Increasing Undergraduate STEM Success through Scholarships and Support Services

该项目将有助于高能力的科学家，数学家，工程师和技术人员的国家需要，通过支持高成就，低收入的学生在盐湖社区学院（SLCC）证明经济需要。SLCC是犹他州最大，最多样化的大学，在多个校区和在线课程中为60，000多名学生提供服务。该项目的重点是支持学术上有才华，经济上有困难的学生寻求STEM学位，转入大学课程，或进入STEM劳动力。在五年的时间里，该项目将为91名生命科学、化学、计算机科学、工程、地球科学、数学和物理学学位课程的学生提供一年或两年的奖学金。 它还将提供为期一年的奖学金，使学生能够完成他们的STEM学位。 该项目将通过提供财政和其他支持和服务，对学者产生直接的积极效益。 它还将带来更长期的好处，使毕业生能够获得与STEM学位相关的更高工资。此外，雇用这些毕业生的公司将能够发展他们的业务，增加他们对当地经济的影响。该项目通过提供社会，学术和金融服务，建立在已知的学生完成学位的最佳实践基础上。通过增加STEM毕业生的数量谁是就业和转移机会的准备，该项目是直接与犹他州的经济增长和转型目标对齐.该项目的目标是增加低收入，高成就本科生在盐湖县完成STEM学位. SLCC将利用其与高中和大学合作伙伴的广泛关系网络，招募学生参加STEM课程。一个多学科甄选小组将审查申请并甄选参与者。奖学金计划将与现有的TRIO STEM学生支持服务计划密切合作，为学者提供服务，包括教师指导，重点咨询，本科研究和其他学术工作的机会，转学援助学士学位课程，职业安置服务和支持性社交网络。在五年内，SLCC将为56名新生提供为期两年的奖学金，以参加STEM学位课程。此外，该项目还将为大约35名接近完成但需要支持才能完成STEM学位的“接近完成者”提供为期一年的奖学金。该项目的预期成果是通过毕业、转入大学课程或进入STEM劳动力队伍来留住90%以上的参与者。该项目强调让SLCC学生参与高质量的本科研究项目，这些项目通常不存在于社区学院学生的经验中。这样的研究经验显然是一个高影响力的做法，激励学生继续和完成STEM学位。该项目将使用一个新的密集的写作经验，调查条件下，改善参与研究项目发生。这种方法的结果将促进对促进成功完成STEM的工作的理解。项目活动和成果将对所有提供STEM学位课程的学院产生重大影响。 因此，该项目将在专门从事本科STEM教育的同行评审期刊上传播其工作。该项目由NSF的科学，技术，工程和数学奖学金计划资助，该计划旨在增加低收入学术人才的数量，这些学生表现出经济需求，并获得STEM领域的学位。它还旨在改善未来STEM工作者的教育，并产生关于低收入学生的学术成功，保留，转移，毕业和学术/职业道路的知识。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力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 highly capable scientists, mathematicians, engineers, and technicians by supporting high-achieving, low-income students with demonstrated financial need at Salt Lake Community College (SLCC). SLCC is Utah's largest, most diverse college serving more than 60,000 students at multiple campuses and in online classes. This project focuses on supporting academically talented, economically challenged students seeking STEM degrees, transfer to university programs, or entry into the STEM workforce. Over its five-year duration, this project will provide one- or two-year scholarships to 91 students in Life Science, Chemistry, Computer Science, Engineering, Geoscience, Math, and Physics degree programs. It will also provide one-year scholarships to enable students to complete their STEM degrees. The project will have immediate positive benefits on Scholars by providing financial and other support and services. It will also have longer-term benefits, by enabling graduates to earn higher wages associated with STEM degree completion. In addition, companies that hire these graduates will be able to grow their businesses and increase their local economic impact. The project builds on known best practices for student degree completion by providing social, academic, and financial services. By increasing the number of STEM graduates who are ready for both employment and transfer opportunities, the project is directly aligned with Utah’s economic growth and transformation goals.The goal of this project is to increase STEM degree completion of low-income, high-achieving undergraduates in Salt Lake County. SLCC will draw on its extensive network of relationships with high schools and college partners to recruit students into STEM programs. A multi-disciplinary selection team will review applications and select participants. The scholarship program will work closely with the existing TRIO STEM Student Support Services program to provide Scholars with services, including faculty mentoring, focused advising, opportunities for undergraduate research and other scholarly work, transfer assistance to baccalaureate programs, career placement services, and a supportive social network. Over five years, SLCC will provide 56 incoming students with two-year scholarships to enroll in a STEM degree program. In addition, the project will provide one-year scholarships to approximately 35 “Near Completers” who are close to completion but need support to finish a STEM degree. The expected outcome of the project is to retain over 90% of participants though graduation, transfer to university programs, or entry into the STEM workforce. This project emphasizes involving SLCC students in high-quality undergraduate research projects that are typically absent from the experience of community college students. Such research experience is clearly demonstrated to be a high impact practice for motivating students to continue and complete STEM degrees. The project will use a novel intensive writing experience to investigate conditions under which improved participation in research projects occurs. The results of this approach will advance understanding about what works for promoting successful STEM completion. Project activities and outcomes will be of significant interest to all colleges offering STEM degree programs. As a result, the project will disseminate its work in peer-reviewed journals specializing in undergraduate STEM education. 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.