Creating HSI Opportunities for Research and Undergraduate Support

在不断改进的本科生STEM教育：拉美裔服务机构(HSI计划)的支持下，该Track 2项目旨在增加STEM专业有色人种首次学生的招生，提高STEM专业学生的毅力，并提高学生在西山学院科林加(West Hills College Coalinga)想象自己为STEM专业人员的能力，这是一所位于加利福尼亚州中央山谷的两年制农村社区学院。与STEM学科相关的学术严谨可能令人望而生畏，影响有色人种学生宣布STEM专业的可能性，并影响他们的留存。为了为对STEM感兴趣的学生创造顺畅的平台，支持保留STEM专业的系统，并培养学生作为STEM专业人员的认同感，创建STEM研究机会和本科生支持(CHOUU)项目整合了各种机制，如为首次学习STEM专业的学生提供点对点指导，专业STEM演讲者，以及STEM教员指导的研究活动，最终形成一年一度的虚拟研讨会，集中介绍全年进行的学生研究。合唱项目将通过举办焦点小组来表彰学生的声音，以确定整合到合唱项目中的对个人有意义和影响的做法。就其更广泛的影响而言，合唱项目将展示农村社区学院在培养STEM专业、改善转学准备以及为学生在STEM职业生涯中取得成功做好准备方面所发挥的作用。创造HSI研究和本科生支持机会(CHALUS)项目将考察该项目对STEM学生招生、保留和完成的影响，以及对加州中央山谷一所两年制社区学院学生STEM认同感的影响。中心研究问题是：参与早期STEM活动在多大程度上改变了拉丁裔学生对STEM的兴趣、招生、坚持和身份认同？该项目旨在调查STEM身份认同的文化响应实践的有效性，包括基于同行力量的指导、与STEM专业人员的联系以及参与教师指导的本科生研究。本研究采用准实验设计，比较合唱团和非合唱团学生的STEM身份认同和STEM动机。调查结果将揭示本科生研究和同伴辅导对STEM专业招生、留住和完成学业的影响，目的是在期刊出版物和会议报告中分享结果。HSI计划旨在加强本科生STEM教育，扩大STEM的参与，并建设HSIS的能力。鉴于高等教育机构的不同性质和背景，实现这些目标需要创新的方法，以激励机构和社区的变革，并促进基础研究(I)关于学生参与式学习，(Ii)关于如何有效地多样化和增加对STEM的参与，以及(Iii)提高我们对如何建设高等教育机构能力的理解。HSI计划支持的项目也将从这些方法中获得如何实现这些目标的新知识。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。

With support from the Improving Undergraduate STEM Education: Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSI Program), this Track 2 project aims to increase recruitment of first-time students of color in STEM-majors, increase fall-to-fall persistence of STEM-majors, and elevate student’s ability to envision themselves as STEM professionals at West Hills College Coalinga, a 2-year rural community college in California’s Central Valley. The academic rigor associated with STEM-disciplines can be intimidating and impacts the likelihood of a student of color declaring a STEM-major and affects their retention. To create smooth onramps for students interested in STEM, support systems for retaining STEM-majors, and cultivate students sense of identity as a STEM professional, the Creating HSI Opportunities for Research and Undergraduate Support (CHORUS) project integrates mechanisms such as peer-to-peer mentoring for first-time STEM-majors, professional STEM speakers of color, and STEM-faculty guided research activities that culminate in an annual Virtual Symposium spotlighting students research conducted throughout the year. The CHORUS project will honor the student voice by holding focus groups to identify practices integrated into the CHORUS project that are personally meaningful and impactful. In terms of its broader impact, the CHORUS project will demonstrate the role rural community colleges play in nurturing STEM-majors, improving transfer readiness, and preparing students for success in STEM careers.The Creating HSI Opportunities for Research and Undergraduate Support (CHORUS) project will examine the impacts of the project on STEM student enrollment, retention, and completion and the effect on students’ STEM identity at a 2-year community college in California’s Central Valley. The central research question is: To what degree does participation in early STEM activities lead to changes in STEM interest, recruitment, persistence, and identity in Latinx students? The project seeks to investigate the efficacy of culturally responsive practices on STEM identity including, peer-to-peer strength-based mentoring, connections with STEM professionals of color, and engagement in faculty-guided undergraduate research. Using a quasi-experimental design, the investigation will compare CHORUS and non-CHORUS students on STEM Identity and STEM motivation. The findings from the investigation will reveal the impact of undergraduate research and peer mentoring on enrollment, retention, and completion of STEM-majors with the intention to share the outcomes in journal publications and conference presentations. The HSI Program aims to enhance undergraduate STEM education, broaden participation in STEM, and build capacity at HSIs. Achieving these aims, given the diverse nature and context of the HSIs, requires innovative approaches that incentivize institutional and community transformation and promote fundamental research (i) on engaged student learning, (ii) about what it takes to diversify and increase participation in STEM effectively, and (iii) that improves our understanding of how to build institutional capacity at HSIs. Projects supported by the HSI Program will also draw from these approaches to generate new knowledge on how to achieve these aims.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.