Math and Technology Engagement for Commuter Students

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Degree programs aimed at producing a high-quality STEM workforce are a national priority that underpin progress in science, the advancement of national health initiatives, and overall national prosperity in an increasingly technical economy. The Math And Technology Engagement for Commuter Students (MATECS) project will address this workforce need and increase the rates of success of low-income academically talented students who are pursuing degrees in math and computing at St. Joseph's College in Brooklyn, New York. The proposed MATECS project supported by NSF's Scholarships in STEM (S-STEM) program will develop and assess practical plans to mentor, retain, and graduate commuter students, a population that now constitutes a significant number of post-secondary students. Attaining high levels of academic and social engagement is broadly recognized as a challenge for commuter students that can have negative consequences on academic achievement and persistence to degree completion. The MATECS project will address this challenge by implementing mentoring and community building activities and investigating the effects of these activities on retention and graduation of commuter students. Aspects of the project deemed effective and sustainable may then be adopted by other institutions with confidence.The MATECS project focuses on three main goals: 1) recruit and enroll two cohorts of 15 academically talented students with demonstrated financial need; 2) attain 93% first-year retention rates and 86% four-year graduation rates with those graduating placed in professional positions or graduate programs; and 3) perform a research study to determine the effectiveness of a cohort model, faculty mentoring, and industry mentoring on the engagement of commuter students and career awareness in the math and computing disciplines. The project will involve a new faculty mentoring design, the creation of a new industry mentoring network specific to math and computing, curricular modifications to foster a cohort structure, and the design of interdisciplinary activities aimed at introducing students to potential careers and working collaboratively on projects. Through the use of validated survey instruments and associated interviews, the research study will determine the relative effectiveness of each project activity on social and academic engagement and career decision self-efficacy of commuter students in math and computing.