Louis Stokes Colorado Alliance for Minority Participation: A Senior Alliance for Broadening Participation in STEM

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Colorado State University (CSU), the lead institution, in collaboration with fourteen institutionalpartners constitutes the CO-AMP consortium. The Consortium is proposing a strategic andcomprehensive effort to address the following goals in connection with underrepresented minorities,women of color, and persons with disabilities successfully completing baccalaureate degrees in Science,Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM):1) Continue to increase bachelor degree completion in STEM disciplines;2) Improve retention and transfer rates from 2-year to 4-year institutions;3) Enhance partnerships with Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSI) in Colorado;4) Strengthen graduate school preparation;5) Promote international research experiences to enhance global diversity and understanding.Since its inception, efforts of the CO-AMP Consortium have extended from the pre-freshmenlevel to enrollment in graduate school programs. The Consortium has been a major driving force atpartner institutions to encourage and motivate students to excel and graduate with a bachelor?s. degree inSTEM fields. The enrollment and visibility of diverse students has also increased, demonstrated by therecent 84% increase in LS CO-AMP enrollment. A significant level of support, in addition to that fromthe NSF, has been provided by central administrations, Departments and Colleges of the Consortium,and industry partners. Most importantly, the Consortium faculty and staff have provided individualizedstudent support without which the activities would not have been as successful.Most, if not all, of the proposed initiatives in goals 1 through 5 have been and will continue to beinstitutionalized at partner institutions. Early integration of minority students into college life must start inthe admissions office with early faculty advising and mentoring linked to the process. Proposed math skillbuilding and science course assistance will be continued and further expanded. Student academicadvancement will also be enhanced by participation in NAPIRE and other international researchexperiences, contributing to global diversity and understanding. In addition, further establishment ofprofessional societies at 2-year and 4-year colleges is critical to increasing science identity andintegration into the professional community. This collaboration of national resources, resulting from thesediverse programs, is essential to assure benefits to underrepresented minorities, women of color, andperson with disabilities; and will be sustained as an essential structure continuing after funding from theNSF is no longer available.Intellectual MeritInnovative programs based on the Tinto Model and research results from the Higher EducationResearch Institute (HERI) will target improved academic and social integration of students into college lifeand promote students? self-identity as scientists. CO-AMP will integrate math assistance and curriculabetween 2-year and 4-year institutions. Pipelines between high school, 2-year/4-year colleges, andgraduate school will be integrated by faculty mentoring into the admissions process, establishingprofessional societies on campuses, and building bridges through innovative summer workshops,research at 2-year and 4-year campuses, and international research experiences. Evaluation efforts willprovide evidence-based methodologies for improving student retention. CO-AMP has a history of qualified staff, as well as the facilities, networks, and partnerships in place to focus onbuilding a stronger infrastructure that will continue to build capacity and compatibility in the Consortium.Broader ImpactsThe programs and activities CO-AMP will undertake cover the core areas of recruitment andretention, including training of faculty, promotion of proven programs, support from industry involvement,as well as conducting research to determine best practice in preparing students for higher levels of mathand science. CO-AMP is partnered with all of the Hispanic Serving Institutions in Colorado and FortLewis (one of only three Native American-Serving Non-Tribal Colleges in the US) making it optimallypositioned to serve the greatest number of Hispanic and Native American students. Results of researchconducted will be presented at conferences and published to further knowledge in this important area ofdiversity education. The results will reduce educational disparities and improve scientific knowledge inminority/tribal communities, as trained minority scientists act as role models and educators.