Student Pathways Opening World Energy Resources (S-POWER)

拟议的计划解决了两个国家危机：(i)代表性不足的少数民族（URM）转学学生在STEM领域的学士学位授予机构的坚持率极低，以及（ii）能源相关领域的基础研究和培训需求。通过向低收入、有学术天赋的学生提供奖学金支持，并通过设计、实施、评估和传播转学教育的基本新方法，S-POWER将联合发送和接收机构的学生和教师，共同应对大能源挑战，例如开发节能系统和能源管理的材料。为了实现上述愿景，研究人员将创建由教师和学生组成的特定项目团队，以建立社会和指导关系，并建立重点教育支持结构，包括与行业进行正式指导，并在发送和接收机构实施共享的教育教学方法。这与大多数传统的转学生教育过程不同，在传统的转学生教育过程中，只有发送机构或接收机构有责任教育就读于每个机构的学生。此外，S-POWER将研究并记录URM转学生的其他障碍，同时调查四年制大学与社区大学开始学术旅程的学生经历的异同。S-POWER教育教学法的成功将在每个学生的教育生涯中进行评估，积极影响转学生成功的因素将传播到更广泛的教育界。

The proposed program addresses two national crises: (i) the extremely low persistence rate of underrepresented minority (URM) transfer students to bachelor degree granting institutions in STEM fields, and (ii) the need for fundamental research and training in energy related fields. Through the awarding of scholarship support to low-income, academically talented students, and by designing, implementing, assessing, and disseminating essential new approaches to transfer student education, S-POWER will unite students and faculty at both sending and receiving institutions to collaboratively address Grand Energy challenges, such as developing materials for energy efficient systems and energy power management. To implement the above vision, the investigators will create project-specific teams of faculty and students to build social and mentoring ties and enable focused educational support structures, including formal mentoring with industry and implementation of shared educational pedagogies at both the sending and receiving institutions. This departs from most traditional transfer student educational processes in which it is only the sender or receiving institution's responsibility to educate the student attending each institution. In addition, S-POWER will study and document additional barriers for URM transfer students, while investigating the similarities and differences of experiences for students that begin their academic journey in four-year versus community colleges. The success of the S-POWER educational pedagogy will be assessed throughout each student's educational career, and factors that positively influence transfer student success will be disseminated to the broader educational community.