Big iDeas, a new program for undergraduate students who want to get involved in research recently made its debut. This program, engineered by Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs Dr. Paul Ludden, supports SMU students who are interested in addressing key problems faced by the Dallas area.

A unique feature of the program is its emphasis on assembling interdisciplinary teams to address these problems. Dr. Ludden explains the purpose of bringing together such teams from diverse academic backgrounds.

“Under Big iDeas, groups form interdisciplinary teams to exchange ideas and form new solutions to problems in the area,” he said.

The diversity of the teams is key to generating unique answers to questions posed by Dallas-area problems.

Such area problems can deal with anything from poverty, to business, to health care.

This is an open-ended project with the primary criteria being that it has to deal with problems Dallas faces.

In order to participate, a group of SMU students must submit a proposal in electronic form to [email protected] by Jan. 31.

The proposals are then reviewed by a panel consisting of students, faculty and several outside advisors.

The proposals selected to receive support, up to $5,000, will then have until Aug. 30, 2008, to expend funds for the purpose of research.

Soon after being selected, a symposium will be held in the spring in order to allow teams to describe their projects.

Later on, in the beginning of fall 2008, a Big iDeas progress symposium will be held in which these teams will report their progress.

Dr. Ludden hopes such a promising program inspires similar research opportunities in campuses across the country.

“I hope others see this and use it as a good model to build bridges between universities and communities,” he said.

Those benefiting from such a program reach far beyond the SMU students who perform the research; in the end, the whole Dallas-Ft. Worth area may enjoy the fruits of these students’ labor.

“This research program is a great way for SMU students to get involved outside of our university and impact Dallas,” sophomore Alan Perez said.

If interested, be sure to take advantage of Big iDeas. For more information visit smu.edu/bigideas.

In the end, the program can, as Dr. Ludden put it, “get students engaged in thinking about the community in which they live and study.”