSLSAMP faculty mentors at Perimeter College, serves as a springboard for many of our students to move to other institutions of higher education to pursue Ph.D. programs, sometimes receiving a full scholarship and stipend to do so.

How collaborative of an effort is the Summer Bridge program? 

In true Georgia State-Perimeter College fashion, this Summer Bridge program is a team effort. From the PSLSAMP faculty advisers who work with the students throughout the year, to the lab staff members who assist faculty research advisers, to all the faculty members who attend the closing ceremony for the Summer Bridge activities, this program would not be successful without the support of numerous faculty and staff members across the campuses. I really enjoy working with my colleagues across the disciplines, and this program helps facilitate building more connections with my colleagues. But also, and perhaps more importantly, it gives new, full-time faculty members an avenue to engage with students and build new working relationships outside their discipline.

Graves received his Bachelor of Science in Biology degree from Georgia State University in 2008 and his master’s degree in Biology in 2010 at Georgia State. He started at Perimeter College as part-time instructor in 2011 and became a full-time, tenure-track faculty member