Supporting Student Success in Associate Degrees that Prepare Students for Transfer to Baccalaureate Science and Mathematics Degree Programs

该项目将通过支持在海岸社区学院（一所开放的社区学院）保留和毕业表现出经济需要的成绩优异的低收入家庭学生，从而满足全国对受过良好教育的科学家、数学家、工程师和技术人员的需求。在为期六年的时间里，该项目将为75名攻读副学士学位的全日制学生提供奖学金，这些学生将为转入生物、地质、数学和物理四年制课程做准备。一年级学生将获得长达两年半的奖学金，并获得支持，以最大限度地提高他们的成功。这个项目的首要目标是建立和评估一个有凝聚力的科学社区的影响，建立学生的支持。这个支持社区将包括敬业的学生、教师和当地专业人士。有针对性的支持旨在提高留校率、毕业率和学生的成功，以满足低收入学生的学术和社会需求。重点将是帮助学生建立和利用他们的信心和动力。学术支持服务、教师和行业导师、基于工作的学习机会和补充指导的整合，旨在促进从社区大学到STEM四年制学位课程和职业的过渡，从而扩大STEM的参与度。研究结果将通过会议报告和期刊文章出版物传播。该项目提供了一个独特的机会，为促进社区大学STEM学位课程中学生成功、公平和多样性的方法的高等教育研究做出贡献。学费和较长的学位完成时间是低收入学生的典型障碍，特别是在STEM学位完成方面。因此，财政奖学金将帮助海岸线社区学院招收和支持更广泛的低收入、代表性不足、学术上有前途的学生，抵消大学入学费用。该项目的目标包括招收和支持低收入、有学术天赋的学生，通过以下方式转学：1)奖学金支持；2)学术支持，包括STEM课程的补充教师；3)使用通过学术指导和学生学者共同制定的个性化学术计划；4)基于探究的学习和研究机会，从而提高学生在STEM领域的成功率、辍学率、毕业率、转学率和就业率。一个明确的评估计划将检验社区支持对社区大学生完成副学士学位的信心和动机的影响。研究结果将在其他地区社区学院传播，并通过关注中学后S-STEM学生成功的出版物和报告在期刊上传播。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 well-educated scientists, mathematicians, engineers, and technicians by supporting the retention and graduation of high-achieving, low-income students with demonstrated financial need at Coast Community College, an open-access community college. Over its six-year duration, this project will fund scholarships to 75 unique full-time students who are pursuing associate’s degrees designed to prepare students for transfer into Biology, Geology, Mathematics, and Physics four-year programs. First-year students will receive up to two and a half years of scholarships, along with support to maximize their success. The over-arching goal of this project is to build and evaluate the effects of a cohesive scientific community that establishes student support. This community of support will include dedicated students, faculty, and local professionals. Targeted support designed to increase retention, graduation rates, and student success will be tailored to meet the academic and social needs of low-income students. Focus will be on helping students to build and leverage their confidence and motivation. Integration of academic support services, faculty and industry mentors, work-based learning opportunities, and supplemental instruction has been designed to facilitate transition from community college into STEM four-year degree programs and careers, thus broadening participation in STEM. Findings will be disseminated via conference presentations and journal article publications. This project provides a unique opportunity to contribute to the body of higher education research regarding methods that promote student success, equity, and diversity in STEM degree programs at the community college level.Tuition and longer time to degree completion are typical barriers for low-income students, particularly with regard to STEM degree completion. As such, financial scholarships will help Coastline Community College to recruit and support a broader group of low-income, underrepresented, academically promising students by offsetting the cost of college attendance. Goals of this project include recruiting and supporting low-income, academically talented students in Coastline’s Associate Science Degree for Transfers through 1) scholarship support; 2) academic support, including supplemental instructors in STEM courses; 3) use of individualized academic plans crafted jointly through academic advising and with student scholars; and 4) inquiry-based learning and research opportunities that lead to increased student success, fall-to-fall retention, graduation, transfer, and employment rates in the STEM fields. A clear evaluation plan will examine the impact of community support on community college student confidence and motivation in associate degree completion. Findings will be disseminated across other regional community colleges, as well as through publications and presentations in journals focused on post-secondary S-STEM student success. 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 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.