1. Educational outreach at the pre-college level
   
   
2. Fostering inquiry based learning through curriculum enhancements
   
   
3. Specialized recruitment of underrepresented students across STEM disciplines
   
   
4. Providing early undergraduate research experiences to facilitate the transition to successful further study at four year universities and beyond

Our new Scanning Electron Microscopy facility – centered around the Hitachi S-3400N VP SEM and the TM-1000 "Tabletop" Model – plays a critical role in achieving each of these objectives. For example, we introduce students to SEM techniques at an early age by transporting our TM-1000 into the classroom for inquiry-based outreach activities in local public schools, and we utilize the same instrument to enrich the laboratory curriculum of science courses offered on campus.


Both the S-3400N and the TM-1000 will be used extensively as research tools for our students, through collaboration with established research programs at four year universities, for example, through our Biodiversity Summer Institute at the Big Thicket National Preserve (a joint venture with Texas A&M and several other institutions).


These partnerships will create unique opportunities for community college students to engage in the scientific community as active participants, while they in turn will be valued for the use of their microscopy skills to enhance the work of researchers who would not ordinarily have access to SEM equipment.