S-STEM Collaborative Planning Grant: An accelerated 3+2 pathway to BS and MS degrees in Semiconductor Manufacturing and Quantum Science disciplines

这一合作规划项目的长期目标是通过支持特拉华大学(UD)和宾夕法尼亚西切斯特大学(WCU)证明有经济需求的高成就、低收入学生的留学和毕业，为国家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做出贡献。具体地说，合作机构将进行密集的规划工作，为未来的S-STEM轨道提案做准备，该提案以攻读与半导体制造和量子科学职业相关的学位的本科生和研究生为中心。这些都是美国未来经济竞争力的重要领域，这些领域对熟练劳动力的需求正在急剧增长。这个规划项目的具体目标是1)评估低收入目标学生群体的需求，2)设计一个满足这些需求的资助体系，3)调查监测这些资助的有效性的方法，以便能够不断改进，以及4)发展财政机制，以支持未来的学者群体。该项目将建立一个3+2计划，支持低收入学生在总共5年的时间里获得威斯康星大学的学士学位和密歇根大学的硕士学位。该项目的结构将大大减少获得研究生学位所需的时间和净成本，并将加快学生进入半导体制造和量子科学大军的速度。这一合作规划工作建立在威斯康星大学目前的国家科学基金S-STEM项目(奖项#2028230)的基础上，该项目正在支持18名本科生获得学士学位。WCU建立了一个招生网络，包括20所高中，为大费城地区以低收入为主的不同学生提供服务。新开发的3+2计划将专注于从WCU获得物理或化学学士学位并进入UD的四个硕士学位项目之一的学生：a)量子科学和工程，b)材料科学和工程，c)电气和计算机工程，或d)半导体器件制造。规划期内将开展的活动范围包括：1)调查高中生对职业道路的了解和兴趣；2)调查目前对威斯康星大学S-STEM学者的哪些支持应继续或调整，以在未来的Track 3提交中实施；3)调查研究生招生委员会用来缓解可能影响低收入申请者的任何偏见的因素；4)制定基于设计的实施研究计划，以研究和提高所有干预措施的有效性；5)开发一个新的半导体器件制造硕士学位课程；6)完成衔接协议；以及7)制定师资培训和准备协议。该项目由NSF的科学、技术、工程和数学奖学金项目资助，该项目旨在增加获得STEM领域学位的低收入、有学术天赋、有经济需求的学生的数量。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业成功、留住、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优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The long term goal of this collaborative planning project is to 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 Delaware (UD) and West Chester University of Pennsylvania (WCU). Specifically, the partnering institutions will conduct an intensive planning effort to prepare for a future Track 3 S-STEM proposal centered on undergraduate and graduate scholars pursuing degrees relevant to semiconductor manufacturing and quantum science careers. These are important fields for America’s future economic competitiveness and the demand for a skilled workforce in these areas is growing dramatically. The specific goals of this planning project, which includes the American Institute for Research (AIR), are to 1) assess the needs of the low-income target student population, 2) design a system of supports that will meet these needs, 3) investigate methods for monitoring the effectiveness of these supports so that continuous improvement can be made, and 4) develop the financial mechanisms to support future cohorts of scholars. The project will establish a 3+2 program that supports low-income students as they earn a BS from WCU and a Master’s degree from UD in a total of 5 years. The structure of the program will significantly reduce both the time and net cost required to earn a graduate degree and will accelerate students’ entry into the semiconductor manufacturing and quantum science workforce. This collaborative planning effort builds off WCU's current NSF S-STEM project (award #2028230), which is supporting 18 undergraduates in earning bachelor's degrees. WCU has developed a recruiting network including 20 high schools serving diverse, predominantly low-income students in the greater Philadelphia region. The newly developed 3+2 program will focus on students earning Physics or Chemistry bachelor's degrees from WCU and progressing into one of four master’s degree programs at UD: a) Quantum Science and Engineering, b) Materials Science and Engineering, c) Electrical and Computer Engineering, or d) Semiconductor Device Manufacturing. The scope of activities to be conducted during the planning period include: 1) investigating high school students' knowledge of and interest in career paths; 2) investigating which supports currently in place for WCU S-STEM scholars should be continued or adjusted for implementation in the future Track 3 submission; 3) investigating the factors used by graduate admission committees to mitigate any biases that might impact low-income applicants; 4) developing a design-based implementation research plan to study and improve the effectiveness of all interventions; 5) developing a new master’s degree program in Semiconductor Device Manufacturing; 6) completing articulation agreements; and 7) developing faculty training and preparation protocols. 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.