Educating Future Scientists and Mathematicians from Rural and Underserved Regions

该项目将通过支持德克萨斯理工大学有经济需要的高成就低收入学生的保留和毕业，为全国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做出贡献。该项目为期五年，将为38名攻读生物学、化学与生物化学、地球科学、数学与统计学或物理与天文学理学学士学位的学生提供四年奖学金。该项目旨在通过将留住STEM学生的最佳实践与农村社区的独特特点和优势相结合，提高农村地区STEM学生的留存率。该项目旨在重塑高等教育机构对农村社区责任的理解。它还计划提供学生成功的模式，这些模式可以移植到为这些重要社区服务的其他机构。由于德克萨斯理工大学是一所为西班牙裔服务的机构，该项目有可能扩大STEM劳动力的参与和增加多样性。该项目的总体目标是提高有经济需求的低收入、高成就本科生的STEM学位完成率。该项目侧重于开发一个以社区为基础的跨部门奖学金项目，以支持来自农村地区的学生。该项目旨在利用农村社区的优势，在数学和研究基础课程中加入农村经验的例子，并创建和支持针对农村问题的研究、服务学习和实习机会。项目的核心是案例研究，旨在捕捉身份的细微差别，包括种族、乡村性、对地方和社区的依恋，从而针对乡村性和高等教育相对被忽视的交叉点。一个植根于社会认知职业理论（SCCT）并以地点理论为基础的概念框架旨在深入了解农村人口结构的变化。项目评估将提供关于招聘策略和项目要素有效性的形成性反馈，以及项目满足保留和毕业目标的程度的总结性评估，并成功传播可转移的知识和策略。该项目由美国国家科学基金会的科学、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STEM工作者的教育，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 will contribute to the national need for well-educated scientists, mathematicians, engineers, and technicians by supporting the retention and graduation of high-achieving, low-income students with demonstrated financial need at Texas Tech University. Over its five-year duration, this project will fund four-year scholarships to 38 students who are pursuing Bachelor of Science degrees in biology, chemistry & biochemistry, geosciences, mathematics & statistics, or physics & astronomy. This project aims to improve retention of STEM students from rural areas by combining best practices for retention with the distinct features and strengths of the rural community. The project seeks to reshape understandings of the responsibilities of institutions of higher education with respect to rural communities. It also plans to provide models for student success that are transportable to other institutions serving these important communities. Because Texas Tech University is a Hispanic-serving Institution, this project has the potential to broaden participation and increase diversity in the STEM workforce. The overall goal of this project is to increase STEM degree completion of low-income, high-achieving undergraduates with demonstrated financial need. The project focuses on developing a community-based, cross-departmental scholarship program that supports students from rural areas. It seeks to leverage the strengths of rural communities through infusing foundational courses in mathematics and research with examples drawn from rural experiences as well as creating and supporting research, service-learning, and internship opportunities that are responsive to rural issues. At the center of the project are case studies designed to capture nuances of identity, including ethnicity, rurality, and attachment to place and community, thus targeting the relatively neglected intersection of rurality and higher education. A conceptual framework rooted in Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) and informed by Theory of Place is intended to create insights into the changing demographic of rurality. Project evaluation will provide formative feedback regarding the effectiveness of recruiting strategies and program elements as well as summative evaluation of the extent to which the project meets retention and graduation targets and successfully disseminates transferable knowledge and strategies. This project is funded by NSF's 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 STEM workers, 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.