RADIAL

ODI provides project management expertise and administrative staff to support the work of the partnership. The Radio Astronomy Data Imaging and Analysis Lab (RADIAL) program manager, and representative to RADIAL, Jennifer Bates, meets with RADIAL partners regularly to determine needs, co-design projects, and assessprogress, particularly in the areas of academics, infrastructure, human resources, and budget. Jennifer is able to coordinate resources to implement projects that fill those needs,providing support beyond what is possible at the individual institutions.

Additionally, representatives from all partner MSIs gather annually for the RADIAL Development Lab, where they are able to share individual accomplishments and needs, and refine the collective work towards project goals. Partner MSIs are: Agnes Scott College, Florida A&M University, Morehouse College, Morgan State University, New Mexico Tech,Norfolk State University, South Carolina State University, Spelman College, Texas TechUniversity, University ofCalifornia Santa Cruz, University of Puerto Rico Mayaguez,University of Texas San Antonio, University of the Virgin Islands, and the University of theWest Indies.(https://public.nrao.edu/odi/radial/)

The University of the West Indies point of contact for RADIAL is Prof. Shirin Haque in the Department of Physics who is also the Director of UWI-NRAO NINE hub MOU.The first RADIAL intake was in 2022 and UWI students Kaylan-Marie Achong and Genevierrede Gazon gotinto the paid internship programme. In 2023, four UWI students have been offered the internship. The Radio Astronomy Data Imaging and Analysis Lab (RADIAL) is an intentional partnership between NRAO, 14 minority-serving institutions (MSIs) of higher education, and the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW-M) Center for High-Throughput Computing (CHTC) to establish a virtual institute (‘RADIAL’) for data-intensive research in radio astronomy. RADIAL seeks to accomplish its goal of placing MSIs at the forefront of data-intensive radioastronomy research within six“pillars:”

  1. Collaborative, research-based, and student-centered K-12, undergraduate andgraduate curricula that integrate astronomy, computer science and data science.Educators and faculty will receive hybrid module training.
  2. Research and training experiences opportunities for undergraduate and graduatestudents at the NRAO, 12 MSIs, UW-Madison, or industry, as well as an annual BigData in Radio Astronomy Summer School for undergraduates.
  3. Tier, near-to-peer, and peer mentors assigned to each undergraduate and graduatestudent for the duration of the academic year, and a tier mentor assigned to eachstudent participating in a RTE for the duration of their experience.
  4. In-depth professionaland personal development programs for educators, facultyand students.
  5. A virtual affirmative space, administered by the students, where undergraduate andgraduate students can meet to discuss academic, professional and personalchallenges and receive support.
  6. A public outreach program focused on underrepresented minority communitymembers (e.g. STEM students’parents and home communities, Grade 5-12students). The outreach program is designed to explain the importance of careers in STEM and the opportunities that are possible with a career in STEM.

 

See Student Experiences 2022 HERE

See Student Experiences 2023 HERE

 

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