Using a research center-based mentoring program to increase the participation of African Americans, Hispanics and Native Americans in engineering

这个工程教育研究项目的重点是让代表性不足的工程本科学生参与研究中心的指导研究活动，目的是提高保留率，并为学术和研究职业创造途径。学生有一名指定的系辅导员和一名应用能源研究中心的研究导师。拟议的活动将提高我们的知识，如何包括研究中心的教职员工和设施，努力支持该中心的机构之家的本科教育使命。PI试图利用中心内较低的学生与研究员比例，并专注于能够激发学生并提高他们学习的研究活动。这个项目更广泛的意义和重要性在于它旨在建立本科生和研究中心工作人员之间的关系。在国家级研究中心进行的前沿研究有可能帮助学生超越课堂学习，帮助他们看到所学知识在本学科基础研究和应用研究中的应用。这反过来又强化了他们的本科课程的重要性，从而增加了他们学习新材料的兴趣和努力。作为这个项目的结果，学生将更加投入学习，并将考虑从事研究工作。该项目与NSF整合研究和教育以支持世界一流工程和科学劳动力发展的战略目标重叠。

This engineering education research project focuses on involving underrepresented engineering undergraduate students in mentored research activities within research centers with the intent to improve retention and create pathways for academic and research careers. Students have an assigned department based counselor and a research mentor based in the Center for Applied Energy Research. The proposed activity will advance our knowledge of how to include research center faculty, staff and facilities in efforts to support the undergraduate educational mission of the institutional home of the center. The PI seeks to capitalize on the low student to researcher ratio within the center and the focus on research activities that will excite the student and enhance their learning.The broader significance and importance of this project is in its intent to build relationships between the undergraduate students and the research center staff. The cutting edge research being performed on a national level within research centers has the potential to help students see beyond what they learn in the classroom environment, helping them to see the applications of what they are learning to both basic and applied research in their discipline. This in turn reinforces the importance of their undergraduate curriculum leading to increased interest in, and efforts to, learn new material. As a result of this project students will become more engaged in learning and will consider careers in research.This project overlaps with NSF's strategic goals of integrating research and education to support development of a world-class engineering and science workforce.