STRONG-CT: Science and Technology Reaching Out to New Generations in Connecticut

这个STEP项目是曼彻斯特社区学院、Quinebaug Valley社区学院、Three Rivers社区学院和康涅狄格大学之间的合作，被称为“康涅狄格州新一代科学技术联盟”（STRONG-CT）。 该项目针对第一代大学生和历史上代表性不足的学生群体，以增加他们在生命科学领域的入学率、保留率和毕业率。我们选择这套学科是因为（1）在这些领域学习的第一代和历史上代表性不足的学生缺乏，（2）康涅狄格大学在这些领域的课程实力，（3）康涅狄格大学与这三所社区学院之间现有良好的衔接协议，（4）参与机构在“生物技术走廊”中的地理位置，“以及（5）这些方案与区域21世纪世纪就业机会的相关性。该项目的目标是第一代学生，其中许多是非洲裔美国人和拉丁美洲人/a，他们可能选择上社区学院作为接受高等教育的主要途径。从历史上看，这些学生接受高等教育的机会有限。中学后教育成本的上升，加上康涅狄格大学等竞争激烈的机构的入学竞争加剧，以及许多康涅狄格州高中缺乏大学预科课程，极大地限制了许多学生的教育机会。该项目通过汇集各机构的资源来应对这些挑战，以提供学术发展和领导力计划，重点是：（1）为核心科学和数学课程提供严格的个人和团体学术支持，（2）通过本科生研究机会倡议建立科学指导关系，（3）领导能力和增强认同的活动，以克服陈规定型观念和自卑等形式的心理挑战，以及（4）全面发展学生成为科学家的专业身份（通过指导、研究和实习经验）。该项目由一个由教师、主要利益相关者和一个由来自所有四所学校和全州各地的高级官员组成的执行监督委员会领导。多样化的学生团体是一个战略优先事项的所有成员机构在强CT联盟。通过集中精力提高第一代和历史上代表性不足的学生在这些社区学院参加科学课程的数量，然后鼓励他们转移到康涅狄格大学，学位产出将增加，因为-没有这个项目-他们不会在任何STEM领域学习。从长远来看，很明显，与社区大学合作伙伴合作是增加在这些领域完成学士学位的历史上服务不足的学生数量的关键下一步。这一建议的智力价值在于，它将来自一所主要的赠地大学及其邻近社区学院的各种各样的个人聚集在一起，以综合和强大的方式解决重大的招聘和保留问题。通过LSAMP计划在当地开发的实践正在扩展到社区学院，以最大限度地提高学生在生命科学领域的成功。这一举措的更广泛影响超出了招收更多的第一代和少数民族学生并使其毕业于选定的STEM学科。它正在改变参与机构的文化和做法，以更好地教育其所有学生。为了增加和整合两年制学院和四年制STEM机构之间的合作和衔接，这里开发的模型具有吸引力，因为预算原因，也因为它建立在参与机构的优势之上。

This STEP project is a collaboration between Manchester Community College, Quinebaug Valley Community College, Three Rivers Community College and the University of Connecticut, known as "The Science and Technology Reaching Out to A New Generation in Connecticut" Alliance (STRONG-CT). The project targets first generation college students and historically underrepresented student populations to increase their enrollment, retention and graduation in Life Sciences. We chose this set of disciplines because (1) there is a dearth of first-generation and historically underrepresented students studying in these areas, (2) the strength of the University of Connecticut programs in these fields, (3) existing good articulation agreements between the University of Connecticut and these three community colleges, (4) the geographic position of the participating institutions in the "biotechnology corridor," and (5) the relevance of these programs for regional 21st Century employment opportunities. This project targets first generation students, many of whom are African American and Latino/a, who may choose to go to community college as the primary way of accessing higher education. Historically, these students have limited access to higher education opportunities. Rising costs of post-secondary education, combined with increased competition for admissions to competitive institutions like the University of Connecticut, and deficient college preparatory curricula in many Connecticut high schools, dramatically constrict the educational opportunities for many of these students. This project addresses these challenges by pooling resources across institutions to offer an academic development and leadership program focusing on: (1) rigorous individual and group academic support for the core science and math courses, (2) mentoring relationships in the sciences through undergraduate research opportunity initiatives, (3) leadership and identity enhancement activities to overcome psychological challenges in the form of stereotyping and low self-esteem, and (4) overall development of students' professional identities of becoming scientists (through mentoring, research, and internship experiences). The project is being guided by a leadership team of faculty, key stakeholders, and an executive oversight committee of senior officers drawn from all four schools and around the state. Diversifying the student bodies is a strategic priority for all member institutions within the STRONG-CT Alliance. By focusing efforts on enhancing the number of first generation and historically underrepresented students taking science courses at these community colleges, and then encouraging their transfer to the University of Connecticut, degree output will be increased because -- lacking this program -- they would not be studying in any of the STEM fields. Long-term, it is clear that working with community college partners is a critical next step to increasing the numbers of historically underserved students who complete bachelor degrees in these areas. The intellectual merit of this proposal is that it pulls together a wide diversity of individuals from a major land grant university and its neighboring community colleges to address significant recruitment and retention problems in an integrated and powerful manner. Practices that have been developed locally through the LSAMP program are being extended to the community college setting to maximize student success in the life sciences. The broader impacts of this initiative go beyond the recruitment and graduation of additional first-generation and minority students to the selected STEM disciplines. It is changing the cultures and practices of the participating institutions to better educate all of their constituent students. The model developed here for increasing and integrating the collaboration and articulation between two-year colleges and four-year institutions in STEM is attractive for budgetary reasons and also because it builds on the strengths of the participating institutions.