Phase II: Hawaiian Values, Science and Technology: Advancing A New Paradigm for STEM Education

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The proposed project builds upon the solid foundation of the successful Phase I University of Hawai?i Hilo?s Keaholoa1 STEM project (NSF Award 0223040), which is revolutionizing science education at the University of Hawai?i Hilo (UH Hilo) by convincing faculty and administrators to overcome institutional inertia and to make important changes in teaching, learning, research, and infrastructure to improve services to STEM departments and students, especially Native Hawaiian STEM students. The aim of this Phase II proposal is to build on the demonstrated success achieved in our initial NSF-TCUP Cooperative Agreement (2002-2007) by expanding services and strengthening institutional commitment to ensure lasting improvements in STEM retention and graduation rates for all students at UH Hilo, and ultimately to promote local Native Hawaiian leadership in the STEM professions. For the Keaholoa Phase II initiative we have adopted as our emblem the important Hawaiian cultural icon, the taro or kalo plant (Colocasia esculenta). This icon will be symbolic of our commitment to the articulation of appropriate pedagogy that embraces Hawaiian cultural knowledge and to the formulation of curricula; faculty and student research; student peer tutoring and mentoring that are uniquely effective in educating Native Hawaiian students. Keaholoa?s activities are designed to achieve the following Phase II objectives:1. Collaborate with UH Hilo campus partners to create a Student Success and Retention Center (SSRC)through which to coordinate Phase I academic support services such as peer tutoring and mentoring in physical sciences and other activities that promote learning, engagement and success in STEM subjects and majors.2. Continue and enhance Phase I faculty development to improve teaching effectiveness and the attractiveness of STEM majors through the incorporation of culturally significant perspectives in curriculum and instruction.3. Continue and enhance the highly effective Phase I student/faculty STEM research program through which Native Hawaiian students participate in faculty research and help to inform the questions and methods of faculty research.4. Continue and broaden outreach involving mentoring of middle and high school students, summer high school to college bride program, interaction with Hawaiian civic organizations, and articulation with community colleges that feed into UH Hilo.