NeTS-VO: A Virtual Organization for the NeTS community

The Networking Technology and Systems Virtual Organization (NeTS-VO) will foster communication and collaboration, expand the reach of high-quality resources including datasets, testbeds and workshops, and highlight advances within the Networking Technology and Systems (NeTS) community. NeTS-VO will provide easier access to potential NeTS researchers and Principle Investigators who have not had the opportunity to grow their network of professional contacts.

By making access to these resources transparent and easily available, and fostering interactive communication, NeTS-VO will improve access to the NeTS community and resources, especially to students and researchers from historically minority institutions and institutions that primarily focus on undergraduate education.

NetS-VO is a pilot project and in its initial phase will consist of a website, discussion platform and virtual workshops. The website will feature the latest information from NSF NeTS, from the NSF NeTS community and sites of interest to the NeTS community. The discussion platform will facilitate interaction among current and potential NeTS researchers.

The virtual workshops will focus on a broad range of broadening participation topics. The platform will be developed to be portable and easily maintainable. With this "one-stop-shop" for the NSF NeTS community, the platform will provide a hub for identifying potential resources and collaborators.

It will also facilitate access to NSF NeTS-related data sets and testbeds. By providing this platform, it will improve the scope and quality of submitted NSF NeTS proposals thus advancing our networking and telecommunications systems.

The NeTS-VO project will encourage mentorship between more experienced NeTS researchers and researchers who need guidance in how to prepare and follow through on a successful proposal. Through virtual workshops, under-represented researchers will get valuable feedback on the proposal writing process. As the platform is open to the public, it can also inform under-represented K-12 students of the exciting opportunities in networking and telecommunications research.

This platform will be the public face of the NeTS community and a vehicle for improving access to research-related resources.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.