I involve undergraduate students in my research to prepare the next generation of scholars. My goal is to foster student learning and produce original research results. Undergraduate research helps students gain functional knowledge, critical thinking skills, and problem-solving abilities. I have supervised many undergraduate research projects, which have resulted in success for students, including graduate school enrollment and IT industry positions. My interest in undergraduate research began when I was a Ph.D. student at Colorado State University. My advisor hired an undergraduate researcher assistant to create code implementation of a theoretical approach that he had developed. I witnessed the assistant develop the code and then present his work at a premier conference in software engineering. I was inspired by my advisor's approach to undergraduate research. When I first arrived at TAMIU, I aimed to apply a similar approach and positively impact undergraduate education. In the spring of 2019, I participated in a training hosted by the School of Business at TAMIU called "Developing Employability Skills Through Undergraduate Research." This training was enlightening, and I have since utilized many of the techniques and abilities presented to help my students become more desirable in the IT industry through undergraduate research. Additionally, I attended TAMIU ARC's online workshop on "Optimizing Mentoring Relationships", where I learned valuable skills to mentor my students more effectively.
I have introduced a new approach to mentoring undergraduate researchers, combining my experience in mentoring with the best practices in teaching . By utilizing seven research-based principles for effective teaching, I have successfully motivated and engaged undergraduate students in their research projects, boosting their chances of success. I have supervised a total of 20 research projects involving 34 students. A summary of undergraduate research activities is provided in a table in the second dossier, along with the names of the students. I have also participated in mentoring summer research experience for undergraduates (REU) at Columbus State University, resulting in several poster presentations at conferences. One of these posters even won third place at the 8th national workshop for REU research in networking and systems. Additionally, the second dossier contains links to video recordings of several students' presentations, which were published in professional avenues. Undergraduate research has made a significant impact on the success of students. So far, five students have enrolled in graduate studies at different institutions, seven students have secured positions in the IT industry (some of which before graduating), and two students joined me to participate in a research internship at a Department of Energy lab this last summer. The remaining are still pursuing their degrees. Based on the success I have had with my mentoring style, I decided to share my experience with other TAMIU faculty. I gave a presentation on how to mentor undergraduate researchers to TAMIU faculty during the 13th annual learning technologies week. I have been invited to give the same training again the past Spring through the TAMIU ARC project. Furthermore, my supervisor, Dr. Mahmoud T. Khasawneh, has recommended my name to deliver training to the Texas A&M System Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (TAMUS LSAMP) undergraduate students to boost their skillsets to do research.