Improving Research and Technology Experiences of MVSU STEM Undergraduates

在美国国家科学基金会（NSF）通过传统黑人高校本科项目（HBCU-UP）的支持下，密西西比河谷州立大学（MVSU）将实施“改善科学、技术、工程和数学本科生的研究和技术经验”项目。该项目的总体目标是增加准备充分、训练有素的少数民族毕业生的生产，这些毕业生进入劳动力市场或攻读STEM学科的研究生。目标人群将是数学，计算机和信息科学（MCIS）和自然科学与环境健康（NSEH）部门的教师和学生。项目更广泛的影响：该项目将把重要的研究活动整合到STEM专业的教育中，这些专业可以与大型研究型大学的学生充分竞争。学生将参加会议和研究活动，通常不提供给密歇根州立大学的学生。该项目还将通过教师发展努力，显著加强密歇根州立大学的研究和教育基础设施，这是维持长期培养训练有素的少数族裔STEM毕业生的关键。该项目的成果将通过在国家和地方会议上的口头报告、研究期刊上的文章和网络分发来传播。项目的智力价值：该项目将解决包括微积分、化学和物理在内的看门人课程通过率低的问题。提高这一比率的策略包括：1)改革STEM学科的看门人课程，2)激励教师将研究融入STEM学科的教学，3)为一年级和二年级的STEM学生提供校内辅导，4)为教师发展和使用最新科学技术提供机会。该项目还将通过在线提供新的生物信息学专业来更新密歇根州立大学的STEM课程。

With the support of the National Science Foundation (NSF) through the Historically Black Colleges and Universities Undergraduate Program (HBCU-UP), Mississippi Valley State University (MVSU) will implement the project Improving Research and Technology Experiences of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Undergraduates. The overall goal of project is an increase in the production of well-prepared, competitively trained minority graduates who enter the workforce or pursue graduate studies in STEM disciplines. The target population will be faculty and students within the Departments of Mathematics, Computer and Information Sciences (MCIS) and Natural Science and Environmental Health (NSEH). Broader impact of project: The project will integrate significant research activities into the education of STEM majors who can adequately compete with students from large research universities. Students will participate in conferences and research activites that are not normally available to MVSU students. The project will also significantly enhance the infrastructure for research and education of MVSU through faculty development efforts, which are the key to sustaining the long-term production of highly trained minority STEM graduates. The results of the project will be disseminated through oral presentations at both national and local conferences, articles in research journals, and web distribution. Intellectual Merit of the project: The project will address the low pass rate of gatekeeper courses including calculus, chemistry and physics. Strategies to improve this rate include: 1) Reforming the gatekeeper courses for STEM disciplines, 2) Motivating faculty to integrate research into the teaching of STEM disciplines, 3) Providing in-school tutoring for 1st and 2nd year STEM students, and 4) Providing opportunities for faculty development and in the use of the latest scientific technology. The project will also update the MVSU STEM program offerings by helping to bring a new Bioinformatics major online.