The summer Research Experience for Undergraduates Program (REU) funds 10 undergraduate students from throughout the U.S.A. to work under real conditions on environmental problems with scientists at the LEC. REU students participate in an interdisciplinary research project, with the focus being environmental protection of the Maumee River watershed that flows through Toledo into Lake Erie. Students work with professors with expertise in a wide range of disciplines including Geography, Planning, Earth Science, Biology, Geology, Remote Sensing, and Environmental Law. Students are exposed to both field and lab work during the REU program. One of the successes of the program has been to encourage students to pursue graduate degrees. Another important outcome of the REU program is helping scientists at the Lake Erie Center conduct preliminary studies on Lake Erie that have now turned into full research projects.