Alternate Pathways to Excellence: Engineering a Transfer-Friendly Experience

实现卓越的替代途径：打造适合转学的体验

• 批准号: 2130042
• 负责人: Katherine Acton
• 金额: $ 150万
• 依托单位: University of St. Thomas
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2022
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2022-01-01 至 2027-12-31
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2130042&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Alternate; Pathways; Excellence; Engineering; Transfer

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 the University of St. Thomas (UST). Located in the Twin Cities, MN, UST is a designated "Military Friendly School" as well as a recognized "First-Gen Forward Institution" and is known for its high rates of retention (87%) and graduation in four years (68%). Over its six-year duration, this project will fund scholarships to 31 unique full-time students, including transfer students, who are pursuing bachelor’s degrees in civil, computer, electrical, or mechanical engineering. Low-income, academically talented engineering students who have demonstrated financial need will receive scholarships for up to three years. The Alternate Pathways to Excellence (APEX) project will increase the number of engineering transfer graduates by leveraging innovative mentoring practices, advancing engineering-focused diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts, and leveraging UST’s partnerships with five local community colleges. The project team also expects to build strong connections with local employers to help achieve the project's goals. Support activities for scholars will include a new summer bridge course, monthly seminars to boost skills, and faculty, peer, and industry mentoring. Through the APEX project, UST will accelerate the Engineering Department’s efforts to advance an inclusive culture by addressing structural limitations that are common in engineering program curriculum, teaching practices, and recruitment efforts. These strategies will have significance for engineering education broadly, and for supporting and retaining transfer students. As a result, the APEX project will produce diverse, well-qualified engineers who will meaningfully contribute to fueling innovation in the Twin Cities region. To increase STEM degree completion of low-income, high-achieving undergraduate transfer engineering students, including students traditionally underrepresented in their participation in STEM courses of study and first-generation students, the project leadership will pursue three specific aims. First is to partner with five community colleges to recruit transfer students. Second is to retain 90% of scholars each year and graduate 90% of all scholars within 3 years. Third is to support at least 95% of graduates to become employed in engineering or enrolled in a graduate degree program within 4 months of degree attainment. APEX is grounded in institutional research and knowledge from prior STEP awards, as well as an understanding of transfer students’ unique needs for retention support, including needs to identify scientific mentors and establish a sense of belonging. Community college engineering students have been shown to benefit from tailored academic and personal supports that address their unique challenges. However, more investigation is needed to understand how specific interventions such as mentoring, a summer bridge course, and enhanced internships or research can improve engineering transfer student retention. In addition, there is limited research on the extent to which diversity, equity, and inclusion programming for engineering faculty and students creates a scientific community that supports transfer student retention. UST will evaluate and advance understanding of the extent to which these targeted activities contribute to retaining transfer students. Results will be disseminated via the KEEN National Conference and website, ASEE’s two-year college division, and submissions to peer-reviewed publications such as the Journal of Engineering Education. This project is funded by NSF’s Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) 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.

该项目将有助于国家需要受过良好教育的科学家，数学家，工程师和技术人员，通过支持在托马斯大学（UST）的高成就，低收入学生的保留和毕业。位于双子城，明尼苏达州，UST是指定的“军事友好学校”以及公认的“第一代前进机构”，并以其高保留率（87%）和四年毕业率（68%）而闻名。在六年的时间里，该项目将为31名独特的全日制学生提供奖学金，包括转学生，他们正在攻读土木，计算机，电气或机械工程学士学位。低收入，学术上有才华的工程专业学生谁表现出经济需要将获得奖学金长达三年。卓越的替代途径（APEX）项目将通过利用创新的指导实践，推进以工程为重点的多样性，公平和包容性努力，以及利用UST与五所当地社区学院的合作伙伴关系，增加工程转移毕业生的数量。项目团队还希望与当地雇主建立牢固的联系，以帮助实现项目的目标。对学者的支持活动将包括一个新的夏桥课程，每月研讨会，以提高技能，教师，同行和行业指导。通过APEX项目，UST将加快工程系的努力，通过解决工程课程，教学实践和招聘工作中常见的结构性限制，推进包容性文化。这些策略将对工程教育的广泛意义，并支持和留住转学生。因此，APEX项目将培养出多样化、合格的工程师，他们将为双城地区的创新做出有意义的贡献。为了提高低收入，高成就的本科转学工程学生的STEM学位完成率，包括传统上在STEM学习课程和第一代学生中参与人数不足的学生，项目领导层将追求三个具体目标。首先是与五所社区学院合作招收转学生。二是每年留住90%的学者，三年内毕业90%的学者。第三是支持至少95%的毕业生在获得学位后4个月内从事工程或攻读研究生学位课程。APEX基于机构研究和以前STEP奖项的知识，以及对转学学生对保留支持的独特需求的理解，包括确定科学导师和建立归属感的需求。社区学院工程专业的学生已被证明受益于量身定制的学术和个人支持，以解决他们独特的挑战。然而，需要更多的调查，以了解具体的干预措施，如指导，夏桥课程，并加强实习或研究可以提高工程转学生的保留。此外，在何种程度上多样性，公平性和包容性编程工程教师和学生创造了一个科学的社区，支持转学生保留有限的研究。UST将评估和推进这些有针对性的活动在多大程度上有助于留住转学生的理解。结果将通过KEEN全国会议和网站，ASEE的两年制大学分部，以及提交给同行评审的出版物，如工程教育杂志传播。该项目由NSF的科学，技术，工程和数学奖学金（STEM）计划资助，该计划旨在增加低收入学术天才学生的数量，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，并提供有关低收入学生的学术成功、保留、转学、毕业和学术/职业途径的知识。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并且通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响力审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。