The COVID-19 pandemic has presented new challenges for the higher education community, including those working with undergraduate researchers. Research teams have responded to the pandemic in some exciting and creative ways that have the potential to benefit all engaged in undergraduate research during disruptive events such as pandemics, earthquakes, hurricanes, wildfires, and tornadoes.

Original research articles (2,000–3,500 words) and vignettes (300 words) are invited for Scholarship and Practice of Undergraduate Research (SPUR) that discuss how individuals, disciplines, departments, campuses, and communities have adapted during these events.  Topics and questions of interest include the following:

•    How has collaborative work with students continued during the COVID-19 crisis or other disruptive event?

•    How have new tools or techniques been employed or how have existing ones been adapted in novel ways?

•    How has undergraduate research been conducted in response to a natural disaster such as an earthquake or a flood? Has the disruptive event led to undergraduate research projects that address a community need identified as a result of the event?

•    How have individuals, disciplines, departments, and campuses provided students with opportunities to present, share, and celebrate their work with peers and others?

•    How have summer Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REUs) or similar programs been adapted during disruptive events?

•    How have new collaborations been developed or new funding streams been identified (disciplinary, cross-disciplinary, multi-institutional, industrial, or governmental) to enable undergraduate research to grow and flourish?

Submission Details. Submit a 300- to 500-word prospectus to https://spur.msubmit.net, specifying the type of manuscript to be submitted (research article or vignette) and summarizing the topic or research question to be addressed.  Invitations from the editorial team to submit a full manuscript or vignette will be extended by July 6, 2020, and all manu-scripts/vignettes will be due by September 7, 2020. All manuscripts will be peer-reviewed before their final acceptance for publication in SPUR.  Articles and vignettes will appear as an ongoing theme throughout volume 4 of SPUR (fall 2020, winter 2020, spring 2021, and summer 2021).

Questions? Contact Pam Mabrouk, issue editor, or James LaPlant, editor-in-chief (SPUR@cur.org).

Read SPUR author guidelines and sample articles at:
https://www.cur.org/what/publications/journals/spur/issues/