EAGER: Exploring impacts of scholarships, cross-institutional networks, and co-curricular activities on Navajo student and faculty leadership development

该项目将考察奖学金支持、参与各机构网络活动的机会、虚拟研讨会以及与同行和导师讨论影响幸福感和持久性的问题，以留住和培养地球科学、环境科学和相关STEM领域的学生、新近毕业的学生和教师的领导力。PIS将支持新墨西哥大学、纳瓦霍技术大学、餐饮学院和科学多样化领导中心(CDLS)之间的网络建设活动。该项目将支持一个新的教师研究员计划和早期职业研究员计划，参与者来自合作机构。学院研究员的领导力发展将包括承诺在这笔赠款的过程中使用更具包容性的教学和指导做法，这将支持纳瓦霍学生的留住。为了培养早期职业研究员的领导能力，专业人士将参与跨文化互动，发展指导网络，并通过CDL提供与来自多个机构的学生、新近毕业的学生和教职员工建立联系的机会。留住学生和培养领导力也将受益于多项活动：1)通过津贴为纳瓦霍技术大学和餐饮学院的学生和应届毕业生提供财政支持；2)计算津贴以支持笔记本电脑和宽带互联网接入以支持参与网络；3)有机会通过与同行和垂直导师的个人会议以及关于COVID、健康和福祉以及领导力的社区讨论来获得支持；4)有机会在每个参与机构参加与环境科学和其他绿色STEM领域有关的虚拟讲习班和研究及外联项目。该项目回应了历史上对诸如纳瓦霍民族等弱势群体造成不成比例影响的情况。这场流行病造成了纳瓦霍学生难以获得基本资源和教育资源的环境。这抑制了他们在地球科学、环境科学和其他STEM领域留住他们的能力，这些领域需要他们的不同视角和领导力。该项目将通过职业发展机会和资金来应对这些障碍，以直接支持纳瓦霍学生、新近毕业的学生和职业生涯早期的专业人员。PIS将专注于师资发展，以支持纳瓦霍学生留在STEM，同时希望通过体验式学习机会、财政支持和导师指导，在地球科学、绿色STEM和更广泛的STEM中提高土著学生的保留率。虚拟研讨会和以领导力为重点的谈话圈将有助于支持早期职业和教职员工成为地球科学和其他领域多样性的冠军。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势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 examine the impacts of scholarship support, opportunities to participate in network activities across institutions, virtual workshops, and discussion of issues impacting well-being and persistence with peers and mentors on retention and leadership development of students, recent graduates, and faculty in geoscience, environmental science, and related STEM fields. The PIs will support network building activities between the University of New Mexico, Navajo Technical University, Dine College, and the Center for Diverse Leadership in Science (CDLS). The project will support a new faculty fellows program and early career fellows program with participants from partnering institutions. Leadership development for faculty fellows will include committing to utilizing more inclusive teaching and mentoring practices over the course of this grant which would support Navajo student retention. To develop leadership capacity in early career fellows, the PIs will engage in cross-cultural interaction, develop a mentoring network, and provide opportunities for connection with students, recent graduates, and faculty from multiple institutions and through CDLS. Student retention and leadership development will also benefit from multiple activities: 1) Financial support via stipends for students and recent graduates from Navajo Technical University and Dine College, 2) Computing stipends to support laptops and broadband internet access for participation in the network, 3) Opportunities for support through individual meetings with peer and vertical mentors, and community talking circles on COVID, health and wellbeing, and leadership, and 4) Opportunities for participation in virtual workshops and research and outreach projects pertaining to environmental science and other green STEM fields at each of the participating institutions.This project responds to the COVID-19 historical conjuncture that has disproportionately impacted vulnerable populations such as the Navajo Nation. The pandemic created an environment where Navajo students have difficulty accessing essential as well as educational resources. This is inhibiting their ability to be retained in geoscience, environmental science, and other STEM fields where their diverse perspectives and leadership is needed. This project will counter these barriers with professional development opportunities and funding to directly support Navajo students, recent graduates, and early career professionals. The PIs will focus on faculty development that will support retention of Navajo students in STEM while simultaneously hoping to boost retention rates of indigenous students in geoscience, green STEM, and STEM more broadly, through experiential learning opportunities, financial support, and mentorship. The virtual workshops and leadership-focused talking circles will serve to support both early career and faculty fellows to become champions for diversity in geoscience and other fields.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.