Supporting Talent with Aligned Resources for STEM Students

该项目将有助于对受过良好教育的科学家，数学家，工程师和技术人员的国家需求，通过支持高成就，低收入学生的保留和毕业，证明在萨利希库特奈学院，蒙大拿大学，蒙大拿理工大学和黑脚社区学院的经济需要。Salish Kootenai学院和Blackfeet社区学院都是部落学院。在为期六年的时间里，该项目将为105名正在攻读生物和生物医学科学，数学和统计学，物理科学，工程，计算机和信息科学，和/或自然资源和保护的副学士和/或学士学位的全日制STEM学生提供奖学金。学士学位课程的一年级学生将获得四年奖学金，而转学生和副学士学位课程的一年级学生将获得两年奖学金。该项目的学生将获得各种各样的支持，例如STEM教职员工和同行的个人指导，以及每月与来自所有四所机构的学生一起的专业发展机会。该计划的一个独特之处是四个机构之间的合作。公共研究机构和部落学院之间的这种伙伴关系将促进双向分享指导，包容性教学和学生支持的最佳做法。该合作伙伴关系还将为学生提供与该州其他三所机构的同行和教职员工接触的机会。该项目的总体目标是提高低收入、高成就、有经济需求的本科生的STEM学位完成率。该项目的目的是提高每个学生群体的第一年保留率和毕业率，改善毕业后向STEM职业或进一步高等教育的过渡，并推进有关影响学术途径沿着发展的问题和因素的知识。蒙大拿州面临着中学后的持久性挑战，其最大的两个人口群体：美洲原住民和来自极端农村地区的个人。每个群体都面临着独特的持久性挑战，但有一些共性（例如，与家庭/土地的紧密联系、文化冲击、陈规定型观念）。具有积极STEM身份的学生在学术上表现更好，更有可能坚持获得学位并留在STEM领域。然而，基于STEM的身份可能与个人身份发生冲突，特别是对于来自边缘化社区的学生。该项目将增加对如何发展综合身份的理解，将STEM身份和个人/文化身份结合起来。为了解决综合身份的问题，社会科学研究小组将使用混合方法设计。调查结果将被合成为文化协调，基于地方的知识，这是有用的教学，指导和STEM计划在部落和非部落学院和大学的政策。该项目将通过地方和社区会议、在区域和国家活动中的介绍以及在相关期刊上的出版物，向适当的利益攸关方传播研究成果、成功经验和教训。这些传播活动将酌情在每个校园和社区内进行（例如部落理事会会议、社区论坛以及为通讯、网站和其他场所撰稿）。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 well-educated scientists, mathematicians, engineers, and technicians by supporting the retention and graduation of high-achieving, low-income students with demonstrated financial need at Salish Kootenai College, University of Montana, Montana Technological University, and Blackfeet Community College. Salish Kootenai College and Blackfeet Community College are both Tribal Colleges. Over its six-year duration, this project will fund scholarships to 105 unique full-time STEM students who are pursuing associate and/or bachelor degrees in Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Mathematics and Statistics, Physical Sciences, Engineering, Computer and Information Sciences, and/or Natural Resources and Conservation. First-year students in Bachelor degree programs will receive four-year scholarships while transfer students and first-year students in Associate degree programs will receive two-year scholarships. Students in the project will have access to a wide variety of supports such as individual mentoring from STEM faculty members and peers and monthly professional development opportunities with students from all four institutions. One of the unique features of the program is the collaboration between four institutions. This increased partnership between public research institutions and Tribal Colleges will facilitate a bidirectional sharing of best practices for mentoring, inclusive instruction, and student support. The partnership will also provide students with access to peers and faculty members at three other institutions within the state.The overall goal of this project is to increase STEM degree completion of low-income, high-achieving undergraduates with demonstrated financial need. The aims of this project are to increase the first-year retention and graduation rates for each student cohort, improve transition after graduation to either a STEM career or further higher education, and advance knowledge about issues and factors impacting advancement along the academic pathway. Montana faces post-secondary persistence challenges with two of its largest population groups: Native Americans and individuals from extremely rural areas. Each group faces unique persistence challenges, with some commonalities (e.g., strong ties to family/land, culture shock, stereotypes). Students with positive STEM-based identities perform better academically and are more likely to persist to earn a degree and stay in a STEM field. However, STEM-based identities can clash with personal identities, especially for students from marginalized communities. This project will add understanding in how to develop integrated identities that incorporate STEM identities and personal/cultural identities. To address the question of integrated identities, the social science research team will use a mixed-methods design. Findings will be synthesized into culturally-attuned, place-based knowledge that is useful for teaching, mentorship, and policy in STEM programs at Tribal and non-Tribal Colleges and Universities. This project will disseminate research findings, successes, and lessons learned to appropriate stakeholders via local and community meetings, presentations at regional and national events, and publications in relevant journals. These dissemination activities will take place on each campus and within communities as appropriate (e.g. Tribal Council meetings, community forums, and contribution to newsletters, websites, and other venues). 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.