Promoting Undergraduate Student Success in STEM through Scholarships, Research Experiences, Mentoring, and Career Development

该项目将通过支持成绩优异的低收入家庭学生在卡拉马祖学院毕业，满足国家对熟练科学家、数学家、工程师和技术人员的需求。该项目为期五年，将为攻读生物学、化学、计算机科学或物理学学士学位的20名全日制学生提供奖学金。学者将被招募和支持，每年两组，每组10名学生，并将获得长达四年的奖学金支持。除了获得奖学金外，奖学金获得者还将参加一个以证据为基础的课程和课外活动系统，包括专门为本项目开发的活动和其他以以前的努力为基础的活动。这些学生支持包括秋季入学指导、月度队列会议、实地考察、同伴指导、专注于学者个性化发展计划的教师指导、职业和专业发展、早期研究经历、研究津贴支持和对学者的校园认可。该项目的总体目标是提高有经济需求的低收入、优秀本科生的STEM学位完成率。具体目标包括：(1)以高于同行的比率增加STEM学科的学者保留率；(2)培养学者的归属感、科学认同感和社区参与意识；3)确保学者毕业时具备进入研究生课程或劳动力市场所需的知识和技能。此外，项目组将开展混合方法研究，探讨师徒对学者归属感、科学认同感和学位获得的影响。基于研究文献、国家报告和先前国家科学基金会支持的结果，本研究将采用部分混合并行主导地位设计来检验由个性化发展计划和文化响应方法指导的教师指导的有效性。将对项目改进和问责制进行全面评价。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 skilled scientists, mathematicians, engineers, and technicians by supporting the graduation of high-achieving, low-income students at Kalamazoo College. Over its five-year duration, the project will provide scholarships to 20 full-time students who are pursuing baccalaureate degrees in Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, or Physics. Scholars will be recruited and supported in two annual cohorts of ten students each and will receive up to four years of scholarship support. In addition to receiving scholarships, Scholars will be embedded in a system of evidence-based curricular and co-curricular activities, including activities developed specifically for this project and others that build upon previous efforts. These student supports include a fall orientation, monthly cohort meetings, field trips, peer mentorship, faculty mentorship focused on the Scholar's Individualized Development Plan, career and professional development, early research experiences, research stipend support, and campus recognition for the Scholars. The overall goal of the project is to increase STEM degree completion of low-income, high-achieving undergraduates with demonstrated financial need. The specific aims include: (1) increasing the retention of Scholars in STEM disciplines at a higher rate than peers; (2) fostering Scholars’ sense of belonging, science identity, and community engagement; and 3) ensuring that Scholars graduate with knowledge and skills needed to enter graduate programs or the workforce. In addition, the project team will conduct a mixed methods research study to investigate the effects of mentoring on Scholars’ sense of belonging, science identity, and degree attainment. Based on the research literature, national reports, and results from prior National Science Foundation support, this research will use partially mixed concurrent dominant status design to examine the effectiveness of faculty mentoring guided by Individualized Development Plans and a culturally responsive approach to mentoring. A comprehensive evaluation will be implemented for project improvement and accountability. 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.