"Communities & Pathways": Cultivating Science Educator Identity for Undergraduates through an Inclusive Physics Learning Assistant Program & STEM Teacher Certification Alig

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This project builds capacity for the Noyce Scholarship track at Texas State University-San Marcos (Hispanic Serving Institution), in collaboration with San Antonio College and Austin Community College, two neighboring two-year colleges. The project fosters a thriving community of undergraduate students who identify as science educators. The community is built and supported via two major mechanisms: the "Communities" component, which is an expanding Learning Assistant (LA) program in the physics department; and the "Pathways" component, which is the alignment of STEM degrees with teacher certifications. The elementary education population is of special interest in this project, as approximately 750 such students take a physics course each semester at Texas State. These students are included in the LA program, which provides the mechanism for composing a diverse community of students all concerned with various aspects of K-16 physics education. The project is contributing to a growing knowledge base about effective models for teacher preparation by examining students' formation of identity as STEM educators, and by research into the impact of a diverse STEM-education community of practice on teacher recruitment and on the representation and success of underrepresented minorities in STEM. The project's focus on recruitment and training of K-12 STEM teachers addresses the national shortage of qualified physics teachers and builds a local infrastructure in Central Texas for formal, sustained, K-12 physics teacher preparation and enhancement.