Mentored Access to Success in Undergraduate Science and Engineering Programs

该项目旨在满足国家对受过良好教育的科学家、数学家、工程师和技术人员的需求。该项目将为加州圣玛丽学院（一所为西班牙裔服务的机构）24名低收入、成绩优异的STEM本科学生提供四年奖学金。奖学金获得者将攻读生物化学、化学、生物学、数学或物理学的学士学位。在大学第一学期之前的夏天，奖学金获得者将参加一个暑期研究项目。此外，这些学者将住在科学生活学习社区，参加第一年的咨询小组，并有机会获得同伴导师。STEM中心将提供辅导服务，该中心与科学生活学习社区位于同一栋楼。随着他们在大学生涯中的进步，这些学者将有机会参加额外的暑期研究项目，并获得资助，在科学会议上展示他们的研究成果。作为高年级学生，这些学者将参加由以前的国家科学基金会奖制定的科学职业准备计划。由于该学院有大量未被充分代表的学生，该项目有可能扩大STEM领域的参与。该项目的具体目标包括：a)提供支持，使学者能够在入学后四年内获得STEM学位，并在STEM技术岗位上进入劳动力市场，或进入STEM领域的研究生/专业学校；B)创建一个为期三周的夏季入学前浸入式研究项目，并检验其效果；c)评估项目并将结果传播给科学界。该项目的研究部分重点分析了入学前暑期研究经历对学生数学成绩和后续留校的影响，在文科和理科课程背景下的整体支持计划的效果，以及该项目在西班牙裔服务机构（也是一所私立大学）背景下的课程和课外活动的有效性。由于学院作为西班牙裔服务机构的地位和加州的人口统计数据，该项目具有进一步扩大和多样化STEM劳动力的潜力，特别是在以技术为中心的旧金山湾区。该项目由美国国家科学基金会科学、技术、工程和数学奖学金项目资助，旨在增加有经济需求的低收入学术天才学生在STEM领域获得学位的人数。它还旨在改善未来科学家、工程师和技术人员的教育，并为低收入学生提供有关学业成功、留校、转学、毕业和学术/职业道路的知识。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This project aims to contribute to the national need for well-educated scientists, mathematicians, engineers, and technicians. The project will provide four-year scholarships to twenty-four low-income, high-achieving STEM undergraduate students with demonstrated financial need at Saint Mary's College of California, a Hispanic-Serving Institution. The Scholars will pursue bachelor's degrees in biochemistry, chemistry, biology, mathematics, or physics. In the summer prior to their first semester in college, the Scholars will participate in a summer research program. In addition, the Scholars will live in the Science Living Learning Community, participate in a first-year advising cohort, and have access to a peer mentor. Tutoring services will be available in the STEM Center, which is located in the same building as the Science Living Learning Community. As they progress through their collegiate careers, the Scholars will have opportunities to take part in additional summer research programs and to receive funding to present their research at scientific conferences. As seniors, the Scholars will participate in the science career-readiness program developed through a previous NSF award. Because the College has a high population of underrepresented students, this project has the potential to broaden participation in STEM fields.The project's specific goals include: a) providing supports that will enable the Scholar's to graduate with STEM degrees within four years of matriculation and enter the workforce in skilled STEM positions or enroll in graduate/professional school in STEM fields; b) creating a three-week pre-enrollment summer immersion research program and examine its efficacy; and c) evaluating the project and disseminating the results to the scientific community. The project's research component emphasizes analysis of the impact of the pre-matriculation summer research experiences on the Scholar's math placement and subsequent retention, the effects of a holistic support program in the context of a liberal arts and sciences-based curriculum, and the effectiveness of the project's curricular and co-curricular activities in the context of a Hispanic-Serving Institution that is also a private college. Because of the status of the College as a Hispanic-Serving Institution and the demographics of California, this project has the potential to further expand and diversify the STEM workforce, particularly in the technology-centered San Francisco Bay Area. This project is funded by the NSF Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics program, which seeks to increase the number of low-income academically talented students with demonstrated financial need who earn degrees in STEM fields. It also aims to improve the education of future scientists, engineers, and technicians, and to generate knowledge about academic success, retention, transfer, graduation, and academic/career pathways of low-income students.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.