Phase II: Lighting the Pathway to Faculty Careers for Natives in STEM

为了继续在全球经济中保持竞争力，美国必须利用其多样化的人才来推进科学知识和技术创新。该项目旨在增加STEM研究人员和教授的多样性。美国印第安人科学与工程学会（AISES）将继续2014年8月启动的“照亮道路”（LTP）计划，以增加美国印第安人、阿拉斯加原住民和夏威夷原住民在全国高校STEM教职岗位上的代表性。LTP项目全年提供指导、专业发展、社区和网络建设机会，包括面对面的和虚拟的，以促进LTP学生成功完成学位，进入下一个学术阶段，并坚持STEM学术职业道路。计划中的活动将加强本土文化认同，利用现有资源，并建立一个本土STEM学者和教师的网络。LTP项目通过将学生与当地同伴和导师以及更广泛的STEM社区联系起来，帮助他们克服社会和文化上的孤立感。评估部分将用于了解LTP计划的哪些关键要素最有效地留住STEM学生。评估将评估该计划对学者坚持STEM的影响。从评估中获得的知识可以为其他代表性不足的群体设计培训方案提供信息。本计划将招收主修生物科学、工程及/或地球科学的本地本科生、研究生及博士后。在5年的课程中，AISES将招收总共72名对学术事业感兴趣的学生。每组18名学生将参加为期两年的项目，并有可能继续留在项目中接受指导和职业指导。每个LTP学生将与一名高级教师导师相匹配，他将为学生的学术努力提供指导，并帮助他们导航STEM职业道路。LTP参与者将被鼓励在其研究领域的相关科学会议上展示他们的研究工作。学生和导师还将参加AISES全国会议，并有专门的一天专门讨论教师的职业发展。此外，LTP学生将通过网络研讨会获得专业发展和指导，协助申请奖学金，以及其他与STEM职业成功相关的活动。该项目将帮助本科生获得研究经验，提供领导力和其他专业技能的培训，帮助他们提升到下一个学术水平。这些发现将作为未来扩大规模项目的指南，也将为其他代表性不足的群体提供应用信息。该项目由生物科学局（BIO）、工程局（ENG）和地球科学局（GEO）支持。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。

To continue to remain competitive in the global economy, the U.S. must utilize its diverse talents to advance scientific knowledge and technological innovation. This project aims to increase the diversity of STEM researchers and professoriate. The American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) will continue the Lighting the Pathway (LTP) program, started in August 2014, to increase the representation of American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians in STEM faculty positions at colleges and universities across the country. The LTP program provides mentorship, professional development, community, and network-building opportunities year-round, both in-person and virtually, to facilitate LTP students successfully completing their degrees, advancing to the next academic stage, and persisting along the STEM academic career path. Planned activities will reinforce Native cultural identity, leverage existing resources, and create a network of Native STEM scholars and faculty. The LTP program helps scholars to overcome feelings of isolation both socially and culturally by connecting them with Native peers and mentors and with their broader STEM community. An evaluation component will be used to understand which critical elements of the LTP program are most effective in retaining students in STEM. The evaluation will assess the impact of the program on scholar persistence in STEM. Knowledge gained from this evaluation can inform the design of training programs for other underrepresented groups.The project will recruit Native undergraduate, graduate and postdoc students whose major field of study is in the biosciences, engineering and/or geosciences. Over the course of 5 years, AISES will recruit a total of 72 students with interest in a career in academia. Each cohort group of 18 students will engage in the program for a period of two years, with possibility of staying in the program for continued mentoring and career guidance. Each LTP student will be matched with a senior faculty mentor, who will provide guidance in the student's academic endeavors and help in navigating the STEM career path. LTP participants will be encouraged to present their research work at a relevant scientific conference in their field of study. Students and mentors will also attend the AISES National Conference with a specific day dedicated to faculty career development. Additionally, the LTP students will receive professional development and coaching through webinars, assistance with applying for fellowship, and other activities relevant to success in a STEM career. The program will assist undergraduate participants in securing research experiences, provide training in leadership and other professional skills that will help them advance to the next academic level. These findings will serve as a guide for future, expanded-scale projects and will also inform application to other underrepresented groups.This project is supported by the Directorates for Biological Sciences (BIO), Engineering (ENG) and Geosciences (GEO).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.