Collaborative Research: Improving Upper Division Physics Education and Strengthening Student Research Opportunities at 14 HSIs in California

在改善本科STEM教育：西班牙裔服务机构（HSI计划）的支持下，该第二轨道项目旨在改善14所加州HSI机构的高年级物理教育和研究，其中包括11所加州州立大学（CSU）校区和3所加州社区学院。科罗拉多州立大学是全国最大的公立大学系统，拥有23个校区，约有49万名学生，其中第一代大学生和来自未被充分代表的少数民族（URM）群体的学生占学生总数的50%以上。该项目包括的11个科罗拉多州立大学校区约占科罗拉多州立大学学生总数的55%。这些HSI机构的物理专业的高年级选修课程和研究机会非常有限，这严重影响了他们的毕业率，限制了他们的职业选择和发展。用于实验粒子物理研究的对撞机只存在于国际和国内，实验粒子物理研究通常只存在于国家实验室和R1大学。很少有科罗拉多州立大学有实验粒子物理学的课程。本项目围绕CERN大型强子对撞机（LHC）的ATLAS（环形LHC设备）实验的CSU Fresno项目展开。ATLAS是粒子物理学领域的一个领先项目，准备解决粒子物理学领域的一些最深奥的问题，这些问题的答案可能会改变我们对宇宙如何运作的看法。该项目将为来自14个HSI机构的学生提供特殊的ATLAS研究机会。作为该项目一部分开发的三门在线粒子物理课程将影响300多名学生，并为48名学生提供在夏季最高质量的研究环境中从事尖端ATLAS研究项目的机会。参与研究的学生将推动粒子物理领域的发展，并为ATLAS数据分析和其他ATLAS活动做出贡献。ATLAS的研究经历将为贫困群体的学生创造一条在STEM领域脱颖而出的途径。在线课程和暑期研究课程将满足高年级选修课程的毕业要求。教育研究和独立的外部评估组成部分将使该项目能够对示范模式进行系统研究，从而通过有效地集中和共享资源来改善HSI机构的STEM教育。这个项目的重点是URM和CSU的第一代学生，促进了STEM的多样性。通过科罗拉多州立大学弗雷斯诺分校的PHYS 168S（“物理拓展”）课程，参加PHYS 168S课程的ATLAS学生每周将参观两个新的K-12教室，向K-12学生讲授ATLAS，并指导他们追求科学。拟议的推广工作将涉及弗雷斯诺和中央山谷地区的几所学校、学生和学生家庭。本项目由科学与技术研究所资助，旨在加强科学与技术研究所的本科教育，扩大科学与技术研究所的参与，并加强科学与技术研究所的能力建设。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。

With support from the Improving Undergraduate STEM Education: Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSI Program), this Track 2 project aims to improve upper division physics education and research at 14 California HSI institutions, including 11 California State University (CSU) campuses and three California Community Colleges. CSU is the largest public university system in the country with 23 campuses and approximately 490,000 students with first-generation college students and students from underrepresented minority (URM) groups making up over 50% of the student body. The 11 CSU campuses included in this project represent approximately 55% of the total CSU student population. Physics majors at these HSI institutions have very limited upper division elective courses and research opportunities which seriously hurt their graduation rates and limit their career choices and developments. Colliders for experimental particle physics research only exist in international and national and experimental particle physics research typically only exists in national labs and R1 universities. Very few CSU campuses have programs in experimental particle physics. This project is centered around the CSU Fresno program on the ATLAS (A Toroidal LHC ApparatuS) experiment of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN. ATLAS is a leading project in particle physics and is poised to address some of the deepest questions in the field of particle physics, the answers to which could change our view of how the universe works. This project will provide exceptional ATLAS research opportunities to students from the 14 HSI institutions. The three online particle physics courses developed as part of this project will impact over 300 students and provide opportunities for 48 students to work on cutting-edge ATLAS research projects in the highest quality research environment during summers. The research conducted by the participating students will advance the field of particle physics and contribute to the ATLAS data analyses and other ATLAS activities. The ATLAS research experience will create a pathway for students from underprivileged groups to excel in STEM fields. The online courses and summer research course will fulfill the upper division elective course graduation requirements. The education research and independent external evaluation components will allow the project to carry out a systematic study of an exemplary model to improve STEM education at HSI institutions by effectively pooling and sharing resources.This project’s focus on URM and first-generation CSU students promotes diversity in STEM. Through the CSU Fresno PHYS 168S (“Physics Outreach”) course, the ATLAS students in PHYS 168S will visit two new K-12 classrooms each week to teach K-12 students about the ATLAS and them to pursue science. The proposed outreach efforts will reach several schools, their students and students’ families in the Fresno and Central Valley areas. This project is funded by the HSI Program, which aims to enhance undergraduate STEM education, broaden participation in STEM, and build capacity at HSIs.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.