Office of Undergraduate Research and Scholar Development (URSD)
The UA office of Undergraduate Research and Scholar Development (URSD), founded in 2023 and housed in the Division of Undergraduate Education in the Office of the Provost, is charged with equitable scaling of undergraduate research (UR) by
a) working with other campus entities through the Undergraduate Research Task Force (URTF) and the UR Alliance
b) focusing on scaffolded integration of research into the curriculum across campus
c) administering the VIP (Vertically Integrated Projects) program
d) launching the Semiconductor-sector Undergraduate Research Experiences (SURE) program in partnership with the Center for Semiconductor Manufacturing.
Dr. Kevin Bonine
Executive Director, Office of Undergraduate Research and Scholar Development
Kevin Bonine earned his PhD At UW-Madison and then took a teaching faculty position at UA. In 2012 he was recognized with the UA College of Science’s Distinguished Early-Career Teaching Award. His research during this time focused on local Gila monster and canyon treefrog populations and their conservation. In 2013 he stepped into a role at Biosphere 2 as Director of Education and Outreach, a position he held until 2024, also serving as co-PI for an NSF REU (research experiences for undergraduates) summer program at B2. In 2022 Kevin was asked to chair the Undergraduate Research Task Force at UA, helping to bring together the campus community with the goal of equitably scaling undergraduate research opportunities. In 2023 he became Executive Director of the new office of Undergraduate Research and Scholar Development in the Division of Undergraduate Education in the Office of the Provost. URSD has partnered with other colleagues and entities on campus to launch, in 2024, the Undergraduate Research Alliance tasked with implementing the recommendations of the URTF.