OEDG: Mentoring Through Research: Catalyst for Success in the Geosciences

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ABSTRACTMentoring through Research: Catalyst for Success in the GeosciencesThe Department of Geological Sciences at California State University Northridge (CSUN) will develop a program to attract and retain underrepresented minorities in its geosciences curriculum. The three-year Catalyst Program centers on peer-mentored research groups composed of graduate (CSUN MS candidates), undergraduate (from CSUN and local community colleges), and high-school students from under-represented groups. The multi-tiered approach connects students with mentors both horizontally (peer) and vertically (near-peer and advisor). The three-year scope of the project allows mentoring relationships developed during the first year to continue into subsequent years and for continuing students to step into roles of increasing responsibility and experience. Mentor-protege connections are initiated in a classroom setting through a course designed to teach mentoring and research concepts, and to familiarize students with each other, the research projects, and the faculty advisors. Students then join one of four focused research groups centered on exciting and engaging research projects of local to global significance. The selected research projects have significant topical overlap (e.g., seismology, structure/active tectonics, sedimentation and tectonics, and sedimentology and low temperature geochemistry), providing common grounds for student interaction through coursework and facilitating student transfer from group to group if research interests change. The Catalyst Program provides mentoring and research training for the 30 or more students who will participate in the program to ensure success in academe and industry. It also enhances the mentoring skills and research productivity of the faculty mentors and strengthens the research capacity of the department, increasing the likelihood of continued funding from a variety of sources.